Effect of Some Appearance Factors on Blackness Perception of Automotive Finishes from the Customer Viewpoint

In this research the effect of appearance factors of automotive finishes on their blackness perception is investigated under various types of illumination. In order to decrease the effect of colorimetric attributes on perceived blackness of panels, samples with nearly identical colorimetric properties, i.e., lightness, chroma and hue, are selected. Regarding the industrial and commercial approach of the subject, the selected panels benefit from the optimum geometric appearance factors (higher values of distinctness of image and gloss as well as lower orange peel values) which are preferred by the majority of luxury vehicles customers. The pair comparison method was used to visually rank the blackness perception of metallic black panels. Results showed that there is not any significant relationship between the geometric appearance factors of automotive finishes and their blackness perception under different types of illumination, i.e., light booth, diffuse illumination and the unidirectional illumination.