Patent ID: 7525538

Claim:
A system for directing light in an interactive display system, the interactive display system including a generally transparent planar panel having a first surface on which visible images are projected and a second surface opposite the first surface, proximate to which a user interaction with an object occurs to provide an input to the interactive display system, comprising: (a) a lensing device operable to focus a predominantly visible light output to project an image over the first surface and at least one of: (i) distribute a predominantly non-visible light output over the first surface; and (ii) focus non-visible light reflected from an object adjacent to the second surface, to a focal input of a light sensor; (b) a light separating system operable to separate at least one of: (i) an input light so that the input light are separated into a predominantly visible light input and a predominantly non-visible light input, the predominantly visible light input being selectively modulated by a modulating system to produce a predominantly visible light output directed to the lensing device, at least a portion of the predominantly non-visible light input being directed to the lensing device as a predominantly non-visible light output; and (ii) predominantly non-visible received light reflected from the object, from received light, such that substantially only the predominantly non-visible light reflected from the object adjacent to the second surface is routed to the light sensor; and (c) at least one polarizing device disposed to cause only a substantially polarized component of the predominantly non-visible light output to be transmitted through the lensing device while passing at least a portion of the predominantly non-visible light that is reflected from the object and polarized but not in a same plane as the substantially polarized component of the substantially non-visible light output.