Patent ID: 6330342
Filing Date: 2001-12-11
Classification: G01J

Abstract:
A method for managing a marketing color used on mass produced articles, the method comprising:establishing a master color standard for the marketing color which is used on mass produced articles;establishing machine tolerances for a mass produced marketing color under at least one predetermined lighting condition, the machine tolerances being limits which the mass produced marketing color on the mass produced articles can deviate from the master color standard for the acceptable display of the mass produced marketing color under the at least one predetermined lighting condition in which the mass produced marketing color is to be viewed;obtaining at least one sample of the mass produced article having a mass produced unmanaged color;machine measuring a plurality of spectrophotometric characteristics of a first visual tolerance set and storing the plurality of characteristics of the first visual tolerance on a storage medium;machine measuring one or more of the plurality of spectrophotometric characteristics, which were measured of the first visual tolerance set, of the unmanaged color of the at least one sample of the mass produced article;determining if the machine measured spectrophotometric characteristic of the unmanaged color of the sample of the mass produced articles are within the established acceptable machine tolerances established for the mass produced marketing color;accepting or rejecting the unmanaged color of the sample based upon the machine measurements of the unmanaged color of the color sample and the first visual tolerance set;visually comparing a visual color standard with the unmanaged color of the mass produced sample under a plurality of types of light by looking at the unmanaged color of the mass produced sample and the visual color standard at least one predetermined angle with the unmanaged color of the mass produced sample and the visual color standard being illuminated by each of the plurality of the types of light to determine if the unmanaged color of the mass produced sample and the visual color standard are within at least one visual tolerance established for the marketing color of the mass produced sample; andaccepting or rejecting the unmanaged color of the mass produced sample based upon the visual comparison.