Reliable colour constancy by industry for colour conducted to quantify metamerism. and metamerism indices are highly desired quality control. Two experiments were the degree of colour constancy and In the colour constancy experiment, 240 wool samples were prepared and scaled using a magnitude estimation method by a panel of 5 experienced observers under sources D65, A and TL84. 2 corresponding data sets derived from the experimental results were used to test various chromatic adaptation transforms. The results clearly show that the BFD transform gave the most precise prediction than the other transforms. Attempts were also made to derive 4 new transforms from four independent data sets. These gave similar performance as that of the BFD, but overcome the BFO's problem (incapable of predicting some of the high saturated colours). Hence, these transforms should be used with confidence for predicting the degree of colour constancy. This experimental results were also used to test various uniform colour spaces and colour appearance models. The Hunt94 model gave the most precise prediction to the colourfulness and hue results. Modification was made to its lightness scale for improving the fit. In the metamerism experiment, 76 pairs of wool samples were prepared and assessed with 20 observations using a grey scale under 7 sources: D65, A, TL84, TL83, P27, W and WW. The experimental results were used to test 3 types of illuminant metamerism indices derived here. It was found that calculating colour difference using 3 colour difference formulae, i.e. CMC, BFD and CIE94 gave the most precise prediction to the visual results. The degree of precision is quite satisfactory in comparison with typical observer precision. A new standard deviate observer (SDO) was also derived. This together with the CIE SDO and 1964 Observer were tested using the author's and the Obande's data. The results showed that the new SDO predicted results more accurate than those from the other two CIE Observers. An Observer Metamerism Index (OMI) was also derived to indicate the degree of metamerism based upon the new SDO. The results showed that the new SDO was more suitable for indicating the degree of observer metamerism.

A colour may have a different appearance under different viewing conditions. This causes many problems in the colour reproduction industry. Thus the importance of prediction of colour appearance has arisen. In this study, a mathematical model to predict colour appearance was developed based on the investigation of the changes of colour appearance under a wide range of media and viewing conditions. The media studied included large cut-sheet transparency films, 35mm projected slides, reflection samples and monitor colours. The viewing conditions varied were light source, luminance level and viewing background. Colour appearance was studied using the magnitude estimation technique. In general, colours appeared more colourful, lighter and brighter with an increase in luminance level. Background and flare light had considerable influence on colour appearance for cut-sheet transparency media. Simultaneous contrast effects occurred when a monitor colour was displayed against a chromatic surround. The monitor colour appeared lighter with a darker induction field. When a coloured area was enlarged, lightness tended to increase while colourfulness tended to decrease. Colour appearance was also affected by the closest neighbouring colour. In this case, the hue of the colour largely shifted towards the direction of the opponent hue of the induction colour. The data obtained were applied to test three colour spaces and two colour appearance models. For reflection media, the Hunt91 model performed the best. However it was not satisfactory when applied to transmissive media. Based on these results, the Hunt93 model was developed by modification of the Hunt91 model. The new model widens the application range of the Hunt91 and is reversible.

Color plays a vitally important role in the world we live in. It surrounds us everywhere we go. Achromatic life, restricted to black, white and grey, is extremely dull. Color fascinates artists, for it adds enormously to aesthetic appreciation, directly invoking thoughts, emotions and feelings. Color fascinates scientists. For decades, scientists in color imaging, printing and digital photography have striven to satisfy increasing demands for accuracy in color reproduc- tion. Fluorescence is a very common phenomenon observed in many objects such as gems and corals, writing paper, clothes, and even laundry detergent. Traditional color imaging algo- rithms exclude fluorescence by assuming that all objects have only an ordinary reflective com- ponent. The first part of the thesis shows that the color appearance of an object with both reflective and fluorescent components can be represented as a linear combination of the two components. A linear model allows us to separate the two components using independent component analysis (ICA). We can then apply different algorithms to each component, and combine the results to form images with more accurate color. Displaying color images accurately is as important as reproducing color images accurately. The second part of the thesis presents a new, practical model for displaying color images on self-luminous displays such as LCD monitors. It shows that the model accounts for human visual system’s mixed adaptation condition and produces results comparable to many existing algorithms.

Color plays a vitally important role in the world we live in. It surrounds us everywhere we go. Achromatic life, restricted to black, white and grey, is extremely dull. Color fascinates artists, for it adds enormously to aesthetic appreciation, directly invoking thoughts, emotions and feelings. Color fascinates scientists. For decades, scientists in color imaging, printing and digital photography have striven to satisfy increasing demands for accuracy in color reproduc- tion. Fluorescence is a very common phenomenon observed in many objects such as gems and corals, writing paper, clothes, and even laundry detergent. Traditional color imaging algo- rithms exclude fluorescence by assuming that all objects have only an ordinary reflective com- ponent. The first part of the thesis shows that the color appearance of an object with both reflective and fluorescent components can be represented as a linear combination of the two components. A linear model allows us to separate the two components using independent component analysis (ICA). We can then apply different algorithms to each component, and combine the results to form images with more accurate color. Displaying color images accurately is as important as reproducing color images accurately. The second part of the thesis presents a new, practical model for displaying color images on self-luminous displays such as LCD monitors. It shows that the model accounts for human visual system’s mixed adaptation condition and produces results comparable to many existing algorithms.

In this piece, I have looked to use art in an attempt to explore a known phenomenon of the visual system: in this case, chromatic adaptation. The name delta in this sense has two meanings. The first is that of the mathematical symbol Δ used to represent change. This refers to not only the changing light in the art piece but the hopeful change in the viewer as they walk away questioning what it is they saw and what they see. The second refers to the landmass that occurs when a flowing body of water meets a still one, such as a river into an ocean. Through this process it has become evident that the knowledge gained is not as important as the questions asked; I now stand on the last bit of dry land before wading into the endless ocean of questions. The focus of this work has been on experience, perception, and presence. It has become clear that, while a viewer may not see change, they do feel that change. The question then becomes how do we become more attuned and adept at recognizing these feelings, what are the implications of doing so, and why does that even matter.

No / Precortical color vision is mediated by three independent opponent or cardinal mechanisms that linearly combine receptoral outputs to form L/M, S/(L+M), and L+M channels. However, data from a variety of psychophysical and physiological experiments indicate that chromatic processing undergoes a reorganization away from the basic opponent model. Frequently, this post-opponent reorganization is viewed in terms of the generation of multiple ¿higher order¿ chromatic mechanisms, tuned to a wide variety of axes in color space. Moreover, adaptation experiments have revealed that the synthesis of these mechanisms occurs at a level in the cortex following the binocular integration of the inputs from each eye. Here we report results from an experiment in which the influence of chromatic adaptation on the perceived visual location of a test stimulus was explored using a Vernier alignment task. The results indicate that not only is positional information processed independently within the L/M, S/(L+M), and L+M channels, but that when adapting and test stimuli are extended to non-cardinal axes, the existence of multiple chromatically tuned mechanisms is revealed. Most importantly, the effects of chromatic adaptation on this task exhibit little interocular transfer and have rapid decay rates, consistent with chromatic as opposed to contrast adaptation. These findings suggest that the reorganization of chromatic processing may take place earlier in the visual pathway than previously thought.