System and method for mapping a coating into a spatial appearance space

Abstract

A computer system for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space may receive coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument. The computer system may generate spatial appearance space coordinates of the target coating by mapping each of the coating spatial appearance variables to individual axes of a multidimensional coordinate system. The computer system may identify a specific spatial appearance space coordinate from the identified spatial appearance space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, the specific spatial appearance space coordinate being associated with a minimum spatial appearance space distance from the spatial appearance space coordinate of the target coating. Additionally, the computer system may display a visual interface element indicating a specific reference coating associated with the specific spatial appearance space coordinate as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 902,520, filed on September 19, 2019, and entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MAPPING COATINGS TO A SPATIAL APPEARANCE SPACE,” which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Technical Field

[0003] The present invention relates to computer-implemented methods and systems and related computer program products for assisting in identifying coatings that match a target coating, particularly by mapping the coatings into a spatial appearance space. Background Art

[0004] Modern coatings provide several important functions in industry and society. Coatings can protect the coated material from corrosion, such as rust. Coatings can also provide aesthetic functions by providing a particular color and / or spatial appearance to an object. For example, most cars are coated with paint and various other coatings to protect the metal body of the car from the elements and provide an aesthetic visual effect.

[0005] In view of the wide range of uses of different coatings, it is often desirable to identify a target coating composition. For example, it may be desirable to identify a target coating on a car that has been involved in an accident. If the target coating is not properly identified, any resulting repair of the car coating will not match the original coating. As used herein, a target coating includes any coating of interest that has been applied to any physical object.

[0006] There are many opportunities for new methods and systems to improve coating identification. Summary of the invention

[0007] The present invention relates to a computerized method, which is used on a computer system including one or more processors and one or more computer-readable media having executable instructions stored thereon, wherein the executable instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, configure the computer system to perform a method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space. The computerized method includes receiving a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument. The plurality of coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable. The computerized method also includes generating a target spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating by mapping each of the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables to an individual axis in a multidimensional coordinate system. The granularity variable is mapped to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system. The glitter area variable is mapped to a second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system. In addition, the glitter intensity variable is mapped to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system. The computerized method also includes accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. The database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates in a multidimensional coordinate system associated with different reference coatings. In addition, the computerized method includes identifying spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings from the database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. The computerized method further includes calculating, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating. Still further, the method includes identifying a specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, the specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate being associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating. The method also includes displaying a visual interface element indicating the specific reference coating associated with the specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate as a proposed spatial appearance match to the target coating.

[0008] The present invention also relates to a computer system and a computerized method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space, and a related computer program product as specified in the attached independent claims. According to the present invention, a computer system for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space is provided, which includes one or more processors and one or more computer-readable media having executable instructions stored thereon, and the executable instructions configure the computer system to perform various actions when executed by the one or more processors. The computer system is configured to receive a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measuring instrument. The one or more coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter region variable, and a glitter intensity variable. The computer system is also configured to generate a spatial appearance space coordinate of the target coating by mapping each of the one or more coating spatial appearance variables to an individual axis of a multidimensional coordinate system. The granularity variable is mapped to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, the glitter region variable is mapped to a second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and the glitter intensity variable is mapped to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system. The computer system accesses a database of spatial appearance space coordinates. The database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance space coordinates in the multidimensional coordinate system associated with different reference coatings. The computer system also identifies spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings from a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. Additionally, the computer system calculates, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between one of the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating. Additionally, the computer system identifies a specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, the specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate being associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating. Further, the computer system displays a visual interface element indicating a specific reference coating associated with the specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate as a proposed spatial appearance match to the target coating.

[0009] In addition, the present invention also includes a computer program product, which includes one or more computer storage media having computer executable instructions stored thereon, which when executed at a processor cause a computer system to perform a method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space. The computer system receives a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measuring instrument. The one or more coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter region variable, and a glitter intensity variable. The computer system also generates a spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating by mapping each of the one or more coating spatial appearance variables to an individual axis of a multidimensional coordinate system. The granularity variable is mapped to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, the glitter region variable is mapped to a second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and the glitter intensity variable is mapped to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system. The computer system accesses a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. The database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates in the multidimensional coordinate system associated with different reference coatings. The computer system also identifies spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings from the database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. Additionally, the computer system calculates, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between one of the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating. Additionally, the computer system identifies a specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, the specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate being associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating. Further, the computer system displays a visual interface element indicating the specific reference coating associated with the specific spatial appearance spatial coordinate as a proposed spatial appearance match to the target coating.

[0010] Additional features and advantages of exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be set forth in the following description, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by the practice of such exemplary embodiments. The features and advantages of such embodiments may be realized and obtained by the instruments and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. These and other features will become more apparent from the following description and the appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of such exemplary embodiments as set forth below. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] In order to describe the manner in which the above and other advantages and features of the present invention can be obtained, a more particular description of the invention briefly described above will be presented by reference to specific examples of the invention, and specific examples are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only examples of the invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, the invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the drawings described below.

[0012] Figure 1 A schematic diagram depicting an exemplary computer system for mapping a target coating into a spatial appearance space in accordance with the present invention.

[0013] Figure 2 Depicted is a three-dimensional coordinate system having exemplary spatial appearance space coordinates for a coating.

[0014] Figure 3 Depicting a three-dimensional coordinate system with examples of two different spatial appearance spatial coordinates for two different coatings.

[0015] Figure 4 Depicting another example of a three-dimensional coordinate system with two different spatial appearance spatial coordinates for two different coatings.

[0016] Figure 5 Flowchart depicting steps in an exemplary method for mapping a target coating into a spatial appearance space in accordance with the present invention.

[0017] Figure 6 A flow chart depicting steps in an exemplary method for identifying a proposed coating match.

[0018] Figure 7 A schematic diagram depicting an exemplary method for identifying a proposed coating match.

[0019] Figure 8 A schematic diagram depicting another exemplary method for identifying a proposed coating match. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] The present invention extends to systems, methods and apparatus for mapping a target coating to a spatial appearance space. As used herein, a target coating includes any coating of interest. Additionally, as used herein, "spatial appearance" is defined to mean those attributes of an appearance having a spatial component including texture, granularity, glint, etc. It will be appreciated that coating color does not contribute to spatial appearance. Furthermore, "texture" is defined to mean a visible structure that depends on the size and organization of small components of a material; typically, subsurface structures of heterochromatic materials. Typical texture components within a coating include aluminum flakes, mica, or other effect components.

[0021] The spatial appearance space disclosed herein can provide several benefits to the field of coating identification and matching. For example, conventional identification of spatial appearance components within coatings involves a wide range of different methods and systems that are often mutually exclusive. For many users, this results in a "black box" system where the user inputs data into the system and the system generates spatial appearance information, which may include proposed matching coatings, without any transparency or understanding from the user.

[0022] This lack of uniformity creates confusion and challenges within the technical space, as the outputs of many of these spatial appearance processing systems are not immediately useful outside the system. For example, a first manufacturer may use the manufacturer's proprietary methods and outputs to generate spatial appearance data. A second manufacturer may do the same, using different methods and different outputs. This creates a considerable technical burden when a user wishes to utilize the spatial appearance data within their own system for further processing. Due to the lack of uniformity, users are often required to generate custom solutions for each manufacturer. Furthermore, these custom solutions often must be generated without the benefit of understanding how the outputs are calculated.

[0023] Compared to these conventional systems, the present invention provides a novel and inventive system to analyze the spatial appearance of a coating and map the spatial appearance of the coating to a common spatial appearance space. This mapping allows for more efficient processing because all spatial appearance components can be generally mapped to the same space. This mapping also allows for easy use of the output data. Specifically, since a common coordinate system can be used to describe different coatings, further processing can be performed on a coordinate basis for all different coatings.

[0024] Therefore, the disclosed computer system of the present invention is configured to process data from a target coating. Use one or more tools known in the art to analyze the target coating to derive spatial appearance data such as texture data. The tool may include a spectrophotometer, a camera and / or other device for extracting spatial appearance data from the coating. For example, tools such as BykGardner BykMac and X-Rite MA98 can be used to analyze the target coating. Using the novel device disclosed herein, the spatial appearance data is processed to identify the attributes related to the spatial appearance data and / or identify one or more reference coatings that also include the same or similar spatial appearance data. As more fully disclosed herein, due to the method and system disclosed herein, the processing of spatial appearance data can be carried out with significantly improved efficiency and accuracy.

[0025] For example, Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an exemplary computer system 100 for mapping a target coating to a spatial appearance space is depicted. The computer system 100 includes one or more processors 130 and one or more computer-readable media having stored thereon executable instructions for a spatial appearance space analysis software application 102, which when executed by the one or more processors 130 configure the computer system 100 to perform various actions. For example, the computer system 100 may receive one or more coating spatial appearance variables 112 of a target coating 120 from a coating measurement instrument 110 (e.g., a spectrophotometer).

[0026] For example, one or more coating spatial appearance variables 112 include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable. As used herein, a granularity variable includes an identified contrast of a light / dark irregular pattern exhibited by a target coating when viewed under illumination. The illumination may be directional or diffuse and may be determined by a device making the measurement or by a spatial appearance spatial analysis software application 102. The granularity variable may be calculated by first identifying a light / dark pattern in an image of the target coating using conventional image processing techniques. A contrast number may then be calculated based on the contrast of the light / dark irregular pattern relative to the rest of the coating.

[0027] The glitter area variable includes the area segments of light spots that are brighter than the surrounding environment on the illuminated portion of the target coating. For example, light spots can be initially identified using a threshold level of relative brightness. Once identified, the area of ​​the identified light spots can be calculated. In some cases, the area of ​​the identified light spots can be normalized relative to the total analysis area of ​​the target coating 120.

[0028] The glitter intensity variable includes the contrast between the apparent highlight on the particle of the angularly variable pigment and the surrounding environment of the particle. For example, a threshold value can be used to identify the highlight on the particle of the angularly variable pigment. The threshold value can be based on a predetermined intensity level and / or by the relative brightness of the highlight relative to the coating. Once identified, the contrast between the highlight and the immediately surrounding particles can be calculated on a per-pixel basis within the image of the target coating 120.

[0029] The granularity variable may include granularity measurements made by the coating measurement instrument 110 at multiple angles. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that many conventional spectrophotometers include detectors and / or illuminators positioned at multiple predetermined angles. Thus, the spectrophotometric data received from the spectrophotometer may include measurements made at multiple angles (including directional granularity measurements). Similarly, the scintillation area variable may include scintillation area measurements made by the coating measurement instrument 110 at multiple angles. Likewise, the scintillation intensity variable may include scintillation intensity measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at multiple angles.

[0030] Once one or more coating spatial appearance variables 112 are collected, a spatial appearance space calculator 160 generates target spatial appearance spatial coordinates for a target coating by mapping the coating spatial appearance variables to different axes of a multidimensional coordinate system. Herein, each type of coating spatial appearance variable is typically mapped to a separate axis of the multidimensional coordinate system. Specifically, a granularity module 162 maps a granularity variable to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, a glitter region module 164 maps a glitter region variable to a second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and a glitter intensity module 166 maps a glitter intensity variable to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system.

[0031] The unique combination of granularity, glitter area, and glitter intensity provides unique and accurate insights into the spatial appearance components of the coating. In addition, the disclosed combination of granularity, glitter area, and glitter intensity provides efficient condensation of data into mathematically valid coordinates. These spatial appearance components can be mapped to n-dimensional axes. This spatial mapping of spatial appearance components provides a computationally efficient way to compare different spatial appearance characteristics in different coatings. For example, different coatings with spatial appearance spatial coordinates that map closely to each other are more similar to each other than different coatings with spatial appearance spatial coordinates that map farther from each other.

[0032] For example, Figure 2 A three-dimensional coordinate system 200 is depicted with an example of a spatial appearance spatial coordinate 210 for a coating. In the depicted three-dimensional coordinate system 200, S a (x) represents the flashing area axis, S i (x) represents the flicker intensity axis, and D g (x) represents the granularity axis. Plane point 220 depicts the two-dimensional intersection between the flicker intensity variable and the granularity variable. Plane point 230 depicts the two-dimensional intersection between the flicker intensity variable and the flicker area variable. Plane point 240 depicts the two-dimensional intersection between the granularity variable and the flicker area variable.

[0033] The spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating 120 represent the mapping of the spatial appearance information from the target coating 120 to the three-dimensional space. It will be appreciated that additional spatial appearance variables can be added to the mapping so that n-dimensional mapping occurs. This mapping provides unique information related to the properties of the coating. The unique information is also easy to process using simple distance-based geometric equations, which provides considerable computational benefits compared to conventional methods of spatial appearance analysis. As used herein, texture space can be a subset of spatial appearance space. Thus, texture space can be generated using the methods and systems described herein.

[0034] For example, when analyzing the target coating 120, the coating measurement instrument 110 can generate any number of different variables. In some cases, the different variables may need to be processed initially by one or more processors 130 to calculate granularity, scintillation area or scintillation intensity. In addition, in some cases, different spatial appearance variables can be normalized on a per-instrument basis. It will be appreciated that many different coating measurement instruments 110 output data that are not a single common ratio. Thus, this data can be normalized so that each data output by each instrument is normalized based on the maximum possible output value of each spatial appearance variable. Thus, the resulting spatial appearance data will be between zero and one. This normalized data can then be used to generate spatial appearance coordinates. This system that outputs normalization provides a technical benefit that allows multiple different devices to communicate in a common spatial appearance space.

[0035] In addition to generating the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating 120, the one or more processors 130 may access a database 140 of spatial appearance spatial coordinates including a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with different reference coatings. The plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates may be based on different known coatings. For example, an entire library, product line, or brand catalog of coatings may be analyzed and added to the database 140 of spatial appearance spatial coordinates.

[0036] One or more processors can identify the spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potential matching reference coatings from a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. The identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates may include any subset of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates in the database. For example, the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates may include each set of spatial appearance spatial coordinates in the database. Additionally or alternatively, one or more processors can filter the spatial appearance spatial coordinates in the database so that the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates are associated with a potential matching reference coating, and the reference coating includes the same color, the same effect texture type, or some other similar attributes as the target coating. Additionally or alternatively, one or more processors can identify the spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potential matching reference coatings by selecting the spatial appearance spatial coordinates that appear in the same quadrant as the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating from the database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. The identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates can also be selected, for example, based on within a threshold distance to the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating.

[0037] After identifying the spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the one or more reference coatings from the database, the one or more processors 130 may calculate the spatial appearance spatial distance between each of the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates and the target spatial appearance spatial coordinates 210. For example, Figure 3 A three-dimensional coordinate system is depicted with examples of two different spatial appearance spatial coordinates 210, 310 for two different coatings. The spatial appearance spatial coordinate 210 for the target coating is depicted with another spatial appearance spatial coordinate 310 for the reference coating. Plane point 320 depicts the two-dimensional intersection between the flicker intensity variable and the granularity variable. Plane point 330 depicts the two-dimensional intersection between the flicker intensity variable and the flicker area variable. Plane point 340 depicts the two-dimensional intersection between the granularity variable and the flicker area variable.

[0038] Any number of different distance equations may be used to calculate the spatial-apparent spatial distance 300. For example, the following equation may be used to calculate the spatial-apparent spatial distance 300.

[0039]

[0040] The distance equation may be normalized for the value of each component within the target coating space appearance coordinates 210. In addition, the distance between each planar point pair (220 and 320, 230 and 330, 240 and 340) may also be calculated.

[0041] Figure 4 A three-dimensional coordinate system is depicted with another example of two different spatial appearance spatial coordinates 210, 410 for two different coatings. The spatial appearance spatial coordinate 210 for the target coating is depicted with yet another spatial appearance spatial coordinate 410 for another reference coating. Plane point 420 depicts a two-dimensional intersection between the flicker intensity variable and the granularity variable. Plane point 430 depicts a two-dimensional intersection between the flicker intensity variable and the flicker area variable. Plane point 440 depicts a two-dimensional intersection between the granularity variable and the flicker area variable. The one or more processors 130 calculate the spatial appearance spatial distance 400.

[0042] As discussed above, the coating measurement instrument 110 can collect coating spatial appearance variables from multiple different angles. The spatial appearance space calculator 160 can then map each granularity measurement from the granularity variable, each glitter area measurement from the glitter area variable, and each glitter intensity measurement from the glitter intensity variable to a multidimensional coordinate system based on each angle from the multiple angles. Thus, one or more target spatial appearance space coordinates of the target coating 120 can include multiple per-angle coordinates.

[0043] The one or more processors 130 may calculate one or more distances between the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of a particular coating selected from the one or more reference coatings and the target spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating 120 on a per-angle basis. Each of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the particular coating and each of the target spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating may be associated with a predetermined set of angles, such that the one or more distances include the calculated distance between the target spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the particular coating based on each angle within the predetermined set of angles. The one or more processors 130 may then generate a spatial appearance spatial distance between the target coating 120 and the particular coating by calculating the sum of the squares of the plurality of determined distances.

[0044] The one or more processors 130 then identify a specific spatial appearance coordinate from the identified spatial appearance coordinates 310, 410 associated with the reference coating that is associated with a minimum spatial appearance distance 300, 400 from the target spatial appearance coordinate 210. For example, Figure 3 The space appearance space distance in 300 is less than Figure 4Thus, the one or more processors 130 identify the spatial appearance space coordinates 300 as the spatial appearance space coordinates associated with the proposed reference coating for matching the target coating 120.

[0045] The computer system 100 may also receive one or more coating color variables of the target coating 120 from the coating measurement instrument 110. The coating color variables may include spectral data, LAB data, or any other data indicating the color of the target coating 120. The one or more processors 130 may identify the color associated with the target coating 120. The one or more processors 130 may also receive a coating color variable in the form of a color code associated with the target coating 120. For example, the target coating 120 may be on a car panel. The car may be associated with a color code indicating the color of the paint. The one or more processors 130 may then identify a spatial appearance spatial coordinate from a subset of one or more coatings associated with the color code. Thus, the one or more processors 130 may identify one or more proposed coatings based on the spatial appearance spatial distance between each of the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a potential matching reference coating in the database and the target spatial appearance spatial coordinate and at least one other coating attribute (e.g., color) associated with the target coating 120.

[0046] The I / O interface 150 then displays the visual interface element indicating the specific reference coating associated with the specific spatial appearance spatial coordinates as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating. As indicated above, the specific spatial appearance spatial coordinates are associated with the minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating. The visual interface element may include a visual representation of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating 120. One or more processors 130 may also generate formulations (also referred to herein as "proposed coatings") for specific reference coatings based on formulations stored in a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. The formulations may be transmitted to a coating production machine for physical generation and mixing of the coating.

[0047] The following discussion now relates to various methods and method actions that can be performed. Although method actions may be discussed in a certain order or illustrated in a flowchart as occurring in a particular order, a specific ordering is not required unless otherwise specified or required because one action depends on another action being completed before the action is performed.

[0048] Figure 5Flowchart depicting steps in an exemplary method 500 for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space. The method 500 includes an act 510 of receiving coating spatial appearance variables from a target coating. Act 510 includes receiving coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating 120 from a coating measurement instrument 110, wherein the coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable. For example, as described with respect to Figure 1 As depicted and described, coating measurement instrument 110 receives coating spatial appearance variables from target coating 120. The spatial appearance variables are sent to computer system 100 for further processing.

[0049] In addition, method 500 includes an act 520 of generating spatial appearance spatial coordinates. Act 520 includes generating target spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating by mapping the coating spatial appearance variables to different axes of the multidimensional coordinate system. Specifically, the granularity variable is mapped to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, the glitter area variable is mapped to a second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and the glitter intensity variable is mapped to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system. For example, as shown in FIG. Figure 1 and 2 As depicted and described, the spatial appearance space calculator 160 calculates coordinates within the spatial appearance space of the spatial appearance variables of the target coating 120. The spatial appearance space calculator 160 may include software modules within the spatial appearance space analysis software application 102. The spatial appearance space calculator includes a granularity module 162, a glitter area module, and a glitter intensity module 166.

[0050] Method 500 also includes an act 530 of accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. Act 530 includes accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. The database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with different reference coatings. For example, Figure 1 As depicted and described, computer system 100 includes an air appearance spatial coordinate database 140. One or more processors 130 access air appearance spatial coordinate database 140 and identify air appearance spatial coordinates associated with potentially matching reference coatings.

[0051] Method 500 therefore also includes an act 540 of identifying spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with potentially matching reference coatings. Act 540 identifies spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings from a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates. Figure 1 , 3 4, the computer system 100 identifies, from the database 140, spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings that are relatively close to the target spatial appearance spatial coordinates. Figure 3Describe the predetermined space appearance space coordinates 310 and the target space appearance space coordinates 210. Similarly, Figure 4 The predetermined space appearance space coordinates 410 and the target space appearance space coordinates 210 are depicted.

[0052] Method 500 also includes an act 550 of calculating a spatial appearance distance between the spatial appearance spatial coordinates. Act 550 includes calculating a spatial appearance distance between the predetermined spatial appearance spatial coordinate and the target spatial appearance spatial coordinate for each of the potentially matching reference coatings associated with the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinate. For example, Figure 3 and 4 As depicted and described, computer system 100 calculates spatial appearance space distance 300 between target spatial appearance space coordinates 210 and predetermined spatial appearance space coordinates 310 , and spatial appearance space distance 400 between target spatial appearance space coordinates 210 and predetermined spatial appearance space coordinates 410 .

[0053] Additionally, method 500 includes an act 560 of identifying a spatial appearance space coordinate having a minimum spatial appearance space distance to the target coating. Act 560 includes identifying a specific spatial appearance space coordinate from the identified spatial appearance space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, the specific spatial appearance space coordinate being associated with the minimum spatial appearance space distance from the spatial appearance space coordinate of the target coating. For example, Figure 3 and Figure 4 As depicted and described, computer system 100 determines that spatial appearance spatial distance 300 is less than spatial appearance spatial distance 400. Based on this information, computer system 100 determines that the coating associated with predetermined spatial appearance spatial coordinate 310 is the proposed spatial appearance spatial coordinate.

[0054] Further, method 500 includes an act 570 of displaying a visual interface element indicating a match to the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating. Act 570 includes displaying a visual interface element indicating a reference coating associated with a particular spatial appearance spatial coordinate as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating. For example, computer system 100 may display the target spatial appearance spatial coordinate 210 and its associated plane points 220, 230, 240 and the proposed spatial appearance spatial coordinate 310 and its associated plane points 320, 330, 340. Figure 3 The three-dimensional coordinate system 200 of FIG. Using the coordinates 210 , 310 and the planar points 220 , 230 , 240 , 320 , 330 , 340 , a user can quickly and easily identify the closeness of the match as well as individual differences within the planar points.

[0055] Figure 6Flowchart depicting steps in an exemplary method for identifying a proposed coating match. In the depicted flowchart 600, the system performs a color search 610 in parallel with a texture search 650. By performing the searches in parallel, the system is able to provide computational efficiency within a multi-threaded processing system.

[0056] In the color search 610, the system selects the coating measurement instrument 110 ( Figure 1 ) receives one or more coating color variables of a target coating. The system then maps the one or more coating color variables to target color space coordinates within a color space. While any number of different known color spaces may be used, in at least one embodiment, the color space comprises a CIELAB color space.

[0057] The system identifies color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching color coatings from a database of reference coatings and associated color space coordinates. The system populates the CIELAB color space with the plurality of potentially matching color coatings (also referred to as candidate colors), shown as step 620. The system then calculates, for each of the potentially matching color coatings, a color space distance, also referred to as ΔE, between the identified color space coordinates associated with the potentially matching color coating and the target color space coordinates of the target coating.

[0058] As indicated in step 630, the system is then able to identify specific color space coordinates from the identified color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potential matching color coatings, the specific color space coordinates being associated with the minimum color space distance from the color space coordinates of the target coating. For example, the system may select a specific color space coordinate set associated with the closest distance match to the color space coordinates of the target coating. Additionally or alternatively, the system may select the entire set of potential matching color coatings. The potential matching color coating set may include a coating associated with the coordinates within a threshold distance (ΔE) of the color space coordinates of the target coating. Alternatively, the potential matching color coating set may include a threshold number of coatings associated with the coordinates of the color space coordinates closest to the target coating. It will be appreciated that, because different color spaces may include different scales, the actual threshold for the distance between the color space coordinates of the target coating and the coordinates of the potential matching color coating is arbitrary to some extent. In the described case, the user is able to select a threshold number of coatings and / or a threshold ΔE distance of potential matches based on the user's specific usage and needs.

[0059] Within texture search 650, the system populates texture space with candidates in step 660. As described above, texture space comprises a subset of spatial appearance space and is generated using the methods and systems described herein. In step 670, the system finds the most preferred texture space match by identifying a proposed texture match within a minimum spatial appearance space distance from the coordinates of the target coating in the spatial distance space. As used herein, spatial appearance space distance is referred to as "ΔR". hereinafter with respect to Figure 7 A step 640 of combining matches from a texture search, a step 680 of combining matches from a color search, and a step 690 of sorting and / or filtering the list of combinations are described.

[0060] Figure 7 Schematic diagram 700 depicts an exemplary method for identifying a proposed coating match. Figure 7 , the results of color search 710 are indicated as a set of potential color matches 720(ad). Similarly, the results of texture search 730 are indicated as a set of potential texture matches 740(ad). Figure 6 Steps 640 and 680 are indicated by combined result 750. In the depicted example, combined result 750 is generated by sorting color results 720(ad) and texture results 740(ad) in order of increasing ΔE and ΔR. For example, color result 1 (720A) includes the minimum distance to the coordinates of the target color in each of the color space and the spatial appearance space. Texture result 1 (740A) includes the next minimum distance to the coordinates of the target color in each of the color space and the spatial appearance space. Combined result 750 continues in this pattern through color result 2 (720B), color result 3 (720C), and through the desired number of proposed matching coatings.

[0061] Thus, as indicated in schematic diagram 700, the system displays visual interface elements indicating a specific reference coating associated with a specific spatial appearance space coordinate and a specific color coating associated with a specific color space coordinate as a proposed color match to the target coating. Although the described scheme indicates only a single specific reference coating and a single specific color coating, it should be appreciated that multiple reference coatings and color coatings may be displayed as indicated in schematic diagram 700. Additionally, as described above, the system may sort the specific reference coatings and specific color coatings in order of increasing distance from the coordinates of the target coating within the respective color space and spatial appearance space.

[0062] Figure 8 A schematic diagram 800 depicts another exemplary method for identifying a proposed coating match. As depicted, the system also Figure 7 The results of the color search 710 are generated as indicated in . Specifically, the system utilizes the above-mentioned Figure 6 The method further comprises the steps of receiving one or more coating color variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument, mapping the one or more coating color variables to target color space coordinates within a color space, identifying color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potential matching color coatings from a database of reference coatings and associated color space coordinates, and calculating, for each of the potential matching color coatings, a color space distance between the identified color space coordinates associated with the potential matching color coating and the target color space coordinates of the target coating.

[0063] After performing these steps, the system identifies a particular set of color space coordinates from the identified color space coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching color coatings that are within a threshold color space distance from the color space coordinates of the target coating. As described above, the threshold can be set by the user based on the desired number and quality of proposed matching coatings.

[0064] The system then displays a visual interface element indicating a subset of a specific color coating associated with a specific color space coordinate set as a proposed color match to the target coating. Specifically, the system performs a pass texture check 810 for each color result 720 (AD) within the results from the color search 710. The pass texture check 810 includes identifying a color result 720 (AD) associated with a spatial appearance space distance within a threshold spatial appearance space distance to the target coating. Thus, each identified color result 720 (AD) must be within a threshold of the texture space difference with the target coating in order to be listed in the final result 820. As indicated above, this threshold can also be a user set based on user-defined constraints and needs. The resulting final result 820 then includes all of the closest color matches within the threshold texture match to the target coating.

[0065] Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it should be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the above features or the above acts, or the order of the above acts. Rather, the described features and acts are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

[0066] The present invention may include or utilize a special or general-purpose computer system, which includes computer hardware, such as one or more processors and system memory, as discussed in more detail below. The present invention may also include physical and other computer-readable media for carrying or storing computer-executable instructions and / or data structures. Such computer-readable media may be any available media that can be accessed by a general or special-purpose computer system. Computer-readable media that store computer-executable instructions and / or data structures are computer storage media. Computer-readable media that carry computer-executable instructions and / or data structures are transmission media. Therefore, by way of example and not limitation, the present invention may include at least two distinct types of computer-readable media: computer storage media and transmission media.

[0067] Computer storage media are physical storage media that store computer-executable instructions and / or data structures. Physical storage media include computer hardware, such as RAM, ROM, EEPROM, solid-state drives ("SSD"), flash memory, phase-change memory ("PCM"), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage, or any other hardware storage that can be used to store program code in the form of computer-executable instructions or data structures that can be accessed and executed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer system to implement the disclosed functions of the present invention.

[0068] Transmission media may include networks and / or data links that can be used to carry program code in the form of computer executable instructions or data structures and can be accessed by general or special purpose computer systems. A "network" is defined as one or more data links that enable the transmission of electronic data between computer systems and / or modules and / or other electronic devices. When information is transmitted or provided to a computer system via a network or another communication connection (hardwired, wireless, or a combination of hardwired or wireless), the computer system may view the connection as a transmission medium. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer readable media.

[0069] In addition, upon reaching various computer system components, program code in the form of computer-executable instructions or data structures can be automatically transferred from transmission media to computer storage media (or vice versa). For example, computer-executable instructions or data structures received via a network or data link can be cached in RAM within a network interface module (e.g., "NIC"), and then ultimately transferred to computer system RAM and / or low-volatility computer storage media at the computer system. Thus, it should be understood that computer storage media can be included in computer system components that also (or even primarily) utilize transmission media.

[0070] Computer executable instructions include, for example, instructions and data, which, when executed at one or more processors, cause a general purpose computer system, a special purpose computer system, or a special purpose processing device to perform a certain function or group of functions. Computer executable instructions may be, for example, binary, intermediate format instructions (such as assembly language), or even source code.

[0071] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be practiced in a network computing environment with various types of computer system configurations (including personal computers, desktop computers, laptop computers, message processors, handheld devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, network PCs, microcomputers, mainframe computers, mobile phones, PDAs, tablet computers, pagers, routers, switches, etc.). The present invention can also be practiced in a distributed system environment where both local and remote computer systems perform tasks, and the local and remote computer systems are linked by a network (via a hardwired data link, a wireless data link, or a combination of a hardwired and wireless data link). Therefore, in a distributed system environment, a computer system may include a plurality of constructed computer systems. In a distributed system environment, a program module may be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.

[0072] Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the present invention may be practiced in a cloud computing environment. A cloud computing environment may be distributed, but this is not required. When distributed, a cloud computing environment may be distributed internationally within an organization and / or have components owned across multiple organizations. In this specification and the appended claims, "cloud computing" is defined as a model for enabling on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage devices, applications, and services). The definition of "cloud computing" is not limited to any of the other numerous advantages that may be derived from such a model when properly deployed.

[0073] Cloud computing models can consist of various characteristics (e.g., on-demand self-service, broad network access, resource pooling, rapid elasticity, measurable services, etc.). Cloud computing models can also appear in the form of various service models (e.g., software as a service ("SaaS"), platform as a service ("PaaS"), and infrastructure as a service ("IaaS")). Cloud computing models can also be deployed using different deployment models (e.g., private cloud, community cloud, public cloud, hybrid cloud, etc.).

[0074] Some configurations (e.g., cloud computing environments) may include a system that includes one or more hosts, each capable of running one or more virtual machines. During operation, the virtual machines emulate an operating computing system, supporting an operating system and possibly one or more other applications. In some configurations, each host includes a hypervisor that emulates the virtual resources of the virtual machine using physical resources that are abstract from the perspective of the virtual machine. The hypervisor also provides appropriate isolation between virtual machines. Thus, from the perspective of any given virtual machine, the hypervisor provides the illusion that the virtual machine is interfacing with physical resources, even though the virtual machine is only interfacing with the appearance of physical resources (e.g., virtual resources). Examples of physical resources include processing power, memory, disk space, network bandwidth, media drives, and the like.

[0075] The present invention therefore relates in particular but not limited to the following aspects:

[0076] 1. A computerized method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space, the method being used on a computer system comprising one or more processors and one or more computer readable media having executable instructions stored thereon, the executable instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, configuring the computer system to perform the method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space, the method comprising:

[0077] receiving a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument, wherein the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable;

[0078] The target space appearance space coordinates of the target coating are generated by mapping each of the plurality of coating space appearance variables to a respective axis in a multidimensional coordinate system, wherein:

[0079] mapping the granularity variable to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system,

[0080] Mapping the flashing region variable to the second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and

[0081] Mapping the flicker intensity variable to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system;

[0082] accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, wherein the database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with different reference coatings in the multi-dimensional coordinate system;

[0083] identifying, from said database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings;

[0084] calculating, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating;

[0085] identifying, from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, a particular spatial appearance spatial coordinate associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating; and

[0086] A visual interface element indicative of a particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance spatial coordinates is displayed as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating.

[0087] 2. The computerized method according to aspect 1, wherein:

[0088] The particle size variables include particle size measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at multiple angles;

[0089] The glitter area variables include glitter area measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at the plurality of angles; and

[0090] The sparkle intensity variable comprises sparkle intensity measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at the plurality of angles.

[0091] 3. The computerized method according to aspect 2 above, wherein generating the target spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating by mapping each of the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables to individual axes in a multidimensional coordinate system further comprises:

[0092] Based on each angle from the multiple angles, each granularity measurement from the granularity variable, each glitter area measurement from the glitter area variable, and each glitter intensity measurement from the glitter intensity variable are mapped to the corresponding axis of the multidimensional coordinate system so that the target space appearance space coordinates include multiple angle-dependent coordinates.

[0093] 4. The computerized method of aspect 3, wherein calculating the spatial appearance distance between each of the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating further comprises:

[0094] calculating a plurality of distances between the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of a particular coating selected from the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating on a per-angle basis, wherein each of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the particular coating and each of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating are associated with a predetermined set of angles, such that the plurality of distances includes a distance between the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating and the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the particular coating calculated for each angle within the predetermined set of angles; and

[0095] The spatial appearance spatial distance between the target coating and the specific coating is generated by calculating the sum of the squares of the plurality of distances.

[0096] 5. The computerized method of any one of aspects 1 to 4, wherein the granularity variable comprises an identified contrast of a light / dark irregular pattern exhibited by the target coating when viewed under illumination.

[0097] 6. A computerized method according to any of aspects 1 to 5, wherein the glitter region variable comprises a light spot region segment that is greater than a threshold level brighter than its surroundings on the illuminated portion of the target coating.

[0098] 7. The computerized method of any one of aspects 1 to 6, wherein the glitter intensity variable comprises the contrast between the apparent highlight on a particle of the goniometric pigment and the surroundings of the particle.

[0099] 8. The computerized method of any one of aspects 1 to 7, wherein the displaying step comprises displaying a visual representation of the spatial coordinates of the spatial appearance of the target coating.

[0100] 9. A computerized method according to any one of aspects 1 to 8 above, wherein identifying the specific reference coating for matching the target coating includes identifying the specific reference coating based on the calculated spatial appearance spatial distance and at least one other coating property associated with the target coating.

[0101] 10. The computerized method according to any one of aspects 1 to 9, further comprising:

[0102] receiving one or more coating color variables of the target coating from the coating measurement instrument;

[0103] mapping the one or more coating color variables to target color space coordinates within a color space;

[0104] identifying color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching color coatings from a database of reference coatings and associated color space coordinates;

[0105] calculating, for each of the potentially matching color coatings, a color space distance between the identified color space coordinates associated with the potentially matching color coating and the target color space coordinates of the target coating; and

[0106] A particular color space coordinate is identified from the identified color space coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching color coatings, the particular color space coordinate being associated with a minimum color space distance from the color space coordinate of the target coating.

[0107] 11. The computerized method according to aspect 10, further comprising:

[0108] displaying the visual interface element indicating the particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance spatial coordinates and the particular color coating associated with the particular color spatial coordinates as a match to the proposed color of the target coating; and

[0109] The specific reference coating and the specific color coating are sorted in order of increasing distance from the coordinates of the target coating within the corresponding color space and spatial appearance space.

[0110] 12. The computerized method of any one of aspects 1 to 9, wherein identifying the spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching coatings from the database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates comprises:

[0111] receiving one or more coating color variables of the target coating from the coating measurement instrument;

[0112] mapping the one or more coating color variables to target color space coordinates within a color space;

[0113] identifying color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching color coatings from a database of reference coatings and associated color space coordinates;

[0114] calculating, for each of the potentially matching color coatings, a color space distance between the identified color space coordinates associated with the potentially matching color coating and the target color space coordinates of the target coating;

[0115] identifying, from the identified color space coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching color coatings, a particular set of color space coordinates that are within a threshold color space distance from the color space coordinates of the target coating; and

[0116] A visual interface element indicating a subset of specific color coatings associated with the specific set of color space coordinates is displayed as a proposed color match to the target coating, wherein the subset of specific color coatings includes color coatings associated with spatial appearance space distances that are within a threshold spatial appearance space distance to the target coating.

[0117] 13. A computer system for mapping a coating into a spatial appearance space, for example for use with a computerized method according to any one of the preceding aspects 1 to 12, the computer system comprising:

[0118] one or more processors; and

[0119] One or more computer-readable media having executable instructions stored thereon, which when executed by the one or more processors configure the computer system to at least perform the following operations:

[0120] receiving a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument, wherein the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable;

[0121] The target spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating are generated by mapping each of the plurality of spatial appearance variables to individual axes of a multidimensional coordinate system, wherein:

[0122] mapping the granularity variable to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system,

[0123] Mapping the flashing region variable to the second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and

[0124] Mapping the flicker intensity variable to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system;

[0125] accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, wherein the database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with different reference coatings in the multi-dimensional coordinate system;

[0126] identifying, from said database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings;

[0127] calculating, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating;

[0128] identifying, from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, a particular spatial appearance spatial coordinate that is associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating; and

[0129] A visual interface element indicative of a particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance spatial coordinates is displayed as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating.

[0130] 14. The computer system according to aspect 13, wherein:

[0131] The particle size variables include particle size measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at multiple angles;

[0132] The glitter area variables include glitter area measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at the plurality of angles; and

[0133] The sparkle intensity variable comprises sparkle intensity measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at the plurality of angles.

[0134] 15. The computer system of aspect 14, wherein generating the target spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating by mapping each of the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables to a respective axis in a multidimensional coordinate system further comprises:

[0135] Based on each angle from the multiple angles, each granularity measurement from the granularity variable, each glitter area measurement from the glitter area variable, and each glitter intensity measurement from the glitter intensity variable are mapped to the corresponding axis of the multidimensional coordinate system so that the target space appearance space coordinates include multiple angle-dependent coordinates.

[0136] 16. The computer system of aspect 15, wherein calculating the spatial appearance distance between each of the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating further comprises:

[0137] calculating a plurality of distances between the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of a particular coating selected from the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating on a per-angle basis, wherein each of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the particular coating and each of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating are associated with a predetermined set of angles, such that the plurality of distances includes a distance between the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating and the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the particular coating calculated for each angle within the predetermined set of angles; and

[0138] The spatial appearance spatial distance between the target coating and the specific coating is generated by calculating the sum of the squares of the plurality of distances.

[0139] 17. A computer system according to any of the preceding aspects 13 to 16, wherein the granularity variable comprises an identified contrast of a light / dark irregular pattern exhibited by the target coating when viewed under illumination.

[0140] 18. A computer system according to any of aspects 13 to 17, wherein the glitter region variable comprises a light spot region segment that is greater than a threshold level brighter than its surroundings on the illuminated portion of the target coating.

[0141] 19. The computer system of any one of preceding aspects 13 to 18, wherein the glitter intensity variable comprises a contrast between an apparent highlight on a particle of a goniometric pigment and a surrounding environment of the particle.

[0142] 20. The computer system of any one of preceding aspects 13 to 19, wherein the visual interface element comprises a visual representation of the spatial coordinates of the spatial appearance of the target coating.

[0143] 21. A computer system according to any one of aspects 13 to 20, wherein the executable instructions include instructions executable to configure the computer system to perform the following operations:

[0144] receiving one or more coating color variables of the target coating from the coating measurement instrument; and

[0145] A color associated with the target coating is identified.

[0146] 22. The computer system of any one of aspects 13 to 21, wherein the executable instructions include instructions executable to further configure the computer system to generate a formulation for the particular reference coating.

[0147] 23. The computer system of any one of aspects 13 to 22, wherein identifying the spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching coatings from the database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates comprises:

[0148] receiving a color code associated with the target coating, and

[0149] The spatial coordinates of the spatial appearance of the coating associated with the color code are identified.

[0150] 24. A computer program product comprising one or more computer storage media having computer executable instructions stored thereon, which when executed at a processor causes a computer system (e.g., a computer system according to any one of aspects 13 to 23 above) to perform a method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space, the method comprising:

[0151] receiving a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument, wherein the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable;

[0152] The target space appearance space coordinates of the target coating are generated by mapping each of the one or more coating space appearance variables to a respective axis in a multidimensional coordinate system, wherein:

[0153] mapping the granularity variable to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system,

[0154] Mapping the flashing region variable to the second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and

[0155] Mapping the flicker intensity variable to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system;

[0156] accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, wherein the database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with different reference coatings in the multi-dimensional coordinate system;

[0157] identifying, from said database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings;

[0158] calculating, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating;

[0159] identifying, from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, a particular spatial appearance spatial coordinate associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating; and

[0160] A visual interface element indicative of a particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance spatial coordinates is displayed as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating.

[0161] 25. A computer program product according to aspect 24, comprising further computer executable instructions which, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to perform a method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space, the method having the additional features defined in any one of aspects 2 to 12.

[0162] The present invention may be implemented in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The described invention should be considered in all respects as merely illustrative and not restrictive. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes falling within the equivalent meaning and scope of the claims should be included within their scope.

Claims

1. A computerized method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space, the method being used on a computer system comprising one or more processors and one or more computer readable media having executable instructions stored thereon, the executable instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, configuring the computer system to perform the method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space, the method comprising: receiving a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument, wherein the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable; The target space appearance space coordinates of the target coating are generated by mapping each of the plurality of coating space appearance variables to a respective axis in a multidimensional coordinate system, wherein: mapping the granularity variable to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, Mapping the flashing region variable to the second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and Mapping the flicker intensity variable to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system; accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, wherein the database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with different reference coatings in the multi-dimensional coordinate system; identifying, from said database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings; calculating, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating; identifying, from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, a particular spatial appearance spatial coordinate associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating; as well as A visual interface element indicative of a particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance spatial coordinates is displayed as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating.

2. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the granularity variable comprises an identified contrast of a light / dark irregular pattern exhibited by the target coating when viewed under illumination.

3. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the glitter region variable comprises a light spot region segment that is greater than a threshold level brighter than its surroundings on the illuminated portion of the target coating.

4. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the glitter intensity variable comprises a contrast between an apparent highlight on a particle of a goniometric pigment and a surrounding environment of the particle.

5. The computerized method of claim 1 , wherein identifying the specific reference coating for matching the target coating comprises identifying the specific reference coating based on the calculated spatial appearance spatial distance and at least one other coating property associated with the target coating.

6. The computerized method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving one or more coating color variables of the target coating from the coating measurement instrument; mapping the one or more coating color variables to target color space coordinates within a color space; identifying color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching color coatings from a database of reference coatings and associated color space coordinates; calculating, for each of the potentially matching color coatings, a color space distance between the identified color space coordinates associated with the potentially matching color coating and the target color space coordinates of the target coating; and A particular color space coordinate is identified from the identified color space coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching color coatings, the particular color space coordinate being associated with a minimum color space distance from the color space coordinate of the target coating.

7. The computerized method of claim 6, further comprising: displaying the visual interface element indicative of the particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance space coordinates and the particular color coating associated with the particular color space coordinates as matching the proposed color of the target coating; as well as The specific reference coating and the specific color coating are sorted in order of increasing distance from the coordinates of the target coating within the corresponding color space and spatial appearance space.

8. The computerized method of claim 1 , wherein identifying, from the database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, the spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching coatings comprises: receiving one or more coating color variables of the target coating from the coating measurement instrument; mapping the one or more coating color variables to target color space coordinates within a color space; identifying color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching color coatings from a database of reference coatings and associated color space coordinates; calculating, for each of the potentially matching color coatings, a color space distance between the identified color space coordinates associated with the potentially matching color coating and the target color space coordinates of the target coating; identifying, from the identified color space coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching color coatings, a particular set of color space coordinates that are within a threshold color space distance from the color space coordinates of the target coating; and A visual interface element indicating a subset of specific color coatings associated with the specific set of color space coordinates is displayed as a proposed color match to the target coating, wherein the subset of specific color coatings includes color coatings associated with spatial appearance space distances that are within a threshold spatial appearance space distance to the target coating.

9. A computer system for mapping a coating into a spatial appearance space, comprising: one or more processors; as well as One or more computer-readable media having executable instructions stored thereon, which when executed by the one or more processors configure the computer system to at least perform the following operations: receiving a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument, wherein the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable; The target space appearance space coordinates of the target coating are generated by mapping each of the plurality of coating space appearance variables to a respective axis in a multidimensional coordinate system, wherein: mapping the granularity variable to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, Mapping the flashing region variable to the second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and Mapping the flicker intensity variable to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system; accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, wherein the database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with different reference coatings in the multi-dimensional coordinate system; identifying, from said database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings; calculating, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating; identifying, from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, a particular spatial appearance spatial coordinate that is associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating; and A visual interface element indicative of a particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance spatial coordinates is displayed as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating.

10. The computer system of claim 9, wherein: The particle size variables include particle size measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at multiple angles; The glitter area variables include glitter area measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at the plurality of angles; and The sparkle intensity variable comprises sparkle intensity measurements made by the coating measurement instrument at the plurality of angles.

11. The computer system of claim 10, wherein generating the target space appearance space coordinates of the target coating by mapping each of the plurality of coating space appearance variables to a respective axis in a multi-dimensional coordinate system further comprises: Based on each angle from the multiple angles, each granularity measurement from the granularity variable, each glitter area measurement from the glitter area variable, and each glitter intensity measurement from the glitter intensity variable are mapped to corresponding axes of the multidimensional coordinate system so that the target space appearance space coordinates include multiple angle-dependent coordinates.

12. The computer system of claim 11, wherein calculating, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, the spatial appearance distance between the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating further comprises: calculating a plurality of distances between the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of a particular coating selected from the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating on a per-angle basis, wherein each of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the particular coating and each of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating are associated with a predetermined set of angles, such that the plurality of distances includes a distance between the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating and the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the particular coating calculated for each angle within the predetermined set of angles; as well as The spatial appearance spatial distance between the target coating and the specific coating is generated by calculating the sum of the squares of the plurality of distances.

13. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the granularity variable comprises an identified contrast of a light / dark irregular pattern exhibited by the target coating when viewed under illumination.

14. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the glitter region variable comprises a light spot region segment that is greater than a threshold level brighter than its surroundings on the illuminated portion of the target coating.

15. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the glitter intensity variable comprises a contrast ratio between an apparent highlight on a particle of a goniometric pigment and a surrounding environment of the particle.

16. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the visual interface element comprises a visual representation of the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating.

17. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the executable instructions include instructions executable to configure the computer system to: receiving one or more coating color variables of the target coating from the coating measurement instrument; mapping the one or more coating color variables to target color space coordinates within a color space; identifying color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching color coatings from a database of reference coatings and associated color space coordinates; calculating, for each of the potentially matching color coatings, a color space distance between the identified color space coordinates associated with the potentially matching color coating and the target color space coordinates of the target coating; and A particular color space coordinate is identified from the identified color space coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching color coatings, the particular color space coordinate being associated with a minimum color space distance from the color space coordinate of the target coating.

18. The computer system of claim 17, wherein the executable instructions include instructions executable to further configure the computer system to: displaying the visual interface element indicating the particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance spatial coordinates and the particular color coating associated with the particular color spatial coordinates as a match to the proposed color of the target coating; and The specific reference coating and the specific color coating are sorted in order of increasing distance from the coordinates of the target coating within the corresponding color space and spatial appearance space.

19. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the executable instructions include instructions executable to further configure the computer system to: receiving one or more coating color variables of the target coating from the coating measurement instrument; mapping the one or more coating color variables to target color space coordinates within a color space; identifying color space coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching color coatings from a database of reference coatings and associated color space coordinates; calculating, for each of the potentially matching color coatings, a color space distance between the identified color space coordinates associated with the potentially matching color coating and the target color space coordinates of the target coating; identifying, from the identified color space coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching color coatings, a particular set of color space coordinates that are within a threshold color space distance from the color space coordinates of the target coating; and A visual interface element indicating a subset of specific color coatings associated with the specific set of color space coordinates is displayed as a proposed color match to the target coating, wherein the subset of specific color coatings includes color coatings associated with spatial appearance space distances that are within a threshold spatial appearance space distance to the target coating.

20. A computer program product comprising one or more computer storage media having stored thereon computer executable instructions, the computer executable instructions, when executed at a processor, causing a computer system to perform a method for mapping a coating to a spatial appearance space, the method comprising: receiving a plurality of coating spatial appearance variables of a target coating from a coating measurement instrument, wherein the plurality of coating spatial appearance variables include a granularity variable, a glitter area variable, and a glitter intensity variable; The target space appearance space coordinates of the target coating are generated by mapping each of the one or more coating space appearance variables to a respective axis in a multidimensional coordinate system, wherein: mapping the granularity variable to a first axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, Mapping the flashing region variable to the second axis of the multidimensional coordinate system, and Mapping the flicker intensity variable to a third axis of the multidimensional coordinate system; accessing a database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, wherein the database includes a plurality of unique spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with different reference coatings in the multi-dimensional coordinate system; identifying, from said database of spatial appearance spatial coordinates, spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with a plurality of potentially matching reference coatings; calculating, for each of the potentially matching reference coatings, a spatial appearance spatial distance between the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the potentially matching reference coating and the spatial appearance spatial coordinates of the target coating; identifying, from the identified spatial appearance spatial coordinates associated with the plurality of potentially matching reference coatings, a particular spatial appearance spatial coordinate associated with a minimum spatial appearance spatial distance from the spatial appearance spatial coordinate of the target coating; and A visual interface element indicative of a particular reference coating associated with the particular spatial appearance spatial coordinates is displayed as matching the proposed spatial appearance of the target coating.

Images