Facebook-backed VR venture Oculus has acquired the 10-man team of Zurich Eye, a Swiss tech firm specializing in enabling “machines to independently navigate in any space.”This acquisition is only the latest stage in Oculus’ rapid expansion into AR. The company is trying to fill 100-odd positions in order to recoup ground lost against competitors Sony and HTC.
The tech Zurich Eye bring to the table has been primarily designed to help robots navigate spaces but may prove critical when it comes to Oculus’ efforts to integrate the kind of inside-out tracking sensors Microsoft has recently talked up.
Integrating such sensors into the Oculus Rift headset would allow more more intuitive and immersive VR experiences.
They would also put Oculus a step ahead of it’s rivals – who currently rely on external sensors for “room-scale” VR experiences.
