Scientific positioning

Position

ColorAptitude™ is not a digital replica of the Farnsworth-Munsell 100 Hue Test or the Japanese Color Aptitude Test. It is a complementary qualification instrument that uses calibrated digital stimuli, an integrated screen calibration procedure and extended competency layers that are absent in the physical tests.

What ASTM E1499-16 §5.3 says

ASTM E1499-16 §5.3 warns:

“The user is cautioned to avoid the substitution of validated vision tests with replicas of any kind, either printed, photographed or digitally displayed.”

This warning was formulated in 1997 and relates to uncalibrated reproductions of physical tests — scans, photographs, or digital copies without colour validation. The technological context was CRT monitors without colour calibration, with large colorimetric deviations.

Why ColorAptitude™ is not a replica

ColorAptitude™ does not meet the definition of a “replica” within the meaning of §5.3:

1. Custom stimuli

ColorAptitude™ does not use digital copies of Munsell chips or Japanese Color Aptitude Test cards. The stimuli are generated in the OKLCH colour space — a perceptually uniform colour space that was standardised in 2020 and can be colorimetrically defined on calibrated screens.

2. Integrated screen calibration

ColorAptitude™ requires a seven-step screen calibration procedure before starting the assessment. This procedure validates gamma (γ 2.2), black depth, white depth, luminance, white point (D65), colour gamut and colour balance. An assessment cannot be started without a sufficient calibration profile. This is the direct implementation of the precautionary measure that §5.3 implicitly requires.

3. Custom norm data

ColorAptitude™ builds its own norm data based on digital stimuli. The Kinnear & Sahraie (2002) norm data for the FM100 are used as a reference framework for age correction, but not as a direct norm comparison. Scores in ColorAptitude™ are not equivalent to FM100 scores and are not presented as such.

4. Explicit disclosure of limitations

ColorAptitude™ communicates on all result pages, in email templates and in the scientific section that it is a complementary instrument — not a direct replacement of the physical FM100 or Japanese Color Aptitude Test.

What ColorAptitude™ measures that the physical tests do not

The FM100 and the Japanese Color Aptitude Test measure only discrimination at the level of hue. ColorAptitude™ measures three competency layers across three dimensions:

How ColorAptitude™ supports ASTM E1499-16

ASTM E1499-16 describes a three-stage selection process for colour assessors:

Step 1 — §6.2.1: Pseudoisochromatic plates (Ishihara)

Screening for colour vision problems. ColorAptitude™ does not replace this step and does not perform it. Organisations that wish to follow ASTM E1499-16 fully use the physical Ishihara test as a preliminary stage.

Step 2 — §6.2.2 / §6.3.1: Farnsworth-Munsell 100 Hue Test

Discrimination measurement at hue level. ColorAptitude™ offers a digital discrimination assessment as a complement — not as a replacement.

Step 3 — §6.3.2: Chroma Threshold (2AFC adaptive staircase)

ColorAptitude™'s Chroma Threshold Diagnostic implements a 2AFC forced-choice test with adaptive staircase, methodologically inspired by ASTM E1499-16 §6.3.2. It uses its own stimuli and norm data.

Step 4 — §6.4: Magnitude Scaling

ColorAptitude™'s magnitude scaling module implements the methodology of §6.4 directly, with OKLCH stimuli across hue, lightness and chroma.

The ColorAptitude Certificate issued by ColorAptitude™ states name, score, test date and validity period — in accordance with the documentation requirements that ASTM E1499-16 sets for colour assessor qualification.

Scientific basis