Vergence-accommodation conflict (VAC), also known as accommodation-vergence conflict, is a visual phenomenon that occurs when the brain receives mismatching cues between vergence and accommodation of the eye. This commonly occurs in virtual reality devices, augmented reality devices, 3D movies, and other types of stereoscopic displays and autostereoscopic displays. The effect can be unpleasant and cause eye strain.
Two main ocular responses can be distinguished: vergence of eyes, and accommodation. Both of these mechanisms are crucial in stereoscopic vision. Vergence or independent inward/outward rotation of eyes is engaged to fixate on objects and perceive them as single. Incorrect vergence response can cause double vision. Accommodation is the eye's focusing mechanism and it is engaged to produce a sharp image on a retina. Both of these mechanisms are neurally linked forming the accommodation-convergence reflex of eyes. One can distinguish vergence distance—a distance of a point towards which both eyes are converging, and an accommodation distance—a distance of a region in space towards which the focus or refractive power of the crystalline lens has been adjusted to produce a sharp image on the retina.
