NIST Appearance -- March 2000 Workshop

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Workshop on Metrology and Modeling of Color and Appearance

March 29-30, 2000

Program Schedule

Presentations

Background

The appearance of an object is the result of a complex interaction of the light incident on the object, the optical characteristics of the object, and human perception. Appearance attributes are roughly divided into chromatic and geometric (gloss and haze) attributes. They are characterized using a variety of measurement procedures including gloss, distinctness of image, orange peel, and texture. For many materials and products, color and appearance are key in the final product acceptance. The lack of precise, reproducible and internationally recognized standard procedures and standard artifacts hinders the current global economy, resulting in losses for the supplier and the customer.

One of the primary missions of NIST is to strengthen the U.S. economy by working with industry to develop and apply technology, measurements and standards. Successfully accomplishing our mission requires a two-way flow of information in which NIST and members of the scientific community from industry, government and universities confer early and regularly to define goals. NIST offers a variety of collaborative arrangements ranging from informal workshops to cooperative research and development agreements (CRADAs), multi-member consortia and interagency agreements.

Workshop Description

Materials are being manufactured with new and unique appearance attributes, and the traditional measurement techniques are not always capable of adequately characterizing all of the optical properties or correlating them with visual inspection. This workshop will address these issues by presenting research aimed at improving the fundamental understanding of factors affecting appearance, which in turn will support the development of measurement methods for characterizing these materials. In addition, given today's increasing concern for optimum product quality, this workshop will provide an opportunity to learn about current and anticipated needs for improved appearance measurements, new measurement and modeling developments, and predictive computer rendering based on optical scattering from objects. The workshop will also explore common needs for improved measurements, modeling and prediction of appearance parameters through panel discussions. Panel recommendations will be used to guide the direction of future color and appearance research programs at NIST. The technical program should appeal to everyone involved in color and appearance research.

Objectives

Identify important variables in visual evaluation of color and appearance attributes.
Identify the relationships between optical measurements and visual perception.
Establish the need for new appearance measurements procedures.
Identify microstructure parameters needed for reflectance modeling.
Identify the relationships between accurate optical measurements and predictive rendering.
Identify appearance issues for electronic commerce.

Organizers

At NIST, the members of the Measurement Science for Optical Reflectance and Scattering Project are organizing this workshop. This multi-disciplinary team includes the Building Materials Division of the Building and Fire Research Laboratory, the Optical Technology Division of the Physics Laboratory, the Precision Engineering Division of the Manufacturing Engineering Laboratory, and the Mathematical and Computational Sciences Division of the Information Technology Laboratory.