Grid-texture mechanisms in human vision: Contrast detection of regular sparse micro-patterns requires specialist templates.

ABSTRACT: Previous work has shown that human vision performs spatial integration of luminance contrast energy, where signals are squared and summed (with internal noise) over area at detection threshold. We tested that model here in an experiment using arrays of micro-pattern textures that varied in overall stimulus area and sparseness of their target elements, where the contrast of each element was normalised for sensitivity across the visual field. We found a power-law improvement in performance with stimulus area, and a decrease in sensitivity with sparseness. While the contrast integrator model performed well when target elements constituted 50-100% of the target area (replicating previous results), observers outperformed the model when texture elements were sparser than this. This result requir

SUBMITTER: Baker DH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4962084 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature