Cinema structure and a method for constructing a cinema structure

Abstract

A cinema structure ( 1 ) comprises an auditorium ( 12 ) defined between a floor ( 2 ), a ceiling ( 3 ), front and rear walls ( 5,8 ) and side walls ( 10 ), which is of length (L) similar to its width (W) and of height (H 1 ) approximately half its width (W). A screen ( 14 ) which is substantially the width and height of the auditorium ( 14 ) is located adjacent the front wall ( 5 ). Rows ( 17 ) of seats ( 18 ) are tiered upwardly rearwardly at an angle of approximately 22.5°. The front row ( 17 a ) of seats ( 18 ) is located on the floor ( 2 ), while the second and subsequent rows ( 17 ) of seats ( 18 ) are mounted on corresponding plinths ( 20 ). The rearmost plinth ( 20 a ) is located adjacent the rear wall ( 8 ) and is spaced apart downwardly from the ceiling ( 3 ) a height (H 2 ) of approximately 2 metres. A projector ( 24 ) in a projector housing ( 23 ) is located centrally on the rearmost plinth ( 20 ) within the auditorium ( 12 ), and a lens port ( 22 ) of the projector ( 24 ) is located at a level of approximately 0.5 metre below the ceiling 3.

1 .- 136 . (canceled) 
     
     
         137 . A cinema structure comprising a floor, a ceiling spaced apart above the floor, a front wall extending between the floor and the ceiling, and a rear wall spaced apart from the front wall extending between the floor and the ceiling and defining with the front wall, the floor and the ceiling an auditorium, the auditorium being of length from the front wall to the rear wall not more than 1.2 times the width of the auditorium along the front wall, the auditorium being of height between the floor and the ceiling adjacent the front wall being in the range of 0.4 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall to 0.6 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, a screen being located adjacent the front wall, and being of length along the front wall substantially similar to the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and of height substantially similar to the height of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, a plurality of rows of seats located in the auditorium, some of the rows of the seats being mounted on respective plinths, the plinths of the respective rows being tiered generally upwardly towards the rear wall and having upwardly facing surfaces on which the seats of the respective rows are mounted, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of a back row of the row of the seats being spaced apart downwardly from the ceiling a distance in the range of 2 metres to 3 metres, a front row of the rows of the seats being located on the floor of the cinema structure, and a projector being located on the plinth of the back row of the seats with a lens port of the projector located at a level below the ceiling in the range of 0.25 times the distance between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of the seats to 0.75 times the distance between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of the seats. 
     
     
         138 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the length of the auditorium from the front wall to the rear wall lies in the range of 0.8 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall to 1.2 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and preferably, the length of the auditorium from the front wall to the rear wall lies in the range of 0.9 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall to 1.1 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and advantageously, the length of the auditorium from the front wall to the rear wall is substantially similar to the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall. 
     
     
         139 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats is spaced apart downwardly from the ceiling a distance in the range of 2 metres to 2.5 metres, and preferably, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats is spaced apart downwardly from the ceiling a distance of approximately 2 metres, and advantageously, the width of the plinth of each row of seats from the front of the plinth to the rear of the plinth lies in the range of 0.9 metres to 1.5 metres, and preferably, the width of the plinth of each row of seats from the front of the plinth to the rear of the plinth lies in the range of 1 metre to 1.3 metres, and advantageously, the width of the plinth of each row of seats from the front of the plinth to the rear of the plinth is approximately 1 metre. 
     
     
         140 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of a second row of the seats is at a height above the floor of the cinema structure in the range of 0.55 metres to 0.65 metres, and preferably, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the second row of the seats is at a height above the floor of the cinema structure in the range of 0.58 metres to 0.62 metres, and advantageously, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the second row of the seats is at a height above the floor of the cinema structure of approximately 0.6 metres, and preferably, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of each one of a third and subsequent rows of the seats to the back row of the seats is at a height above the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the immediately forward row of the seats in the range of 0.55 metres to 0.65 metres, and preferably, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of each one of the third and subsequent rows of the seats to the back row of the seats is at a height above the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the immediately forward row of the seats in the range of 0.58 metres to 0.62 metres, and advantageously, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of each one of the third and subsequent rows of the seats to the back row of the seats is at a height above the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the immediately forward row of the seats of approximately 0.6 metres, and preferably, the plinth of the back row of the seats is located adjacent the rear wall, and advantageously, the front row of the seats is located in the auditorium so that the seat in the centre of the front row or the location at which a seat in the centre of the front row would be located is spaced apart perpendicularly from the screen a distance not less than 0.3 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and preferably, the rows of the seats are equi-spaced apart from each other. 
     
     
         141 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the rows of the seats define a tiering angle with the floor of the cinema structure lying in the range of 21° to 40°, and preferably, the tiering angle defined by the rows of the seats with the floor of the cinema structure lies in the range of 21° to 30°, and advantageously, the tiering angle defined by the rows of the seats with the floor of the cinema structure is approximately 22.5°. 
     
     
         142 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the height of the auditorium adjacent the front wall lies in the range of 0.45 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall to 0.55 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and preferably, the height of the auditorium adjacent the front wall lies in the range of 0.48 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall to 0.52 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and advantageously, the height of the auditorium adjacent the front wall is approximately 0.5 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and preferably, the ceiling of the cinema structure extends substantially parallel to the floor of the cinema structure, and advantageously, the floor of the cinema structure extends substantially horizontally. 
     
     
         143 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the height of the screen lies in the range of 0.4 times the width of the auditorium to 0.6 times the width of the auditorium, and preferably, the height of the screen lies in the range of 0.45 times the width of the auditorium to 0.55 times the width of the auditorium, and advantageously, the height of the screen is approximately 0.5 times the width of the auditorium. 
     
     
         144 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the screen defines a substantially horizontally extending lower edge, the lower edge of the screen being located not more than 200 mm above the floor, and preferably, the lower edge of the screen is located not more than 100 mm above the floor, and advantageously, the lower edge of the screen is located adjacent the floor. 
     
     
         145 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the lens port of the projector is located at a level below the ceiling in the range of 0.4 times the distance between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of the seats to 0.6 times the distance between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of the seats, and preferably, the lens port of the projector is located at a level below the ceiling of approximately 0.5 times the distance between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of the seats. 
     
     
         146 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the projector is located in a housing located on the plinth of the back row of the seats, and preferably, the housing in which the projector is located comprises a sound attenuating housing, and advantageously, the projector is located substantially centrally on the plinth of the back row of the seats relative to the width of the auditorium. 
     
     
         147 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which at least one aisle is located extending along one side of the auditorium from the back row of the seats towards the front wall adjacent corresponding ends of the rows of the seats, and preferably, a pair of aisles are provided extending along respective sides of the auditorium from the back row of the seats towards the front wall adjacent the corresponding ends of the rows of the seats, and advantageously, a pair of spaced apart side walls extend between the floor and the ceiling, and between the front and rear walls at respective opposite ends thereof, and preferably, the side walls extend substantially parallel to each other, and advantageously, each side aisle is defined between the adjacent side wall and the adjacent ends of the rows of the seats, and preferably, each of the rows of the seats with the exception of the front and second rows and the back row thereof extend continuously, and preferably, a central gap is defined in the back row of the seats for accommodating the projector therein, and advantageously, a central gap is located in the front and second rows of seats for accommodating at least one wheelchair. 
     
     
         148 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 137  in which the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall thereof lies in the range of 5 metres to 15 metres, and preferably, the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall thereof lies in the range of 7.5 metres to 12.5 metres, and advantageously, the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall thereof is approximately 10 metres. 
     
     
         149 . A method for constructing a cinema structure, the method comprising providing a floor, providing a ceiling spaced apart above the floor, providing a front wall extending between the floor and the ceiling, and providing a rear wall spaced apart from the front wall extending between the floor and the ceiling and defining with the front wall, the floor and the ceiling an auditorium, the front and rear wall being located so that the auditorium is of length from the front wall to the rear wall not more than 1.2 times the width of the auditorium along the front wall, the height of the auditorium between the floor and the ceiling adjacent the front wall being in the range of 0.4 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall to 0.6 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, locating a screen adjacent the front wall, the screen being of length along the front wall substantially similar to the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and of height substantially similar to the height of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, locating a plurality of rows of seats in the auditorium mounted on upwardly facing surfaces of respective plinths, tiering the plinths of the respective rows of the seats generally upwardly towards the rear wall with the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of a back row of the row of the seats being spaced apart downwardly from the ceiling a distance in the range of 2 metres to 3 metres, locating a front row of the rows of seats on the floor of the cinema structure, and locating a projector on the plinth of the back row of seats with a lens port of the projector located at a level below the ceiling in the range of 0.25 times the distance between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats to 0.75 times the distance between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats. 
     
     
         150 . A cinema structure comprising a floor, a ceiling spaced apart above the floor, a front wall extending between the floor and the ceiling, a rear wall spaced apart from the front wall extending between the floor and the ceiling and defining with the front wall, the floor and the ceiling an auditorium, a screen located in the auditorium adjacent the front wall, a plurality of rows of seats located in the auditorium, the rows of seats being tiered upwardly towards the rear wall, a back row of the seats being mounted on a plinth defining an upwardly facing surface on which the seats of the back row are supported, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats being at a level below the ceiling of not less than 2 metres, and a projector located within the auditorium mounted on the plinth of the back row of seats having a lens port, the lens port being at a level below the ceiling of not less than 500 mm from the ceiling. 
     
     
         151 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 150  in which the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats is at a level below the ceiling in the range of 2 metres to 3 metres, and preferably, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats is at a level below the ceiling in the range of 2 metres to 2.5 metres, and advantageously, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats is at a level below the ceiling of approximately 2 metres, and preferably, the level of the lens port of the projector below the ceiling lies in the range of 0.25 times the spacing between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth on which the back row of seats is mounted to 0.75 times the spacing between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth on which the back row of seats is mounted, and preferably, the level of the lens port of the projector below the ceiling lies in the range of 0.3 times the spacing between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth on which the back row of seats is mounted to 0.6 times the spacing between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth on which the back row of seats is mounted, and advantageously, the level of the lens port of the projector below the ceiling is approximately 0.5 times the spacing between the ceiling and the upwardly facing surface of the plinth on which the back row of seats is mounted. 
     
     
         152 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 150  in which the projector is located substantially centrally on the plinth of the back row between the respective opposite ends of the back row of seats, and preferably, the projector is located in a housing, the housing being located in the auditorium and mounted on the plinth of the back row of seats, and advantageously, the housing for the projector comprises a sound attenuating housing, and preferably, a gap is provided between the seats of the back row of seats to accommodate the projector therebetween, and advantageously, at least one seat is removed from the back row of seats to form the gap for accommodating the projector, and preferably, at least two seats are removed from the back row of seats to form the gap for accommodating the housing, and advantageously, four seats are removed from the back row of seats to form the gap to accommodate the projector and the housing therefor. 
     
     
         153 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 150  in which at least one aisle offset from a centre line of the auditorium extending perpendicularly to the screen is provided for accommodating patrons to the rows of the seats, and preferably, a pair of side aisles are provided, the respective side aisles being offset on respective opposite sides of the centre line of the auditorium, and advantageously, each side aisle is located adjacent corresponding ends of the rows of seats, and preferably, no centre aisle is provided, and advantageously, a pair of spaced apart side walls are provided extending between the front wall and the rear wall adjacent respective opposite ends thereof, and preferably, the side walls extend parallel to each other, and advantageously, the side walls extend perpendicularly from the front wall, and preferably, the front and rear walls extend parallel to each other, and advantageously, each side aisle is located adjacent a corresponding side wall, and preferably, each side aisle is located between the corresponding side wall and corresponding ends of the rows of the seats. 
     
     
         154 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 150  in which the tiering angle at which the rows of seats are tiered makes an angle with the floor in the range of 21° to 40°, and preferably, the tiering angle at which the rows of seats are tiered makes an angle with the floor in the range of 21° to 30°, and advantageously, the tiering angle at which the rows of seats are tiered makes an angle with the floor of approximately 22.5°, and preferably, the rows of seats are located spaced apart from each other a constant pitched distance, and advantageously, the pitched distance at which adjacent rows of seats are spaced apart from each other lies in the range of 0.9 metres to 1.5 metres, and preferably, the pitched distance at which adjacent rows of seats are spaced apart from each other lies in the range of 1 metre to 1.3 metres, and advantageously, the pitched distance at which adjacent rows of seats are spaced apart from each other lies in the range of 1 metre to 1.2 metres, and preferably, the pitched distance at which adjacent rows of seats are spaced apart from each other is approximately 1 metre, and advantageously, the front row of the seats is located on the floor. 
     
     
         155 . A cinema structure as claimed in  claim 150  in which the ceiling extends substantially parallel to the floor, and preferably, the floor extends substantially horizontally, and advantageously, the front row of seats is located relative to the screen so that the perpendicular distance from the screen to a position in the front row which is occupied or would be occupied by a centre seat of the front row is not less than 0.3 times the width of the auditorium, and preferably, the height of the auditorium adjacent the front wall lies in the range of 0.4 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall to 0.6 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and advantageously, the height of the auditorium adjacent the front wall lies in the range of 0.45 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall to 0.55 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall, and preferably, the height of the auditorium adjacent the front wall is approximately 0.5 times the width of the auditorium adjacent the front wall. 
     
     
         156 . A method for constructing a cinema structure, the method comprising providing a floor, providing a ceiling spaced apart above the floor, providing a front wall extending between the floor and the ceiling, providing a rear wall spaced apart from the front wall extending between the floor and the ceiling and defining with the front wall, the floor and the ceiling an auditorium, providing a screen located in the auditorium adjacent the front wall, providing a plurality of rows of seats located in the auditorium, tiering the rows of seats upwardly towards the rear wall, mounting a back row of the seats on a plinth defining an upwardly facing surface on which the seats of the back row are supported, the upwardly facing surface of the plinth of the back row of seats being located at a level below the ceiling of not less than 2 metres, and mounting a projector within the auditorium on the plinth of the back row of seats with a lens port of the projector being at a level below the ceiling of not less than 500 mm from the ceiling.