Patent ID: 8223433

Claim:
A sunlight redirecting element for redirecting sunlight onto a predetermined target surface, the sunlight redirecting element comprising: a base; and a plurality of substantially identical redirecting structures uniformly arranged and fixedly disposed on the base, each redirecting structure including a plurality of corresponding optical surface regions, wherein said plurality of corresponding optical surface regions of each said redirecting structure are cooperatively formed and arranged such that, when said sunlight redirecting element is operably fixedly oriented relative to the target surface with said sunlight directed along an incident direction onto the plurality of redirecting structures, at least some of said sunlight is transmitted between the plurality of corresponding optical surface regions of each said redirecting structure, and redirected from the plurality of corresponding optical surface regions toward said target surface, wherein the base of said sunlight redirecting element comprises a transparent material layer having an upper surface and an opposing lower surface, and wherein said sunlight redirecting element comprises at least one reflective surface region disposed on the lower surface of the transparent material layer and arranged such that said sunlight directed along the incident direction onto an associated region of the upper surface is refracted onto said at least one reflective surface region, and sunlight that is reflected by the at least one reflective surface region is directed through the upper surface to the target surface.