ISO 12640-4:2011

Overview

ISO 12640-4:2011 - "Graphic technology - Prepress digital data exchange - Part 4: Wide gamut display-referred standard colour image data [Adobe RGB (1998)/SCID]" defines a set of standard wide-gamut, display‑referred colour images encoded as 16‑bit Adobe RGB (1998) digital data. The standard provides reference TIFF image files (natural scenes and colour charts) and the accompanying PDF for use in evaluating image quality across workflows: coding, image processing, colour re-rendering, colour space transformations, compression/decompression, monitor display and printing.

Included sample files (on the standard’s media) include Natural images N01_Crayons.tif … N14_Beach.tif and colour charts S01_ColourChart.tif and S02_ColourVignettes.tif. The package typically ships as a DVD or zipped file with installation guidance.

Key topics and requirements

• Data format and encoding: Images are specified as 16‑bit Adobe RGB (1998) image data - a wide‑gamut, display‑referenced colour encoding.
• Standard image set: A curated set of natural images and colour charts intended as reference targets for testing and comparison.
• Scope of use: Intended for evaluating changes in image quality during coding, image processing, compression/decompression, display on monitors and printing.
• Reproducibility: Standardized files and folder structure (keep filenames/folders intact when unzipping) to ensure consistent test conditions.
• Application to colour management: Use for assessing output devices, printer profiles, colour management systems and transformations between colour spaces.

Applications

• Colour management testing: Validate and compare ICC profiles, CMS implementations and rendering intents using a consistent wide‑gamut data set.
• Printer and press evaluation: Assess printer gamut, tone reproduction and colour fidelity when mapping Adobe RGB (1998) to printer colour spaces.
• Image processing QA: Measure visual and coded artefacts introduced by colour re‑rendering, compression algorithms or colour space conversions.
• Research and R&D: Use in academic or industrial research examining wide‑gamut workflows, colour reproduction fidelity and perceptual evaluation.
• Software verification: Test image editing, conversion and viewing software for correct handling of 16‑bit Adobe RGB (1998) display‑referred data.

Who should use this standard

• Colour scientists, prepress engineers, print production specialists
• Software developers for image processing, colour management and RIPs
• QA teams in print shops and device manufacturers
• Researchers in imaging, perception and colour reproduction

Related standards

• ISO 12640 (other parts) - series on prepress digital data exchange
• ICC profile specifications and colour management standards (for workflows involving Adobe RGB (1998) and device profiles)

Keywords: ISO 12640-4, Adobe RGB (1998), wide gamut, display-referred, standard colour image data, prepress, colour management, 16-bit TIFF, image quality evaluation.