Patent ID: 8528971

Claim:
A seating spacer configured to fit between two seating units in a seating system having bench-type seating in which a plurality of said seating units are arrayed along and mounted to a laterally-extending platform, each of said seating units having a top wall, mutually parallel side walls, and a front wall intermediate the respective side walls, the seating unit front walls and side walls having substantially equal heights, said seating spacer comprising: a substantially block-shaped body having opposed, spaced-apart seating spacer front and rear walls, opposed, spaced-apart seating spacer first and second side walls, and a seating spacer top wall adjoining the seating spacer front wall, rear wall, and side walls, wherein substantially all of said seating spacer first side wall is configured to abut a seating unit side wall of an adjacent first one of said seating units and wherein substantially all of said seating spacer second side wall is configured to abut a seating unit side wall of an adjacent second one of said seating units, wherein said seating spacer first side wall has a substantially rectangular projection formed thereon and configured to be resiliently received in a complimentary substantially rectangular recess formed in the abutting seating unit side wall of the adjacent first one of said seating units, wherein said seating spacer second side wall has a substantially rectangular recess formed therein and configured to resiliently receive a complimentary substantially rectangular projection formed on the abutting seating unit side wall of the adjacent second one of said seating units, and wherein said seating spacer front wall defines a height that is substantially equal to the front wall and side wall heights of the seating units between which the seating spacer is configured to fit.