Patent ID: 7826698

Claim:
A planar illumination area substantially free of stitch artifacts, comprising: a first discrete light-guide element comprising (i) first and second non-parallel sidewalls spanning top and bottom surfaces, the first sidewall being reflective, and (ii) an out-coupling region partially bounded by the sidewalls; a second discrete light-guide element comprising (i) first and second non-parallel sidewalls spanning top and bottom surfaces, the first sidewall being reflective, and (ii) an out-coupling region partially bounded by the sidewalls, the first sidewall of the second light-guide element being adjacent and opposed to the first sidewall of the first light-guide element; and a third discrete light-guide element comprising an out-coupling region, at least a portion of the out-coupling region of the third light-guide element overlapping at least a portion of the out-coupling region of the first light-guide element, including the second sidewall thereof, to define an overlapping region having an area, wherein (i) light in the first light-guide element striking its first sidewall substantially reflects therefrom rather than travelling into the second light-guide element, (ii) light in the second light-guide element striking its first sidewall substantially reflects therefrom rather than travelling into the first light-guide element, and (iii) the overlapping region emits a substantially uniform light output over the area.