History of Random Dot Stereograms
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by Robert Raymond, Mirages -- Moab, Utah
Last updated: 28-April-1994

1962.	Julesz, B. and Miller, J. E. (1962) Automatic stereoscopic
	presentation of functions of two variables. Bell System Technical
	Journal. 41:663-676; March. Thimbleby (1990) refers to this article:
	"Julesz and Miller were the first to show clearly that a sense of
	depth could arise purely from stereopsis, without relying on other
	cues such as perspective or contours. they used random patterns of
	dots which, although meaningless to single eye viewing, nevertheless
	created a depth impression when viewed in a stereoscope."

	The following additional information about Julesz seems to be from The
	Magic Eye, 1993, N.E. Thing Enterprises, Andrews and McMeel. I found
	it quoted in a newspaper article:

	During the 1960s, a researcher named Bella Julesz was the first to use
	computer-generated 3-D images made up of randomly placed dots to study
	depth perception in human beings. Because the dot pictures did not
	contain any other information, like color or shapes, he could be sure
	that when his subject saw the picture it was 3-D only.

	In the years that followed, other people continued using random dot
	pictures in their work; many of them were graduate students who
	studied with Julesz. With time they found new and better ways to
	create these interesting illusions.

1965.  Bela Julez, "Textured and Visual Perception," Scientific American,
	Feb. 1965. An article on stereo dot pictures. [George J Valevicius]

1966.  N. A. Valyus.  Stereoscopy.  Focal Press, London and New York.  426
	pp.  (I have not seen this book, but Boyer,1990 refers to it to say
	that Stereographic paintings are almost beyond possibility.)

1968.  Bela Julez. "Experiment in Perception," Psychology Today, July 1968.
	Cover story with a full page graphic and a few smaller ones.

1971.  Bela Julesz.  Foundations of Cyclopean Perception.  Chicago: Univ. of
	Chicago Press.	 I have not seen this book, but Kinsman,1992 mentions
	it:  "Julesz (1971) describes photographic techniques producing random
	dot stereograms in use in the early 1950s....  Since Julesz, in 1960,
	was the first to employ a computer to generate random dot stereograms,
	many would consider him the person most responsible for their
	popularity today....  Anaglyphs of random dot stereograms... are
	presented in the back of Julesz's book, and a pair of the
	(half-red/half-green) glasses required to view them is tucked inside
	the back cover."

1971.  Dr. Bella Julesz in "Reading from Scientific American - Image, Object
	and Illusion" by W.H. Freeman Publisher ISBN 0-7167-0505-2 (1971).
	[Bob Easterly]

1976.  Marr, D. and Poggio, T. (1976), Cooperative computation of stereo
	disparity, Science, 194:283-287; October 15.  Thimbleby (1990)
	refers to this article: "[They] discuss computational models of the
	visual processes that are involved in interpreting random dot
	stereograms."

1977.  Bela Julesz.  Foundations of Cyclopean Perception.  University of
	Chicago Press, Chicago.  xiv, 406 pp.  I assume this is the same
	book as the 1971 book referenced by (Kinsman,1992).  I think Boyer
	gave the wrong publication date. Of the book, Boyer writes:

	"The random-dot stereogram is a very inspiring demonstration of the
	sophistication and complexity of the information-processing which
	occurs in everyday human vision....  The first extensive studies of
	random-dot stereograms were accomplished by Bela Julesz and his
	colleagues on large and expensive computers, using professional
	programmers, at the Bell telephone Laboratories." (Boyer,1990)

1977.  Tyler & Chang, Vision Research, #17. Referenced by Tyler, 1983.

1979.  Marr, D. and Poggio, T. (1979), A computational theory of human
	stereo vision, Proceedings Royal Society of London, B204, 304:328.
	Thimbleby (1990) refers to this article: "[They] discuss
	computational models of the visual processes that are involved in
	interpreting random dot stereograms."

1983.  Schor & Cuiffreda, editors. Vergence Eye Movements: Basic & Clinical
	Aspects. One chapter, by Christopher Tyler including genuine SIRDS.
	Interestingly, he doesn't say he invented them. He just calls them
	"a new type of autostereogram designed for free fusion without the
	need for a stereoscope or anaglyph glasses". Then he says the basis
	is the repetition of a random pattern and refers to Tyler & Chang,
	1977, Vision Res, #17.	[Dan Richardson]

1985.  Paul S. Boyer.  Stereographic technique for illustrating geologic
	specimens.  New Jersey academy of Science, Bulletin, volume 39, no.
	2, pp. 83-91.  I have not seen this article, but Boyer,1990 refers
	to it when speaking of the DIN 4531 stereogram format.

1986. L. L. Kontsevich. "An Ambiguous Random-Dot Stereogram Which
	Permits Continuous Changing of Interpretation," Vision Research, Vol.
	26, No. 3, pp. 517-519.  I have not seen this article, but
	Kinsman,1992 mentions it:  "Kontsevich (1986) describes a technique for
	making a series of tiles." Kinsman presents a "similar stereogram"
	that is a SIRDS. If so, this would be the first SIRDS I am aware of.

1987.  Paul S. Boyer.  Constructing true stereograms on the Macintosh.	The
	Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching, volume 6,
	no. 2, pp. 15-22.  (I have not seen this article, but Boyer,1990
	refers to it as a detailed article describing computer stereography.)

1988.  Falk, Brill and Stork produce the "Seeing The Light" image that
	Dyckman referenced in his Stereo World article. [Dan Richardson]

1988.  J. Ninio and I. Herlin.	"Speed and Accuracy of 3D Interpretation of
	Linear Stereograms, Vision Research, Vol. 28, No. 11, pp.
	1223-1233.  I have not seen this article, but Kinsman,1992 mentions
	it:  "Ninio and Herlin (1988), and Slinker and Burton (1992),
	experimented with stereograms containing complex patterns [triangles,
	lines, blotches, and even images] in their initial noise fields."

1989.  Rocca and Stork, Behavior Research Methods, Instruments and
	Computers, 1989, might be vol 21 number 5. Demonstrats a little Mac
	program they wrote to generate SIRDS from MacPaint files.
	[Dan Richardson]

1990.  Paul S. Boyer, Professor of Geology, Fairleigh Dickinson University,
	"Random-Dot Stereograms -- Creating a Psychological Phenomenon,"
	STEREO WORLD, March/April 1990.  Creating DIRDS on the Mac.

1990.  Tyler, C. W. and Clarke, M. B. (1990) The autostereogram. SPIE
	Stereoscopic Displays and Applications 1258: 182-196. Thimbleby
	(1990) refers to this article: "Recently, however, Tyler and Clarke
	realized that a pair of random dot stereograms can be combined
	together, the result being called a single image random dot
	stereogram (SIRDS) or, more generally, an autostereogram.... [They]
	described a simple but asymmetric altorithm, which meant, for
	example, that some people can only see the intended effect when the
	picture is held upside-down."

1990.  Dan Dyckman, "Single Image Random Dot Stereograms," STEREO WORLD,
	May/June 1990.	"I was recently surprised when a friend of mine ...
	showed me a random-dot-stereograph that consisted fo a single image,
	rather than the usual stereo pair.  To view the image, one fused two
	marks within the image, and would see the words SEEING THE LIGHT."

	"Interested readers might consider creating poster-sized images using
	this technique, or experimenting with supplementary gray-level or
	color values for each pixel.  And, if any reader knows who invented
	this technique for single image random dot sstereograms, or who
	created the SEEING THE LIGHT image, please drop a note to this
	magazine."

1991.  Prior to June 1991 a company named Pentica Systems, Inc (One Kendall
	Square, Building 200, Cambridge, MA 02139, Tel. 617-577-1101, Tom
	Baccei - President) published an advertisment, "Pentica Loves
	Puzzles," with a SIRDS image in it.  The magazine may have been EDN--I
	don't remember.

1991.  About June 3, 1991, Pentica mails an information packet to those
	responding to the add.	In the information Pentica sent to those
	responding to the ad, they say, "We discovered ... the technique for
	generating it in STEREO WORLD." Four SIRDSs accompany the information,
	marked "images (c) 1990 by Dan Dyckman."

1991.  June 13, 1991, N.E. Thing Enterprises, (One Kendall Square, Building
	200, Cambridge, MA 02139) also mails a flyer to those responding to
	the Pentica ad.  The N.E.Thing address and the Pentica address are the
	same, as well as the postal meter number (FMETER 8010560) for the two
	mailings.  The flyer states, "from the people who created the Pentica
	Loves Puzzles Ad....  Because of the unbelievably enthusiastic
	response to our random dot stereogram featured in the 'Pentica Loves
	Puzzles' ad, we are rushing you this advance notice of our latest 3D
	mindbenders." They offered 3 posters, World's Hardest Maze, The Third
	Eye, Training Wheels, and a 1992 Calendar.

1992.  Andrew A. Kinsman, Random Dot Stereograms, Kinsman Physics, 1992.
	First printing October 1992.  "This history of the stereogram is a bit
	elusive.  It appears to be intertwined with anaglyphs, lenticular
	photographs, and stereoscopic photographic techniques.	Charles
	Wheatstone described stereoscopy in 1832.  In 1851 the the London
	Society of Arts held the Crystal Palace Exhibition, which six million
	people attended and potentially witnessed Sir David Brewster
	demonstrate the stereoscope.  Stereoscopes became popular as a result.
	Kahn (1967), in The Codebreakers, references an article by Herbert C.
	McKay, written in the late 1940s, on how to manufacture simple
	stereograms with a typewriter for encryption purposes....  Julesz
	(1971) describes photographic techniques producing random dot
	stereograms in use in the early 1950s.	History seems to have recorded
	no particular inventor of stereograms.	It is quite probable that soon
	after parlor-style stereoscopes became popular someone took a
	photograph of a camouflaged hunter with a stereo camera.  The subject
	in the resulting picutre might be difficult to identify.  Viewed
	stereoscopically with the rest of their collection, the subject would
	become obvious."

1992.  "This unique synthesis of computer technology and fine art began simply
	as an idea between two creative individuals in 1992.  Paul's art
	background and Mike's computer genious proved to be the perfect
	combination of talents.  Several hundred man hours later, in a remote
	region of California, came the first public exposure to Holusion(TM)
	3D Prints.  And so NVision Grafix was born." (NVision Grafix flyer
	introducing Calypso Reef, 1993.) "Micro Synectic was Mike Bielinski is
	NVision...NE Thing and Micro Synectics are listed in the StareEO demo,
	because Mike Bielinski wrote it for NE Thing." (CompuServe messages
	from Dan Richardson) "The images are the creation of NVision Grafix, a
	Texas-based firm owned by two former fraternity brothers, Paul Herber
	and Mike Bielinski.  They developed the Holusion technology while
	making a poster of the B-2 bomber for the company where Herber worked
	as an engineer.  The posters were a huge hit, and soon, Herber and
	Bielinski had abandoned their jobs to start up NVision:  Herber is the
	artist, and Bielinski is the computer whiz....	As NVision has grown,
	though so has its competition.	Computer expert Tom Baccei has created
	his won "high-tech, three-dimensional art form" under the name "Magic
	Eye" and is marketing the images on books, posters, calendars, puzzles
	and cards." (Nicole Brodeur, Orange County Register.  As reprinted in
	The Daily Herald, March 22, 1994)

1993.  N.E. Thing begins patent process on several RDS algorithms.  "Salitsky
	dot" algorithm and the algorithm to produce an RDS that looses its
	colors when viewed in 3D are apparently two algorithms.  I have not
	seen the patent applications, but the law requires that they discuss
	"prior art." If someone could get copies of these applications, it
	would not only describe the algorithms in detail, it would present a
	history of SIRDS, to the degree that N.E. Thing was aware.

1993.	Harold W. Thimbleby, Stuart Inglis, and Ian H. Witten, "Displaying 3d
	Images: Algorithms for Single Image Random Dot Stereograms,"
	University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand, published on the
	Internet. I believe Stuart mentioned it was being published in an
	IEEE journal in 1994. I've forgotten which one and when.