Performance of a path tracing task using stereo and motion based depth cues

Stereoscopic displays have a number of properties that could be advantageous in the field of medical diagnosis. The aim of the current study is to get a better understanding of the relative importance of motion based depth cues (object motion, movement parallax) and stereoscopic disparity on the performance of a path tracing task, representative of angiographic visualizations. To date, these cues have not frequently been combined in a single study that would allow a direct comparison of their effects. In this paper, we report on an experiment where we measured the effectiveness of motion-based cues and stereoscopic disparity in terms of completion time, number of errors, perceived workload and perceived discomfort. Results revealed that both object motion and movement parallax enhanced performance in terms of number of correct answers. However, object motion was superior to motion parallax on self-report of mental workload and visual comfort. Stereoscopic disparity significantly decreased completion times when combined with object motion or movement parallax. On accuracy, no effect of stereo was found.