Invariance of Visual Perception

1727

Abstract

Perception and thinking is based largely on the ability of the brain to find in the world invariant features. The purpose of the study – to determine the ranges invariant perception, for various transformations of images of objects (angular size – magnitude, turn corners-projections), under which quantitative characteristics of their perceptions remained unchanged. The recognition psychophysical threshold measuring of incomplete line drawing images (Gollin-test) with different sizes and rotations was provided. The experimental data of invariance perception to the image size transformation and rotating of images are presented. We demonstrate that there is a wide range of angular sizes (from 1.0 up to 50 degrees of visual angle) across which the threshold of recognition of incomplete images does not depend on object size. However, there was found to be a narrow range of small sizes of stimulus (0.19–1, 0 degrees of visual angle) at which there was found to be a dependence of performance on object size. The thresholds of recognition of 3-D objects when viewed as incomplete 2-D images were measured at psychophysical experiments varying perspective of 3-D objects during testing. The memory template of the test objects description has "invariance" properties from 15 up to an angle of 60 degrees. The algorithm for template formation of 3-D objects in the human visual system need to be modeled, taking account of the invariance mechanism. The model of invariant perception, combining well-known model log-polar model and wavelet transform as the primary stage of filtration, and then match filtering and decision-making.

General Information

Keywords: incomplete images, invariant perception, gestalt, pattern recognition

Journal rubric: Psychophysiology

For citation: Shelepin Y.E., Chikhman V.N., Vakhrameeva O.A., Pronin S.V., Foreman N., Passmore P. Invariance of Visual Perception. Eksperimental'naâ psihologiâ = Experimental Psychology (Russia), 2008. Vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 7–33. (In Russ., аbstr. in Engl.)

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Information About the Authors

Yuriy E. Shelepin, Doctor of Medicine, Professor, Head of the Laboratory of Physiology of Vision, I.P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, RAS, St.Petersburg, Russia

Valerii N. Chikhman, PhD in Engineering, Senior Research Associate, Head of Laboratory of Informational Technologies and Mathematical Modeling, Pavlov Psychological Institute of Russian Academy of Science, St.Petersburg, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4955-4608, e-mail: v_c_pavlinst@mail.ru

O. A. Vakhrameeva

Sergey V. Pronin, Associate of the Laboratory of Physiology of Vision, I.P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, RAS, Russia, e-mail: Pronins@sbor.net

Nigel Foreman, Professor at School of Health and Social Sciences, Middlesex University, London, Great Britain, e-mail: n.foreman@mdx.ac.uk

Peter Passmore, Lecturer at School of Health and Social Sciences, Middlesex University, London, Great Britain, e-mail: p.passmore@mdx.ac.uk

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