Valve index controller losing tracking

[ʟǟֆȶʟɨʋɨռɢքօɛȶ]

I did a search and found a bunch of old topics about this so I at least know I'm not alone

My controllers sometimes lose tracking, usually the right one, mid-fight. It just starts trailing away or stops moving then comes back. It has happened in two different houses. One near a wifi router and one not near a wifi router.

So has anyone figured out why exactly this happens and should I be concerned about damaging my controller?

[Ian (Sealost)]

I've noticed tracking issues with pretty much every VR controller from very sudden starts and stops. I've found that forcefully bumping a controller against against my palm can usually get the tracking to freak out.

I can't say whether or not that can lead to permanent damage. If it's from the acceleration of the start/stop being more than the accelerometer was designed to handle, then I don't think there's much risk, but if it's from some other component, like a wire being stretched too tight or wiggled loose, then that could lead to permanent damage or a repair of some kind.

You can also get tracking loss from the Index controllers if you're holding your guard up and standing in a way that your body is blocking the controller's line of sight to the base stations. This, of course, won't cause any damage.

The most problematic tracking issues that get reported seem to more often be about the user's primary hand (generally the right controller, but reports from left-handed people tend to be about their left controller). I'm unsure if this is because they're throwing more forcefully with their primary hand or if it's just because their primary hand tends to be more occluded when kept in the rear (as in orthodox/southpaw boxing stance) where it tends to be more hidden behind their chin, neck, head, and headset.

I'd say try to fight with less intensity and try to keep your movements smooth instead of abrupt, and see if that helps. Separately, fight as you normally do, but keep your guard extremely loose with your hands relatively far out in front of your face to make sure they have good line of sight to your base stations, and see if that helps. The first case helps you test if your tracking loss is coming from extreme force on the controllers, and the second case helps you see if it's just an occlusion issue.