Patent ID: 9488863
Filing Date: 2016-11-08
CPC Classification: G02B,G02F

Claim Text:
1. A lighting device, comprising: one or more planar light guides, wherein each of the one of more planar light guides includes a respective back face for receiving light and a respective front face for emitting light, one or more light sources arranged to transmit light into the respective back face of the one or more planar light guides, one or more semi-transparent masking elements, wherein each of the one or more semi-transparent masking elements having a respective light diffusing surface arranged to partially diffuse light back into the one or more light guides and partially transmit light through a respective semi-transparent masking element so as to mask the one or more light sources, and one or more light absorbers arranged adjacent to the one or more light sources to absorb at least a fraction of light diffused from the respective diffusing surface of the one or more semi-transparent masking elements, or one or more retro-reflectors arranged adjacent to the one or more light sources to reflect at least a fraction of light diffused from the respective diffusing surface of the one or more semi-transparent masking elements back to an adjacent one of the one or more semi-transparent masking elements back to an adjacent one of the one or more semi-transparent masking elements, wherein the one or more light absorbers or the one or more retro-reflectors are not optically connected to the one or more planar light guides.