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Optic Flow Processing

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Encyclopedia of Computational Neuroscience

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Synonyms

Directional motion; Matched filters; Motion parallax; Optic flow fields; Optical flow; Relative motion; Velocity vector fields

Definition

Optic flow describes the geometrical projection of relative motion between the visual environment and a moving optical system. It is commonly formalized by a distribution of local velocity vectors, observed at many different positions within the optical system’s visual field. Together, the local velocity vectors constitute a pattern of coherent image motion called an optic flow field. The direction and magnitude of the velocity vectors depend on the instantaneous self-motion of the optical system which may be decomposed into its translation and rotation components. The magnitude of translation-induced contribution to a given velocity vector depends on the distance between the optical system and objects within the visual field, while the rotation-induced contribution is distance invariant. Given its properties, optic flow contains a...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK

    Dr. Holger G. Krapp

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  1. Dr. Holger G. Krapp
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Correspondence to Holger G. Krapp .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Atlanta, Georgia, USA

    Dieter Jaeger

  2. Department of Biomedical Engineering, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, USA

    Ranu Jung

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Krapp, H.G. (2014). Optic Flow Processing. In: Jaeger, D., Jung, R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Computational Neuroscience. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7320-6_332-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7320-6_332-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-7320-6

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