The Future of the D75 Light Source

Every light source changes how we perceive colors except for one: natural daylight. However, using natural daylight as a light source for color measurement is practically impossible. Depending on the time of day, the time of year, weather and a number of other factors, the sun’s light can vary by incredible amounts. It also makes measuring at night impossible. For these reasons, measurements that require daylight as a light source utilize simulated natural daylight as a solution.

There are a handful of standard illuminants to achieve this, but D65 (6500K color temperature) has become the color measurement industry standard. As a result, some producers of D75 (7500K color temperature) illuminants have ended their production and support for the illuminants. This poses a problem for those who still use D75 as their primary light source.

For example, most color assessment and matching done in the U.S. military has relied on D75. Now, the aforementioned producers offer no new units with this light source. In addition, no service, support or certifications are available for existing products. One possibility for the military is to switch over to D65, but obtaining the necessary specifications without halting the current workflow could prove to be as difficult as measuring color with natural daylight.

We at Konica Minolta Sensing have the perfect solution. Our GLE-M Luminaires Controlled Lighting and CMB Controlled Lighting equipment can be configured with D75. Plus, these products can be offered with D65 as well, so researchers using D75 to complete work to specification can verify measurements with a D65 light source. For scientists looking to maintain their old light sources, switch over to D65 or something in between, Konica Minolta Sensing can provide the necessary help. Contact us today.