In this paper we compare the accuracy of the color information obtained from television cameras using three and five wavelength bands. This comparison is based on real digital camera data. The cameras are treated as colorimeters whose characteristics are not linked to that of the display. The color matrices for both cameras were obtained by identical optimization procedures that minimized the color error The color error for the five band camera is 2. 5 times smaller than that obtained from the three band camera. Visual comparison of color matches on a characterized color monitor indicate that the five band camera is capable of color measurements that produce no significant visual error on the display. Because the outputs from the five band camera are reduced to the normal three channels conventionally used for display there need be no increase in signal handling complexity outside the camera. Likewise it is possible to construct a five band camera using only three sensors as in conventional cameras. The principal drawback of the five band camera is the reduction in effective camera sensitivity by about 3/4 of an I stop. 1.

Date Published: 12 August 1992
PDF: 11 pages
Proc. SPIE 1656, High-Resolution Sensors and Hybrid Systems, (12 August 1992); doi: 10.1117/12.135891

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 1656:
High-Resolution Sensors and Hybrid Systems
Morley M. Blouke; Winchyi Chang; Laurence J. Thorpe; Rajinder P. Khosla, Editor(s)