LUMAYNEShop Fresnel 120
Extreme macro photograph of the concentric optical structure of a Fresnel screen

Fresnel / light control

The screen
is an optical
instrument.

A physical explanation of how the image finds you—and why some room light does not.
Scroll through the light path01 / 06
Projector, Fresnel screen and viewer light pathLight rises from an ultra-short-throw projector, meets the structured screen and travels toward a viewer. Ambient light arriving from overhead is redirected away.
UST projector
Fresnel optical surface
Viewer
Ambient light

Light begins below

A UST projector sits centimetres from the wall and launches the image upward at a steep angle.
  1. Light begins below. A UST projector sits centimetres from the wall and launches the image upward at a steep angle.
  2. The surface has direction. Concentric optical structures are oriented around that unusual path—not around a beam crossing the room.
  3. The image turns toward you. Projector light is redirected out into the seating area, where the picture needs to be.
  4. The room keeps happening. Daylight and ceiling light still reach the screen from above and from the sides.
  5. Unwanted light takes another path. The structure sends much of that off-axis light away instead of adding it to the visible image.
  6. That is the Fresnel idea. Not darkness created from nothing. Direction used intelligently.

The principle, plainly

Directional, by design.

Ordinary matte-white screens are intentionally broad reflectors. That makes them flexible—but it also means they reflect room light toward the viewer along with projector light.

A Fresnel screen behaves differently. Its optical structure is directional. It is intended to accept the steep upward light path of a UST projector and send much of it outward toward the audience.

ALR does not mean ambient light disappears. It means direction becomes useful.

Close macro view of a directional Fresnel optical surface

At the scale of the surface

Concentric optics.
Not a coating.

Seen closely, the screen is a structured optical surface. The geometry is subtle at room scale but fundamental to the way light is redirected.

This is also why the material must be handled carefully and installed in the correct orientation.

Illustrative comparison

Let the room back in.

Ordinary matte white
Directional Fresnel ALR

This interaction is an illustration of the principle, not a measured performance claim. Actual results depend on projector output, room light direction, installation and content.

After the image

Numbers need context.

≈ 1.2

Screen gain

A relative indication of on-axis brightness compared with a standard reference surface. Higher is not automatically better; distribution and room conditions matter.

≈ 100°

Viewing angle

An approximate horizontal range over which the image is intended to remain useful. Directional screens trade some off-axis uniformity for light control.

16:9

Aspect ratio

The native shape used by most home UST systems and contemporary video content.

Approximate LUMAYNE values are pending final production verification.

Orientation matters

There is a top and a bottom.

Because the optical structure is directional, a Fresnel screen cannot be rotated casually. Installed upside down, the surface can direct projector light away from the seating position.

The final product and installation guide will identify the top edge clearly. Check it before the screen is tensioned and again before it is mounted.

Plan the installation

Put the optics to work

Meet Fresnel 120.

A large-format fixed-frame screen shaped for the light path of UST projection.

Explore Fresnel 120