Perceiving Perspective

John C. Hart
Department of Computer Science
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

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 What Will We Learn?
• How do we perceive a 3-D world from
the 2-D image on our retina?
• How can this perception interfere with
the visual presentation of 2-D data?
• How can we avoid the perception of 2-D
data as 3-D data?
 The Model Human Processor
Working Memory
Long-Term Memory Cognitive Processor
Size: 7 (5-9) chunks
Pure: 3 (2.5 – 4.2) chunks
Size:  Cycle: 70 (25 – 170) ms
Decay: 7 (5 – 226) sec.
Decay: 
Decay1: 73 (73 – 226) sec.
Decay3: 7 (5 – 34) sec.
Motor Processor

Visual Image Store Cycle: 70 (30 – 100) ms

Eye Size: 17 (7 – 17) letters

Decay: 200 (90 – 1000) ms Perceptual Processor
Cycle: 230 ms
(70 – 700) ms Cycle: 100 (50 – 200) ms
Auditory Image Store

Size: 5 (4.4 – 6.2) letters

Decay: 1500 (90 – 3500) ms

Card, Stuart K. "The model human processor: A model for making engineering calculations of human performance."
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In Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 25(1),1981. pp. 301-305
 Perspective
• Foreshortening: Objects at different
depth along a similar line of sight
project to nearby locations on the foreshortening
image plane
• Linear Perspective: Objects farther
away appear smaller
• Size Constancy: Objects do not
change size, so smaller objects must
be farther away than larger objects
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 Size Constancy

B
 Size Constancy

B
Which is Longer, AB or BC?

A C
Which is Longer, AB or BC?

A C
 Texture Constancy
• Expect objects to be same size in 3-D
• Differences must be due to perspective
Lighting Assumptions
 What Did We Learn
• Our perception of size of an object is
influenced by our perception of the
distance to the object
• Avoid the incorporation of artificial 3-D
elements in the presentation of 2-D
data