Sony PUD-J5A
More actions
| Sony PUD-J5A | |
|---|---|
| |
| Basic Info | |
| VR/AR | Virtual Reality[1] |
| Type | Head-mounted display |
| Subtype | Console-Powered VR |
| Platform | PlayStation 2[1] |
| Creator | Sony[1] |
| Developer | Sony[1] |
| Manufacturer | Sony[1] |
| Release Date | September 26, 2002 (announced sale date)[2] |
| Price | ¥59,800 (Japan, 2002)[2] |
| Requires | PlayStation 2 for head tracking; AV source for video[3] |
| Display | |
| Display | Dual 0.44-inch LCD[1] |
| Resolution | Approximately 180,000 pixels per panel (Sony specification)[1] |
| Image | |
| Field of View | Approximately 25 degrees (horizontal)[1] |
| Optics | |
| Ocularity | Binocular[3] |
| Tracking | |
| Tracking | Head-action Tracker (HT)[3] |
| Rotational Tracking | Yes[4] |
| Audio | |
| Audio | Integrated stereo headphones[3] |
| Connectivity | |
| Connectivity | USB, composite/S-video via control box[3] |
| Power | PS2 via HT cable, or AC adapter through DC IN 6V[3] |
| Device | |
| Weight | 340 g (head-mounted unit)[1] |
| Input | PlayStation 2 controller[5] |
The Sony PUD-J5A is a head-mounted display introduced by Sony in September 2002 for the PlayStation 2 games console. It pairs two small LCD panels with head tracking that lets compatible software change the view when the player turns their head.[1]
It was offered in Japan exclusively through PlayStation.com Japan. Contemporary launch coverage gave a price of ¥59,800 and a September 26 sale date.[2]
Background
Sony had experimented with personal head-mounted displays through the 1990s with its Glasstron line of consumer video viewers. The original PLM-50 was announced in June 1996 for use with video sources such as VTRs and video CD players.[6]
The PUD-J5A combined personal video viewing with a Head-action Tracker (HT) for supported PS2 games.[3] Sony also described DVD-player and television-video-output connections, which did not provide the head-controlled view.[1]
Sony later announced the HMZ-T1 "Personal 3D Viewer" in August 2011, using separate left-eye and right-eye images for stereoscopic video.[7]
Hardware
The head-mounted unit weighed approximately 340 grams. Inside were two 0.44-inch LCD panels, each specified at about 180,000 pixels. Sony described a horizontal field of view of approximately 25 degrees and an apparent 42-inch screen at about two metres.[1]
The headset connected to the PS2 through an external control box. The supplied HT cable linked the box to the console's USB port; composite video and stereo audio used a separate AV cable, with S-video available as an alternative picture input. The console supplied power through the HT cable. For a DVD player or other video source, the manual showed the supplied AC adapter connected to the box's DC IN 6V socket.[3]
The display optics and stereo headphones were adjustable for fit. The manual identifies one LCD for each eye. It illustrated headband-height sliders, a hinged display and fore-and-aft and lateral optical adjustment. It also identified a volume control and a dedicated HT reset switch on the headset.[3]
Sony specified about 1.5 W consumption and an approximately 80 g interface box. The folded headset measured about 200 × 100 × 250 mm; the box measured about 70 × 20 × 110 mm, both stated as width × height × depth.[1]
The presence of two panels did not provide stereoscopic depth. In a 2016 developer account, Bimboosoft's Hirofumi Hattori described the PUD-J5A as an angular-tracking display without stereoscopic vision and with a narrower field of view than PlayStation VR.[4]
Sony advised stopping use if symptoms resembling motion sickness occurred.[1]
Software support
Head tracking required software support. The following Japanese PS2 titles have documented PUD-J5A support; the table is not an exhaustive compatibility list.[5][8][9][10][11]
| Title | Genre | Publisher | Documented support |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy Airforce | Flight simulator | Taito | The first announced HT-compatible game.[5] |
| Energy Airforce: aimStrike! | Flight simulator | Taito | PUD-J5A support in the product description; also shown with a Sony headset at Tokyo Game Show 2003.[8][12] |
| Air Force Delta: Blue Wing Knights | Flight combat | Konami | The Japanese review lists PUD-J5A among supported peripherals.[9] |
| Sidewinder V | Flight combat | Asmik Ace | Head movement changes the cockpit view.[10] |
| Simple 2000 Vol. 33: The Jet Coaster | Roller coaster simulator | D3 Publisher | The publisher explicitly lists PUD-J5A and HT support.[11] |
In Energy Airforce, connecting the headset transferred the right stick's free-view function to head movement while retaining the option to switch viewpoints. Looking up showed the sky and turning sideways revealed the cockpit surroundings. The game allowed the forward direction to be reset with the directional pad. Its head-directed weapon lock-on depended on the selected aircraft and weapon.[5]
The Jet Coaster used the headset while riding constructed roller coasters. Its publisher described an amusement-park simulation with coaster design and ride viewing; Hattori later identified the game as the third coaster title developed by Bimboosoft.[11][4]
Reception and legacy
At a September 2002 demonstration, GAME Watch's Minoru Funatsu described smooth, natural view changes in Energy Airforce, but also observed that the forward direction could drift after repeated head movements. He reported that the game provided a reset command. This was a contemporary hands-on impression, rather than a measured tracking-accuracy or latency test.[5]
The Digital Game Museum preserved a PUD-J5A with its box, manual and power adapter. Its collection record documents a working test with a Japanese PS2 and a flight game on December 12, 2015; the museum's accompanying account describes looking around the cockpit. This records the experience of that specimen and setup.[13][14]
The PUD-J5A also served as a visual-display instrument in a 2005 study of galvanic vestibular stimulation. Nagaya and colleagues tested five healthy men aged 21-34. In experiment 2, the headset displayed a horizontal line fixed relative to the head, with and without a chin rest. The wider study compared head-fixed, wall-fixed and retinal-afterimage conditions to investigate perceived image motion. The authors suggested that induced eye movements largely explained that perception. The headset supplied the visual stimulus; the experiment did not evaluate its game compatibility, tracker performance or consumer safety.[15]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 "ゲーム内の仮想空間を全方位※1見渡せる"ヘッドマウントディスプレイ"発売". Sony. September 10, 2002. https://www.sony.com/ja/SonyInfo/News/Press/200209/02-042/. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Minoru Funatsu (September 10, 2002). "ソニー、全方向を見渡すことができる新ヘッドマウントディスプレイ「PUD-J5A」を発表". GAME Watch. https://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/20020910/sony.htm. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 "PUD-J5A instruction manual, 3-247-480-01(2), pp. 12-19 and cover". Sony, preserved by the Digital Game Museum. 2002. https://www.digitalgamemuseum.org/collection/items/show/2600. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Hirofumi Hattori (July 29, 2016). "【PS VR】”ようこそ。夢のバーチャル遊園地へ！”──『ローラーコースタードリームズ』を開発者自ら解説！". PlayStation.Blog Japan. https://blog.ja.playstation.com/2016/07/29/20160729-rcd/. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Minoru Funatsu (September 12, 2002). "リアルで迫力たっぷりな空中戦が楽しめる「エナジーエアフォース」。ソニーの新ヘッドマウントディスプレイ「PUD-J5A」にも対応". GAME Watch. https://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/20020912/taito.htm. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ "場所をとらずに52型相当の迫力ある映像が楽しめる パーソナルLCDモニター"グラストロン"発売". Sony. June 3, 1996. https://www.sony.com/ja/SonyInfo/News/Press/199606/96CI-075/. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ "世界初 HD有機ELパネル搭載 3D対応ヘッドマウントディスプレイを発売". Sony. August 31, 2011. https://www.sony.jp/CorporateCruise/Press/201108/11-0831/. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Energy Airforce Aimstrike!: product description". HMV & BOOKS online. https://www.hmv.co.jp/en/artist_Playstation-2_000000000154698/item_Energy-Airforce-Aimstrike_1958392. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "PS2ゲームレビュー「エアフォースデルタ ブルーウイングナイツ」". GAME Watch. February 17, 2004. https://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/20040217/ad.htm. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Minoru Funatsu (June 4, 2003). "アスミック・エース、プラモデルのボックスアート風なこだわりが新鮮なPS2フライト・アクション「サイドワインダーV」". GAME Watch. https://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/20030604/swv.htm. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 "SIMPLE2000シリーズ Vol.33 THE ジェットコースター 遊園地をつくろう！". D3 Publisher. https://www.d3p.co.jp/s_20/s20_033.html. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ "【TGS】タイトーは爽快ACTからリアルなSLG、さらにはSIMPLEシリーズまでズラリ！". Dengeki Online. September 27, 2003. https://dengekionline.com/data/news/2003/9/27/311827ac0d80c8e63c697cc08e84d591.html. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ "Sony PUD-J5A Virtual Reality Headset, collection item 2015.038.001". Digital Game Museum Collection. https://www.digitalgamemuseum.org/collection/items/show/2600. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ Season Hughes (December 29, 2015). "Sony PUD-J5A Virtual Reality Headset". The Digital Game Museum. https://www.digitalgamemuseum.org/sony-pud-j5a-virtual-reality-headset/. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
- ↑ Naohisa Nagaya; Maki Sugimoto; Hideaki Nii; Taro Maeda; Michiteru Kitazaki; Masahiko Inami (2005). "前庭感覚電気刺激による視覚への影響". Transactions of the Virtual Reality Society of Japan 10 (4): 475-484. doi:10.18974/tvrsj.10.4_475.