Joseph Williams Lovibond (1833–1918) was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 brewer who developed the world's first practical colorimeter

Colorimeter

For articles on Colorimeter see:* Colorimeter * Tristimulus colorimeter...

 as a means of ensuring the high quality of his beer. He was the originator of the Degrees Lovibond scale.

Biography

After accidentally losing his earnings from gold mining as a teenager, Lovibond went to work in his family's brewery. He discovered that coloration was a good index for assessing the quality of beer, and sought an accurate way of gauging color. After failed experiments with paint, on solids, a visit to Salisbury Cathedral in 1880 gave him the inspiration to use stained glass for his colorimeter, which he introduced in 1885.

Business

In 1885 he founded a company, The Tintometer Limited

Tintometer

The Tintometer Limited was founded in 1885 by Joseph Williams Lovibond, the son of a prominent brewery owner in Greenwich, London. J.W. Lovibond developed the world's first practical colorimeter as a means of ensuring the high quality of his beer...

, to manufacture his colorimeter which was called the Lovibond Comparator

Lovibond comparator

The Lovibond comparator is a type of colorimeter made in Britain by The Tintometer Ltd. It was invented in the 19th century by Joseph Williams Lovibond and updated versions are still available.-Description:...

. The company still exists and still produces an updated version of the Lovibond comparator.

Publications

Light and colour theories and their relation to light and colour standardization, 1915.