Just enough reality: comfortable 3-D viewing via microstereopsis

We address human factors and technology issues for the design of stereoscopic display systems that are natural and comfortable to view. Our title "just enough reality" hints at the contrast between the popularly perceived requirements for strict "virtual reality" and the expert's pragmatic acceptance of "sufficient reality" to satisfy the human interface requirements of real-world applications. We first review how numerous perceptions and illusions of depth can be exploited to synergistically complement binocular stereopsis. Then we report the results of our experimental studies of stereoscopy with very small interocular separations and correspondingly small on-screen disparities, which we call "microstereopsis." We outline the implications of microstereopsis for the design of future stereoscopic camera and display systems, especially the possibility of achieving zone-less autostereoscopic displays. We describe a possible class of implementations based on a nonlambertian filter element, and a particular implementation that would use an electronically switched louver filter to realize it.