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Spatiotemporal inseparability in early visual processing

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Abstract

We examine the implications of significant inseparable behaviour in centre-surround retinal cell types. From the form of a spatiotemporal centre-surround (CS) model which agrees qualitatively with physiological observations, we find that the sustained/transient dichotomy is a poor distinction for X-type/Y-type retinal ganglion cells since both exhibit inseparability. Static centre-surround models and spatiotemporal separable models are not valid for time-varying stimuli. Our results contradict the models for X- and Y-type ganglion cells proposed by Marr and Hildreth (1980) and Marr and Ullman (1981), and raise doubts about the physiological validity of Marr's zerocrossing theory. The CS filter is an attractive precursor to the extraction of 2-d motion information.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer Science, University of Toronto, M5S 1A4, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    David J. Fleet & Allan D. Jepson

  2. Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, M5S 1A4, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    Peter E. Hallett

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  1. David J. Fleet
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  2. Peter E. Hallett
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  3. Allan D. Jepson
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Fleet, D.J., Hallett, P.E. & Jepson, A.D. Spatiotemporal inseparability in early visual processing. Biol. Cybern. 52, 153–164 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00339944

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