Simulator Sickness analysis of 3D video viewing on passive 3D TV

The MPEG 3DV project is working on the next generation video encoding standard and in this process a call for proposal of encoding algorithms was issued. To evaluate these algorithm a large scale subjective test was performed involving Laboratories all over the world. For the participating Labs it was optional to administer a slightly modified Simulator Sickness Questionnaire (SSQ) from Kennedy et al (1993) before and after the test. Here we report the results from one Lab (Acreo) located in Sweden. The videos were shown on a 46 inch film pattern retarder 3D TV, where the viewers were using polarized passive eye-glasses to view the stereoscopic 3D video content. There were 68 viewers participating in this investigation in ages ranges from 16 to 72, with one third females. The questionnaire was filled in before and after the test, with a viewing time ranging between 30 min to about one and half hour, which is comparable to a feature length movie. The SSQ consists of 16 different symptoms that have been identified as important for indicating simulator sickness. When analyzing the individual symptoms it was found that Fatigue, Eye-strain, Difficulty Focusing and Difficulty Concentrating were significantly worse after than before. SSQ was also analyzed according to the model suggested by Kennedy et al (1993). All in all this investigation shows a statistically significant increase in symptoms after viewing 3D video especially related to visual or Oculomotor system.