Visual discomfort with stereo displays: Effects of viewing distance and direction of vergence-accommodation conflict.

Prolonged use of conventional stereo displays causes viewer discomfort and fatigue because of the vergence-accommodation conflict. We used a novel volumetric display to examine how viewing distance and the sign of the vergence-accommodation conflict affect discomfort and fatigue. In the first experiment, we presented a fixed conflict at short, medium, and long viewing distances. We compared subjects' symptoms in that condition and one in which there was no conflict. We observed more discomfort and fatigue with a given vergence-accommodation conflict at the longer distances. The second experiment compared symptoms when the conflict had one sign compared to when it had the opposite sign at short, medium, and long distances. We observed greater symptoms with uncrossed disparities at long distances and with crossed disparities at short distances. These findings help define comfortable viewing conditions for stereo displays.