The effects of age, viewing distance, display type, font type, colour contrast and number of syllables on the legibility of Korean characters

Abstract

This study evaluated the effects of age (20s and 60s), viewing distance (50 cm, 200 cm), display type (paper, monitor), font type (Gothic, Ming), colour contrast (black letters on white background, white letters on black background) and number of syllables (one, two) on the legibility of Korean characters by using the four legibility measures (minimum letter size for 100% correctness, maximum letter size for 0% correctness, minimum letter size for the least discomfort and maximum letter size for the most discomfort). Ten subjects in each age group read the four letters presented on a slide (letter size varied from 80 pt to 2 pt). Subjects also subjectively rated the reading discomfort of the letters on a 4-point scale (1 = no discomfort, 4 = most discomfort). According to the ANOVA procedure, age, viewing distance and font type significantly affected the four dependent variables (p < 0.05), while the main effect of colour contrast was not statistically significant for any measures. Two-syllable letters had smaller letters than one-syllable letters in the two correctness measures. The younger group could see letter sizes two times smaller than the old group could and the viewing distance of 50 cm showed letters about three times smaller than those at a 200 cm viewing distance. The Gothic fonts were smaller than the Ming fonts. Monitors were smaller than paper for correctness and maximum letter size for the most discomfort. From a comparison of the results for correctness and discomfort, people generally preferred larger letter sizes to those that they could read. The findings of this study may provide basic information for setting a global standard of letter size or font type to improve the legibility of characters written in Korean. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: Results obtained in this study will provide basic information and guidelines for setting standards of letter size and font type to improve the legibility of characters written in Korean. Also, the results might offer useful information for people who are working on design of visual displays.

Legible and Preferred Korean Sizes for Various Colors and Fonts

“…기존 연구들은 시각 정보 설계를 위해 영어와 한글에 대한 식 별 크기(legible size) 및 선호 크기(preferred size)를 제시하고 있다. (Kong et al, 2011;Jung et al, 2009). 그러나 대형표시장치의 시각 정보 는 표시 정보의 특성(예 : 지시, 경고, 위험)에 따라 다양한 배 경색과 글자색으로 표시되므로 다양한 색상에 대한 식별성 연 구가 필요하다 (Chang et al, 2009).…”

“…그러나 대형표시장치의 시각 정보 는 표시 정보의 특성(예 : 지시, 경고, 위험)에 따라 다양한 배 경색과 글자색으로 표시되므로 다양한 색상에 대한 식별성 연 구가 필요하다 (Chang et al, 2009). 또한, 기존 연구들은 한글 글꼴이 시각 정보의 식별성에 영향을 미치는 것으로 보고하고 있으나 (Kong et al, 2011;Kim et al, 2001) 정 기 효 Table 1. Pairs of background color and font color (Chang et al, 2009) (Kong et al, 2011;Chang et al, 2009).…”

“…또한, 기존 연구들은 한글 글꼴이 시각 정보의 식별성에 영향을 미치는 것으로 보고하고 있으나 (Kong et al, 2011;Kim et al, 2001) 정 기 효 Table 1. Pairs of background color and font color (Chang et al, 2009) (Kong et al, 2011;Chang et al, 2009). 선호 크기는 식 별 가능한 글자 크기 중에서 실험참여자가 선호하는 가장 작 은 크기를 의미한다 (Kong et al, 2011) …”

“…Pairs of background color and font color (Chang et al, 2009) (Kong et al, 2011;Chang et al, 2009). 선호 크기는 식 별 가능한 글자 크기 중에서 실험참여자가 선호하는 가장 작 은 크기를 의미한다 (Kong et al, 2011) …”

The impact of signboard‐building color combinations on color harmony and legibility

“…However, as this table was created based on experimental data from a small number of colors and participants; further research has since been carried out. Scholars generally agree that legibility in most cases depends on text‐background color contrast . More specifically, in order to improve legibility, dark characters on a light background (demonstrating positive polarity) are recommended instead of light characters on a dark background (negative polarity) .…”