Real time comfort enhancement in stereoscopic displays by disparity and content-adapted blur

Abstract

Stereoscopic devices become widely used (immersion-based working environments, stereoscopically viewed movies, auto-stereoscopic screens…). In some instances, exposure to stereoscopic immersion techniques can be lengthy, and eyestrain sets in. We propose a method for reducing eyestrain induced by stereoscopic vision. After reviewing sources of eyestrain linked to stereoscopic vision, we will focus on one of these sources: images with high frequencies contents associated with large disparities. We will put forward an algorithm for removing the irritating high frequencies in high disparity zones (i.e. for virtual objects appearing far from the real screen level). We will elaborate on our testing protocol to establish that our processing reduces eyestrain caused by stereoscopic vision, both objectively and subjectively. We will subsequently quantify the positive effects of our algorithm on the relief of eyestrain.