Brain activity underlying visual search in depth when viewing volumetric multiplanar images

Abstract The study investigated the cortical activity associated with 3D and 2D image perception on a volumetric multiplanar display by analyzing event-related potentials (ERPs) and power spectral density (PSD). In this study, we used a volumetric multiplanar display to present visual targets, and the brain signals were recorded via an EEG amplifier and analyzed using the EEGLAB toolbox on MATLAB. The study found no significant differences in amplitude between the 3D and 2D conditions across five occipital and parietal electrodes. However, there was a significant difference in latency of the P3 component on the Pz electrode. The analysis of PSD showed no significant differences between the two conditions, although there was a slightly higher alpha and beta activity observed in the 2D visualization. The study concluded that 3D image representation on a volumetric multiplanar display has no more sensory or cognitive load on the human brain than 2D representation, and that depth perception on a multiplanar display requires less brain activity.