Leonardo 2000: The softcopy screen book

As part of a larger project that is intended for self-taught color science, we developed a software tool to provide a softcopy simulation of the Munsell Book of Color under varied illuminants and for various observers. This simulation avoids setting up as ideal a particular set of pigments from which to derive spectral reflectances. The color-order database contains a reflectance function for each Munsell aim point. The aim points are the usual ones for Illuminant C and 2degrees Observer function. For a new illuminant and observer, each reflectance function is weighted by appropriate color-matching function and illuminant spectral power distribution, and integrated to produce new X, Y, and Z values. From these values, CIELAB and chromaticity coordinates are computed. Having specified atlas colors in a variety of coordinates, the program next renders them on screen as a color-navigation tool. To illustrate good practice in constructing an atlas of reflectances, the reflectance spectra from a linear series of aim points in Munsell space can be co-plotted to show the requirements for consistency of the series under illuminant and observer change.