VPL Research’s glove-based virtual-reality controller was called the DataGlove.
Thomas Zimmerman invented the glove, which used optical sensors to detect finger movements and translate them into computer input. VPL Research developed the technology during the 1980s as part of its wider virtual-reality hardware and software work.
The DataGlove became especially notable because it allowed users to interact with virtual environments through hand gestures rather than conventional buttons or a keyboard. VPL founder Jaron Lanier helped popularize the broader concept of virtual reality during the same period.
The DataGlove is often confused with Nintendo’s Power Glove, released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1989. Although both were wearable glove controllers, the Power Glove was a consumer gaming accessory, while the DataGlove was designed as a general-purpose VR input device. VPL’s technology also influenced later hand-tracking and haptic interfaces.