These new patents reveal Sony's research in how machine learning and peripherals could improve its controllers.
Several patents filed by Sony (spotted by outlets like GameSpot and 80LV), and offer some potential insight into PlayStation's technological future.
One application filed in June 2024 concerns a machine learning-based model that appears to address "input lag," the time passed between a pressed controller and the action occuring onscreen. The model is "configured to release user commands to a computer game at a time when the command correctly aligns with what is going on in [it,]" according to the patent.
The patent's summary notes input lag is a problem for both system engineers and players, and believes machine learning could "control the computer game according to the user command in advance of the user completing the user command based on the identification."
To achieve this, Sony is considering a sensor with a camera that captures the player and their controller, which is then used to train the machine learning program. The technology seems to primarily concern online multiplayer games, where input lag has a dramatic effect.
Similarly, one application from June 2023 focuses on machine learning for predicting user commands "before the input action is completed, or might be delayed after completion and processing until a later time when the command is most appropriate for release."
Another notable patent centers on a physical attachment that would let players hold the DualSense controller like a firearm. The attachment's apparent aim is to be "more intuitive" for players, as the description notes some players "may lack the dexterity/motor skills" to conventionally hold a controller, and hopes the attachment "alleviates or mitigates the issue."
Sony previously experimented with gun-themed control schemes with two shooting attachments for the PlayStation Move, which were officially supported by a number of PlayStation 3 titles.
Filing a patent doesn't mean Sony will bring any of its proposed technology to market. In the past, Sony filed patents for technology such as NFTs and local multiplayer for live, in-person events. To date, nothing has come of either, and it quickly shot down speculation that its PlayStation Stars loyalty program was an NFT platform in disguise.
You can see Sony's list of published patents here. Among other things, the more recent ones concern inputs, image upscaling, and using machine learning for online multiplayer.
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