Differentiation of Tablets Colors with different Lightness and Saturation

- A Comparison between Young and Elderly-simulated Groups -

Abstract

We conducted an experiment involving 20 female university students to examine their ability to differentiate the colors of tablets under 2 conditions: an elderly-simulated group, wearing glasses that simulated elderly persons’ vision, and a young group, not wearing the glasses. The subjects selected the same colors as those of 7-mm diameter round slips of paper representing tablets of 90 colors. Both groups had difficulty differentiating shades of red-purple and blue, and their test scores were markedly lower for tones with lower lightness and saturation. In contrast, bright tones with high lightness and saturation, excluding shades of blue, and light tones with high lightness and moderate saturation, excluding shades of blue and red-purple, were easier for both groups to differentiate. In order to prevent oral medication errors, it may be effective to combine bright and light tones with different hues and achromatic colors for tablets.