A stereoscopic 3-D version of the film Avatar was shown to 85 people who subsequently answered questions related to sickness, visual strain, stereoscopic image quality, and sense of presence. Viewing Avatar for 165 min induced some symptoms of visual strain and sickness, but the symptom levels remained low. A comparison between Avatar and previously published results for the film U2 3D showed that sickness and visual strain levels were similar despite the films' runtimes. The genre of the film had a significant effect on the viewers' opinions and sense of presence. Avatar, which has been described as a combination of action, adventure, and sci-fi genres, was experienced as more immersive and engaging than the music documentary U2 3D. However, participants in both studies were immersed, focused, and absorbed in watching the stereoscopic 3-D (S3-D) film and were pleased with the film environments. The results also showed that previous stereoscopic 3-D experience significantly reduced the amount of reported eye strain and complaints about the weight of the viewing glasses.
We measured the eye movements of participants who watched a 6-minute movie in stereoscopic and non-stereoscopic
form. We analyzed four shots of the movie. The results indicate that in a 2D movie viewers tended to look at the actors,
as most of the eye movements were clustered there. The significance of the actors started at the beginning of a shot, as
the eyes of the viewer focused almost immediately to them. In S3D movie the eye movement patterns were more widely
distributed to other targets. For example, complex stereoscopic structures and objects nearer than the actor captured the
interest and eye movements of the participants. Also, the tendency to first look at the actors was diminished in the S3D
shots. The results suggests that in a S3D movie there are more eye movements which are directed to wider array of objects
than in a 2D movie.
KEYWORDS: 3D displays, 3D image processing, Mobile devices, Image quality, Visualization, 3D vision, Glasses, Large screens, Small screens, 3D visualizations
High-quality stereoscopic image content must be viewable in a variety of visual environments, from 3-D theaters to 3-D
mobile devices. Stereoscopic effects, however, are affected by screen size, viewing distance, and other parameters. In
this study, the authors focus on the stereoscopic image quality experience of viewing 3-D content on a mobile device in
order to compare it with that of viewing 3-D content on a large screen. The stereoscopic image quality experience was
evaluated using Interpretation Based Quality (IBQ) methodology, which combines existing approaches to image quality
evaluation, such as the paired comparison and interview, and assesses the viewer experience using both quantitative and
qualitative data. Five stereoscopic images were used in the experiment. The results of the experiment suggest that the
discomfort felt while viewing stereoscopic images on a 3-D mobile device arise from not only visual fatigue but also the
effects of the smaller screen size. The study also revealed the types of stereoscopic images that are suitable for viewing
on 3-D mobile devices.
KEYWORDS: 3D image processing, 3D displays, Visualization, Safety, Prototyping, Image analysis, 3D imaging standards, Software development, Standards development, Algorithm development
Digital 3D cinema has recently become popular and a number of high-quality 3D films have been produced. However, in
contrast with advances in 3D display technology, it has been pointed out that there is a lack of suitable 3D content and
content creators. Since 3D display methods and viewing environments vary widely, there is expectation that high-quality
content will be multi-purposed. On the other hand, there is increasing interest in the bio-medical effects of image content
of various types and there are moves toward international standardization, so 3D content production needs to take into
consideration safety and conformity with international guidelines. The aim of the authors' research is to contribute to the
production and application of 3D content that is safe and comfortable to watch by developing a scalable 3D conversion technology. In this paper, the authors focus on the process of changing the screen size, examining a conversion algorithm and its effectiveness. The authors evaluated the visual load imposed during the viewing of various 3D content converted by the prototype algorithm as compared with ideal conditions and with content expanded without conversion. Sheffe's paired comparison method was used for evaluation. To examine the effects of screen size reduction on viewers, changes in user impression and experience were elucidated using the IBQ methodology. The results of the evaluation are presented along with a discussion of the effectiveness and potential of the developed scalable 3D conversion algorithm
and future research tasks.
Stereoscopic technologies have developed significantly in recent years. These advances require also more understanding
of the experiental dimensions of stereoscopic contents. In this article we describe experiments in which we explore the
experiences that viewers have when they view stereoscopic contents. We used eight different contents that were shown
to the participants in a paired comparison experiment where the task of the participants was to compare the same content
in stereoscopic and non-stereoscopic form. The participants indicated their preference but were also interviewed about
the arguments they used when making the decision. By conducting a qualitative analysis of the interview texts we
categorized the significant experiental factors related to viewing stereoscopic material. Our results indicate that reality-likeness
as well as artificiality were often used as arguments in comparing the stereoscopic materials. Also, there were
more emotional terms in the descriptions of the stereoscopic films, which might indicate that the stereoscopic projection
technique enhances the emotions conveyed by the film material. Finally, the participants indicated that the three-dimensional
material required longer presentation time, as there were more interesting details to see.
There are innumerable concepts, terms and definitions for user experience. Few of them have a solid empirical foundation.
In trying to understand user experience in interactive technologies such as computer games and virtual environments,
reliable and valid concepts are needed for measuring relevant user reactions and experiences. Here we present
our approach to create both theoretically and methodologically sound methods for quantification of the rich user experience
in different digital environments. Our approach is based on the idea that the experience received from a content
presented with a specific technology is always a result of a complex psychological interpretation process, which components
should be understood. The main aim of our approach is to grasp the complex and multivariate nature of the experience
and make it measurable. We will present our two basic measurement frameworks, which have been developed
and tested in large data set (n=2182). The 15 measurement scales extracted from these models are applied to digital
gaming with a head-mounted display and a table-top display. The results show how it is possible to map between experience,
technology variables and the background of the user (e.g., gender). This approach can help to optimize, for
example, the contents for specific viewing devices or viewing situations.
Stereoscopic display produces enhanced game playing experience for the user. However, this experience might be affected by eye strain symptoms produced by the convergence-accommodation conflict in the visual system. In this study we measured the level of sickness symptoms in mobile stereoscopic game playing situation. Our results showed that playing a mobile game with an autostereoscopic display did not cause eye strain that differed from eye strain caused by ordinary mobile device usage. The results suggest that with sufficiently small disparities a mobile stereoscopic display can be used to achieve a comfortable user experience. We also found links between experienced sickness symptoms and background variables. Firstly, our results indicated that females reported higher symptom levels than males. Secondly, we showed that the participants with higher susceptibility to motion sickness reported higher sickness
levels in the experiment. Thirdly, we showed that participants with less computes skills or with less enthusiastic attitude towards new technology had significantly more sickness symptoms than the other participants.
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