An Apple patent published today revealed the designs for finger sensors that can be mounted on a “mixed reality” headset for storage and charging, reported via Patently Apple.
Today the US Patent & Trademark Office published a patent from Apple that illustrates that they’re also working towards a future headset that may use fingertip sensor devices that will provide accurate hand feedback allowing users to work with content.
Apple continues to investigate methods of Augmented Reality experiences for users and making a better virtual experience as well. Two separate new patents attempt to make wearing VR/AR technology less cumbersome and much useful.
“The finger devices will provide users with haptics and the ability to feel objects in a VR environment interact with virtual or real objects in the user’s view such as a HomePod, MacBook, TV or Home automation device like a thermostat and so forth.” – Patently Apple
The finger-mounted units may each have a body. The body serves as a support structure for components such as force sensors, accelerometers, and other sensors and for haptic output devices. During operation, a user may wear the finger-mounted units on the tips of the user’s fingers while interacting with external objects.
Alongside some kind of virtual reality device to allow users to provide different inputs, these certainly look like sensors that could be used. The patent covers many different types of sensors so that the finger units could include microphones, touch/proximity sensors, ultrasonic, optical sensors, accelerometers, muscle activity sensors, and more.
