Augmented reality (AR) devices seek to create compelling visual experiences that merge virtual imagery with the natural world. These devices often rely on wearable near-eye display systems that can optically overlay digital images to the left and right eyes of the user separately. Ideally, the two eyes should be shown images with minimal radiometric differences (e.g., the same overall luminance, contrast, and color in both eyes), but achieving this binocular equality can be challenging in wearable systems with stringent demands on weight and size. Basic vision research has shown that a spectrum of potentially detrimental perceptual effects can be elicited by imagery with radiometric differences between the eyes, but it is not clear whether and how these findings apply to the experience of modern AR devices. In this work, we first develop a testing paradigm for assessing multiple aspects of visual appearance at once, and characterize five key perceptual factors when participants viewed stimuli with interocular contrast differences. In a second experiment, we simulate optical see-through AR imagery using conventional desktop LCD monitors and use the same paradigm to evaluate the multi-faceted perceptual implications when the AR display luminance differs between the two eyes. We also include simulations of monocular AR systems (i.e., systems in which only one eye sees the displayed image). Our results suggest that interocular contrast differences can drive several potentially detrimental perceptual effects in binocular AR systems, such as binocular luster, rivalry, and spurious depth differences. In addition, monocular AR displays tend to have more artifacts than binocular displays with a large contrast difference in the two eyes. A better understanding of the range and likelihood of these perceptual phenomena can help inform design choices that support high-quality user experiences in AR.
more »
« less
Analysis of the Saliency of Color-Based Dichoptic Cues in Optical See-Through Augmented Reality
In a future of pervasive augmented reality (AR), AR systems will need to be able to efficiently draw or guide the attention of the user to visual points of interest in their physical-virtual environment. Since AR imagery is overlaid on top of the user's view of their physical environment, these attention guidance techniques must not only compete with other virtual imagery, but also with distracting or attention-grabbing features in the user's physical environment. Because of the wide range of physical-virtual environments that pervasive AR users will find themselves in, it is difficult to design visual cues that “pop out” to the user without performing a visual analysis of the user's environment, and changing the appearance of the cue to stand out from its surroundings. In this paper, we present an initial investigation into the potential uses of dichoptic visual cues for optical see-through AR displays, specifically cues that involve having a difference in hue, saturation, or value between the user's eyes. These types of cues have been shown to be preattentively processed by the user when presented on other stereoscopic displays, and may also be an effective method of drawing user attention on optical see-through AR displays. We present two user studies: one that evaluates the saliency of dichoptic visual cues on optical see-through displays, and one that evaluates their subjective qualities. Our results suggest that hue-based dichoptic cues or “Forbidden Colors” may be particularly effective for these purposes, achieving significantly lower error rates in a pop out task compared to value-based and saturation-based cues.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 1800961
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10442385
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics
- ISSN:
- 1077-2626
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1 to 16
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
Due to the additive light model employed by current optical see-through head-mounted displays (OST-HMDs), the perceived contrast of displayed imagery is reduced with increased environment luminance, often to the point where it becomes difficult for the user to accurately distinguish the presence of visual imagery. While existing contrast models, such as Weber contrast and Michelson contrast, can be used to predict when the observer will experience difficulty distinguishing and interpreting stimuli on traditional dis-plays, these models must be adapted for use with additive displays. In this paper, we present a simplified model of luminance contrast for optical see-through displays derived from Michelson's contrast equation and demonstrate two applications of the model: informing design decisions involving the color of virtual imagery and optimizing environment light attenuation through the use of neutral density filters.more » « less
-
more » « less
Abstract Successful surgical operations are characterized by preplanning routines to be executed during actual surgical operations. To achieve this, surgeons rely on the experience acquired from the use of cadavers, enabling technologies like virtual reality (VR) and clinical years of practice. However, cadavers, having no dynamism and realism as they lack blood, can exhibit limited tissue degradation and shrinkage, while current VR systems do not provide amplified haptic feedback. This can impact surgical training increasing the likelihood of medical errors. This work proposes a novel Mixed Reality Combination System (MRCS) that pairs Augmented Reality (AR) technology and an inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor with 3D printed, collagen-based specimens that can enhance task performance like planning and execution. To achieve this, the MRCS charts out a path prior to a user task execution based on a visual, physical, and dynamic environment on the state of a target object by utilizing surgeon-created virtual imagery that, when projected onto a 3D printed biospecimen as AR, reacts visually to user input on its actual physical state. This allows a real-time user reaction of the MRCS by displaying new multi-sensory virtual states of an object prior to performing on the actual physical state of that same object enabling effective task planning. Tracked user actions using an integrated 9-Degree of Freedom IMU demonstrate task execution This demonstrates that a user, with limited knowledge of specific anatomy, can, under guidance, execute a preplanned task. In addition, to surgical planning, this system can be generally applied in areas such as construction, maintenance, and education.
-
null (Ed.)Due to the additive light model employed by most optical see-through head-mounted displays (OST-HMDs), they provide the best augmented reality (AR) views in dark environments, where the added AR light does not have to compete against existing real-world lighting. AR imagery displayed on such devices loses a significant amount of contrast in well-lit environments such as outdoors in direct sunlight. To compensate for this, OST-HMDs often use a tinted visor to reduce the amount of environment light that reaches the user’s eyes, which in turn results in a loss of contrast in the user’s physical environment. While these effects are well known and grounded in existing literature, formal measurements of the illuminance and contrast of modern OST-HMDs are currently missing. In this paper, we provide illuminance measurements for both the Microsoft HoloLens 1 and its successor the HoloLens 2 under varying environment lighting conditions ranging from 0 to 20,000 lux. We evaluate how environment lighting impacts the user by calculating contrast ratios between rendered black (transparent) and white imagery displayed under these conditions, and evaluate how the intensity of environment lighting is impacted by donning and using the HMD. Our results indicate the further need for refinement in the design of future OST-HMDs to optimize contrast in environments with illuminance values greater than or equal to those found in indoor working environments.more » « less
-
Display technologies in the fields of virtual and augmented reality affect the appearance of human representations, such as avatars used in telepresence or entertainment applications, based on the user’s current viewing conditions. With changing viewing conditions, it is possible that the perceived appearance of one’s avatar changes in an unexpected or undesired manner, which may change user behavior towards these avatars and cause frustration in using the AR display. In this paper, we describe a user study (N=20) where participants saw themselves in a mirror standing next to their own avatar through use of a HoloLens 2 optical see-through head-mounted display. Participants were tasked to match their avatar’s appearance to their own under two environment lighting conditions (200 lux and 2,000 lux). Our results showed that the intensity of environment lighting had a significant effect on participants selected skin colors for their avatars, where participants with dark skin colors tended to make their avatar’s skin color lighter, nearly to the level of participants with light skin color. Further, in particular female participants made their avatar’s hair color darker for the lighter environment lighting condition. We discuss our results with a view on technological limitations and effects on the diversity of avatar representations on optical see-through displays.more » « less
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1109/TVCG.2022.3195111
