Session: CIE-31-01 VARE User Experience (UX) and Human-Machine Interaction

Paper Number: 194261

194261 - Seeing Isn’t Believing: the Vertical–Horizontal Illusion Across Screens and XR Headsets 

The Vertical-Horizontal Illusion (VHI) systematically biases perceived geometric proportions, yet its behavior across modern digital devices remains understudied. This ecosystem now spans desktop monitors, smartphones, and an expanding class of extended-reality (XR) head-mounted displays (HMDs). understanding whether classical perceptual biases persist, or change magnitude, is essential for ensuring reliable spatial interaction. This work introduces the Square Recognition Test (SRT), a unified cross-platform method for quantifying subjective squareness judgments and measuring device-dependent VHI biases. A within-subject study ($N=24$) was conducted across PC, mobile, and augmented reality (AR) HMD conditions. Results reveal a consistent tendency for participants to select slightly wider-than-tall rectangles as perceptually square across all device types, confirming the robustness of VHI in contemporary digital environments. Although minor numerical differences were observed, no statistically significant device effect was detected. To investigate mitigation strategies, several AR interface variants were evaluated, demonstrating that display geometry and rendering-surface curvature can influence perceptual stability. These findings provide new evidence that VHI functions as a stable perceptual prior across XR platforms and highlight opportunities for perception-aware interface design, including perceptually calibrated aspect-ratio adjustments and curvature-aligned rendering methods. As spatial computing technologies continue to diversify, accounting for intrinsic geometric biases will be essential for producing visually coherent and cross-device consistent user experiences.

Presenting Author: Wenhao Yang Lamar University

Presenting Author Biography: Wenhao Yang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Lamar University. His research focuses on human–computer interaction, extended reality (XR), and human‑centered robotics, with an emphasis on perceptual biases, cognitive ergonomics, and interface design for emerging immersive systems. Prior to joining Lamar University, he conducted research at Meta Reality Labs, where he worked on simulator fidelity, wide‑field‑of‑view compatibility, and optimization of next‑generation VR development toolchains. His recent projects explore perceptual anisotropies in XR displays, human‑aware robot programming via augmented reality, and perception‑aligned interaction techniques for manufacturing and mixed‑reality environments. Dr. Yang has published in leading venues in intelligent manufacturing, robotics, and XR, including the Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, Robotics and Computer‑Integrated Manufacturing, and the IEEE/RSJ IROS conference. His work aims to bridge human perceptual science with practical XR interface development to improve usability, safety, and performance in future spatial computing systems.