The versatile VR tracker will be available for purchase in early 2022 for $129.99.
During CES this week, HTC officially revealed the VIVE Wrist Tracker, a lightweight VR tracking device designed specifically for the VIVE Focus 3, the company’s latest all-in-one standalone VR headset. The device can be worn on the user’s wrist, delivering accurate tracking from the fingertips to the elbow, or mounted directly onto various props, allowing you to turn everyday objects into interactive VR peripherals.
The Wrist Tracker features several LEDs which are tracked by the Vive Focus 3’s onboard cameras, offering 6DoF standalone tracking without the need of external sensors. The device can even predict your pose when the tracker is out of range of the Focus 3 using high-frequency IMU data combined with an advanced kinematic model. In order to keep things simple, HTC went with a one-button pairing system which allows for easy wireless connectivity with the Focus 3.
The Wrist Tacker is 85% smaller and 53% lighter than the VIVE Focus 3 controller. The device offers up to 4 hours of continued use and can be charged using a standard USB-C cable. As previously mentioned, the Wrist Tracker can also be used as an object tracker. In their official announcement, HTC demonstrated how the trackers can be used to bring objects such as a wrench, ping pong paddle, and toy gun into VR.
“Integrating VIVE Wrist Trackers with VIVE Focus 3 is such a game changer and enables immersive kinesthetic and tactile experiences in a natural way. VIVE Wrist Trackers enable a deeper learning element, which means that you retain more and ultimately have a better learning outcome, without the risk of harm or exposure to the hazard,” said James Mullins, Founder and CTO of FLAIM Systems, in an official release.
“We’ve already seen how kinesthetic learning improves focus and attention on learning the task, and VIVE Wrist Trackers makes VR training even more natural and immersive for organizations that want to improve training frequency and throughput per session.”
“When it comes to virtual reality training, few things are more important than creating a seamless and immersive user experience. That’s why we’re so excited to incorporate HTC VIVE’s Wrist Tracker into Axon’s latest training platform. The VIVE Wrist Tracker makes VR training more seamless, more immersive, and thus more effective,” added Rick Smith, CEO of AXON.
“Axon was a key development partner for the VIVE Wrist Tracker from concept to prototype to production. The VIVE Wrist Tracker is key for enabling the most accurate tracking of objects that an officer is holding like a TASER device, beyond the capabilities of Hand Tracking alone. This is an amazing development for de-escalation training which relies on handheld objects.”
In addition to the VIVE Wrist Tracker, HTC this week confirmed a new partnership with Lumen Technologies to bring portable, private 5G experiences to the Focus 3. The company also announced new collaborations with XRHealth and MyndVR to enhance the headsets care and treatment capabilities as well as several software updates for the Focus 3.
“As the metaverse builds momentum, providing virtual treatment rooms will be paramount,” says Eran Orr, CEO of XRHealth. “Providing virtual treatment for patients is going to enhance all clinician practices by offering the most innovative solutions to anyone, anywhere.”
For more information on this weeks announcements visit here.
Feature Image Credit: HTC
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