The characteristic matrix of a colour detection system

Abstract

Colour detection systems can be specified in terms of a set of spectral functions (colour-matching functions in the case of human observers). By taking these functions into account we define the characteristic matrix associated with a given colour detection system. This definition provides a new way to evaluate the differences and similarities between the colorimetric behaviour of two colour detection systems. We have applied this formalism to the case of a set of colour-matching functions associated with human observers. The differences between the diagonal terms, , of the characteristic matrices associated with a given couple of observers provides us with information about the differences between their corresponding ith matching functions. The distance between two characteristic matrices, defined in terms of the norm, is a measure of the global difference between the colorimetric behaviour of the corresponding couple of associated observers. It seems to the authors that the characteristic matrix could play an important role in the characterization and design of colour detection and colour reproduction systems.