Apple has reportedly filed a trademark for "realityOS." This means that at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2022, the tech giant may launch a dedicated VR and AR platform.
Apple Trademarks "realityOS"
Apple has long been rumored to be developing a VR or AR headset for years now, and that hardware needs to run its own operating system.
On May 29, a patent filing was uncovered, and it shows that the software side of the device is becoming more real.
The trademark filings for "realityOS" was uncovered on Twitter by Parker Ortolani. The trademark covers wearable computer hardware and several other areas of computing.
While anyone can petition for a trademark, some indicators point to it being connected to Apple.
Also Read: Meta Cancels Operating System for AR/VR Hardware, but Apple is Pushing its 'rOS' for Future Headsets
For a start, the filing dates are very close to WWDC 2022, with one mentioning a "Foreign Filing Date" for June 8, a deadline that happens just two days after the WWDC's keynote.
Ortolani notes that Apple tends to file trademarks for products announced at the developer conference around a day or two after the keynote itself, making everything "more than a coincidence."
The pair of filings were also made in December 2021, almost two months before the direct references to realityOS surfaced in Apple's code.
The listings are both registered by "Realityo Systems LLC," which was incorporated in Delaware on December 3, 2021, through the Corporation Trust Company, which provides "registered agent services."
The searches bring up no information about the company's products, aside from the registration and trademark filing.
Apple is known to have a culture of secrecy, and it extends to making great efforts to hide the launches of its products from being discovered.
This culture of secrecy also includes its trademarks.
The tech giant habitually uses shell companies to hide the registrations, and it seems to be using the same style here.
Details of a dedicated operating system for the VR/AR headset date back to 2017, with a report claiming Apple's headset would have its own display and processor, as well as a new operating system.
At the time, the software was named "rOS."
With claims that Apple's mixed-reality headset reached an advanced state of development in May, the trademark filing is another indicator that fans will finally see the device soon.
While there is a massive chance of the tech giant using WWDC to introduce the device to developers in an attempt to encourage app development before it is released to the public, this is not Apple's only AR project.
ARKit has been around for a couple of years now, providing a way for AR to work on iPads or iPhones.
Apple's ARKit
ARKit is Apple's augmented reality platform for iOS devices. According to PocketLint, the kit enables developers to produce apps that interact with the world around them via the device's sensors and cameras.
Apple has been very keen on the potential of AR for years now and launched the ARKit in 2017 as part of iOS 11.
The tech giant announced a second version of the kit in iOS 12 and now has a third-generation version planned for iOS 13.
Related Article: Apple AR/VR Headset's Potential Name | 'Apple Goggles' or 'Apple Vision?'
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Sophie Webster
