MuirMcNeil Panopticon is a system of three-dimensional display typefaces designed in four orthographic projections. It is named after a form of polygonal building devised in the Eighteenth century by Jeremy Bentham to facilitate controlled and concealed viewpoints.

The Panopticon system has been implemented in four alternative viewpoints or projections:

A: top right view
B: bottom left view
C: top left view
D: bottom right view

Each of the four Panopticon projections is subdivided into four separate typeface layers:

10: Perimeter
20: Interior
30: Horizontal
40: Vertical

The Perimeter layer of each projection provides only the external contour or silhouette of individual letterforms. The Interior layer provides both internal and external contours expressed as solid, interlocking planes. The Horizontal and Vertical layers separate these planes into two corresponding component typefaces.

The layers in each Panopticon projection are designed to interact with one another, offering a wide range of visual possibilities. Using page layout, bitmap or vector design software, the user can apply selected planes either in precisely interlocking overlays or in easily calibrated positional offsets. Outlines, tints, colours, textures, patterns and transparencies can be applied as appropriate.

There is no inter-character spacing in Panopticon. Letterforms are designed to fit edge-to-edge in both horizontal and vertical dimensions. Interlinear spacing can easily be set in one line or half line increments so that multiple lines fit flush in perfect registration.

The Panopticon character set is limited to Latin lowercase only together with numerals and punctuation marks. For ease of use, the lowercase letterforms are duplicated for uppercase characters.