Effects of surrounding brightness on visual search for safety colors

The present article reports the investigation of the effects of surrounding brightness on a visual search for three safety colors: red, orange, and yellow. Images of visual stimuli consisting of an array of colored circles placed on a large visual field (a visual angle of 40°) were displayed on an 80‐in. screen with a DLP projector. Experiment I examined the search efficiency under three levels of background luminance that were equivalent to the three target luminances. The results showed that the search efficiency for the orange target decreased as the number of distractors increased, under each of the background luminance levels, whereas the efficiency scarcely decreased for the red and yellow targets. Although a reduction in background luminance increased the search efficiency for the orange target, it is suggested that the effect of background luminance is smaller than the effect of the target color in search efficiency. Experiment II examined the search efficiency under three conditions of low levels of incident illuminance, which were matched with a linear regression to the luminance of color chips of safety colors measured twilight conditions. The results showed that the search efficiency for the orange target decreased as the number of distractors increased under each of the different illuminance conditions, whereas the efficiency scarcely decreased for red and yellow targets. Furthermore, as illuminance decreased, the search time for the orange target was more greatly impacted than for red or yellow. These results imply that the recognition of orange tends to be influenced by the surrounding brightness. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 30, 400–409, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/col.20152     

Complexity of the color appearance of objects with nonuniform illumination

An inversion relationship is clarified between lightness and brightness, and also between chroma and colorfulness under nonuniform illumination with different illuminance levels (high and low) within the same visual field. Brightness (or colorfulness) of object color with low lightness (or chroma) under high illuminance level is perceived higher than that of another object color with high lightness (or chroma) under low illuminance level. Two color images are given for showing the inversion phenomena on brightness–lightness and colorfulness–chroma between object colors under different illuminance levels. These color images are useful for making researchers on color understand the differences in concept between brightness and lightness, and also between colorfulness and chroma. In particular, the concept of colorfulness is important, but difficult to understand. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 32, 372–377, 2007     

Chromatic luminance,colorimetric purity,and optimal aperture‐color stimuli

Chromatic luminance (i.e., luminance of a monochromatic color) is the source of all luminance, since achromatic luminance arises only from mixing colors and their chromatic luminances. The ratio of chromatic luminance to total luminance (i.e., chromatic plus achromatic luminance) is known as colorimetric purity, and its measurement has long been problematic for nonspectral hues. Colorimetric purity (p_c) is a luminance metric in contrast to excitation purity, which is a chromaticity‐diagram metric approximating saturation. The CIE definition of p_c contains a fallacy. CIE defines maximum (1.0) p_c for spectral stimuli as monochromatic (i.e., optimal) stimuli, and as the line between spectrum ends for nonspectrals. However, this line has <0.003 lm/W according to CIE colorimetric data and is therefore effectively invisible. It only represents the limit of theoretically attainable colors, and is of no practical use in color reproduction or color appearance. Required is a locus giving optimal rather than invisible nonspectral stimuli. The problem is partly semantic. CIE wisely adopted the term colorimetric purity, rather than the original spectral luminance purity, to permit an equivalent metric for spectrals and nonspectrals, but the parameter of equivalence was never clear. Since 1 p_c denotes optimal aperture‐color stimuli for spectrals, arguably 1 p_c should denote optimal stimuli consistently for all stimuli. The problem reduces to calculating optimal aperture‐color stimuli (“optimal” in energy efficiency in color‐matching) for nonspectrals, shown to comprise 442 + 613 nm in all CIE illuminants. This remedy merely requires redefinition of 1 p_c for nonspectrals as the line 442–613 nm, and gives meaningful p_c values over the hue cycle allowing new research of chromatic luminance relations with color appearance. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 32, 469–476, 2007     

立体图像对亮度差异对立体视融合的影响研究

针对具有亮度差异的立体图像对如何影响立体融合,提出了对不同亮度差异的立体图像对识别融合的影响范围。通过8名被试对亮度差异分别为0,10,20,30,40,50,60,70,80,90的立体图像对融合识别的反应时和正确率进行分析,给出了亮度差异对立体视融合的定量影响范围。结果表明:反应时随着亮度差异的增大逐渐增加,但识别正确率逐渐降低。亮度差异为20以下,立体识别可达到较好的识别效果,反应时较短并且正确率很高。当亮度差异介于20~60之间,反应时急剧增加,正确率稍有降低。但当亮度差异达到60以上,不仅反应时急剧增加,而且正确率急剧降低,达到很难识别的程度。     

HSI空间亮度信息的多尺度Retinex图像增强研究

彩色图像增强可以提高图像的亮度,增强图像的对比度和细节,同时使得图像颜色更加逼真自然,并且较少失真,在遥感、医学、刑侦、电视与多媒体等许多方面具有良好的应用前景和重要的理论研究意义。提出基于HSI空间亮度信息的多尺度Retinex图像增强算法（HSI_MSR）,算法通过对HSI颜色空间模型的分析,通过增强HSI模型中I分量,将HSI模型转换到RGB模型,得到增强后的彩色图像。通过仿真实验可知HSI_MSR算法可以较好地提高图像的视觉特性,亮度适合人眼观察,细节较为丰富,使得图像颜色更加逼真自然。     

Assessment of drivers' visual perception of information displayed in LED traffic signs at road construction sites

This study investigated drivers' visual perception of information displayed in LED traffic signs under different levels of environmental luminance. Concerning the information displayed, the environmental luminance comprised four luminance contrasts, two arrow types, and three environmental luminances, which were used to identify the visibility of traffic signs at the reading distance. Regarding visible distance, visibility involved reading starting and end points, extent of glare, comfortable distance, and glare distance. According to the study results obtained by using a highly reliable glare assessment method and studying the LED traffic signs, the lower the luminance contrast of traffic signs was the higher glare the participants perceived. A luminance contrast of 6200:2066 cd/m² provided the farthest comfortable and glare distances, enabling drivers to notice the signs comparatively earlier and have sufficient time to react accordingly. Overall, arrow type “<<<” outperformed “←” because the former was easier for drivers to read and created less glare. Regarding environmental luminance, traffic signs displayed in high and medium luminance environments (i.e., extremely sunny and cloudy days, respectively) each featured their own advantage, whereas those displayed in low luminance environments (nights) have to be further improved.     

引入边缘信息的纹理传输改进算法

本文针对Efros等人提出的块缝合纹理合成与传输算法,在搜索匹配块的过程中未考虑目标图块边缘信息这一不足之处,提出了一种改进算法．新算法在原有的搜索误差匹配公式中,通过计算梯度的方式增加了边缘信息处理项,同时整个传输过程还引入了亮度重映射的匹配预处理策略．实验结果表明,改进后算法的传递效果优于传统算法,尤其是目标图的边缘轮廓部分传递效果有比较明显的改善．     

Efficient and robust shot change detection

In this article, we deal with the problem of shot change detection which is of primary importance when trying to segment and abstract video sequences. Contrary to recent experiments, our aim is to elaborate a robust but very efficient (real-time even with uncompressed data) method to deal with the remaining problems related to shot change detection: illumination changes, context and data independency, and parameter settings. To do so, we have considered some adaptive threshold and derivative measures in a hue-saturation colour space. We illustrate our robust and efficient method by some experiments on news and football broadcast video sequences.

Improvement of luminance and luminous efficacy in PDPs

Abstract— The dependence of PDP luminance and efficacy on the input power was investigated for several Xe‐Ne gas mixtures. The input power was varied in two ways: namely, by changing the dielectric‐layer capacitance (thickness) and by changing the sustain voltage. A distinctly different behavior was found; for increasing capacitance the efficacy decreases markedly, whereas for increasing sustain voltage the efficacy increases. A design window comprising the combination of a high Xe concentration and a high sustain voltage was suggested. In this window, a high luminance and a high efficacy are concurrent. A 4‐in. test panel with 10% Xe in Ne has been realized showing a white luminance of 2040 cd/m² and an efficacy of 2.3 lm/W for continuous sustaining at 50 kHz with a sustain voltage of 225 V.     

频率域上的分形图象编码

研究了频率域上的分形图象编码，与空间域上的分形图象编码相比，它有两个突出的特点：分阶的亮度变换和几何变换的简化与合并。本文的理论分析和实验数据都表明，无论是在编码时间和压缩比方面，还是在解码的收敛性和图象保真度方面，频率域上的分形图象编码都要优于相应的空间域上的分形图象编码。