Sony patents VR headset cameras that track controllers from below
Sony describes a VR headset design with cameras placed on the lower front edge to look down at hand-held controllers. These cameras, along with others on the front, track the controller's position and the headset's movement in the room to update the game display.
In the filing’s own words
Systems and methods for determining movement of a hand-held controller (HHC) with respect to a head-mounted display (HMD) are described. A camera is located at a lower region of the HMD for capturing images of the HHC. The images of the HHC are used to determine a position and an orientation of the HHC with reference to the HMD. Also, the camera or another camera can be used to determine a position and orientation of the HMD with respect to a real-world environment. The position and orientation of the HMD and the position and orientation of the HHC are used to change to state of an application executed on a game cloud.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. A head-mounted display (HMD) comprising: a front region located adjacent to a top surface; a lower region located adjacent to the front region, the lower region having a first camera, wherein the first camera has a first field-of-view (FOV) directed downward from the HMD and is configured to capture a first plurality of images of a hand-held controller (HHC) when the HHC is within the first FOV; wherein the front region includes a second camera having a second FOV different from the first FOV, wherein the second camera is configured to capture a second plurality of images of the HHC when the HHC is within the second FOV; wherein the first plurality of images and the second plurality of images comprise images of a real-world environment surrounding the HMD, wherein a determination of a position and movement of the HMD within the real-world environment is made based on at least one of: (i) the first plurality of images and (ii) the second plurality of images, wherein a determination of an orientation of the HHC with reference to the HMD is made based on at least one of (i) the first plurality of images or (ii) the second plurality of images, and wherein the HMD is configured to display a plurality of image scenes having content generated by execution of an application in accordance with (i) the position and movement of the HMD, and (ii) the orientation of the HHC with reference to the HMD.
Facts
- Company
- Sony (Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.)
- Official title
- Systems and Methods for Determining Movement of a Controller With Respect to an HMD
- Publication number
- US20260310286A1
- Application number
- 19710163
- Filed
- Jun 16, 2026
- Published
- Oct 8, 2026
- Inventors
- 2
- Claims
- 22
Classified under
G06F 3/011 Physics & computingG01C 19/5783 Physics & computingG06T 7/70 Physics & computingG01B 5/004 Physics & computingG01P 13/00 Physics & computingMore from Sony in AR, VR & displays
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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.