Abstract

Surface astigmatism contour plots are a commonly used tool in the evaluation of progressive addition lens (PAL) designs. Astigmatism contour plots are topographical representations of the lens surface as defined by isoastigmatism contours, lines joining points of equal astigmatism, Figure 1. These contour plots are often used to represent the lens optics. However, the relationship between this representation of the optics and human performance or subjective acceptance has not been well studied.

© 1997 Optical Society of America