Panel with light permeable images

An illuminated panel assembly, comprising:

• a panel comprising a sheet of colored or colorless transparent material and a transparent or translucent design, said transparent or translucent design being superimposed with a base pattern which extends over the area of said sheet covered by said design and being adhered to at least one of said base pattern and said sheet of colored or colorless transparent material, said base pattern comprising a translucent base layer and subdividing the panel into a plurality of areas of said base layer and/or a plurality of areas of said colored or colorless transparent material, said layers being constructed and arranged such that the whole of said design is visible from a first viewing position located on one side of the panel when a sufficiently high level of illumination is provided on the other side of the panel and a mirror image of the whole of said design is visible from a second viewing position located on the other side of the panel when a sufficiently high level of illumination is provided on said one side of the panel;
• and
• a spotlight source of illumination located on said other side of said panel, outside a prismatic space formed by a projection of said panel perpendicular to said panel and directed to illuminate said other side of said panel;
• whereby the perceptibility of the design perceived by an observer located at said first viewing position, with the spotlight source of illumination shielded from the observer by an opaque material disposed between the observer and the spotlight source of illumination such that the spotlight source of illumination is outside any direct line of sight from the viewer, is substantially increased by shining the spotlight source of illumination on said other said of said panel.

A method of displaying a transparent or translucent design, said method comprising:

• providing a panel comprising a sheet of colored or colorless transparent material having said transparent or translucent design printed thereon, said transparent or translucent design being superimposed with a base pattern which extends over the area of said sheet covered by said design and being adhered to at least one of said base pattern and said sheet of colored or colorless transparent material, said base pattern comprising a translucent base layer and subdividing the panel into a plurality of areas of said base layer and/or a plurality of areas of said colored or colorless transparent material, said layers being constructed and arranged such that the whole of said design is visible from a first viewing position located on one side of the panel when a sufficiently high level of illumination is provided on the other side of the panel and a mirror image of the whole of said design is visible from a second viewing position located on the other side of the panel when a sufficiently high level of illumination is provided on said one side of the panel;
• and
• illuminating the panel on said other side of said panel with a first spotlight source of illumination, said first spotlight source of illumination being located outside a prismatic space formed by a projection of said panel perpendicular to said panel and said first spotlight source of illumination being directed onto said other side of said panel.