Visual comfort of binocular and 3D displays

Imperfections in binocular image pairs can cause serious viewing discomfort. For example, in stereo vision systems eye strain is caused by unintentional mismatches between the left and right eye images (stereo imperfections). Head-mounted displays can induce eye strain due to optical misalignments. We have experimentally determined the level of (dis)comfort experienced by human observers viewing brief presentations of imperfect binocular image pairs. We used a wide range of binocular image imperfections that are representative for commonly encountered optical errors (spatial distortions: shifts, magnification, rotation, keystone), imperfect filters (photometric asymmetries: luminance, color, contrast, crosstalk), and stereoscopic disparities. The results show that nearly all binocular image asymmetries seriously reduce visual comfort if present in a large enough amount. From our data we estimate threshold values for the onset of discomfort. The database collected in this study allows a more accurate prediction of visual comfort from the specification of a given binocular viewing system. Being able to predict the level of visual discomfort from the specification of binocular viewing systems greatly helps the design and selection process. This paper provides the basis. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.