High-contrast front projection video display system

A front-projection video display system for obtaining high contrast in a viewing room without darkened ambient conditions comprising:

• a front-projection video projector which projects an image in components, said projected image having an intensity and said components having substantially the same direction of polarization, wherein said front projection video projector produces a projected image comprising three components, a first and a second component having the same polarization and a third component being orthogonally polarized to said first and second components, and wherein said projector comprises a first half-wave plate for rotating said third component into agreement with said first and second components;
• a polarization maintaining projection screen for receiving said projected image from said video projector;
• a polarizing filter located between said video projector and said projection screen, said filter being polarized in the same direction as said components of said projected image, wherein said polarization maintaining screen substantially preserves the intensity of said projected image on roundtrip between said polarizing filter and said screen;
• and
• polarizing lenses for covering light fixtures within the viewing room, said lenses being polarized orthogonal to said polarizing filter and said components of said projected image such that ambient light from the light fixtures and polarized parallel to said polarized image is substantially blocked at said polarizing lenses and ambient light polarized orthogonal to said projected image is blocked at said polarizing filter for high contrast.