Facebook unveils AR control device that taps into your nervous system

Facebook Reality Labs researchers say that someday their wearable AR controller will provide more advanced capabilities, such as being able to touch virtual interfaces and objects – and pick up virtual objects at a distance. — AP

LOS ANGELES: Facebook has a team of engineers working on next-generation computing devices and interfaces. The group on March 18 provided a first look at its latest prototype: a wrist-based controller that uses a combination of artificial intelligence and input from a wearer’s nervous system to interact with VR and AR environments.

Initially, the prototype of Facebook’s AR controller provides simple gesture-based input that is the equivalent to a button-click (e.g., the pinch and release of the thumb and forefinger). That enables such applications as shooting a virtual bow and arrow: Using wrist-based haptics, the device can approximate the sensation of pulling back the string of a bow.