Perception of 3D spatial relations for 3D displays

We test perception of 3D spatial relations in 3D images rendered by a 3D display (Perspecta from Actuality Systems) and compare it to that of a high-resolution flat panel display. 3D images provide the observer with such depth cues as motion parallax and binocular disparity. Our 3D display is a device that renders a 3D image by displaying, in rapid succession, radial slices through the scene on a rotating screen. The image is contained in a glass globe and can be viewed from virtually any direction. In the psychophysical experiment several families of 3D objects are used as stimuli: primitive shapes (cylinders and cuboids), and complex objects (multi-story buildings, cars, and pieces of furniture). Each object has at least one plane of symmetry. On each trial an object or its “distorted” version is shown at an arbitrary orientation. The distortion is produced by stretching an object in a random direction by 40%. This distortion must eliminate the symmetry of an object. The subject's task is to decide whether or not the presented object is distorted under several viewing conditions (monocular/binocular, with/without motion parallax, and near/far). The subject's performance is measured by the discriminability d', which is a conventional dependent variable in signal detection experiments.