The light field stereoscope

Over the last few years, virtual reality (VR) has re-emerged as a technology that is now feasible at low cost via inexpensive cellphone components. In particular, advances of high-resolution micro displays, low-latency orientation trackers, and modern GPUs facilitate immersive experiences at low cost. One of the remaining challenges to further improve visual comfort in VR experiences is the vergence-accommodation conflict inherent to all stereoscopic displays. Accurate reproduction of all depth cues is crucial for visual comfort. By combining well-known stereoscopic display principles with emerging factored light field technology, we present the first wearable VR display supporting high image resolution as well as focus cues. A light field is presented to each eye, which provides more natural viewing experiences than conventional near-eye displays. Since the eye box is just slightly larger than the pupil size, rank-1 light field factorizations are sufficient to produce correct or nearly-correct focus cues; no time-multiplexed image display or gaze tracking is required. We analyze lens distortions in 4D light field space and correct them using the afforded high-dimensional image formation. We also demonstrate significant improvements in resolution and retinal blur quality over related near-eye displays. Finally, we analyze diffraction limits of these types of displays.