Interaction of contour geometry and optic flow in determining relative depth of surfaces.

Publisher: Springer Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101495384 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1943-393X (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 19433921 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Atten Percept Psychophys Subsets: MEDLINE

Publication: 2011- : New York : Springer
Original Publication: Austin, Tex. : Psychonomic Society

Optic Flow* ; Motion Perception* ; Form Perception*; Humans ; Rotation ; Depth Perception

Dynamic occlusion, such as the accretion and deletion of texture near a boundary, is a major factor in determining relative depth of surfaces. However, the shape of the contour bounding the dynamic texture can significantly influence what kind of 3D shape, and what relative depth, are conveyed by the optic flow. This can lead to percepts that are inconsistent with traditional accounts of shape and depth from motion, where accreting/deleting texture can indicate the figural region, and/or 3D rotation can be perceived despite the constant speed of the optic flow. This suggests that the speed profile of the dynamic texture and the shape of its bounding contours combine to determine relative depth in a way that is not explained by existing models. Here, we investigated how traditional structure-from-motion principles and contour geometry interact to determine the relative-depth interpretation of dynamic textures. We manipulated the consistency of the dynamic texture with rotational or translational motion by varying the speed profile of the texture. In Experiment 1, we used a multi-region figure-ground display consisting of regions with dots moving horizontally in opposite directions in adjacent regions. In Experiment 2, we used stimuli including two regions separated by a common border, with dot textures moving horizontally in opposite directions. Both contour geometry (convexity) and the speed profile of the dynamic dot texture influenced relative-depth judgments, but contour geometry was the stronger factor. The results underscore the importance of contour geometry, which most current models disregard, in determining depth from motion.
(© 2023. The Psychonomic Society, Inc.)

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EY021494 United States GF NIH HHS

Keywords: Depth; Figure/ground; Optic flow; Perceptual organization; Structure-from-motion

Date Created: 20231107 Date Completed: 20240108 Latest Revision: 20240108

20240108

10.3758/s13414-023-02807-0

37935897