Rob Allison
Principal Investigator, Faculty Member in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
rallison [at] yorku [dot] ca
Dr. Robert Allison is the Principal Investigator of the Virtual Reality and Perception Lab and a professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Lassonde School of Engineering. His interdisciplinary research lies at the intersection of engineering and human psychology, focusing on understanding how visual perception guides interaction with the 3D world, whether natural or virtual. Dr. Allison specializes in psychological and computational models of depth perception, stereoscopic vision, and the measurement and analysis of eye movements. His work contributes to the design of advanced human-computer interfaces for virtual reality and simulation systems, with applications spanning 3D film, gaming, optometry, aviation, security, and rehabilitation. He also collaborates extensively with academic, industrial, and government partners to advance the technology of virtual and augmented reality systems.
Postdocs and Graduate Students
Xue Teng
Postdoctoral Fellow
xueteng [at] yorku [dot] ca
Dr. Xue Teng obtained her PhD from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. She specializes in perceptual distortions in VR, particularly in depth perception and motion gain adaptation.
Aysun Duyar
Postdoctoral Fellow
Co-supervised by Dr. Laurie Wilcox
aysun [at] yorku [dot] ca
I am interested in research questions at the intersection of psychology and engineering, particularly in understanding the limits of human perception and cognition to inform design decisions in technology. I am currently involved in a collaborative project focusing on vision requirements in mixed reality systems for military aviation. Prior to joining the lab, I earned my Ph.D. in Cognition and Perception from NYU, where I investigated how attention shapes visual performance and oculomotor behavior.
Hong Yi Guo
PhD Student
hongyi06 [at] yorku [dot] ca
Hongyi Guo is a PhD student at VRPL at York University. His research focuses on visual perception during self-motion. One of his recent projects examined how the flow parsing gain (a measurement of accuracy in perceiving scene-relative object movements) depends on self-motion and object motion directions. Hongyi usually works from the Sherman building, with the wide-field multi-projector display system (also called EGG).
Sanjida Sharmin Mohona
PhD Student
mohona [at] yorku [dot] ca
Rea Gill
Visiting PhD Student from the University of Reading
Co-supervised by Dr. Laurie Wilcox
r.k.gill [at] pgr [dot] reading [dot] ac [dot] uk
I am an International Visiting Research Trainee at the Wilcox Lab and a Ph.D. student at the Vision and Haptics Lab at the University of Reading, UK. My current research takes a mixed-methods approach in understanding the perceptual optimisation of bimanual visual-haptic telerobotic systems for human operators during nuclear fusion remote maintenance. I am particularly interested in the role of sensory transformations between visual and haptic workspaces and how these transformations affect object interaction. In my research, I utilise virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies and Unreal Engine as methods of investigation, whilst growing a development pipeline for future extended reality research in the lab with our one-of-a-kind Matrix Device. My Ph.D. is co-supervised by the UK Atomic Energy Authority and is generously supported by an ESRC and EUROfusion studentship.
Phoebe Lim Ching
PhD Student
pbching [at] yorku [dot] ca
Hello, my name is Phoebe. I like to use math to describe how we perceive the world! My research interests include image distortions, motion perception, and depth cue integration. I received two MPhil degrees (Bioengineering, Industrial Engineering) from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and my Bachelor’s degree from De La Salle University in Manila, Philippines. I speak fluent Tagalog and bad Hokkien. In my free time, I like to draw, read fiction, and play chill games.
Ehtisham Ul Haq
MASc Student
euh52 [at] yorku [dot] ca
Hi, I am Ehtisham. My interests lie in experimenting with immersive technologies and interactive media to push the boundaries of human experience and connectivity. At York University, my work focuses on multiplayer avatars, fidelity, and perceptual errors, addressing the challenges of creating seamless and engaging shared XR experiences.
Christopher Schiafone
MA Student, Psych. BBCS
cschia01[at] yorku [dot] ca
Co-supervised by Doctor Laurie Wilcox
I am a Masters student in the Department of Psychology at York University. I am fascinated by the links between Sensation, Perception and Cognition as they relate to multi-modal learning of complex Neuroanatomy. As someone who is late-blind, I have personal experience with the challenges I am working to address in my research.
Joy Chen
MASc Student
jchen20 [at] yorku [dot] ca
Hi, my name is Joy. I am interested in researching ways to enhance experience and perception in technology, with a particular focus on multimodal sensing of user behaviour in virtual reality. I previously completed my Bachelor’s degree at Carleton University in Computer Science with a stream in Game Development. In my spare time, I love to read, bake, and play RPGs.
Research Assistants and Staff
Harshitha Koppisetty
Research Assistant, MASc (2025)
hksetty [at] yorku [dot] ca
Ekaterina Kozlovsky
Undergraduate Research Assistant
katyakoz [at] my [dot] yorku [dot] ca
Hi, my name is Ekaterina (Katya), and I'm a third year Software Engineering student in the Security Stream. I'm most interested in exploring human-computer interaction in virtual reality, particularly in how image compression can affect user experience and perceptual quality. At the lab, I contribute to ongoing Image Quality Assessment research under varying conditions.
Takhmina Iliiasova
Undergraduate Research Assistant
tosia [at] my [dot] yorku [dot] ca
Takhmina is a fourth-year Computer Science student at York University. With a background in healthcare, she is passionate about bringing a human-centred perspective to the field of Computer Science. Her interests lie in Computer Vision and Human-Computer Interaction. At VRPL, she explores how immersive technologies influence human perception and interaction. Through her work, Takhmina is deepening her expertise in Computer Vision and XR technologies, with the aim of contributing to meaningful innovations that improve how people experience and interact with digital environments.
Joshua Chen
Undergraduate Research Assistant
josh0304 [at] my [dot] yorku [dot] ca
Rachel Shum
Research Coordinator
rlshum [at] yorku [dot] ca
Rachel is the Research Coordinator for the Sharing Mixed Reality Project, a collaborative initiative led by Dr. Robert Allison and Dr. Laurie Wilcox. She earned her PhD in Chemistry from Queen's University in 2024. When not in the lab, Rachel can be found hiking and at art galleries.
CéAnn Marks
Research Coordinator
ceamarks [at] yorku [dot] ca
Romina Abadi
Research Assistant (2022-24), MASc (2022)
I'm a Research Assistant working on software development, data analysis, research, and project coordination. What I love about being a research assistant is the variety of projects and tasks I work on. For my master’s research, I investigated whether a simplified and interactive water simulation in Augmented Reality would affect people's perception of how water stands in a tilted container. I enjoy playing music and browsing funny comics.
Brayden Keltz
Undergraduate Research Assistant
bkeltz [at] my [dot] yorku [dot] ca
I am a research assistant at York University. I work primarily with Mohona on her research of visual perception of an image while doing another task in a virtual reality environment. A recent experiment had participants attempting to look at an image while looking around for a red ball to click on. We are trying to figure out if performing a task when looking at certain images may make it harder to focus on the visual distortion in the background. I usually work in the Lassonde building.
Cristiane Marie Canillo
Project Coordinator (2023-24)
Christiane Marie was the 2023-2024 Project Coordinator for the Virtual Reality and Perception Lab (Percept) and the 3D Perception and Psychophysics Lab for the Sharing Mixed Realities collaboration. She completed her BA in Psychology at York University - Keele Campus and is set to pursue graduate studies in Experimental Psychology. Christiane Marie enjoys watching stand-up comedy and advocates for global citizenship education.
Faruq Afolabi
Research Assistant (2020-24), BEng Software Engineering (2023)
Faruq is a Researcher with interests and expertise in AR/VR Development and Human-Computer Interaction. He completed his undergraduate degree in software engineering at York University. Faruq enjoys film photography and biking around the city.
Onoise Gerald Kio
Postdoctoral Fellow (2022-24)
Other Lab Alumni
- Alexander Gregor, MSc in Computer Science
- Oluwaseyi Shodipe, MSc in Computer Science
- Falk Bialis, MSc BRSU
- Jasmeet Kaur, MSc in AI
- Martin Harriott, Research Assistant
- Jarod Lustre, Research Assistant
- Pooria Sharifa, Research Assistant
- Sandra Younis, Research Assistant
- Nazanin Babaei, Research Assistant
- Fatima Hanif, Research Assistant
- Emad Al-Gailani, Research Assistant
- Vrushali Guruji, Research Assistant
- Richard Robinson, Research Assistant
- Saadia Riaz, Research Assistant
- Ariya Askari, Research Assistant
- Jasleen Chagger, Research Assistant
- Noah Vukosa, Research Assistant
- Yarema Yaremchuk, Research Assistant
- Jingbo Zhao, PhD Student in Computer Engineering
- Maryam Keyvanara, PhD Student in Computer Engineering
- Brandon Fung, MSc Student in Computer Engineering
- Cyan Kuo, MASc Student in Computer Engineering
- Pearl Guterman, PhD Student in Psychology
- Yoshitaka Fujii, Postdoctoral Fellow
- Sidrah Laldin, MA Student in Independent Studies
- Margarita Vinnikov, PhD Student in Computer Science
- Suzette Fernandez, Research Assistant
- Lili Shen, Visiting Academic Fellow
- Tonny Lay, Research Assistant
- Jim Zacher, Research Associate
- Ramy Kirollos, MA Student in Psychology
- Arhum Sultana, MASc Student in Computer Engineering
- Anna Kiseleva, Research Assistant
- Parisa Heravi, Research Assistant
- Carly Hylton, Research Assistant
- Karim Benzeroual, Postdoctoral Fellow
- Natalia Bogdan, PhD Student in Computer Science
- Jianhui Chen, MASc Student in Computer Engineering
- June Li, Research Assistant
- Jacob Perron, Research Assistant
- Anas Ashraf, Research Assistant
- Christos Giotis, 3D Film Project Director
- Rida Waseem, Research Assistant
- Mariam Sardar, Research Assistant
- Vincent Pun, Research Assistant
- Michelle De Rosa, Research Assistant
- Linda Tomkins, Research Assistant
- Bahar Hashemi, Research Assistant
- Niken Goswami, Research Assisant
- Andrew Milner, MSc Student in Computer Science
- Tetyana Andriychuk, Research Assistant
- Lindsay Rubinfeld, Research Assistant
- Alireza Moghaddam, Research Assistant
- John Stemberger, MSc Student in Computer Science
- Carrie Smith, MA Student in Psychology
- Abdullah Merei, Research Assistant
- Dominik Swierad, Research Assistant
- Muna Shabaneh, MSc Student in Computer Science
- Linda Tomkins, Research Assistant
- Sarah Jenkin, Research Assistant
- Shabnam Sadr, MA Student in Psychology
- Raj Suryakumar, Postdoctoral Fellow
- Tristan Carvelho, MSc Student in Computer Science
- Osman Akhtar, Undergraduate Research Assistant
- Caroline Wang, Graduate Student
- Alex Tumanov, MSc Student in Computer Science
- Inna Tsirlin, MSc Student in Computer Science
- Yuichi Sakano, Postdoctoral Fellow
- Johnny Xu, BSc Student in Computer Science
- Jason Huang, MSc Student in Computer Science
- Li Yan, Research Assistant
- Qingjiu Jia, BSc Student in Computer Science
- Tanja Hohl, BSc Student in Computer Science
- Dan Laporte, Research Assistant
- Jens Schumacher, Research Associate
- Heather Jenkin, Postdoctoral Fellow
- Judy Sam, Research Assistant
- Yvonne Chan, Research Assistant
- Isaac Tsang, Research Assistant
- Shufang Wang, Research Assistant
- Jacob Kaiserman, Research Assistant
- Jia Wen, Research Assistant
- Andrej Lenert, Research Assistant
- Zahidur Rahman, MSc Student in Computer Science