Spectral Color Data Conversion for Lossless Device Matching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing color management methods suffer from lossy color transformations and limited applicability, failing to ensure accurate and lossless color reproduction across diverse output applications due to device-dependent color spaces and lack of unambiguous spectral data usage.
Innovation Solution
A method utilizing spectral data for unambiguous color descriptions, transforming data into a LAB color space and then to device-specific spaces using ICC profiles, with cloud technology for storage and real-time conversion, ensuring color accuracy and portability across various output devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If color data is transformed using device-dependent color spaces (RGB, LAB), then compatibility with standard output devices is improved, but color accuracy and lossless reproduction deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces spectral data as an intermediary representation that mediates between device-independent color description and device-specific color spaces. Spectral data serves as a lossless intermediate format that preserves complete color information during transformation to various output device color spaces, eliminating the information loss inherent in direct transformations between device-dependent spaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from traditional 3-dimensional color spaces (RGB, LAB) to spectral data representation which adds the wavelength dimension. This dimensional expansion from 3D to spectral domain (effectively infinite dimensions across the visible spectrum) allows complete color information to be preserved and then selectively projected to any device-specific color space without loss.
2Measurement precision
If spectral data is used for unambiguous color description, then color accuracy is improved, but data processing complexity and storage requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary conversion of spectral data to device-specific color spaces at the time of data creation or storage. This preliminary action allows the complex spectral data to be processed once and transformed into multiple device-specific representations in advance, reducing the computational complexity during actual color matching operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter representation from continuous spectral curves to discrete wavelength samples at standard intervals (e.g., 5nm or 10nm steps). This parameter discretization reduces the data complexity while maintaining sufficient color accuracy for practical applications, making spectral data manageable for processing and storage.
3Ease of operation
If device-specific color spaces are used for color matching, then ease of operation is improved, but adaptability to different output applications worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes spectral data universally applicable to multiple output devices and color spaces. By using spectral data as the universal representation, the system can seamlessly adapt to any output device (printers, displays, cameras) without requiring device-specific color matching operations, thus achieving both ease of operation and broad adaptability.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for identical color display based on spectral data impressions for different output applications related to the digital data processing of color information values for different output applications and different color values according to usual standard regarding a controlled, loss-less and color-correct display of specific pre-defined color impressions with location-independent matching and adjusting of the color data. The method contains instructions for identifying and providing in an IT infrastructure specific color data as spectral data records that are converted and transmitted for an output application in real time into a device-specific color profile for a specific output device, taking into account query-dependent values. In a preferred application, material- and substance-specific data is taken into account during conversion. In another preferred application the spectral data records are provided for subsequent queries.