Sensory Evaluation of Foveated Rendering in Computer-Generated Holograms

Abstract

Holography is a stereoscopic display technology that incorporates all the physiological factors of human stereopsis. A computer-generated hologram (CGH) records and displays holograms on a computer. A notable advantage of CGH is its independence from complex optical systems or chemicals that could pose a threat to human health. Furthermore, the process of creating images for animations, games, and similar applications is relatively straightforward. However, this approach is computationally intensive, which can limit its practical applications. Some methods have been developed to reduce the computational complexity of CGH technology. Recently, a methodology for the foveated rendering as a complete CGH has been proposed, in which L. Wei and Y. Sakamoto employed foveated rendering in a Fourier transform optical system (FTOS) to facilitate expeditious computation without adversely affecting the observer's image observation. However, it should be noted that FTOS optics are primarily utilized in the context of electronic holography head-mounted displays (HMDs). Therefore, it is challenging to combine and apply FTOS with other methods due to the unique characteristics of its optical system. In the study, sensory experimental trials were conducted on human subjects. The experiment was conducted assuming a central visual field of up to 9°, and the possibility was confirmed for the foveated rendering.