MEMS Sensors

TDK announces new Chirp SonicTrack™ inside-out 6-DoF ultrasonic controller tracking solution for all-in-one VR

• Chirp’s tiny “sonar on a silicon chip” enables ultra-wide field-of-view, inside-out controller tracking for mobile VR/AR at 1/1000 power of other solutions
• First VR system to use Chirp SonicTrack tracking solution is the developer kit of HTC’s VIVE Focus all-in-one VR system

January 8, 2019

TDK Corporation (TSE: 6762) expands its Chirp Microsystems ultrasonic product portfolio with Chirp SonicTrack™, an ultrasonic six-degree-of-freedom (6-DoF) controller tracking solution for all-in-one (AIO) virtual reality (VR) systems. Chirp SonicTrack is an inside-out tracking system that fuses ultrasonic and inertial sensor data to provide 6-DoF position and orientation tracking of a hand-held controller with sub-millimeter precision over a field of view (FoV) of over 240 degrees. The first VR system to use the SonicTrack tracking solution is the developer kit of HTC’s Vive Focus all-in-one VR system, where Chirp-enabled 6-DoF controllers allow users to experience immersive VR content with a standalone headset.

Powered by Chirp’s tiny, ultra-low power ultrasonic transceiver product, the CH-101, Chirp SonicTrack is the only inside-out tracking solution on the market today based on true 3D position information. The position tracking system utilizes sonar by transmitting ultrasonic pulses between CH-101 sensors inside the VR system’s head-mounted display (HMD) and the hand-held controllers, providing 3D position information of the controllers relative to the HMD. Competing camera-based solutions have only 2D image data, requiring computation-intensive image processing from multiple cameras to estimate 3D position information. Chirp’s true 3D ultrasonic sensing advantage results in a solution that is much lower power and better optimized for the mobile processors used in all-in-one VR/AR/XR systems. The CH-101’s omnidirectional response makes it easy to track controllers over an extremely wide field of view – another advantage over camera-based systems.

“Chirp has solved the industry-wide problem of 6-DoF controller tracking for mobile VR systems,” said Michelle Kiang, CEO and co-founder, Chirp Microsystems. “Unlike camera-based computer vision systems, ultrasonic tracking is computationally light. The ultrasonic tracking system also offers ultralow power consumption as the power required is only a few milliwatts – about a hundred times less than an optical tracking system. It allows us to offer an incredibly wide field-of-view so that the HMD never loses track of the controllers as the user moves around. These features make our tracking solution ideal for mobile VR and AR systems where system cost, heat dissipation and short battery life are killer problems. We couldn’t think of a better platform for our tracking technology than HTC’s VIVE Focus, which is the most capable all-in-one VR system on the market today.”

“At Vive, we are constantly striving to push the limits of what is possible within VR hardware and software to offer a premium experience for our customers,”  said Adrian Tung, Senior Vice President of HTC. “Through Chirp’s SonicTrack technology, we are able to quickly upgrade our Vive Focus Developer kits to support 6-DoF control input. This makes it easier for developers and businesses to implement intuitive controls, and also greatly expands the potential content library for Focus.”

Chirp SonicTrack is designed to enable VR system providers to introduce their own 6-DoF controllers with fast time-to-market. Chirp supplies a hardware reference design and the complete software stack, including a state-of-the-art sensor fusion software library. Relative to a 3-DoF controller design, a Chirp SonicTrack 6-DoF controller requires only the addition of CH-101 ultrasonic sensors. The small size of these sensors gives customers flexible industrial design options for VR controllers and HMDs. The Chirp SonicTrack sensor fusion software library uses minimal processor resources and is ready for use on Qualcomm Snapdragon and other mobile processors.

Chirp Microsystems, a TDK group company, will showcase the Chirp SonicTrack platform, along with a comprehensive portfolio of sensors, electronic components and solutions for mobile, wearables, AR/VR, automotive, IoT and industrial applications at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada this January 8 – 11, 2019. See the exhibition in LVCC, South Hall 3, Booth #30306. Please visit: www.chirpmicro.com or contact Chirp Sales at sales@chirpmicro.com for more information.

Glossary

• 6-DoF: 6 Degrees of Freedom
• 3D: 3 dimensional
• FoV: Field of View
• AR/VR: Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality
• XR: Extended Reality
• Ultrasonic: Utilizing, produced by, or relating to ultrasonic waves or vibrations.

Main applications

• AR/VR/XR
• Smart home
• Drone and robotics
• Connected IoT devices
• Mobile and wearable
• Automotive

Key features and benefits of the Chirp SonicTrack ultrasonic controller tracking solution:

• Mobile optimized – ultralow power, light weight and does not require base station
• Near-zero computation load
• Works under any lighting condition
• Expanded field of view

About TDK Corporation

TDK Corporation is a leading electronics company based in Tokyo, Japan. It was established in 1935 to commercialize ferrite, a key material in electronic and magnetic products. TDK's comprehensive portfolio features passive components such as ceramic, aluminum electrolytic and film capacitors, as well as magnetics, high-frequency, and piezo and protection devices. The product spectrum also includes sensors and sensor systems such as temperature and pressure, magnetic, and MEMS sensors. In addition, TDK provides power supplies and energy devices, magnetic heads and more. These products are marketed under the product brands TDK, EPCOS, InvenSense, Micronas, Tronics and TDK-Lambda. TDK focuses on demanding markets in the areas of information and communication technology and automotive, industrial and consumer electronics. The company has a network of design and manufacturing locations and sales offices in Asia, Europe, and in North and South America. In fiscal 2018, TDK posted total sales of USD 12 billion and employed about 103,000 people worldwide.

About Chirp Microsystems

Chirp Microsystems, a TDK Group company, is bringing ultrasonics to everyday products. Chirp’s piezoelectric MEMS ultrasonic transducers offer long range and low power in a tiny package, enabling products that accurately perceive the three-dimensional world in which we live. Combined with Chirp’s embedded software library, these sensors advance user experiences with VR/AR, wearables, robotics, drones and occupancy detection. For more information, please visit: www.chirpmicro.com

You can download this text

http://www.invensense.tdk.com/news-media/TDK-announces-new-Chirp-SonicTrack-inside-out-6-DoF-ultrasonic-controller-tracking-solution-for-all-in-one-VR

Contacts for media