Optical Transformation during Movement: Review of the Optical Concomitants of Egomotion

Abstract : The primary goals of this report are to make the formal mathematical descriptions of the optical concomitants of rectilinear self-motion through the environment more useful by consolidating, clarifying, and extending them. The report includes: (1) a critical review of the literature on the optical bases for the perception of rectilinear self-motion, (2) an outline of a comprehensive framework for the study of self-motion perception based on J. J. Gibson's ecological approach, and (3) an introduction to a unified mathematical treatment of the global optical effects of rectilinear self-motion. A careful distinction is maintained between geometrical facts and perceptual or psychological aspects of self-motion. The report is written in a tutorial style.