Staying on Track: a Comparative Study on the Use of Optical Flow in 360° Video to Mitigate VIMS

Visually Induced Motion Sickness (VIMS), when the visual system detects motion that is not felt by the vestibular system, is a deterrent for first-time Virtual Reality (VR) users and can impact its adoption rate. Constricting the field-of-view (FoV) has been shown to reduce VIMS as it conceals optical flow in peripheral vision, which is more sensitive to motion. Additionally, several studies have suggested the inclusion of visual elements (e.g., grids) consistent with the real world as reference points. In this paper, we describe a novel technique dynamically controlled by a video’s precomputed optical flow and participants’ runtime head direction and evaluate it in a within-subjects study (N = 24) on a 360° video of a roller coaster. Furthermore, based on a detailed analysis of the video and participant’s experience, we provide insights on the effectiveness of the techniques in VIMS reduction and discuss the role of optical flow in the design and evaluation of the study.