The design of diagnostic tests for defective colour vision

Pseudoisochromatic plates are among the most popular tests for defective colour vision. They are particularly good for screening but are less good in assessing the degree and type of the colour vision defect. To select colours for use in diagnostic plates a large number of colour defective subjects have made colour matches with the Lovibond Tintometer and the isochromatic data collected. Pseudoisochromatic plates have been printed using pairs of colours only and incorporating both a random dot and a regular dot format. These plates have proved effective in a clinical trial. Not only must pairs of inks be carefully selected to lie upon appropriate isochromatic lines but the luminance contrast between the two colours must be kept within 5%. Failure to control luminance contrast is as much a source of error in currently available pseudoischromatic tests as the inappropriate use of colour.