Safety color - Anzenshikisai (English) safety color

Colors that indicate the safety of dangerous areas and evacuation routes so that anyone can see them at a glance from a distance. They are specified by the Japanese Industrial Standards (JIS). They are also called safety colors. There are eight colors: red, yellow-red, yellow, green, blue, and red-purple, with white and black added as auxiliary contrasting colors. They were introduced as JIS mine safety warning signs in 1951 (Showa 26) with the aim of allowing people to quickly and accurately identify and act to prevent danger and respond to emergencies, and were established as JIS safety color general rules in 1953. Safety colors are widely used on information boards in public places such as no open flames, watch your step, emergency exits, and fire hydrants, as well as on road traffic signs. Red means "fire prevention," "prohibited," "stop," and "high danger," yellow-red means "danger," "maritime and aviation security facilities," yellow means "caution," green means "safety," "evacuation," "health," "rescue," and "proceed," blue means "instructions" and "caution," red-purple means "radioactivity," and white means "passageway" and "order," and black is used for letters, symbols, arrows, etc., as well as a secondary color that complements yellow-red, yellow, and white. Safety colors are determined by the Munsell color system, which quantitatively represents the three attributes of color: hue, brightness, and saturation.

With the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games approaching, the safety colors were revised for the first time in 13 years in 2018 to become "universal design colors" that are easy for everyone to distinguish, including those with color vision impairments. Some people with weak eyesight, color vision impairments, and cataracts had pointed out problems with the previous safety colors, such as "red is dark and can be confused with black," and "blue and green are difficult to distinguish from each other." In response, yellow was added to red, yellow-red, and green, the red was removed from yellow and the brightness was increased, blue was also increased, and blue was added to red-purple. At the same time, recommended color values ​​for fluorescent colors, computer screens, printer output, etc. were also established for the first time.

[Takeshi Yano December 13, 2018]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

危険箇所や避難経路などの安全性を、だれもが遠くからひと目でわかるように示す色。日本工業規格（JIS）によって規定される。安全色ともいわれる。赤、黄赤、黄、緑、青、赤紫の6色に、対比補助色として白、黒を加えた8色がある。危険防止や緊急事態への対応を迅速・正確に識別・行動してもらう目的で、1951年（昭和26）にJISの鉱山保安警標として導入され、1953年にJISの安全色彩使用通則として制定された。安全色彩は火気厳禁、足元注意、非常口、消火栓など公共の場での案内板や道路の交通標識などに広く使われている。赤には「防火」「禁止」「停止」「高度の危険」、黄赤には「危険」「航海・航空の保安施設」、黄には「注意」、緑には「安全」「避難」「衛生」「救護」「進行」、青には「指示」「用心」、赤紫には「放射能」、白には「通路」「整頓」の意味があり、黒は文字、記号、矢印などに使用するほか、黄赤や黄、白を引き立てる補助色としても使用する。安全色彩は色相、明度、彩度の色の3属性を定量的に表すマンセル値（Munsell color system）によって定められている。

　2020年のオリンピック・パラリンピック東京大会を控え、2018年に安全色彩が13年ぶりに改正され、色覚に障害がある人を含めてだれもが識別しやすい「ユニバーサルデザインカラー」とされた。従来の安全色彩に対し、弱視、色覚障害、白内障など一部の人から「赤が暗くて黒と紛らわしい」「青と緑の区別がつきにくい」といった問題点が指摘されていたため、赤、黄赤、緑には黄みを加え、黄は赤みを抜いて明度を上げ、青も明度を上げ、赤紫には青みを加えた。同時に、蛍光にする場合のほか、パソコン画面、プリンター出力時などの色彩の推奨値も初めて定めた。

［矢野　武　2018年12月13日］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例