Low-Profile, Backlit, Panel Assembly for Displaying Images and/or Data within a Passenger Compartment of a Vehicle

A low-profile, backlit panel assembly and a controller for displaying images and/or data within a passenger compartment of a vehicle are provided. The assembly includes a substrate panel perforated with a two-dimensional array of closely-spaced holes. The panel is configured to be attached to a support structure of the vehicle. The assembly further includes a plurality of semiconductor-based, lighting devices supported at a back surface of the panel. Each of the lighting devices includes at least one lighting element. Each of the lighting elements is individually addressable by the controller to control luminous intensity of the light emitted by the at least one lighting element. Each of the lighting devices is aligned with one of the holes so that light emitted by each of the lighting devices travels through its hole to the passenger compartment in the form of a pixel of a two-dimensional image.