Anyone know how to fix depth perception?

[ForrestS]

When I went to MEPS they tested my depth perception. You look into this machine and the are a bunch of little black rings in sets of 4 and you have to tell which one is the closest in each set. I got the first few right but that was it. Has anyone had the same problem?  I want to be a pilot but this problem is getting in the way.

[eagl]

I un-focus my eyes or look slightly away from the little rings, and just pick the ring that doesn't look quite the same as the others.  Some folks memorize the ring positions.

There are some seriously wall-eyed pilots in the USAF and I figure if they can pass the eye exams, then almost anyone can   The real test is if you can fly the plane, land it consistently without damaging anything, and fly formation without ramming your wingman or flight lead.  If you can do that, the tests are just something to get through each year.

[Tac]

You could have something that I had as a child called estrabism (dont know if this is the term in english, it is in spanish).


What it is, is that the muscles that hold each side of your eyeballs are not synchronized because one of them is a little too short or a bit too long (the muscle). So when you try and have your eyes point at the same spot it dont work exactly as it should and that is why your depth perception is not perfect.

There is a simple eye surgery that corrects it however it is not 100% cure...if you've had this since you were a child your brain already 'learned' to interpret what you saw in a certain way.

My experience after the surgery, when they removed the bandage from my eye was just oddly different my room was... it seemed a little bigger than it was before. A few weeks after the surgery I started to notice little things I was doing better.. like hitting the ball with more accuracy in soccer games, catching objects in mid-air (which to me was always luck based, i seemed to have the pencil flying in midair hit my finger and bounce off rather than the fingers catching the pencil), etc.

Have your optometrist check for this.

[ForrestS]

How come I can fly pretty darn good in formation on AH when there is no real depth? I know I have depth just not at extreme distances. 

[ForrestS]

Tac!!  I think that is it. Before surgery when you looked at a star did it look slightly doubled?   

[uptown]

glasses?

[Russian]

As eagle said.

Also, some folks say that magic eye helps with depth test. 


Look at this image and learn to adjust your eyes to view image right away.
http://www.zefrank.com/theshow/gallery/d/5043-2/duckie_magic_eye.jpg

[Vulcan]

Do you have a lazy eye? (amblyopic vision).

Depth perception is a brain function, and takes relearning. I use a VR headset with AH (and other games), the wierd thing is that it gives me stereo 3d in games whilst in the real world my depth perception sucks. However it has had an effect on my real world vision and is improving my depth perception (this technique has been used as a treatment for amblyopic vision by doctors so it's no home brew myth   ). But it takes a long time.

[ForrestS]

no i dont have a lazy eye.  i do use the magic eye pics though, ive gotten pretty good.

[Tac]

Tac!!  I think that is it. Before surgery when you looked at a star did it look slightly doubled?   

If doubled you mean as if crossing your eyes yes at times. Mine wasnt a really bad case, the muscle was like mm off or something.

[Buzzard7]

Magic eye is easy. Train each eye to look at a different spot and poof.

[mechanic]

As eagle said.

Also, some folks say that magic eye helps with depth test. 


Look at this image and learn to adjust your eyes to view image right away.
http://www.zefrank.com/theshow/gallery/d/5043-2/duckie_magic_eye.jpg

I can do them printed on paper instantly but for some reason on a cpu screen i cannot see this image even trying for 2 minutes. Strange.

[Nwbie]

approx. 3 foot piece of string. tie a knot at 1.5 feet
Tie end to a chair or other such object, hold other end to your nose.
Concentrate on spot that string tied to for 20 to 30 seconds, then shift concentration to knot halfway up the string and do same staring at for 20 to 30 seconds, then concentrate on piece of string touching your nose.
Do this exercises 10 times through each stare point once a day. Your depth perception will improve.

[AAJagerX]

Not sure if they do it anymore, but the AF gave me a 2nd test just before shipping out.  The 2nd test was just a little plexiglass rectangle with 3 circles in it.  WAY easier than the big machine.  I failed the machine but passed the 2nd test just fine.  My depth perception is fine, so maybe some just don't see what's what in the machine.