| The objective of this paper is to address the superiority of color over black and white on an electric circuit map. For this paper, the circuit map of the City of Palo Alto, which owns and operates its utilities, has been selected. The internal structure of the circuit map reveals that its components can be divided into five major categories: (1) Base map; (2) Shaded polygons; (3) Text; (4) Circuits; (5) All other features.; By understanding the principles of color, and by using existing color guidelines available from other areas of cartography and mapping, an attempt was made to assign a color (or a set of colors) for each category. These colors were then used and tested on a pilot map against a black and white pilot map. Finally, by using appropriate statistical methods, the hypothesis of superiority of color over black and white on an electric circuit map was examined and confirmed by using Utilities staff as a test sample. |
