An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for selecting a finish for applying to an item. The apparatus includes a flexible translucent sheet, and at least one semi-translucent color applied to the translucent sheet such that a surface to which the translucent sheet is attached is visible through the translucent sheet and the semi-translucent color. The system includes the apparatus and a protective laminate surface covering the at least one semi-translucent color. The method includes providing a plurality of translucent sheets each having at least one semi-translucent color, examining an item to determine the type of finish of the item, selecting a flexible translucent sheet according to the finish of the item, conforming and affixing the selected translucent sheet to the surface of the item, and viewing the surface of the item through the selected translucent sheet.

The described herein is a method for identifying a best match to a metal deco target color and distributing the best match to interested parties for ongoing validation. The method creates a digital proofing database that matches, for example, PantoneLIVE? target colors and sets a defined digital inkjet standard to within desired tolerances. Also described is a system that implements the method.

A method and system for creating exemplary end-use paint color includes a network module providing a first user input including paint color characteristics from a user device of a user to a paint analysis module. At least one colorant identifier associated with the first user input is generated by the paint analysis module via a color formula database. Colorants associated with the colorant identifiers are supplied to a kit, which is provided to the user. A second user input including a paint quantity is provided to the conversion module from the user device. A conversion module generates a quantity of each of the colorants based on the second user input; the quantities are sent to the user device. User-preferred paint colors are formed via a mixing means and applied to a display means. One or more user-preferred paint colors are confirmed as exemplary end-use paint colors by the user.

Color display systems are disclosed, wherein the color display system includes a main display unit and a secondary display unit. The main display unit can include a plurality of rotatable color selection pods where one side of the color selection pod displays a color(s) and the other side of the color selection pod includes receptacles that can hold color chips. The color selection pods are arranged in columns, and each column can represent a particular color family or color category. The secondary display unit can include a first sub-display and a second sub-display, with each sub-display displaying colors of particular categories or themes. The color display system can also include a central work center which can include a work table and rotating color display.

Described in detail herein is an automated paint mixing system. The paint mixing system includes a mobile device which can receive an input associated with a color of a paint. The mobile device can transmit the input associated with a color to a first computing system. The first computing system can receive the input associated with a color. The first computing system retrieve an identifier associated with the color based on the input. The first computing system can transmit the identifier associated with the color to a second computing system. The second computing system can instruct a paint dispenser to mix and generate a specified amount of paint of the requested color based on the received identifier. The second computing system can instruct a 3-D printer to fabricate a three-dimensional container configured to store the generated paint. The paint dispenser can deposit the generated paint in the three-dimensional container.

A color selection kiosk can comprise a kiosk body having a substantially wedge-shaped structure, where the web-shaped structure comprises a front surface and aback surface that form an acute angle at a bottom of the kiosk body. A holder in the form of an extension arm extends from the front surface of the kiosk body, and provides a physical attachment for both a digital display device and for a color reader. In one example, the extension arm can provide a conduit for electrical power to both the color reader and the digital display device. The kiosk body may further comprise one or more physical interfaces for holding one or more color reference chips, cards or color reference sheets, e.g., for device calibration purposes. The back surface of the kiosk body can provide an attachment interface for attachment to a support surface, such as a wall or other display structure.

A paint swatch test device includes a transparent or translucent substrate, such as a sheet of polymeric material, and a plurality of different primer coating patches on the substrate. The patches preferably form a grayscale series of neutral white and gray primer patches having stepwise increments in light reflectance values. The patches can also be provided on an opaque substrate. The color suitability and/or hiding power of a topcoat paint desired to be applied to a surface to be painted can be determined by coating the topcoat paint on at least a portion of a surface of the transparent or translucent substrate, providing a grayscale series of patches between the paint coating and the surface to be painted, and observing the appearance of the paint coating where patches are beneath the coating and where patches are not beneath the coating.

A mixing and paint-making device and method for making paint are described. Embodiments of the paint-making device include a first and second palette hingedly coupled to a base. The base includes a paint pot shaking component configured to agitate and/or translate a paint pot. The paint pot shaking component includes a series of gears and pistons that interact to produce a shaking motion for a paint pot coupled to the paint pot shaking component. In one embodiment, the paint pot shaking component includes a crank gear adjacent a combination gear that contacts a slide crankshaft. The slide crankshaft is coupled to a slide crank arm that is secured by slide bracket coupled to the base. A paint pot harness holds a paint pot during agitation and moves in an upward and downward motion corresponding to the motion of the slide crank arm.

Disclosed herein is a computer-implemented method, a respective device, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium. The method includes: obtaining color values, texture values and digital images of a target coating, retrieving from a database one or more preliminary matching formulas based on the color and/or texture values obtained for the target coating, determining sparkle points within the respective obtained images and within the respective images associated with the one or more preliminary matching formulas, creating subimages of each sparkle point from the respective images, providing the created subimages to a convolutional neural network, the convolutional neural network being trained to correlate a respective subimage of a respective sparkle point with a pigment and/or pigment class, and determining, based on an output of the neural network, at least one of the one or more preliminary matching formulas as the formula(s) best matching the target coating.

The present invention provides a method for the production of textured color selection swatches for point of purchase displays of custom blended paints, for color selection guides of dyed or printed textiles or for color selection extruded chips of custom colored plastics using a digital inkjet printer and custom blended inkjet inks based on a set of base inks that can be blended using commercial match prediction software and wherein a textured effect is applied as a component of the color selection aids. The textured effect may be achieved either by printing in three dimensions or printing a pseudo-three dimensional effect.