Width of the Human Visual Spread Function as Determined Psychometrically*

The response of the human visual system to an optical image is assumed to be linearly related to the logarithm of the spread function of the photographic system projected onto the retina combined with the spread function of the visual system. From psychophysical data derived from viewing (at different distances) a series of pictures generated with different spread functions, an estimate is obtained of the variance of the spread function of the visual system. The square root of this variance ranges from 3 μ to 8 μ, depending on the techniques used and on the training of the judges. Although the residual errors in this determination are small, they show systematic trends, indicating that definition depends on other factors than the composite variance.