Laden...
Laden...
Recently I read a book in which the NCS code was explained. On two different pages, two colors were used as examples: 2090-Y90R and S 5050-B90G. Both colors cannot exist. Let me explain why.
During my workshops I sometimes say: color is mathematics. This is a good example of that.
In the NCS system, every color consists of three components:
| Component | What it is | | --------------------- | --------------------------------- | | Blackness (s) | How much black is in the color | | Chromaticness (c) | How much pure hue is in the color | | Whiteness (w) | How much white is in the color |
Together these three form the color image. And that color image is always 100%:
Black + White + Chromaticness = 100%
The whiteness is not written in the NCS notation — you can derive it:
White = 100 − Black − Chromaticness
Fill in the formula for S 5050-B90G:
But NCS assumes that every color always has a portion of black, white and chromaticness. The whiteness must be greater than 0.
Therefore: 50 + 50 = 100 → no room for white → cannot exist.
Fill in the formula for 2090-Y90R:
A negative whiteness is impossible.
Therefore: 20 + 90 = 110 → exceeds 100% → cannot exist.
Within the NCS system applies:
Blackness + Chromaticness < 100
You will never encounter a valid NCS color where the sum of the first two digit pairs equals or exceeds 100.
So if you read somewhere 5060-Y30R, or 3080-B50G — then you know enough.
| Code | Black | Chromaticness | Sum | White | Valid? | | ----------- | ----- | ------------- | --- | ----- | ------ | | S 1050-Y90R | 10 | 50 | 60 | 40 | ✅ | | S 3040-B50G | 30 | 40 | 70 | 30 | ✅ | | S 5050-B90G | 50 | 50 | 100 | 0 | ❌ | | 2090-Y90R | 20 | 90 | 110 | −10 | ❌ |
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