Chapter Five

COMPUTER COLOR MATCHING (CCM)

 CCM
 The textile is colored most of the time for
giving a more attractive appearance or effect.
 In these colorings, in order to have exactly the
same color; color recipe is used for the textile
that wanted to be the same color but dyed in
different times and with different dyeing
machines.
 Because of this, color recipe prediction has a
very important place in the textile industry.
 CCM
Computerized color measurement devices used
in dye houses are important devices for color
recipe prediction.
Predicting the color recipe correctly increases
the dyeing performance; decreases complete
dyeing process time and decrease the possible
errors that are likely to be made.
 CCM
Color recipe prediction has a very important
place in the textile industry.
Because every customer wants to have the
same color of textile in every repetitively
given order, even if they are ordered in
different times.
 CCM
Normally, it is a very difficult process to have exactly the same
color in the textiles dyed in different times. In workshops the
experienced colorists do this process by their visual experiences,
but because of the personal properties, it may not have so stable
results, because when the colorist changes, because of the change
of the experience, the quality might change.
Therefore, the important part of the recipe depends on the
performance of the experts.
For this reason, color recipe prediction is one of the most
important problems in the textile industry and the professionals
of this subject try to carry this process in a stable platform that
does not change with personal properties that the people do the
process.
 CCM
Since around 1970, computer color matching has
become increasingly common in the textile industry,
and is meanwhile is most familiar application of
color measurement.
To a considerable extent this is due to instrument
manufacturers, who presently offer matching
systems high in performance and simple to operate.
Such a matching system consists of a color
measuring instrument, a computer with a permanent
storage medium, and the accompanying software for
color measurement and formulation calculation.
 CCM
One way of finding a match is the trial and error
approach of mixing various colorants.
Alternatively, a spectrophotometer can be
employed to measure reflectance - over the
visible range of the spectrum.
Spectrophotometric measurements of the
standard and the prospective colorants can be
analyzed to yield further information regarding
the correct colorants and their relative
proportions.
 CCM
The objective of computer color formulation is to
find the proportions of each colorant in a set that,
when mixed, have a reflectance, that appears to
have the same color as that of the standard under
specified viewing conditions.
If a systematic prediction can be used to select
the correct colorants and their relative proportions
to accurately match the color of a standard,
Much savings in terms of time, money and, waste
material is gained over using a trial and error
approach.
 CCM
This systematic procedure is based on the Kubelka-
Munk theory and involves two steps.
First, it is necessary to characterize the field of
colorants (primaries) that will be used to formulate
the proposed match in terms of absorption and
scattering coefficients.
Second, once the primaries have been characterized,
the selection of the correct colorants and their relative
proportions must be determined.
 CCM
The flowchart of the colored goods production
process employing a colorant formulation
system is given below.
The spectral reflectance of a target colour is first
measured using a spectrophotometer,
and the colorant concentrations are computed
using the colorant formulation system.
These concentrations are used in the coloration
process to produce the matching colored goods.
Flow chart of color recipe prediction( Spectrophotometric)
 CCM
If the colour difference between the target and
the produced colour is too large to be accepted,
the recipe should be corrected.
As the dyeing and colour quality control
processes are usually costly and time
consuming, it is important and still very
challenging for any colorant formulation
system to be ‘right first time’ in colour
matching with a generally acceptable colour
difference.
 CCM
The most commonly used linearizing function
of reflectance is the Kubelka–Munk formula.
The colorants are taken to be additive, and the
spectral Kubelka–Munk values (K/S) of the
reference are taken to be the sum of the K/S
values of the substrate and of the colorants
used in the formula.
For three colorants, this results in a set of three
linear equations where the unknowns are the
three colorant concentrations.
 CCM(Recipe prediction)

 In principle absorbance values are additive. The

absorbance of a mix of dyes, each at a given
concentration, is ideally the sum of the
absorbance of the individual dyes.
 Because of the proportionality of dye
concentration and absorbance, the absorption
functions of various mixes of dyes can be
predicted in principle from the absorbance of the
dyes in unit concentration and their relative
concentrations.
 Cont..
 The Kubelka–Munk model defines spectral absorption
and scattering constants for the pigments and a
mathematical relationship between reflectance and the
ratio of absorption constant K and scattering constant S.

 This relationship is considered additive, that is, in

mixtures the spectral K/S values of the pigments
involved, weighted by their concentrations, are added
together with the K/S values of the substrate to predict
the reflectance function of the mixture.
 Cont…

R = 1 + (K/S) - [(K/S)2 + 2(K/S)]1/2

.
 Cont…
In K–M theory, the absorption and scattering
coefficients of a colour sample can be further
represented using absorption and scattering
coefficients of the individual pigments or dyes:

where K1 to Kn are the absorption coefficients

of the dyes, Ksub and Ssub are the absorption
and scattering coefficients of the substrate,
respectively.
 Cont…
(K/S)target = a1c1 + a2c2 + a3c3 + Ksub/Ssub
where a1, a2 and a3 are the coefficients.

 The coefficients are optimized from the

calibration database and are stored by the
system for use in recipe formulation.
 Cont…
 Colour matching to a target depends not only
on the formulation system but also on the
accuracy of the recipe preparation, the
repeatability of the dyeing process and the
colour measurement process.
 There is a need for quality control at each step
in the coloration and measuring processes.
 CCM
it can be seen that, for a dye system, the
reflectance of the colored sample can be
predicted from only the ratio of the absorption
coefficient of each dye in the mixture and the
scattering coefficient of the substrate, i.e. Kn/Ssub.
The various K/Ssub ratios may be considered as a
single constant, which are commonly called
‘absorption coefficients’ in textile dye
formulation, and the theory is therefore known as
single constant K–M theory.
 CCM
It is also known that recipe formulation can be
carried out using colorimeter like
spectrophotometric matching algorithms.
Spectrophotometric matching algorithms
minimise the reflectance difference between
the target and prediction.
 CCM

 In most commercial systems, the colorimetric

matching algorithm to minimise DX, DY, and
DZ has now been universally adopted.
 This algorithm is based on the strategy:
Flow chart of colorimetric color matching
 CCM(Recipe Prediction)

 Colorimetric matching is very effective because

it minimizes the colour difference directly.
 Smaller differences in DX, DY and DZ result in
closer colour match.
 The drawback of colorimetric matching is that
a match achieved under a particular illuminant
(e.g. D65) may not be a match under another
illuminant (e.g. A), especially when different
types of dyes are involved.
 CCM(Recipe Prediction)

 This type of match is the so-called metameric

match, i.e. the reflectance curve of the
predicted sample is very likely different from
that of the standard and, when plotted, these
two reflectance curves have at least three
cross-over points.
 If the colour difference is larger than the tolerance, the
following matrix is devised.

 The new corrected recipe is then:

 Steps are repeated until the colour difference between the standard and the prediction is within the
tolerance limit.