View source for CIE 1931 color space

{{short description|Color space defined by the CIE in 1931}}
[[File:CIE1931xy CIERGB.svg|325px|right|thumb|Gamut of the CIE RGB primaries and location of primaries on the CIE 1931 ''xy'' chromaticity diagram.]]325px|right|thumb|The CIE 1931 RGB color matching functions normalized to equal areas under the curves. Multiplying the red and green curves by 72.0962 and 1.3791 respectively yields the actual color matching functions.  The color matching functions are proportional to the intensities of primaries needed to match the monochromatic test color at the wavelength shown on the horizontal scale.[[File:CIE RGB color cube.png|thumb|CIE RGB color cube <small>(image encoded with an ICC profile)</small>]]

The '''CIE 1931 color spaces''' are the first defined quantitative links between distributions of wavelengths in the electromagnetic [[Physics:Visible spectrum|visible spectrum]], and physiologically perceived colors in human [[Color vision|color vision]]. The mathematical relationships that define these [[Color space|color space]]s are essential tools for [[Color management|color management]], important when dealing with color inks, illuminated displays, and recording devices such as digital cameras. The system was designed in 1931 by the ''"Commission Internationale de l'éclairage"'', known in English as the International Commission on Illumination. 

The '''CIE 1931 RGB color space''' and '''CIE 1931 XYZ color space''' were created by the International Commission on Illumination (CIE) in 1931.<ref name="cie1931">{{cite book |author1=CIE |title=Commission internationale de l'Eclairage proceedings, 1931 |publisher={{wipe|Cambridge University Press}} |location=Cambridge |year=1932}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Smith |first1=Thomas |last2=Guild |first2=John |title=The C.I.E. colorimetric standards and their use |year=1931–32 |volume=33 |issue=3 |journal=Transactions of the Optical Society |pages=73–134 |doi=10.1088/1475-4878/33/3/301|bibcode=1931TrOS...33...73S }}</ref> They resulted from a series of experiments done in the late 1920s by William David Wright using ten observers<ref name="wright">{{cite journal |last1=Wright |first1=William David |title=A re-determination of the trichromatic coefficients of the spectral colors |journal=Transactions of the Optical Society |year=1928 |volume=30 |issue=4 |pages=141–164 |doi=10.1088/1475-4878/30/4/301}}</ref> and John Guild using seven observers.<ref name="guild">{{cite journal |last=Guild |first=J. |title=The colorimetric properties of the spectrum |journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A, Containing Papers of a Mathematical or Physical Character |year=1932 |volume=230 |issue=681–693 |pages=149–187 |doi=10.1098/rsta.1932.0005 |jstor=91229 |bibcode=1932RSPTA.230..149G |quote="The trichromatic coefficients for [Wright's] ten observers agreed so closely with those of the seven observers examined at the National Physical Laboratory as to indicate that both groups must give results approximating more closely to 'normal' than might have been expected from the size of either group"|doi-access=free }}</ref> The experimental results were combined into the specification of the CIE RGB color space, from which the CIE XYZ color space was derived.

The CIE 1931 color spaces are still widely used, as is the 1976 [[CIELUV]] color space.

==Tristimulus values==
[[File:Cones SMJ2 E.svg|thumb|right|200px|The normalized spectral sensitivity of human cone cells of short-, middle- and long-wavelength types.]]

The [[Biology:Human eye|human eye]] with normal vision has three kinds of [[Biology:Cone cell|cone cells]] that sense light, having peaks of [[Physics:Spectral sensitivity|spectral sensitivity]] in short ("S", {{nowrap|420 nm}} – {{nowrap|440 nm}}), middle ("M", {{nowrap|530 nm}} – {{nowrap|540 nm}}), and long ("L", {{nowrap|560 nm}} – {{nowrap|580 nm}}) wavelengths. These cone cells underlie human color perception in conditions of medium and high brightness; in very dim light [[Color vision|color vision]] diminishes, and the low-brightness, monochromatic "night vision" receptors, denominated "[[Biology:Rod cell|rod cells]]", become effective. Thus, three parameters corresponding to levels of stimulus of the three kinds of cone cells, in principle describe any human color sensation. Weighting a total light power spectrum by the individual spectral sensitivities of the three kinds of cone cells renders three effective values of [[Biology:Stimulus (physiology)|stimulus]]; these three values compose a tristimulus specification of the objective color of the light spectrum. The three parameters, denoted "S", "M", and "L", are indicated using a 3-dimensional space denominated the "[[LMS color space]]", which is one of many color spaces devised to quantify human [[Color vision|color vision]].

A color space maps a range of physically produced colors from mixed light, pigments, etc. to an objective description of color sensations registered in the human eye, typically in terms of tristimulus values, but not usually in the [[LMS color space]] defined by the spectral sensitivities of the [[Biology:Cone cell|cone cells]]. The '''tristimulus values''' associated with a color space can be conceptualized as amounts of three [[Primary color|primary color]]s in a tri-chromatic, [[Additive color|additive]] [[Color model|color model]]. In some color spaces, including the LMS and XYZ spaces, the primary colors used are not real colors in the sense that they cannot be generated in any light spectrum.

The CIE XYZ color space encompasses all color sensations that are visible to a person with average eyesight. That is why CIE XYZ (Tristimulus values) is a device-invariant representation of color.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d74gJxUdsq8 |title=- YouTube |website=[[Company:YouTube|YouTube]] |access-date=2015-10-17 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160317005216/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d74gJxUdsq8 |archive-date=2016-03-17 }} Tristimulus Value of Color: Device Independent Color Representation</ref> It serves as a standard reference against which many other color spaces are defined. A set of color-matching functions, like the spectral sensitivity curves of the [[LMS color space]], but not restricted to non-negative sensitivities, associates physically produced light spectra with specific tristimulus values.

Consider two light sources composed of different mixtures of various wavelengths. Such light sources may appear to be the same color; this effect is called "metamerism." Such light sources have the same apparent color to an observer when they produce the same tristimulus values, regardless of the [[Physics:Spectral power distribution|spectral power distribution]]s of the sources.

Most wavelengths stimulate two or all three kinds of [[Biology:Cone cell|cone cell]] because the spectral sensitivity curves of the three kinds overlap. Certain tristimulus values are thus physically impossible: e.g. LMS tristimulus values that are non-zero for the M component and zero for both the L and S components. Furthermore pure spectral colors would, in any normal trichromatic additive color space, e.g., the [[RGB color spaces]], imply negative values for at least one of the three [[Primary color|primaries]] because the [[Physics:Chromaticity|chromaticity]] would be outside the color triangle defined by the primary colors. To avoid these negative RGB values, and to have one component that describes the perceived [[Physics:Brightness|brightness]], "imaginary" primary colors and corresponding color-matching functions were formulated. The CIE 1931 color space defines the resulting tristimulus values, in which they are denoted by "X", "Y", and "Z".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hunt |first1=R. W. |title=Measuring Colour |edition=3rd |publisher=Fountain Press |location=England |year=1998 |isbn=0-86343-387-1}}. See pgs. 39–46 for the basis in the physiology of the [[Biology:Human eye|human eye]] of tripartite color models, and 54–7 for chromaticity coordinates.</ref> In XYZ space, all combinations of non-negative coordinates are meaningful, but many, such as the primary locations [1, 0, 0], [0, 1, 0], and [0, 0, 1], correspond to imaginary colors outside the space of possible LMS coordinates; imaginary colors do not correspond to any spectral distribution of wavelengths and therefore have no physical reality.

==Meaning of ''X'', ''Y'' and ''Z''==
[[File:Comparison between CIE luminosity function and M cone response.svg|thumb|right|260px|A comparison between a typical normalized M cone's spectral sensitivity and the CIE 1931 [[Physics:Luminosity function|luminosity function]] for a standard observer in photopic vision.]]

In the CIE 1931 model, ''Y'' is the [[Physics:Luminance|luminance]], ''Z''  is quasi-equal to blue (of CIE RGB), and ''X'' is a mix of the three CIE RGB curves chosen to be nonnegative (see {{section link||Definition of the CIE XYZ color space}}). Setting ''Y'' as luminance has the useful result that for any given ''Y'' value, the XZ plane will contain all possible [[Physics:Chromaticity|chromaticities]] at that luminance.

The unit of the tristimulus values {{math|''X''}}, {{math|''Y''}}, and {{math|''Z''}} is often arbitrarily chosen so that {{math|1=''Y'' = 1}} or {{math|1=''Y'' = 100}} is the brightest white that a color display supports. In this case, the Y value is known as the [[Physics:Relative luminance|relative luminance]]. The corresponding whitepoint values for {{math|''X''}} and {{math|''Z''}} can then be inferred using the [[Physics:Standard illuminant|standard illuminant]]s.

Since the XYZ values are defined much earlier than the characterization of cone cells in the 1950s (by [[Biography:Ragnar Granit|Ragnar Granit]]),<ref>{{cite web |title=Ragnar Granit - Sensory Structure of Retina and Vision |url=https://www.japi.org/w29454/ragnar-granit-sensory-structure-of-retina-and-vision |website=www.japi.org}}</ref> the physiological meaning of these values are known only much later. The Hunt-Pointer-Estevez matrix from the 1980s relates XYZ with LMS.<ref>{{Cite book|date=2007-07-27|editor-last=Schanda|editor-first=János|title=Colorimetry|language=en|pages=305|doi=10.1002/9780470175637|isbn=9780470175637}}</ref> When inverted, it shows how the three cone responses add up to XYZ functions:

:<math>
\begin{bmatrix}
X\\Y\\Z
\end{bmatrix}
=
\left[\begin{aligned}
 1&.910\,20 \!\!\!&\!\! -1&.112\,12 \!\!\!&\!\! 0&.201\,91 \\
 0&.370\,95 \!\!\!&\!\!  0&.629\,05 \!\!\!&\!\! 0&         \\
 0&         \!\!\!&\!\!  0&         \!\!\!&\!\! 1&.000\,00
\end{aligned}\right]
\begin{bmatrix}
L\\M\\S
\end{bmatrix}_{\rm HPE}
</math>

In other words, the Z value is solely made up of the S cone response, the Y value a mix of L and M responses, and X value a mix of all three. This fact makes XYZ values analogous to, but different from, the LMS cone responses of the human eye.

==CIE standard observer==
Due to the distribution of cones in the eye, the tristimulus values depend on the observer's [[Physics:Field of view|field of view]]. To eliminate this variable, the CIE defined a color-mapping function called the '''standard (colorimetric) observer''', to represent an average human's chromatic response within a 2° arc inside the [[Medicine:Fovea centralis|fovea]]. This angle was chosen owing to the belief that the color-sensitive cones resided within a 2° arc of the fovea. Thus the ''CIE 1931 Standard Observer'' function is also known as the ''CIE 1931 2° Standard Observer''. A more modern but less-used alternative is the ''CIE 1964 10° Standard Observer'', which is derived from the work of Stiles and Burch,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Stiles |first1=W. S. |last2=Birch |first2=J. M. |title=N.P.L. Colour-matching Investigation: Final Report (1958)|journal=Optica Acta |year=1959 |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=1–26 |doi=10.1080/713826267}}</ref> and Speranskaya.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Speranskaya |first1=N. I. |title=Determination of spectrum color co-ordinates for twenty seven normal observers |journal=Optics and Spectroscopy |year=1959 |volume=7 |pages=424–428}}
</ref>

For the 10° experiments, the observers were instructed to ignore the central 2° spot. The 1964 Supplementary Standard Observer function is recommended when dealing with more than about a 4° field of view. Both standard observer functions are discretized at {{nowrap|5 nm}} wavelength intervals from {{nowrap|380 nm}} to {{nowrap|780 nm}} and distributed by the CIE.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cie.co.at/index.php/LEFTMENUE/DOWNLOADS |title=CIE Free Documents for Download |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170828183922/http://www.cie.co.at/index.php/LEFTMENUE/DOWNLOADS |archive-date=2017-08-28 |access-date=2017-08-28 }}</ref> All corresponding values have been calculated from experimentally obtained data using [[Interpolation|interpolation]]. The standard observer is characterized by three ''color matching functions''.

There is also a {{nowrap|1 nm}}-interval dataset of CIE 1931 and CIE 1964 provided by Wyszecki 1982.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Glynn |first1=Earl F. |title=Chromaticity Diagrams Lab Repor |url=http://ultra.sdk.free.fr/docs/Image-Processing/Colors/Format/Chromaticity%20Diagrams%20Lab%20Report.htm}}</ref> A CIE publication in 1986 appears also to have a 1 nm dataset, probably using the same data.<ref>{{cite web |title=CIE 15: Technical Report: Colorimetry, 3rd edition |url=https://www.cdvplus.cz/file/3-publikace-cie15-2004/ |quote=The definitive data relating to standard colorimetric illuminants and observers are those given at 1 nm intervals in the appropriate CIE standards [CIE, 1998c (to be replaced by CIE, 2004a); CIE, 1986a].}}</ref> Like the regular {{nowrap|5 nm}} dataset, this dataset is also derived from interpolation.

The derivation of the CIE standard observer from color matching experiments is given below, after the description of the CIE RGB space.

===Color matching functions===
[[File:CIE 1931 XYZ Color Matching Functions.svg|right|thumb|325px|The CIE XYZ standard observer color matching functions]]
[[File:CIE1931 RGBCMF.svg|thumb|325px|The normalized CIE RGB color matching functions]]

The CIE's '''color matching functions''' <math>\overline{x}(\lambda)</math>, <math>\overline{y}(\lambda)</math> and <math>\overline{z}(\lambda)</math> are the numerical description of the chromatic response of the ''observer'' (described above). They can be thought of as the spectral sensitivity curves of three linear light detectors yielding the CIE tristimulus values ''X'', ''Y'' and ''Z''. Collectively, these three functions describe the CIE standard observer.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Harris |first1=A. C. |last2=Weatherall |first2=I. L. |title=Objective evaluation of color variation in the sand-burrowing beetle ''Chaerodes trachyscelides'' White (''Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae'') by instrumental determination of CIE LAB values |journal=Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand |volume=20 |issue=3 |date=September 1990 |pages=253–259 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ErI4AAAAIAAJ&q=cie+standard-observer&pg=PA254 |publisher=The Royal Society of New Zealand |doi=10.1080/03036758.1990.10416819 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170308150820/https://books.google.com/books?id=ErI4AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA254&dq=cie+standard-observer |archive-date=2017-03-08 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

==== Analytical approximation ====
Table lookup can become impractical for some computational tasks. Instead of referring to the published table, the CIE XYZ color matching functions can be approximated by a sum of [[Gaussian function]]s, as follows:<ref name=approx>{{cite journal |last1=Wyman |first1=Chris |last2=Sloan |first2=Peter-Pike |last3=Shirley |first3=Peter |title=Simple Analytic Approximations to the CIE XYZ Color Matching Functions |journal=Journal of Computer Graphics Techniques |date=July 12, 2013 |volume=2 |issue=2 |page=1-11 |url=http://jcgt.org/published/0002/02/01/ |issn=2331-7418}}</ref>

Let ''g''(''x'') denote a piecewise-Gaussian function, defined by

:<math>
g(x; \mu, \tau_1, \tau_2) = \begin{cases}
\exp \bigl({ -\tau_1^2(x-\mu)^2/2}\bigr), &x < \mu, \\[2mu]
\exp \bigl({ -\tau_2^2(x-\mu)^2/2}\bigr),  &x \geq \mu.
\end{cases}</math>

That is, ''g''(''x'') resembles a bell curve with its peak at  {{math|''x'' {{=}} ''&mu;''}}, a spread/standard deviation of <math>1/\tau_1</math> to the left of the mean, and spread of <math>1/\tau_2</math> to the right of the mean. With the wavelength ''&lambda;'' measured in [[Nanometre|nanometer]]s, we then approximate the 1931 color matching functions:

:<math>
\begin{align}
\overline{x}(\lambda) &= 1.056\,g(\lambda; 599.8, 0.0264, 0.0323) + 0.362\,g(\lambda; 442.0, 0.0624, 0.0374) \\[2mu]
&\quad - 0.065\,g(\lambda; 501.1, 0.0490, 0.0382), \\[5mu]
\overline{y}(\lambda) &= 0.821\,g(\lambda; 568.8, 0.0213, 0.0247) + 0.286\,g(\lambda; 530.9, 0.0613, 0.0322), \\[5mu]
\overline{z}(\lambda) &= 1.217\,g(\lambda; 437.0, 0.0845, 0.0278) + 0.681\,g(\lambda; 459.0, 0.0385, 0.0725).
\end{align}
</math>

The squared differences between the above approximation and the measured CIE ''xyz'' color matching functions is less than the within-observer variance encountered in the experimental measurements used to form the CIE standards. It is also possible to use fewer gaussian functions, with one gaussian for each "lobe". CIE 1964 fits well with a one-lobe function.<ref name=approx/>

The CIE XYZ color matching functions are nonnegative, and lead to nonnegative XYZ coordinates for all real colors (that is, for nonnegative light spectra).  Other observers, such as for the CIE RGB space or other [[RGB color spaces]], are defined by other sets of three color-matching functions, not generally nonnegative, and lead to tristimulus values in those other spaces, which may include negative coordinates for some real colors.

===Computing XYZ from spectral data===

====Emissive case====
The tristimulus values for a color with a [[Physics:Spectral radiance|spectral radiance]] ''L''<sub>e,Ω,λ</sub> are given in terms of the standard observer by:
:<math>\begin{align}
X &= \int_\lambda L_{\mathrm{e},\Omega,\lambda}(\lambda)\,\overline{x}(\lambda)\,d\lambda, \\[6mu]
Y &= \int_\lambda L_{\mathrm{e},\Omega,\lambda}(\lambda)\,\overline{y}(\lambda)\,d\lambda, \\[6mu]
Z &= \int_\lambda L_{\mathrm{e},\Omega,\lambda}(\lambda)\,\overline{z}(\lambda)\,d\lambda.
\end{align}</math>
where <math>\lambda</math> is the wavelength of the equivalent monochromatic light (measured in nanometers), and customary limits of the integral are <math>\lambda\in[380, 780]</math>.

The values of ''X'', ''Y'', and ''Z'' are bounded if the radiance spectrum ''L''<sub>e,Ω,λ</sub> is bounded.

====Reflective and transmissive cases====

The reflective and transmissive cases are very similar to the emissive case, with a few differences. The spectral radiance ''L''<sub>e,Ω,λ</sub> is replaced by the spectral [[Physics:Reflectance|reflectance]] (or [[Physics:Transmittance|transmittance]]) ''S(λ)'' of the object being measured, multiplied by the spectral power distribution of the illuminant ''I(λ)''.

:<math>\begin{align}
X &= \frac{K}{N}\int_\lambda S(\lambda)\,I(\lambda)\,\overline{x}(\lambda)\,d\lambda, \\[8mu]
Y &= \frac{K}{N}\int_\lambda S(\lambda)\,I(\lambda)\,\overline{y}(\lambda)\,d\lambda, \\[8mu]
Z &= \frac{K}{N}\int_\lambda S(\lambda)\,I(\lambda)\,\overline{z}(\lambda)\,d\lambda,
\end{align}</math>
where 
:<math>N = \int_\lambda I(\lambda)\,\overline{y}(\lambda)\,d\lambda,</math>

''K'' is a scaling factor (usually 1 or 100), and <math>\lambda</math> is the wavelength of the equivalent monochromatic light (measured in nanometers), and the standard limits of the integral are <math>\lambda\in[380, 780]</math>.

==CIE xy {{vanchor|chromaticity diagram}} and the CIE xyY color space==
[[File:CIE1931xy blank.svg|right|thumb|300px|The CIE 1931 color space chromaticity diagram. The outer curved boundary is the spectral (or monochromatic) locus, with wavelengths shown in nanometers. The colors your screen displays in this image are specified using [[SRGB|sRGB]], so the colors outside the sRGB [[Gamut|gamut]] are not displayed properly. Depending on the [[Color space|color space]] and calibration of your display device, the sRGB colors may not be displayed properly either. This diagram displays the maximally saturated bright colors that can be produced by a computer monitor or television set.]]
[[File:CIE-1931 diagram in LAB space.svg|right|thumb|300px|The CIE 1931 color space chromaticity diagram rendered in terms of the colors of lower saturation and value than those displayed in the diagram above that can be produced by pigments, such as those used in printing. The color names are from the [[Munsell color system|Munsell color system]]. The solid curve with dots on it, through the middle, is the [[Planckian locus|Planckian locus]], with the dots corresponding to a few select black-body temperatures that are indicated just above the x-axis.]]
Since the [[Biology:Human eye|human eye]] has [[Biology:Cone cell#Types|three types]] of color sensors that respond to different ranges of [[Wavelength|wavelength]]s, a full plot of all visible colors is a three-dimensional figure. However, the concept of color can be divided into two parts: brightness and [[Physics:Chromaticity|chromaticity]]. For example, the color white is a bright color, while the color grey is considered to be a less bright version of that same white. In other words, the chromaticity of white and grey are the same while their brightness differs.

The CIE XYZ color space was deliberately designed so that the ''Y'' parameter is also a measure of the [[Physics:Luminance|luminance]] of a color. The chromaticity  is then specified by the two derived parameters ''x'' and ''y'', two of the three normalized values being functions of all three tristimulus values ''X'', ''Y'', and ''Z'': <ref>{{cite book |last1=Poynton |first1=Charles |title=Digital Video and HD - Algorithms and Interfaces |edition=2 |year=2012 |page=275 |quote=Eq 25.1 }}</ref>{{explain|date=September 2021}}
:<math>\begin{align}
x &= \frac{X}{X+Y+Z} \\[5mu]
y &= \frac{Y}{X+Y+Z} \\[5mu]
z &= \frac{Z}{X+Y+Z} = 1 - x - y
\end{align}</math>

That is, because each tristimulus parameter, ''X'', ''Y'', ''Z'', is divided by the sum of all three, the resulting values, ''x'', ''y'', ''z'', each represent a proportion of the whole and so their sum must be equal to one. Therefore, the value ''z'' can be deduced by knowing ''x'' and ''y'', and consequently the latter two values are sufficient for describing the chromaticity of any color.

The derived color space specified by ''x'', ''y'', and ''Y'' is known as the CIE xyY color space and is widely used to specify colors in practice.

The ''X'' and ''Z'' tristimulus values can be calculated back from the chromaticity values ''x'' and ''y'' and the ''Y'' tristimulus value: <ref>{{cite book |last1=Poynton |first1=Charles |title=Digital Video and HD - Algorithms and Interfaces |edition=2 |year=2012 |page=275 |quote=Eq 25.2 }}</ref>

:<math>\begin{align}
X &= \frac{Y}{y}x, \\[5mu]
Z &= \frac{Y}{y}(1 - x - y).
\end{align}</math>

The figure on the right shows the related chromaticity diagram. The outer curved boundary is the ''spectral locus'', with wavelengths shown in nanometers. The chromaticity diagram is a tool to specify how the human eye will experience light with a given spectrum. It cannot specify colors of objects (or printing inks), since the chromaticity observed while looking at an object depends on the light source as well.

Mathematically the colors of the chromaticity diagram occupy a region of the [[Projective plane|real projective plane]].

The chromaticity diagram illustrates a number of interesting properties of the CIE XYZ color space:
* The diagram represents all of the chromaticities visible to the average person. These are shown in color and this region is called the [[Gamut|gamut]] of human vision. The gamut of all visible chromaticities on the CIE plot is the tongue-shaped or horseshoe-shaped figure shown in color. The curved edge of the gamut is called the ''spectral locus'' and corresponds to monochromatic light (each point representing a pure hue of a single wavelength), with wavelengths listed in nanometers. The straight edge on the lower part of the gamut is called the line of purples. These colors, although they are on the border of the gamut, have no counterpart in monochromatic light. Less saturated colors appear in the interior of the figure with white at the center.
* It is seen that all visible chromaticities correspond to non-negative values of ''x'', ''y'', and ''z'' (and therefore to non-negative values of ''X'', ''Y'', and ''Z'').
* If one chooses any two points of color on the chromaticity diagram, then all the colors that lie in a straight line between the two points can be formed by mixing these two colors. It follows that the gamut of colors must be [[Convex set|convex]] in shape. All colors that can be formed by mixing three sources are found inside the triangle formed by the source points on the chromaticity diagram (and so on for multiple sources).
* An equal mixture of two equally bright colors will not generally lie on the midpoint of that [[Line segment|line segment]]. In more general terms, a distance on the CIE xy chromaticity diagram does not correspond to the degree of difference between two colors. In the early 1940s, [[Biography:David MacAdam|David MacAdam]] studied the nature of visual sensitivity to [[Color difference|color difference]]s, and summarized his results in the concept of a [[MacAdam ellipse]]. Based on the work of MacAdam, the [[CIE 1960 color space|CIE 1960]], [[CIE 1964 color space|CIE 1964]], and [[CIELUV|CIE 1976]] color spaces were developed, with the goal of achieving perceptual uniformity (have an equal distance in the color space correspond to equal differences in color). Although they were a distinct improvement over the CIE 1931 system, they were not completely free of distortion.
* It can be seen that, given three real sources, these sources cannot cover the gamut of human vision. Geometrically stated, there are no three points within the gamut that form a triangle that includes the entire gamut; or more simply, the gamut of human vision is not a triangle.
* Light with a [[Physics:Standard illuminant#Illuminant E|flat power spectrum]] in terms of wavelength (equal power in every {{nowrap|1 nm}} interval) corresponds to the point {{nowrap|1=(''x'', ''y'') = (1/3, 1/3)}}.

=== Mixing colors specified with the CIE xy chromaticity diagram ===

When two or more colors are additively mixed, the x and y chromaticity coordinates of the resulting color (x<sub>mix</sub>,y<sub>mix</sub>) may be calculated from the chromaticities of the mixture components (x<sub>1</sub>,y<sub>1</sub>; x<sub>2</sub>,y<sub>2</sub>; …; x<sub>n</sub>,y<sub>n</sub>) and their corresponding luminances (L<sub>1</sub>, L<sub>2</sub>, …, L<sub>n</sub>) with the following formulas:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ledsmagazine.com/articles/print/volume-9/issue-7/features/understand-color-science-to-maximize-success-with-leds-part-2-magazine.html |title=Understand color science to maximize success with LEDs – part 2 – LEDs Magazine, Issue 7/2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171111095236/http://www.ledsmagazine.com/articles/print/volume-9/issue-7/features/understand-color-science-to-maximize-success-with-leds-part-2-magazine.html |archive-date=2017-11-11 }}</ref>

:<math>
x_{\mathrm{mix}} = \frac{ \dfrac{x_1}{y_1}L_1 + \dfrac{x_2}{y_2}L_2 + \dots + \dfrac{x_n}{y_n}L_n }
{ \dfrac{L_1}{y_1} + \dfrac{L_2}{y_2} + \dots + \dfrac{L_n}{y_n} }
\quad,\quad
y_{\mathrm{mix}} = \frac{ L_1 + L_2 + \dots + L_n }
{ \dfrac{L_1}{y_1} + \dfrac{L_2}{y_2} + \dots + \dfrac{L_n}{y_n} }
</math>

These formulas can be derived from the previously presented definitions of x and y chromaticity coordinates by taking advantage of the fact that the tristimulus values X, Y, and Z of the individual mixture components are directly additive. In place of the luminance values (L<sub>1</sub>, L<sub>2</sub>, etc.) one can alternatively use any other photometric quantity that is directly proportional to the tristimulus value Y (naturally meaning that Y itself can also be used as well).

As already mentioned, when two colors are mixed, the resulting color x<sub>mix</sub>, y<sub>mix</sub> will lie on the straight line segment that connects these colors on the CIE xy chromaticity diagram. To calculate the mixing ratio of the component colors x<sub>1</sub>,y<sub>1</sub> and x<sub>2</sub>,y<sub>2</sub> that results in a certain x<sub>mix</sub>,y<sub>mix</sub> on this line segment, one can use the formula

:<math>
\frac{L_1}{L_2} = \frac{ y_1 \left ( x_2 - x_{\mathrm{mix}} \right ) }{ y_2 \left ( x_{\mathrm{mix}} - x_1 \right ) }
                = \frac{ y_1 \left ( y_2 - y_{\mathrm{mix}} \right ) }{ y_2 \left ( y_{\mathrm{mix}} - y_1 \right ) }
</math>

where L<sub>1</sub> is the luminance of color x<sub>1</sub>,y<sub>1</sub> and L<sub>2</sub> the luminance of color x<sub>2</sub>,y<sub>2</sub>. Because y<sub>mix</sub> is unambiguously determined by x<sub>mix</sub> and vice versa, knowing just one or the other of them is enough for calculating the mixing ratio. In accordance with the remarks concerning the formulas for x<sub>mix</sub> and y<sub>mix</sub>, the mixing ratio L<sub>1</sub>/L<sub>2</sub> may well be expressed in terms of other photometric quantities than luminance.

==Definition of the CIE XYZ color space==

===CIE RGB color space===
The first step in developing the CIE XYZ color space is the measurement of the CIE RGB color space. The CIE RGB color space is one of many [[RGB color spaces]], distinguished by a particular set of monochromatic (single-wavelength) [[Primary color|primary color]]s.

In the 1920s, two independent experiments on human color perception were conducted by W. David Wright<ref name=wright/> with ten  observers, and John Guild<ref name=guild/> with seven observers. Their results laid the foundation for the trichromatic CIE XYZ color space specification.

The experiments were conducted by using a circular split screen (a bipartite field) 2 degrees in diameter, which is the angular size of the human fovea. On one side a test color was projected while on the other an observer-adjustable color was projected. The adjustable color was a mixture of the three monochromatic primary colors, each with adjustable brightness. The observer would alter the brightness of each of the three primary beams until a match to the test color was observed.

[[File:CIE1931xy CIERGB.svg|325px|right|thumb|Gamut of the CIE RGB primaries and location of primaries on the CIE 1931 ''xy'' chromaticity diagram.]]
[[File:CIE1931 RGBCMF2.png|thumb|325px|The normalized CIE RGB color matching functions, with primary wavelengths indicated]]

If the test color were simply a monochromatic color at wavelength &lambda;, and if it could be matched by a combination of the three primaries at relative intensities <math>\bar{r}(\lambda)</math>, <math>\bar{g}(\lambda)</math>, and <math>\bar{b}(\lambda)</math> respectively, then a tabulation of these values at various &lambda; will estimate three functions of wavelength. These are the RGB color-matching functions. Any spectral distribution can be thought of as a combination of a number of monochromatic sources at varying intensities, so that (by [[Biology:Grassmann's laws (color science)|Grassmann's laws]]) integrating the color matching functions with that spectral distribution will yield the intensities of the three primaries necessary to match it. The problem is that the three primaries can only produce colors which lie withinin their gamut - the triangle in color space formed by the primaries, which never touches the monochromatic locus nor the purple line except at the three primaries. In other words, there is no monochromatic source that can be matched by a combination of the three primaries, except at the wavelengths of the three primaries themselves. However, by adding one of the primaries to the monochromatic test color, the test color can be brought into the RGB gamut, allowing a match to be made. Adding a primary to the monochromatic test color is effectively the same as subtracting it from the adjustable color, which of course cannot be done since it is impossible to have a negative intensity for any of the primaries.  

For wavelengths between the blue and green primaries, some red primary must be added to allow matching, resulting in negative values of <math>\bar{r}(\lambda)</math>. Likewise, between the green and red primaries, some blue must be added and <math>\bar{b}(\lambda)</math> will be negative. For wavelengths below the wavelength of the blue primary, or above the wavelength of the red primary, some green must be added and <math>\bar{g}(\lambda)</math> will be negative. In each case, the remaining two color matching functions will be positive. It can be seen that the deviation of the RGB gamut from the complete gamut is rather small except between the blue and green primaries at 435.8 and 546.1 nm. In this wavelength band, rather large amounts of the red primary needed to be added to the test color, and it is in this band that the red color matching function has rather large negative values. In their regions of negative values, the green and blue matching functions have rather small negative values.

Although Wright and Guild's experiments were carried out using various primaries at various intensities, and although they used a number of different observers, all of their results were summarized by the standardized CIE RGB color matching functions <math>\overline{r}(\lambda)</math>, <math>\overline{g}(\lambda)</math>, and <math>\overline{b}(\lambda)</math>, obtained using three monochromatic primaries at standardized wavelengths of {{nowrap|700 nm}} (red), {{nowrap|546.1 nm}} (green) and {{nowrap|435.8 nm}} (blue). The (un-normalized) color matching functions are the amounts of primaries needed to match the monochromatic test primary. These functions are shown in the plot on the right (CIE 1931). <math>\overline{r}(\lambda)</math> and <math>\overline{g}(\lambda)</math> are zero at {{nowrap|435.8 nm}}, <math>\overline{r}(\lambda)</math> and <math>\overline{b}(\lambda)</math> are zero at {{nowrap|546.1 nm}} and <math>\overline{g}(\lambda)</math> and <math>\overline{b}(\lambda)</math> are zero at {{nowrap|700 nm}}, since in these cases the test color is one of the primaries. The primaries with wavelengths {{nowrap|546.1 nm}} and {{nowrap|435.8 nm}} were chosen because they are easily reproducible monochromatic lines of a mercury vapor discharge. The {{nowrap|700 nm}} wavelength, which in 1931 was difficult to reproduce as a monochromatic beam, was chosen because the eye's perception of color is rather unchanging at this wavelength, and therefore small errors in wavelength of this primary would have little effect on the results.

The color matching functions and primaries were settled upon by a CIE special commission after considerable deliberation.<ref name=fairman>{{cite journal |last1=Fairman |first1=H. S. |last2=Brill |first2=M. H. |last3=Hemmendinger |first3=H. |title=How the CIE 1931 Color-Matching Functions Were Derived from the Wright–Guild Data |journal=Color Research and Application |date=February 1997 |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=11–23 |doi=10.1002/(SICI)1520-6378(199702)22:1<11::AID-COL4>3.0.CO;2-7}} '''and''' {{cite journal |last1=Fairman |first1=H. S. |last2=Brill |first2=M. H. |last3=Hemmendinger |first3=H. |author-link3=Henry Hemmendinger |title=Erratum: How the CIE 1931 Color-Matching Functions Were Derived from the Wright–Guild Data |journal=Color Research and Application |date=August 1998 |volume=23 |issue=4 |pages=259 |doi=10.1002/(SICI)1520-6378(199808)23:4<259::AID-COL18>3.0.CO;2-7|doi-access=free }}</ref> The cut-offs at the short- and long-wavelength side of the diagram are chosen somewhat arbitrarily; the human eye can actually see light with wavelengths up to about {{nowrap|810 nm}}, but with a sensitivity that is many thousand times lower than for green light. These color matching functions define what is known as the "1931 CIE standard observer". Rather than specify the brightness of each primary, the curves are normalized to have constant area beneath them. This area is fixed to a particular value by specifying that
:<math>
\int_0^\infty \overline{r}(\lambda)\,d\lambda = \int_0^\infty \overline{g}(\lambda)\,d\lambda = \int_0^\infty \overline{b}(\lambda)\,d\lambda.
</math>

The resulting normalized color matching functions are then scaled in the r:g:b ratio of 1:4.5907:0.0601 for source [[Physics:Luminance|luminance]] and 72.0962:1.3791:1 for source [[Physics:Radiance|radiance]] to reproduce the true color matching functions. By proposing that the primaries be standardized, the CIE established an international system of objective color notation.

Given these scaled color matching functions, the RGB tristimulus values for
a color with a [[Physics:Spectral power distribution|spectral power distribution]] <math>S(\lambda)</math> would then be given by:
:<math>\begin{align}
R &= \int_0^\infty S(\lambda)\,\overline{r}(\lambda)\,d\lambda, \\[6mu]
G &= \int_0^\infty S(\lambda)\,\overline{g}(\lambda)\,d\lambda, \\[6mu]
B &= \int_0^\infty S(\lambda)\,\overline{b}(\lambda)\,d\lambda.
\end{align}</math>

These are all inner products and can be thought of as a projection of an infinite-dimensional spectrum to a [[Hilbert space|three-dimensional color]].

===<!--- Two N's is correct spelling, do not change --->Grassmann's laws===
{{main|Biology:Grassmann's laws (color science)}}
One might ask: "Why is it possible that Wright and Guild's results can be summarized using different primaries and different intensities from those actually used?" One might also ask: "What about the case when the test colors being matched are not monochromatic?" The answer to both of these questions lies in the (near) linearity of human color perception. This linearity is expressed in Grassmann's laws of color.

The CIE RGB space can be used to define chromaticity in the usual way: The chromaticity coordinates are ''r'', ''g'' and ''b'' where:
:<math>\begin{align}
r &= \frac{R}{R + G + B}, \\[5mu]
g &= \frac{G}{R + G + B}, \\[5mu]
b &= \frac{B}{R + G + B}.
\end{align}</math>

=== Construction of the CIE XYZ color space from the Wright–Guild data ===
{{multiple image
 | width = 150
 | image1 = SRGB gamut within CIEXYZ color space mesh.webm
 | alt1 = SRGB gamut in CIEXYZ space
 | thumbtime1 = 0
 | image2 = Visible gamut within CIEXYZ color space D65 whitepoint mesh.webm
 | alt2 = Visible gamut in CIEXYZ space
 | thumbtime2 = 0
 | footer = The [[SRGB|sRGB]] gamut (''left'') and visible gamut under D65 illumination (''right'') projected within the CIEXYZ color space. ''X'' and ''Z'' are the horizontal axes; ''Y'' is the vertical axis.
}}
{{multiple image
 | width = 150
 | image1 = SRGB gamut within CIExyY color space mesh.webm
 | alt1 = SRGB gamut
 | thumbtime1 = 0
 | image2 = Visible gamut within CIExyY color space D65 whitepoint mesh.webm
 | alt2 = Visible gamut
 | thumbtime2 = 0
 | footer = The [[SRGB|sRGB]] gamut (''left'') and visible gamut under D65 illumination (''right'') projected within the CIExyY color space. ''x'' and ''y'' are the horizontal axes; ''Y'' is the vertical axis.
}}

Having developed an RGB model of human vision using the CIE RGB matching functions, the members of the special commission wished to develop another color space that would relate to the CIE RGB color space. It was assumed that Grassmann's law held, and the new space would be related to the CIE RGB space by a linear transformation. The new space would be defined in terms of three new color matching functions
<math>\overline{x}(\lambda)</math>, <math>\overline{y}(\lambda)</math>, and <math>\overline{z}(\lambda)</math> as described above. The new color space would be chosen to have the following desirable properties:

[[File:CIE1931 rgxy.png|thumb|right|325px|Diagram in CIE ''rg'' chromaticity space showing the construction of the triangle specifying the CIE XYZ color space. The triangle C<sub>b</sub>-C<sub>g</sub>-C<sub>r</sub> is just the {{nowrap|1=''xy'' = (0, 0), (0, 1), (1, 0)}} triangle in CIE ''xy'' chromaticity space. The line connecting C<sub>b</sub> and C<sub>r</sub> is the alychne. The spectral locus passes through {{nowrap|1=''rg'' = (0, 0)}} at {{nowrap|435.8 nm}}, through {{nowrap|1=''rg'' = (0, 1)}} at {{nowrap|546.1 nm}} and through {{nowrap|1=''rg'' = (1, 0)}} at {{nowrap|700 nm}}. Also, the equal energy point (E) is at {{nowrap|1=''rg'' = ''xy'' = (1/3, 1/3)}}.]]

# The new color matching functions were to be everywhere greater than or equal to zero. In 1931, computations were done by hand or slide rule, and the specification of positive values was a useful computational simplification.
# The <math>\overline{y}(\lambda)</math> color matching function would be exactly equal to the [[Physics:Luminosity function|photopic luminous efficiency function]] ''V''(''λ'') for the "CIE standard photopic observer".<ref>{{cite book |author1=CIE |title=Commission internationale de l'éclairage proceedings, 1924 |publisher={{wipe|Cambridge University Press}} |location=Cambridge |year=1926}} The 1924 luminous efficiency function seriously underestimates sensitivity at wavelengths below {{nowrap|460 nm}}, and has been supplemented with newer and more accurate luminosity curves; see [[Physics:Luminosity function#Improvements to the standard|Luminosity function]].</ref> The luminance function describes the variation of perceived brightness with wavelength. The fact that the luminance function could be constructed by a linear combination of the RGB color matching functions was not guaranteed by any means but might be expected to be nearly true due to the near-linear nature of human sight. Again, the main reason for this requirement was computational simplification.
# For the constant energy white point, it was required that {{nowrap|1=''x'' = ''y'' = ''z'' = 1/3}}.
# By virtue of the definition of [[Physics:Chromaticity|chromaticity]] and the requirement of positive values of ''x'' and ''y'', it can be seen that the gamut of all colors will lie inside the triangle [1, 0], [0, 0], [0, 1]. It was required that the gamut fill this space practically completely.
# It was found that the <math>\overline{z}(\lambda)</math> color matching function could be set to zero above {{nowrap|650 nm}} while remaining within the bounds of experimental error. For computational simplicity, it was specified that this would be so.

In geometrical terms, choosing the new color space amounts to choosing a new triangle in ''rg'' chromaticity space. In the figure above-right, the ''rg'' chromaticity coordinates are shown on the two axes in black, along with the gamut of the 1931 standard observer. Shown in red are the CIE ''xy'' chromaticity axes which were determined by the above requirements. The requirement that the XYZ coordinates be non-negative means that the triangle formed by C<sub>r</sub>, C<sub>g</sub>, C<sub>b</sub> must encompass the entire gamut of the standard observer. The line connecting C<sub>r</sub> and C<sub>b</sub> is fixed by the requirement that the <math>\overline{y}(\lambda)</math> function be equal to the luminance function. This line is the line of zero luminance, and is called the alychne. The requirement that the <math>\overline{z}(\lambda)</math> function be zero above {{nowrap|650 nm}} means that the line connecting C<sub>g</sub> and C<sub>r</sub> must be tangent to the gamut in the region of K<sub>r</sub>. This defines the location of point C<sub>r</sub>. The requirement that the equal energy point be defined by {{nowrap|1=''x'' = ''y'' = 1/3}} puts a restriction on the line joining C<sub>b</sub> and C<sub>g</sub>, and finally, the requirement that the gamut fill the space puts a second restriction on this line to be very close to the gamut in the green region, which specifies the location of C<sub>g</sub> and C<sub>b</sub>. The above described transformation is a linear transformation from the CIE RGB space to XYZ space. The standardized transformation settled upon by the CIE special commission was as follows:

The numbers in the conversion matrix below are exact, with the number of digits specified in CIE standards.<ref name=fairman/>
:<math>\begin{align}
\begin{bmatrix} X \\ Y \\ Z \end{bmatrix}
&= 
\begin{bmatrix}
 b_{11} & b_{12} & b_{13} \\
 b_{21} & b_{22} & b_{23} \\
 b_{31} & b_{32} & b_{33}
\end{bmatrix}
\begin{bmatrix} R \\ G \\ B \end{bmatrix}
\\[10mu]
&= 
\begin{bmatrix}
 0.490\,00 & 0.310\,00 & 0.200\,00 \\
 0.176\,97 & 0.812\,40 & 0.010\,63 \\
 0.000\,00 & 0.010\,00 & 0.990\,00
\end{bmatrix}
\begin{bmatrix} R \\ G \\ B \end{bmatrix}
\end{align}</math>

The above matrix is balanced for the equi-energy stimulus: it has coordinates (1,1,1) in both RGB and XYZ coordinates.

While the above matrix is exactly specified in standards, the inverse is left unspecified so that it can be approximated to machine precision to reduce round-trip rounding errors. Its values can be computed precisely using rational numbers:

:<math>
\begin{bmatrix} R \\ G \\ B \end{bmatrix}
= \frac{1}{3400850} \begin{bmatrix}
 8041697 & -3049000 & -1591847 \\
-1752003 &  4851000  &  301853  \\
 17697  & -49000 &  3432153
\end{bmatrix}
\begin{bmatrix} X \\ Y \\ Z \end{bmatrix}
</math>

Which has these approximate values:
:<math>
\begin{bmatrix} R \\ G \\ B \end{bmatrix}
\approx \begin{bmatrix}
 2.364\,61385 & -0.896\,54057 & -0.468\,07328 \\
-0.515\,16621 &  1.426\,4081  &  0.088\,7581  \\
 0.005\,2037  & -0.014\,40816 &  1.009\,20446
\end{bmatrix}
\begin{bmatrix} X \\ Y \\ Z \end{bmatrix}
</math>

The XYZ primaries will have XYZ coordinates [1,0,0], [0,1,0], and [0,0,1] in XYZ space, so the columns of the inverse matrix above specify the XYZ primaries ( Cr, Cg and Cb) in RGB space. Dividing each column by its sum will give the coordinates of the XYZ primaries in rgb space which yields:

:Cr = {1.27496, -0.27777, 0.00280576}
:Cg = {-1.7393, 2.76726, -0.0279521}
:Cb = {-0.743104, 0.140911, 1.60219}

The r and g coordinates of the XYZ primaries are indicated in the rg chromaticity space diagram above.

The integrals of the XYZ color matching functions must all be equal by requirement 3 above, and this is set by the integral of the photopic luminous efficiency function by requirement 2 above. The tabulated sensitivity curves have a certain amount of arbitrariness in them. The shapes of the individual ''X'', ''Y'' and ''Z'' sensitivity curves can be measured with a reasonable accuracy. However, the overall luminosity curve (which in fact is a weighted sum of these three curves) is subjective, since it involves asking a test person whether two light sources have the same brightness, even if they are in completely different colors. Along the same lines, the relative magnitudes of the ''X'', ''Y'', and ''Z'' curves are arbitrary. Furthermore, one could define a valid color space with an ''X'' sensitivity curve that has twice the amplitude. This new color space would have a different shape. The sensitivity curves in the CIE 1931 and 1964 XYZ color spaces are scaled to have equal areas under the curves.

== Subsequent refinements{{anchor|Similar color spaces}}{{anchor|Other observers}} ==
[[File:XYZ color matching functions, CIE 1931 and Stockman & Sharpe 2006.jpg|right|thumb|XYZ color matching functions, CIE 1931 and Stockman & Sharpe 2006 (CIE 170-2).]]
A few other XYZ-style color-matching functions have been available, correcting for known issues in the original 1931 color space. These functions imply their own XYZ-like and xyY-like color spaces.<ref name=Intro/>

; Judd and Vos corrections for the 2° CMF
: The most serious problem with the 1931 CIE XYZ color matching functions is the error in the photopic Y (or <math>V(\lambda)</math> function on the blue end of the spectrum.<ref name="Stockman2019">{{cite journal |last1=Stockman |first1=Andrew|date=December 2019 |title=Cone fundamentals and CIE standards |url=http://www.cvrl.org/people/Stockman/pubs/2019%20Cone%20fundamentals%20CIE%20S.pdf |journal=Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences |volume=30 |issue= |pages=87-93 |doi= |access-date=27 October 2023}}</ref> The Judd (1951) and its following Vos (1978) corrections sought to correct for the issue without deviating from the original methodology.<ref name=Intro>{{cite web |title=CMF introduction |url=http://cvrl.ioo.ucl.ac.uk/database/text/intros/introcmfs.htm |website=Colour & Vision Research Laboratory |publisher=Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119023223/http://cvrl.ioo.ucl.ac.uk/database/text/intros/introcmfs.htm |archive-date= Nov 19, 2023 }}</ref>
; CIE 1964 X<sub>10</sub>Y<sub>10</sub>Z<sub>10</sub>
: X<sub>10</sub>Y<sub>10</sub>Z<sub>10</sub> (also written XYZ<sub>10</sub> and analogously for the following) is the XYZ-style color space defined using the CIE 1964 10° observer CMFs.<ref>{{cite web |title=XYZ Tristimulus Value (CIE 1931) / Tristimulus Value (CIE 1964) - Part IV - Precise Color Communication |url=https://www.konicaminolta.com/instruments/knowledge/color/part4/02.html |website=KONICA MINOLTA |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119023228/https://www.konicaminolta.com/instruments/knowledge/color/part4/02.html |archive-date= Nov 19, 2023 }}</ref> The 3 CMFs are mainly derived from Stiles and Burch's RGB color-matching functions,<ref name="Stiles&Burch1959">{{cite journal |last1=Stiles |first1=WS |last2=Burch |first2=JM |date=1959 |title=NPL colour-matching investigation: final report |url= |journal=Optica Acta |volume=6 |issue= |pages= |doi= |access-date=}}</ref> which unlike the Wright&ndash;Guild functions (and the subsequent Judd&ndash;Voss corrections) are "directly measured", freeing them from the reconstruction errors of the 1931 functions.<ref name=Intro/>
: Stiles and Burch had also published a set of 2° RGB color-matching functions, though no XYZ space has been constructed from them.<ref name=Intro/>
; CIE 170-2 X<sub>F</sub>Y<sub>F</sub>Z<sub>F</sub>
: X<sub>F</sub>Y<sub>F</sub>Z<sub>F</sub> is the XYZ-style color space defined using the Stockman & Sharpe (2000) physiological 2° observer, which is in turn a linear combination of the [[LMS color space|LMS cone response functions]].<ref name=cie170.2>{{cite book |title=CIE 170-2:2015: Fundamental Chromaticity Diagram with Physiological Axes – Part 2: Spectral Luminous Efficiency Functions and Chromaticity Diagrams |url=https://cie.co.at/publications/fundamental-chromaticity-diagram-physiological-axes-part-2-spectral-luminous-efficiency |publisher=CIE |isbn=978-3-902842-05-3 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119023239/https://cie.co.at/publications/fundamental-chromaticity-diagram-physiological-axes-part-2-spectral-luminous-efficiency |archive-date= Nov 19, 2023 }}</ref> The CMF data, along with the physiological 10° dataset, is available from the Colour & Vision Research laboratory of [[Organization:University College London|University College London]] down to 0.1&nbsp;nm resolution.<ref>{{cite web |title=CIE functions |url=http://cvrl.ucl.ac.uk/ciexyzpr.htm |website=Colour & Vision Research Laboratory |publisher=Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119023223/http://cvrl.ucl.ac.uk/ciexyzpr.htm |archive-date= Nov 19, 2023 }}</ref>
; CIE 170-2 X<sub>F,10</sub>Y<sub>F,10</sub>Z<sub>F,10</sub>
: This space is based on the Stockman & Sharpe (2000) physiological 10° observer.<ref name=cie170.2/>

According to [[Company:Konica Minolta|Konica Minolta]], the older CIE 1931 CMF exhibits metamerism failure (failure to predict when colors appear the same) for wide color gamut displays containing narrowband emitters like [[Chemistry:OLED|OLED]], whereas the 2015 XYZ<sub>F</sub> CMF is not affected.<ref>{{cite web |title=Resolving Display Color Matching Issue |url=https://sensing.konicaminolta.asia/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Resolving_Display_Color_Matching_Issue.pdf |website=KONICA MINOLTA}}</ref> Older [[Company:Sony|Sony]] manuals recommend using the Judd-Vos correction by applying an offset to the white point depending on the display technology used.

==See also==
* [[Biology:Trichromacy|Trichromacy]]
* [[Philosophy:Impossible color|Impossible color]]
* [[CIELAB color space]]
* [[Physics:Standard illuminant|Standard illuminant]], the definition of white point used by CIE and commonly shown in color space diagrams as E, D50 or [[Physics:Illuminant D65|D65]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
<!-- alphabetical order, by last name -->
* {{cite journal |last1=Broadbent |first1=Arthur D. |title=A critical review of the development of the CIE1931 RGB color-matching functions |journal=Color Research & Application |volume=29 |issue=4 |date=August 2004 |pages=267–272 |doi=10.1002/col.20020 |quote=This article describes the development of the CIE1931 chromaticity coordinates and color-matching functions starting from the initial experimental data of W. D. Wright and J. Guild. Sufficient information is given to allow the reader to reproduce and verify the results obtained at each stage of the calculations and to analyze critically the procedures used. Unfortunately, some of the information required for the coordinate transformations was never published and the appended tables provide likely versions of that missing data.}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Trezona |first1=Pat W. |title=Derivation of the 1964 CIE 10° XYZ Colour-Matching Functions and Their Applicability in Photometry |journal=Color Research and Application |year=2001 |volume=26 |issue=1 |pages=67–75 |doi=10.1002/1520-6378(200102)26:1<67::AID-COL7>3.0.CO;2-4}}
* {{cite book |last1=Wright |first1=William David |chapter=Golden Jubilee of Colour in the CIE—The Historical and Experimental Background to the 1931 CIE System of Colorimetry |publisher=Wiley Interscience |title=Colorimetry |editor1-last=Schanda |editor1-first=János |pages=9–24 |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-470-04904-4 |doi=10.1002/9780470175637.ch2}} (originally published by the Society of Dyers and Colourists, Bradford, 1981.)

==External links==
* [http://www.techmind.org/colour/ Introduction to Colour Science], William Andrew Steer.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080416044228/http://www.efg2.com/Lab/Graphics/Colors/Chromaticity.htm efg's Color Chromaticity Diagrams Lab Report] and [https://web.archive.org/web/20061031155046/http://www.efg2.com/Lab/Graphics/Colors/Chromaticity.ZIP Delphi source]
* [http://docs-hoffmann.de/ciexyz29082000.pdf CIE Color Space], Gernot Hoffmann
* [http://cvrl.ioo.ucl.ac.uk/index.htm Annotated downloadable data tables], Andrew Stockman and Lindsay T. Sharpe.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080708200746/http://www.cis.rit.edu/mcsl/research/1931.php Calculation from the original experimental data of the CIE 1931 RGB standard observer spectral chromaticity co-ordinates and color matching functions]
* [http://isp.uv.es/code/visioncolor/colorlab.html Colorlab] MATLAB toolbox for color science computation and accurate color reproduction (by Jesus Malo and Maria Jose Luque, Universitat de Valencia). It includes CIE standard tristimulus colorimetry and transformations to a number of non-linear color appearance models (CIE Lab, CIE CAM, etc.).
*[http://www2.konicaminolta.eu/eu/Measuring/pcc/en/index.html Precise color communication] A Look at the Past and Future of LED Binning
*[https://www.lumenpulse.com/knowledge/led-binning?unit=metric] Measuring Color in a world of light

{{Color space}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cie 1931 Color Space}}
[[Category:Color space]]

{{Sourceattribution|CIE 1931 color space}}