Colour language

How useful is everyday language when it comes to colours?
Below you will find several colour swatches. On top there’s a regular colour name, underneath some interpretations of this colour name, found in various colour systems.

lightblue

RAL
Trespa Athlon
Mosa

olive green

Colorcoat HP200
Trespa Athlon
Histor

ivory

Trespa Athlon
RAL
Mosa

Effective colour communication depends on the proper use of language. Generally all colours are defined in three dimensions: lightness, saturation and hue.

For the sake of convenience the whole range of colours can be displayed in the shape of a cone. The greys will be found on the axis. Upwards the colours become lighter, downwards they become darker. Towards the outside the colours are more lively.
The characteristics of the colours can be red from the cone. At the top of the cone are the colours with maximum lightness, at the bottom the colours with minimum lightness. Close to the axis are the colours with minimum saturation, towards the outside with maximum saturation. In a circle around the axis the different hues are to be found, together forming a colour circle. How can this model be used to describe colours?

In the cone a triangle is marked out. All points within the triangle have the same angle around the axis. This means that all colours on the triangle have the same hue. All of the colours in the row below the illustration are taken from the triangle and have the same hue.

In the cone a belt is marked out on which all colours have the same distance to the axis. It follows that all the colours on the belt have the same saturation. The colours in the row are all taken from the belt and thus have the same saturation.

In the cone a circular surface is marked out where all the colours have the same height. Therefore all the colours on the surface have the same lightness, as shown in the row of colours.