If you’re wondering what type of color measurement tool you need, the answer is “it depends”. There’s no one-size-fits-all color measuring device — but that’s a good thing. The right fit for your business depends on a range of factors: your industry, specific application, and even the number of locations where you’re measuring color all play into the decision. That’s why we always recommend working closely with a color management specialist.
Today, we’re taking a look at the different types of color measuring equipment used to manage color.
What’s the Difference Between Color Measurement and Color Management?
Many people use these terms interchangeably. However, it’s helpful to look at color measurement as the actual reading of a sample or a target, standard or batch. Color management is about managing color through the entire process, from QC of incoming raw materials to finished product. In other words, measurement is the actual physical measurement of a standard or sample using an instrument of measure, and management is controlling color through the production process.
What Does it Mean When We Say an Instrument “Measures” Color?
It helps to think back to something most of us learned in grade school: ROYGBIV, which is the visible spectrum. Without getting too technical, a spectrophotometer measures how much light reflects from the sample in the visible spectrum (between 400 and 700 nanometers) in 10 nanometer increments and reports that as percent reflectance. The reflectance data is then used by the color software to calculate values that represent the lightness, chroma (or brightness), and hue of the sample.
Why are there so Many Types of Color Measurement Tools?
In the case of color measurement instruments, variety is a very good thing. There are specific instruments of measure for specific markets and a range of products within those markets. We’ll get into this in more detail soon, but at the simplest level, color measurement instruments can be divided into three categories:
Benchtops are primarily used for labs and stationary environments
Portables can be used on the production line and moved around the plant for a variety of different applications
Color lookup is great for the retail and consumer market. This color measuring equipment is small and low-cost
What are the Differences within the Benchtop Category?
Depending on your needs and your budget, there’s a benchtop spectrophotometer that’s the right fit for your business.
There are various benchtop configurations, like horizontal and vertical. There are also differences in aperture size, depending on the size of your sample. And there are models for measuring in reflectance or transmission mode (for transparent or translucent materials and transparent liquids). Take the Spectro 1000 for example. The Spectro 1000v and 1000X are vertical configurations used for measuring unusual sample sizes or for operations requiring high throughput. Meanwhile, the Spectro 1050 is a color measurement tool that allows for flexible measurement in either reflectance or transmission mode. A member of the Datacolor team can help you assess your needs and find the right configuration for your business.
While the capabilities above apply to high-end models, there are also middle grade and base models available. Again, it depends on your color management goals. High-end formulation requires highly accurate measurement data, and therefore a high-end benchtop color measuring device would be the preferred instrument. Meanwhile, mid-grade or base model color measuring equipment can be used for simple quality control — looking at your standard and batch and determining if the tolerance passes or fails.
Finally, there are two terms you need to consider when selecting the right spectrophotometer: “repeatability” and “inter-instrument agreement”. Repeatability is the level of accuracy when a white tile is measured 30 times. Meanwhile, inter-instrument agreement is the level of accuracy when two identical instruments by the same manufacturer are measuring the exact same sample. If your company has multiple sites using color instrumentation, this is an extremely important thing to consider. If you do, you want a highly repeatable and highly accurate inter-instrument agreement between those locations.
The Most Common Color Measuring Device Types for Each Industry
While there are of course exceptions, some instruments are most common in specific industries. Here’s a high-level look.
In the coatings industry, you’ll find benchtop and portable reflectance units. This is because the majority of coatings are opaque. A benchtop for a lab environment or a portable for on-site color measurements would be the best choice.
The same is true in the majority of cases in the textile industry.
In the plastics industry, there are frequently both translucent and transparent materials, so a benchtop capable of both reflectance and transmission mode is generally required.
Something else to consider in the textile and plastics industry: sample temperature measurement, which removes the guesswork of determining whether a sample returned to ambient temperature before the measurement was taken — something that can influence the actual color of the product.
If you’re newer to the world of color measurement instruments, the task of finding the right ones for the job can feel overwhelming. But the benefits of selecting the right color measuring equiptment are significant: time savings, cost savings, and an improvement in product quality. Datacolor’s team of color experts will work with you every step of the way to ensure you’re set up with the right solutions for your needs. Connect with us today to learn more.
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