Patent ID: 6869206

Claim:
An optical illumination system comprising: a) A light source for generating light, wherein said light source is at least one light emitting diode having a reflecting surface with reflectivity R S greater than or equal to 50 percent, wherein the maximum intrinsic luminance of said light source is L I and wherein the total light emitting area of said light source is area A S ; b) A light-reflecting cavity enclosing said light source, wherein the inside surfaces of said light-reflecting cavity have reflectivity R C greater than or equal to 50 percent, aid wherein the inside surfaces of said light-reflecting cavity can reflect and recycle a portion of the light generated by said light source back to said light source; and c) At least one light output aperture in a surface of said light-reflecting cavity, wherein the area of said light output aperture is area A O and wherein said area A O is less than said area A S .