Displaying optic flow to simulate locomotion: Comparing heading and steering

Optic flow can be used by humans to determine their direction of heading as well as controlling steering. Dot-flow displays have been widely used to investigate these abilities but it is unclear whether photorealistic textures would provide better information for controlling high-speed steering. Here, we examine the accuracy of heading judgements from dot-flow displays of different densities and luminance and then compare to a scene containing a textured ground. We then examine steering behaviour using these same displays to determine whether accurate heading conditions necessarily equate to successful steering. Our findings suggest that the bright dense dot-flow displays led to equivalent performance as the ground texture when judging heading, and this was also true when steering. The intermediate dot-flow conditions (with fewer and faded dots) revealed that some conditions that led to accurate heading judgements were insufficient for accurate steering. It seems, therefore, that heading perception should not be considered synonymous with successful steering control, and displays that support one ability will not necessarily support the other.