USPTO Patent Grant: Remote Control of Production Device via VR

ChangeBridge: Patent Grants - Business Methods (G06Q)

Published March 24th, 2026

Detected March 25th, 2026

Summary

The USPTO has granted a patent (US12586012B2) to International Business Machines Corporation for computer-implemented methods of providing uninterrupted remote control of production devices using virtual reality. The patent covers systems for assigning, monitoring, and reassigning production tasks to remote workers via VR devices.

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What changed

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted patent US12586012B2 to International Business Machines Corporation. This patent covers novel computer-implemented methods for ensuring uninterrupted remote control of production devices through virtual reality (VR) technology. Key aspects include obtaining production tasks, identifying and assigning remote workers via a VR device from a database, monitoring the worker's environment, and reassigning tasks to a replacement worker if necessary.

This patent grant signifies a new technological development in the integration of VR with industrial production processes. While not a regulatory rule, it may influence future industry standards or practices related to remote operations and workforce management in manufacturing. Companies developing or utilizing VR for industrial control should be aware of this patented technology, as it could impact their intellectual property landscape and product development strategies.

Source document (simplified)

← USPTO Patent Grants

Providing uninterrupted remote control of a production device via virtual reality devices

Grant US12586012B2 Kind: B2 Mar 24, 2026

Assignee

International Business Machines Corporation

Inventors

Sarbajit K. Rakshit, Sudheesh S. Kairali, Binoy Thomas, Satyam Jakkula

Abstract

Computer-implemented methods for providing uninterrupted remote control of a production device are provided. Aspects include obtaining a production task to be performed using the production device, identifying a remote worker, from a remote worker database, to perform the production task via a virtual reality device, and assigning the production task to the remote worker. Aspects also include monitoring a remote worker environment of the remote worker during performance of the production task and determining that the production task needs to be reassigned. Aspects further include identifying a replacement remote worker from the remote worker database and reassigning the production task to the replacement remote worker.