Seating system

Abstract

A seating system designed for venues such as stadiums and arenas includes a support beam and a plurality of side armrest assemblies securely attached to the support beam. Each assembly supports a seat and backrest structure positioned between adjacent side armrest assemblies. Notably, at least one side armrest assembly and the seat and/or backrest are engineered to allow for a range of free play adjustment along a longitudinal axis parallel to the support beam.

1 . A seating system for venues such as stadiums and arenas, the seating system comprising:
 a support beam;   a plurality of side armrest assemblies secured to the support beam;   a plurality of seats and backrests, one seat and/or one backrest being attached between each adjacent pair of side armrest assemblies; and   at least one side armrest assembly and the seat and/or backrest configured to provide a range of free play adjustment in a longitudinal direction parallel to the support beam, the free play adjustment permitting adjustment of a position of the seat and backrest relative to the side armrest assembly before securing the seat and/or backrest to the side armrest assembly.   
     
     
         2 . The seating system of  claim 1 , wherein the range of free play adjustment is between plus or minus 5 mm to 20 mm. 
     
     
         3 . The seating system of  claim 1 , wherein the range of free play adjustment is provided by a connection between the side armrest assembly and the seat and/or backrest. 
     
     
         4 . The seating system of  claim 1 , wherein an angular free play adjustment is provided. 
     
     
         5 . The seating system of  claim 1 , wherein the support beam includes elongate ports or channels housing cables. 
     
     
         6 . The seating system of  claim 5 , wherein the cables connect to some or all of the seats, and are connected in a daisy chain or an overlapping configuration. 
     
     
         7 . The seating system of  claim 5 , wherein the cables include pre-fitted plug and play connectors. 
     
     
         8 . The seating system of  claim 5 , wherein electrical enclosures are clamped to an underside of the support beam, accommodating connections between the cables. 
     
     
         9 . A seating system apparatus, the seating system apparatus comprising:
 a seating rail with a plurality of elongate ports;   each port containing a plurality of modular cables;   electrical enclosures clamped to an underside of the seating rail, accommodating the modular cables;   armrests featuring:   junction boxes at the seating rail and providing cable routes;   a housing having a cavity therein;   a seating rail engagement structure integrated into the housing;   at least one seating rail port extending through the housing, wherein the seating rail port is configured to receive modular cables for power and data transmission;   a cover cap for the cavity of the housing, the cover cap configured for closure and servicing;   at least one armrest port extending through the housing, configured to allow cables to pass from the seating rail into the housing and electrically connect with at least one electronic accessory of the armrest;   a connection block within the enclosure for connecting DC cables to a transformer;   the modular cables being chosen from:   a first set of modular cables comprising a plurality of cable lengths extending from one seat to the next seat, each modular cable being connectable to a loop extending through the junction box and armrest, such that the first set of modular cables can be connected in series, each cable length being equipped with pre-fitted plug and play connectors;   a second set of modular cables comprising a plurality of cable lengths, each extending from an electrical enclosure to a respective seat and extending through the junction box and armrest of the respective seat, such that the second set of modular cables can be connected in an overlapping manner, each cable length being equipped with pre-fitted plug and play connectors; and   a third set of modular cables comprising a plurality of cable lengths, each extending from one electrical enclosure to another electrical enclosure, each cable length being equipped with pre-fitted plug and play connectors.   
     
     
         10 . The seating system apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the electrical enclosures include a transformer to convert high voltage mains power to lower voltage DC power. 
     
     
         11 . The seating system apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the at least one electronic accessory of the armrest includes a heating device for heating the respective seat and backrest, a cooling device for cooling the respective seat and backrest, charging points and controls. 
     
     
         12 . The seating system apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein a range of free play adjustment is provided by a connection between the armrest and the seat and/or backrest, and wherein the modular cables allow for the range of free play adjustment. 
     
     
         13 . A seating system for venues such as stadiums and arenas, the seating system comprising:
 a support beam;   a plurality of side armrest assemblies secured to the support beam; and   a plurality of seats and backrests, one seat and one back rest being attached between each adjacent pair of side armrest assemblies.   
     
     
         14 . The seating system of  claim 13 , wherein the plurality of seats and backrests include at least a first set of seats and backrests having a first width, and a second set of seats and backrests having a second width. 
     
     
         15 . The seating system of  claim 13 , wherein the support beam has a profiled cross-section, and each side armrest assembly has a clamping section for secure attachment to the profiled cross-section of the support beam. 
     
     
         16 . The seating system of  claim 13 , wherein the seats have tangs and the side armrest assemblies have pivots with cavities corresponding to the tangs, the tangs being secured within the pivots to prevent relative movement or rotation between the seats and the side armrest assemblies. 
     
     
         17 . The seating system of  claim 13 , wherein the backrests are securely fixed between pairs of side armrest assemblies using flanges and threaded holes on the side armrest assemblies. 
     
     
         18 . The seating system of  claim 13 , wherein the side armrest assemblies, seats, and backrests collectively permit a range of adjustment of plus or minus 0.5 inches (12-13 mm) in seat width. 
     
     
         19 . The seating system of  claim 13 , wherein the side armrest assemblies, seat, and backrest permit a range of adjustment of plus or minus 7.5 degrees in coupling angle. 
     
     
         20 . The seating system of  claim 13 , wherein the seats have pivot cavities that receive respective pivot elements partially therein, and wherein the pivot elements mount to respective side armrest assemblies. 
     
     
         21 . The seating system of  claim 20 , wherein the pivot elements have slotted openings, and wherein the pivot elements mount to the respective side armrest assemblies via threaded fasteners that extend through the slotted openings and into the respective side armrest assemblies. 
     
     
         22 . The seating system of  claim 21 , wherein the slotted opening allows for greater than 10 mm of movement of the respective pivot element relative to the respective side armrest assembly along a pivot axis of the respective pivot element. 
     
     
         23 . The seating system of  claim 20 , wherein the pivot elements are partially received within the respective pivot cavities and allow for greater than 5 mm of movement of the pivot element relative to the respective seat along a pivot axis of the pivot element. 
     
     
         24 . The seating system of  claim 23 , wherein the pivot element and the pivot cavity are formed to limit pivotal movement of the seat relative to the pivot element within a range of pivotal movement. 
     
     
         25 . The seating system of  claim 20 , wherein the pivot element is formed of a glass-filled polymeric material that is at least 50 percent glass-filled. 
     
     
         26 . The seating system of  claim 20 , wherein at least a portion of the seat that defines the pivot cavity is formed of a glass-filled polymeric material that is at least 50 percent glass-filled. 
     
     
         27 . A method for installing a seating system in venues with varying row lengths, the method comprising:
 providing a support beam;   securing a plurality of side assemblies to the support beam; and   attaching one seat and one backrest between each adjacent pair of side assemblies.   
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein the support beam is curved so as to follow curvature and shape of an arena or venue. 
     
     
         29 . A seating system for venues such as stadiums and arenas, the seating system comprising:
 a support beam;   a plurality of side armrest assemblies secured to the support beam;   a plurality of seats and backrests, one seat and one backrest being attached between each adjacent pair of side armrest assemblies;   an electrical system integrated into the support beam, the electrical system including:   power input means for receiving mains power;   power distribution means for supplying DC power to each seat; and   data transmission means for connecting data cables between each seat to create a daisy-chained data connection.   
     
     
         30 . The seating system of  claim 29 , wherein the support beam includes channels for accommodating a cable for the mains power, DC power cables, and data cables. 
     
     
         31 . The seating system of  claim 29 , wherein the side armrest assemblies include charging points and controls. 
     
     
         32 . The seating system of  claim 29 , wherein the side armrest assemblies include heating devices for heating the respective seat and backrest and cooling devices for cooling the respective seat and backrest.