US Patent 7520650 Side-emitting collimator

Illumination configurations employ optical elements configured to organize divergent light from an LED light source into collimated beams having a direction perpendicular to an optical axis of the LED. Alternative optical elements organize light from a row of LEDs into planes perpendicular to a plane including the optical axes of the LEDs. Pairs of optical elements are configured to define a cavity for receiving an LED. One optical element may be employed to organize approximately one half of the light generated by the LED, with the remainder being permitted to radiate from the LED in its usual pattern.