Visual Psychophysics of Egomotion.
Abstract
Two psychophysical studies investigated an observer's ability to perceive self motion. In both studies, the stimuli were computer-generated images simulating an observer moving relative to a volume of randomly-positioned dots. The first study investigated an observer's ability to determine whether s/ he was moving forward along a straight or curved path as forward speed was varied. The results showed that with eye movements, the deviation required to detect a departure from a straight path increased with forward speed. When eye movements were restricted, the required deviation remained constant across forward speeds. A second study investigated the effectiveness of various sizes and retinal locations of the stimulus in determining the direction of a curved path. The results showed an increasing linear relationship between optimal size and retinal eccentricity. Given optimally-scaled stimuli, the central and peripheral retinal locations yielded equivalent performance. Finally, a computational model has been developed to emulate a human observer's ability to detect a curved path of motion. Computer simulations of the model have been run on a task to discriminate between a curved and straight path of motion. The simulation results closely match psychophysical data. Egomotion, Motion perception, Curvilinear motion, Self motion perception, Eccentricity, Eye movements.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 24, 1992
- Accession Number
- ADA248349
Entities
People
- Kathleen Turano
Organizations
- Purdue University