Ambiguous Image - Gestalt Grouping Rules

Gestalt Grouping Rules

In mid-level vision, the visual system utilizes a set of heuristic methods, called Gestalt grouping rules, to quickly identify a basic perception of an object that helps to resolve an ambiguity. This allows perception to be fast and easy by observing patterns and familiar images rather than a slow process of identifying each part of a group. This aids in resolving ambiguous images because the visual system will accept small variations in the pattern and still perceive the pattern as a whole. The Gestalt grouping rules are the result of the experience of the visual system. Once a pattern is perceived frequently, it is stored in memory and can be perceived again easily without the requirement of examining the entire object again. For example, when looking at a chess board, we perceive a checker pattern and not a set of alternating black and white squares.