Intra-saccadic motion streaks jump-start gaze correction

Abstract

Rapid eye movements (saccades) incessantly shift object locations on the retina. To establish object correspondence across saccades, the visual system is thought to match surface features of objects upon saccade landing. Here we assessed if intrasaccadic visual information about an object's retinal trajectory informs this matchmaking. Ten human observers made saccades to a cued target in a circular stimulus array. Using a visual projection system with high spatiotemporal fidelity, we swiftly rotated this array as the eyes were in flight, displaying continuous or apparent intrasaccadic target motion for 14.6 ms. Observers' saccades could thus land between the target and a distractor, prompting secondary saccades. We tightly controlled the postsaccadic availability of object features by presenting masks at varying delays. Independently of the availability of object features, target movement increased the rate of gaze-correcting secondary saccades to the original pre-saccadic target with a reduced saccade latency. Intra-saccadic motion was particularly effective in driving gaze correction when the target's stimulus features, in combination with the saccade trajectory, gave rise to efficient motion streaks. These results suggest that intra-saccadic visual information can facilitate the establishment of object correspondence and jump-start gaze correction.

Retinal error signals and fluctuations in eye velocity influence oculomotor behavior in subsequent trials

“…There are two main arguments that this is probably still the case. First, following the classical studies by Castet and Masson (2000) who demonstrated that we are still able to perceive motion during saccadic eye movements, recent work by Schweitzer and Rolfs demonstrated convincingly that information during saccadic eye movements is still processed and used to link object locations and prepare follow-up movements ( Schweitzer & Rolfs, 2020a , 2020b ). Therefore, when intra-saccadic retinal information can be used within one trial, it should also be able to affect subsequent oculomotor behavior.…”

Definition, modeling and detection of saccades in the face of post-saccadic oscillations

“…Therefore, when close or conservative approximations of saccade offset are needed, detecting PSOs may drastically improve data quality. Examples of such applications include determining secondary saccade latencies [75][76][77][78], making sure that a presentation sequence has occurred strictly during a saccade [32], or measuring electrophysiological potentials, such as lambda waves, that are locked on saccade offset [79,80]. While PSO detection based on direction inversion proved a simple, yet efficient solution, that can in principle be added onto most detection algorithms, saccade detection based on machine learning is the current state of the art.…”

Moving fast and seeing slow? The visual consequences of vigorous movement

“…Although these numbers are flabbergasting, this argument might not age well. We now know that the processing of visual information acquired strictly during a saccade is intact and functional, serving object continuity across saccades and facilitating gaze correction upon saccade landing (Schweitzer & Rolfs, 2020, in press). Thus, reducing the duration of saccade-induced blindness might not be a top priority of this sensorimotor system.…”

“…The perceptual consequences of saccades depend on saccadic peak velocity (Ostendorf, Fischer, Finke, & Ploner, 2007) and the timing of post-saccadic visual information (Balsdon, Schweitzer, Watson, & Rolfs, 2018; Castet, Jeanjean, & Masson, 2002). In addition, even though pre- and intra-saccadic stimuli are routinely omitted from conscious perception (Campbell & Wurtz, 1978; Duyck, Collins, & Wexler, 2016), visual processing remains effective during omission (Watson & Krekelberg, 2009) and serves fundamental visuomotor functions (Schweitzer & Rolfs, 2020, in press). Changes in vigor should thus have immediate consequences for visual processing during and around the time of saccades.…”