Apparatus and methods for selective color editing of color profiles

• US 8,013,871 B2
• Filed: 11/08/2006
• Issued: 09/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fiery LLC
• Original Assignee: Electronics For Imaging Incorporated
• Inventors: Olson, Thor A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Richer; Aaron M
• Application Number:
  US11/557,909
• Publication Number:
  US 20080062443A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,763 Days
• Field of Search: 345/594
• US Class Current: 345/594
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/6011 with simulation on a subsidiary picture reproducer H04N1/622 takes precedence; matching two or more picture reproducers H04N1/6052

Abstract

Apparatus and methods are provided for editing color profiles. In particular, an output color including a first hue, a first lightness and a first chroma is received, and a first range of lightness values and a first range of chroma values for all output color values in the color profile are determined. A second range of lightness values of output color values in the color profile that have the first hue and the first chroma, and a second range of chroma values of output color values in the color profile that have the first hue and the first lightness are determined. Graphical representations of the first and second ranges of lightness values, and the first and second ranges of chroma values are distinctly displayed on a display device. A user interface is provided that allows a user to create an edited output color including a second hue, a second lightness and a second chroma, and dynamically modify the second range of lightness values and the second range of chroma values based on the edited output color.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for editing a color profile for an output device having a color gamut, the color profile comprising a plurality of output color values, the method comprising:

receiving, with a computer, the color profile, each output color value in the color profile comprising color attributes including a first hue, a first lightness, and a first chroma;

determining, with the computer, a first range of lightness values and a first range of chroma values for each output color value in the color profile;

determining, with the computer, a second range of lightness values for each output color value in the color profile that has the first hue and the first chroma;

determining, with the computer, a second range of chroma values for each output color value in the color profile that has the first hue and the first lightness;

distinctly displaying, with the computer, on a display device graphical representations of the first and second ranges of lightness values, wherein said graphical representations of the first and second ranges of lightness values include availability information relating to whether particular lightness values are either;

available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut at the first hue and the first chroma;

not available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut;

or

available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut, but at a different value of chroma than the first chroma, if chosen;

distinctly displaying, with the computer, on the display device graphical representations of the first and second ranges of chroma values, wherein said graphical representations of the first and second ranges of chroma values include availability information relating to whether particular chroma values are either;

available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut at the first hue and the first lightness;

not available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut;

or

available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut, but at a different value of lightness than the first lightness, if chosen;

wherein responsive to receiving a user change of any of the first hue, the first lightness, and the first chroma, dynamically adjusting and distinctly redisplaying the availability information relating to the lightness values and the availability information relating to the chroma values;

displaying, with the computer, an original soft proof image;

providing, with the computer, a user interface that allows the user to create an edited soft proof image and an edited output color comprising a second hue, a second lightness, and a second chroma;

displaying, with the computer, the edited soft proof image; and

dynamically modifying, with the computer, the second range of lightness values and the second range of chroma values based on the edited output color.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical representation comprises first and second slider bars displaying the first and second ranges of lightness values and the first and second ranges of chroma values, respectively, and wherein said availability information comprises distinct widths of said slider bars at given points in said first and second ranges.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, with the computer, a third range of lightness values that are out of the color gamut;

determining, with the computer, a third range of chroma values that are out of the color gamut; and

distinctly displaying on the display device graphical representations of the third range of lightness values and the third range of chroma values.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein distinctly displaying the first and second ranges of lightness values comprises displaying, with the computer, the first range of lightness values with a first width, and the second range of lightness values with a second width.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein distinctly displaying the first and second ranges of lightness values comprises displaying, with the computer, the first range of lightness values with a first color, and the second range of lightness values with a second color.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein distinctly displaying the first and second ranges of chroma values comprises displaying, with the computer, the first range of chroma values with a first color, and the second range of chroma values with a second color.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying, with the computer, indicia associated with the second lightness and the second chroma on the graphical representations of the first and second ranges of lightness values and the first and second ranges of chroma values, respectively.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the user interface allows a user to modify the second lightness and the second hue by dragging, with the computer, the corresponding indicia on the graphical representations of the first and second ranges of lightness values and the first and second ranges of chroma values, respectively.

9. A computer-implemented method for editing a color profile for an output device having a color gamut, the color profile comprising a plurality of output color values, the method comprising:

receiving, with a computer, the color profile, each output color value in the color profile comprising a first hue, a first lightness, and a first chroma;

determining, with the computer, a first range of lightness values and a first range of chroma values for each output color value in the color profile;

determining, with the computer, a second range of lightness values for each output color value in the color profile that has the first hue and the first chroma;

determining, with the computer, a second range of chroma values for each output color value in the color profile that has the first hue and the first lightness;

distinctly displaying, with the computer, on a display device a first slider bar that comprises a first segment corresponding to the first range of lightness values and a second segment corresponding to the second range of lightness values, wherein said segments include availability information relating to whether particular lightness values are either;

available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut at the first hue and the first chroma;

not available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut;

or

available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut, but at a different value of chroma than the first chroma, if chosen;

distinctly displaying, with the computer, on the display device a second slider bar that comprises a first segment corresponding to the first range of chroma values and a second segment corresponding to the second range of chroma values, wherein said segments include availability information relating to whether particular chroma values are either;

available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut at the first hue and the first lightness;

not available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut;

or

available in said output device'"'"'s color gamut, but at a different value of lightness than the first lightness, if chosen;

wherein responsive to receiving a user change of any of the first hue, the first lightness, and the first chroma, dynamically adjusting and distinctly redisplaying the availability information relating to the lightness values and the availability information relating to the chroma values;

displaying, with the computer, an original soft proof image;

providing, with the computer, a user interface that allows a user to create an edited output color comprising a second hue, a second lightness, and a second chroma;

displaying, with the computer, the edited soft proof image; and

dynamically modifying, with the computer, the second segment of lightness values and the second segment of chroma values based on the edited output color.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining, with the computer, a third range of lightness values that are out of the color gamut;

determining, with the computer, a third range of chroma values that are out of the color gamut; and

wherein the first slider bar comprises a third segment corresponding to the third range of lightness values and the second slider bar comprises a third segment corresponding to the third range of chroma values.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the first segment of the first slider bar comprises a first width, and the second segment of the first slider bar comprises a second width, and wherein said availability information comprises distinct widths of said slider bars at given points in said first and second ranges.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the first segment of the first slider bar comprises a first color, and the second segment of the first slider bar comprises a second color.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the first segment of the second slider bar comprises a first width, and the second segment of the second slider bar comprises a second width.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the first segment of the second slider bar comprises a first color, and the second segment of the second slider bar comprises a second color.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising displaying indicia associated with the second lightness and the second chroma on the first and second slider bars respectively.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the user interface allows a user to modify the second lightness and the second hue by dragging the corresponding indicia on the first and second slider bars, respectively.