College of Optometry, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
School of Optometry, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA.
Ophthalmic Physiol Opt. 2024 Jul;44(5):854-866. doi: 10.1111/opo.13333. Epub 2024 May 18.
To be able to walk safely up or down a staircase, we must be able to judge the configuration and slope of the staircase and our viewing position. Adding markings to the stairs might help form correct perceptions of the staircase geometry. In this study, we examined how visual judgements about staircase configuration are affected by different marking patterns.
Fifteen normally sighted young participants viewed computer-generated images of staircases as seen from the top landing of the stairs. Marking patterns included contrasting baseboard, transverse edge-stripes, longitudinal side-stripes, longitudinal stripes, diamond patterns, longitudinal stripes extended to landing and diamond patterns extended to landing. For comparison, we included the no-marking condition as a control. We tested several contrast levels of marking patterns (3.2%-50%), pitch lines of the staircases (shallow/medium/steep) and viewing positions (left/centre/right). The effect of the overall shape cue of the staircase on participants' performance was also evaluated. We measured participants' accuracies in judging whether the staircase was shallow, medium or steep, and whether the viewing position was located to the left, centre or right.
Transverse edge-stripes markings yielded fewer underestimations of slope (9% [transverse] vs. 18% [others]) when compared with other markers. The presence of an overall shape cue helped both slope (67% [presence] vs. 51% [absence]) and viewing position judgements (79% [presence] vs. 62% [absence]). When the overall shape cue was present, only the transverse edge-stripes markings yielded a significant improvement in performance (compared with no-marking condition). When the cue was absent, performance was significantly better with markings with high and moderate contrasts.
Adding marking patterns such as high-contrast transverse stripes to stairs may help enhance the visibility of the stairs and judgements of staircase geometry. This might be particularly useful for people with visual impairment or normally sighted individuals under compromised environmental conditions.
为了能够安全地上下楼梯，我们必须能够判断楼梯的配置和坡度以及我们的观察位置。在楼梯上添加标记可能有助于形成对楼梯几何形状的正确感知。在这项研究中，我们研究了不同标记模式如何影响对楼梯配置的视觉判断。
15 名视力正常的年轻参与者从楼梯的顶层平台观察计算机生成的楼梯图像。标记模式包括对比踢脚线、横向边缘条纹、纵向侧条纹、纵向条纹、菱形图案、纵向条纹延伸至着陆和菱形图案延伸至着陆。作为比较，我们包括无标记条件作为对照。我们测试了几种标记模式的对比度水平（3.2%-50%）、楼梯的梯级线（浅/中/陡）和观察位置（左/中/右）。还评估了楼梯整体形状提示对参与者表现的影响。我们测量了参与者判断楼梯是浅、中还是陡的准确性，以及判断观察位置是位于左侧、中间还是右侧的准确性。
与其他标记相比，横向边缘条纹标记导致坡度低估的情况较少（9%[横向]与 18%[其他]）。整体形状提示的存在有助于坡度（67%[存在]与 51%[不存在]）和观察位置判断（79%[存在]与 62%[不存在]）。当整体形状提示存在时，只有横向边缘条纹标记才能显著提高性能（与无标记条件相比）。当提示不存在时，具有高对比度和中等对比度的标记可显著提高性能。
在楼梯上添加标记模式，如高对比度的横向条纹，可以帮助提高楼梯的可见性和对楼梯几何形状的判断。这对于视力障碍者或在环境条件较差的情况下视力正常的人可能特别有用。
