laminar cortical dynamics of stereopsis and 3D surface perception

[Stephen Grossberg]

The following article is now available at 
http://www.cns.bu.edu/Profiles/Grossberg in PDF.

Grossberg, S. and Howe, P.D.L. (2002). A laminar cortical model
of stereopsis and three-dimensional surface perception.
Vision Research, in press.

ABSTRACT: A laminar cortical model of stereopsis and later stages of 3D
surface perception is developed and simulated. The model describes how
initial stages of monocular and binocular oriented filtering interact
with later stages of 3D boundary formation and surface filling-in in the
lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) and cortical areas V1, V2, and V4. In
particular, it details how interactions between layers 4, 3B, and 2/3A
in V1 and V2 contribute to stereopsis, and clarifies how binocular and
monocular information combine to form 3D boundary and surface
representations. Along the way, the model modifies and significantly
extends the disparity energy model. Neural explanations are given for
psychophysical data concerning: contrast variations of dichoptic masking
and the correspondence problem, the effect of interocular contrast
differences on stereoacuity, Panum's limiting case, the Venetian blind
illusion, stereopsis with polarity-reversed stereograms, da Vinci
stereopsis, and various lightness illusions. By relating physiology to
psychophysics, the model provides new functional insights and
predictions about laminar cortical architecture.