HRD Antwerp Begins Using Color Grading Device

HRD Antwerp has announced the introduction of Lumisense, a new color grading instrument that has been put into operation in the HRD Diamond Lab. “Lumisense delivers extremely accurate and consistent color grades,” HRD Antwerp's general manager, Georges Brys, said in a press release.

The lab said that, thanks to the device’s innovative grading technology, it builds a bridge between human color perception and instrumental color measurement.

According to Brys, Lumisense is particularly effective in the grading of brilliants in top colors, regardless of the diamond type or its level of fluorescence. “We have found that the consistency of its grading is second to none,” he added.

Lumisense is the product of several years of research, in particular on the correlation between human observation of color and instrumental color measurement. Work on it was done in close collaboration between HRD Research and the independent Research Centre for Diamonds (WTOCD).

According to the HRD Antwerp researchers, it is relatively simple to develop an instrument that produces repeatable output. The challenge lies in the concurrence with the results of human examination.

HRD has been using spectroscopy since 1985 in its diamond color grading process, to complement human observation.

Some, if not most, labs use color machines as an aid, however it was not until the recently launched IDL arrived on the scene that it was used as the primary tool for color grading.