Color coding information: assessing alternative coding systems using independent brightness and hue dimensions

Can independent dimensions of brightness and hue be used in a combined digital information code? This issue was addressed by developing 2 color-coding systems and testing them on informed and naive participants in signal beam detection and classification experiments for simulated sonar displays. Each coding system's results showed both groups efficiently used encoded information that varied simultaneously along the 2 dimensions of brightness and hue. Findings support the proposed procedures for developing color information codes and the validity of such information codes across different populations. Applied significance of these results is provided by the test of principled methods of color-code construction and the demonstration that extending the information content of user interfaces beyond 1 dimension is feasible in practice.