EP3017722A1

EP3017722A1 - Fitting for removably coupling a chair with a table

Info

Publication number: EP3017722A1
Application number: EP15184247.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Kaarle Mänty; Samu PYYNTIÄ; Pekka Kärkkäinen
Original assignee: Isku Interior Oy
Current assignee: Isku Interior Oy
Priority date: 2014-09-08
Filing date: 2015-09-08
Publication date: 2016-05-11
Anticipated expiration: 2035-09-08
Also published as: EP3017722B1; FI20145782A

Abstract

The invention relates to a fitting (2) for coupling a chair (1) and a table (7) to each other in a removable manner, the table (7) comprising a tabletop (71) which rests on table legs (72) and the chair (1) comprising a back (11) as well as a seat portion (12) provided with chair legs, said seat portion (12) having a sitting section (121) which rests on a horizontal frame (122) of the seat portion, said frame having also connected therewith an upward directed back (11) by way of a support rack (111), whereby on the support rack (111) of the chair's back (11) is mounted fixedly or removably said fitting (2). The fitting (2) has a mouth (6), comprising a mouth bottom (61) as well as an upper jaw (62) of the mouth and a lower jaw (63) of the mouth integral with the mouth bottom (63) which extend at a distance (V) from each other over the entire length thereof, whereby the upper and lower jaws (62, 63) are co-directional with or at an angle relative to each other and between what in a view from the mouth bottom are the furthermost edges (62b, 63b) thereof is left an entrance (64) of the mouth, which, in a view from the mouth bottom, is located in its entirety ahead of the sitting section (121) of the chair's seat portion and opens towards said sitting section, such that between a middle plane (K) of a mouth opening (65) left between the mouth's upper and lower jaws (62, 63) and a middle plane (T) of the tabletop is established an acute angle (a) as the chair (1) has been coupled to the tabletop (71) by way of the fitting (2) by arranging the tabletop (71) in the mouth opening (65) in such a way that the mouth has its trough bottom (61) and its upper jaw (62) bearing against a top surface (71 a) of the tabletop (71) and the mouth has its lower jaw (63) bearing against a bottom surface (71 b) of the tabletop.

Description

The invention relates also to a chair-table combination, wherein the chair has a pair of fittings mounted side by side on the support rack of its back.
The invention relates also to a method for coupling a chair and a table with a fitting of claim 1.
The prior art discloses a few fittings for fixing a chair temporarily, i.e. in a removable manner, to a table for example for the duration of cleaning. One such engaging means is disclosed in US patent application 20130241249 , wherein the engaging means comprises a backrest provided at the back and capable of being rotated to a horizontal position protruding forwards of the chair. The engaging means can then be supported on a tabletop of the table or the tabletop can be fitted between said backrest and an armrest or the seat portion of the chair.
The most serious downside of the aforesaid US patent document 20130241249 is that, if the chair is suspended on a tabletop in such a way that the tabletop is placed between the continuous backrest and the armrest or the seat portion or if the backrest rests upon the tabletop, the angle between the tabletop and the chair cannot be changed. In addition, the adaptation of such a continuous, relatively large backrest to chair structures is an inconvenient process which considerably limits the structure and design of a chair.
On the other hand, the FI utility model publication FI 6942 discloses a chair, wherein between a lower edge of the back portion and a seat portion of the chair is established a space capable of accommodating a tabletop. The main problem with such a fitting composed of a back portion and a seat portion is a poor versatility of the fitting as the tabletop is replaced; a change in the shape of a tabletop necessitates a reshaping of the entire chair. In addition, the bearing of a table against a back portion and a seat portion easily results in the formation of scratches on said components of the chair.
It is an objective of the invention to eliminate the drawbacks appearing in the above-cited prior art.
Accordingly, it is an objective of the invention to provide a fitting for coupling a chair and a table to each other in a removable manner and in a way of enabling an effortless variation of the angle between the chair and a tabletop of the table without having to redesign and reshape the entire chair. In particular, such an angle should be obtained between the chair and the tabletop that the protrusion of chair legs from a front edge of the tabletop will be small. The fitting should further be such that the tabletop is not allowed to bear excessively against the seat portion or the back portion.
The fitting to be provided should further be such that the chair structure or design is limited thereby as little as possible.
The foregoing objectives are attained with a fitting of claim 1, whereby it is possible to provide a chair-table coupling according to claim 12 by using a coupling method as defined in claim 13.
More specifically, the invention relates to a fitting for coupling a chair and a table to each other in a removable manner, the table comprising a tabletop which rests upon table legs and the chair comprising a back as well as a seat portion provided with chair legs, said seat portion including a sitting section which bears against a horizontal frame of the seat portion, said frame having also connected therewith an upward directed back by way of a support rack, whereby on the support rack of the chair's back is mounted the fitting at least in a partially removable manner. The fitting includes a mouth, which comprises a mouth bottom as well as an upper jaw of the mouth and a lower jaw of the mouth integral with the mouth bottom and extending at a distance from each other over the entire length thereof, whereby the upper and lower jaws are co-directional with or at an angle relative to each other and between what in a view from the mouth bottom are the furthermost edges thereof is left a mouth opening of the mouth, which, in a view from the mouth bottom, is located in its entirety ahead of the sitting section of the chair's seat portion and opens towards said sitting section in such a way that between a middle plane of the mouth opening left between the mouth's upper and lower jaws and a middle plane of the tabletop is established an acute angle as the chair has been coupled to the tabletop by way of the fitting by arranging the tabletop in the mouth opening in such a way that the mouth has its trough bottom and its upper jaw bearing against a top surface of the tabletop and the mouth has its lower jaw bearing against a bottom surface of the tabletop.
The concept at least partially removable is used in reference to either the entire fitting being removable or at least a part of the fitting's mouth being removable.
Preferably, the fitting mouth has its trough bottom bearing against an upper edge of the tabletop and the fitting mouth has its lower jaw bearing against a lower edge of the tabletop.
In one preferred embodiment of the invention, in a view from the back's support rack, the fitting mouth has its mouth opening located in its entirety ahead of a vertical plane connecting the chair's backrest and a rear edge of the chair's sitting section.
In this case, the vertical plane is perceived as an upward directed plane, i.e. a vertical plane or a diagonally upward directed plane.
Since the tabletop abuts in the invention against support points of the fitting mouth as opposed to resting against the chair's back portion or seat portion as in similar type of prior art structures, there is attained a major benefit of the tabletop not being scratched by a hard seat portion, nor is the seat portion scratched by the hard tabletop.
Since, in the invention, the fitting or at least a part of the mouth is removable, i.e. replaceable, the replacement of a fitting for the chair is considerably easier than for example in the solution known from the FI utility model publication FI 6942, in which a change of the tabletop necessitates that the chair, particularly the back portion, be completely redesigned.
In a preferred implementation of the invention, the back's support rack is provided with two upward directed tubular attachment braces to each of which is fastened a fitting for coupling a chair and a table to each other in a removable fashion, whereby the fitting is located preferably between the lower edge of a backrest fixed to the back's support rack and the frame of the seat portion.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the fitting mouth is a separate piece, which is coupled removably or fixedly to the back's support rack and which is formed with a horizontal channel with a trough bottom in the shape of a gently curving C.
In yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the trough bottom is a horizontal channel, which is fashioned from the back's support rack, has the shape of a gently curving C and is open at the sides, and which is defined from above and below by the fitting mouth's upper and lower jaws integral with the mouth bottom.
The invention relates also to a chair-table coupling, wherein to a support rack of the chair's back is coupled a pair of fittings which consists of two side-by-side fittings, by way of said pair of fittings the chair being coupled to a tabletop of the table by arranging the tabletop in a mouth opening of each fitting mouth in such a way that between a middle plane of the mouth opening left between upper and lower jaws of the fitting mouth and a plane of the tabletop is established an acute angle such that the mouth has its trough bottom and its upper jaw bearing against a top surface of the tabletop and the fitting mouth has its lower jaw bearing against a bottom surface of the tabletop, specifically in such a way that the mouth has its trough bottom bearing against an upper edge of the tabletop and the mouth has its lower jaw bearing against a lower edge of the tabletop.
The use of a pair of fittings of the invention coupled to the back of a chair provides a capability of lifting the chair to the engagement with an edge of the table for example for the duration of cleaning. When suspended, the chair occupies less space, making it easier to move in the proximity of the table.
When lifted up, the chair is a clear indication for example in restaurants that the seat is vacant.
The invention relates also to a method for coupling a chair and a table to each other with a fitting. The method comprises

moving a tabletop of the table and a pair of fittings mounted on a support rack of the chair's back relative to each other in such a way that each fitting of the pair of fittings has a middle plane of a mouth opening of its fitting mouth co-directional with a middle plane of the tabletop and the mouth opening of each fitting mouth will enclose a part of the tabletop, and continuing the movement until a mouth bottom of each fitting mouth in the pair of fittings reaches a front edge of the tabletop,
allowing the chair to rest gravitationally on the tabletop by way of the pair of fittings, the chair being adapted to rotate in the fitting such that the mouth has its trough bottom and its upper jaw bearing against a top surface of the tabletop and the mouth has its lower jaw bearing against a bottom surface of the tabletop, specifically in such a way that the mouth has its trough bottom bearing against an upper edge of the tabletop and the mouth has its lower jaw bearing against a lower edge of the tabletop.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the chair is allowed to rest gravitationally on a tabletop through a pair of fittings. Hence, between the middle plane of a mouth opening left between upper and lower jaws of each fitting's fitting mouth and the middle plane of the tabletop is established an angle, which depends on a distance between the fitting mouth's upper and lower jaws and on the thickness of a tabletop, said angle being nevertheless such that the maximum protrusion of the chair's rear legs from a vertical plane extending by way of a front edge of the tabletop remains less than 100 mm.
This method, and especially its preferred embodiment of the invention, enables a chair suspended from a table to be adjusted in terms of its angle and protrusion measured from a front edge of the tabletop and the discussed protrusion to be dimensioned to less than 100 mm. This option does not exist in prior art suspension fittings between a chair and a tabletop or the minimum protrusion therein remains about double. When the chair legs have a small maximum protrusion from the front edge of a table, it will be possible to clean surroundings of the table more effectively.
The invention and benefits gained thereby will now be described in even more detail with reference to the accompanying figures.

Fig. 1 shows, in a view obliquely from above, chairs suspended from a tabletop and provided with a fitting of the invention.
Fig. 2 shows, in a view obliquely from behind, chairs likewise suspended from a tabletop and provided with another fitting of the invention.
Fig. 3 shows, in direct lateral views, how a chair provided with a fitting of the invention is coupled to a tabletop.
Figs. 4A-4F show, in lateral views, how a chair provided with two different fittings of the invention are coupled to a tabletop, the chair in figs. 4A-4C being provided with a fitting similar to that of fig. 2 and the chair in figs. 4D-4F being provided with a fitting similar to that of fig. 1.

Next is described briefly which aspect of the invention is to be illustrated in each figure or a series of figures and the main components of a chair, a fitting and a table shown in the figures.
Fig. 1 depicts two chairs 1; 1' and 1; 1" coupled to a tabletop 71 of a table 7. The table 7 comprises the tabletop 71 resting on legs 72 of the table. Each chair 1 comprises a back 11 as well as a seat portion 12 provided with chair legs 15. Each chair 1; 1', 1" is equipped with two fittings 2 according to a first embodiment of the invention, i.e. with a pair of fittings 20; 20' and 20; 20", which are made of metal and which are shown in more detail in figs. 4D-4F. Between the pair of fittings 20; 20" of each chair 1; 1' and 1; 1" as well as the tabletop 71 of the table will be established two fitting-tabletop combinations 3.
Fig. 2 depicts two chairs 1; 1' and 1; 1" similar to those of fig. 1 and coupled to the tabletop 71 of the table 7 and seen obliquely from behind, but now the coupling between chair and table is effected by means of another fitting 2 according to the invention, which is mounted on the chair's back 11 and which comprises a separate piece made of plastics and which is illustrated in even more detail in figs. 4A-4C. Between the pair of fittings 20; 20' and 20; 20" of each chair 1; 1' and 1; 1" as well as the tabletop 71 of the table will again be established two fitting-tabletop combinations 3. Further visible in fig. 2 is slightly more precisely the location of an individual fitting 2 on the back 11 of the chair 1 and a maximum distance Y of the chair's rear leg 15a from a front edge 710c of the table.
Fig. 3 shows sequentially, in a series of views, a coupling method for the chair shown in fig. 1, with a support rack 111 of its back 11 provided with a fitting 2 according to the first embodiment of the invention, to the tabletop 71 of the table 7. The fitting 2 features a fitting mouth 6, which is shown more precisely with figs. 4D-4F and which is coupled to the tabletop 71 for establishing a fitting-tabletop combination 3 (the combination is illustrated more closely in fig. 4F).
Figs. 4A-4C show in more detail with a series of views, as seen from the side, the fitting 2 according to a first embodiment of the invention and how the chair 1 equipped with such a fitting 2 is coupled to the tabletop 71. In this case, the fitting mouth 6 included in the fitting 2 has its mouth bottom 61 provided as an open-sided horizontal channel in the shape of a gently curving C fashioned from the support rack 111 of the back 11 and defined from above and below by the fitting mouth's upper and lower jaws 61, 62 integral with the mouth bottom 61.
Figs. 4D-4F show likewise in more detail with a series of views, as seen from the side, the fitting according to a second embodiment of the invention and how the chair 1 equipped with the fitting 2 is coupled to the tabletop 71. The fitting mouth 6 included in the fitting 2 is now a separate piece, which is coupled removably or fixedly to the support rack 111 of the back 11 and which is formed with a horizontal channel 61, 62, 63 having a trough bottom 61 in the shape of a gently curving C.
The invention will now be explained in more detail with reference to figs. 1-4 and to the general description preceding the same.
As seen from figs. 1-3, the fitting 2 according to the invention is intended for coupling a chair 1 and a table 7 to each other in a removable manner. The table comprises a horizontal tabletop 71 resting on vertical legs 72 of the table. The chair 1 in turn comprises a back 11 as well as a horizontal seat portion 12 provided with chair legs 15. The seat portion 12 has in its forward part a sitting section 121 resting on a tubular frame 122 of the horizontal seat portion 12. With said tubular frame 122 of the seat portion 12 is connected an upward directed back 11 by way of its support rack 111. Said support rack 111 is fashioned from the same material as the tubular frame 122 of the horizontal seat portion 12 and it engages integrally with the seat portion's tubular frame 122. The vertical back support rack 111 turns into a tubular frame of the horizontal seat portion gradually by way of a bend 111 d with a given radius of curvature, said bend 111 d having coupled thereto or being formed with the fitting 2 whose entrance 64 is directed towards the seat portion 12.
The tubular support rack has two upward directed tubular side-by-side extending attachment braces 111 a, 111 b, each of which has the fitting 2 attached to a bend 11 d in its lower part. The pair of attachment braces 111 a and 111 b has its upper parts interconnected with a horizontal bridge 111c and bearing against an upper-middle section of the pair of attachment braces is a vertical back brace 112 which terminates above the fittings 2 mounted on the bend 11 d. Thus, more specifically, each fitting 2 is located between an upward directed bottom edge 112a of the vertical back brace 112 fastened to the vertical attachment braces 111 a, 111 b of the support rack of the back 11 and the horizontal tubular frame 122 of the seat portion 12. Between the bottom edge of the back brace 112 of each tubular attachment brace 111 a, 111 b and the frame 122 of the seat portion is present a bend 111 d extending rearward from a general upright direction of the attachment braces 111 a, 111 b, i.e. from the chair's seat portion towards its rear legs.
The construction of a fitting 2 according to the invention is illustrated more closely in figs. 4A-4F. The fitting 2 has a fitting mouth 6, which comprises a mouth bottom 61, as well as an upper jaw 62 of the mouth and a lower jaw 63 of the mouth integral with the mouth bottom 61 and extending one above the other and at a distance V over the entire length thereof. The upper and lower jaws 62, 63 located one above the other are generally of equal length and horizontal or nearly horizontal, extending from the mouth bottom 61 to the mouth entrance 64 to an equal distance in the direction of the horizontal seat portion 12.
In the fitting according to a first embodiment of the invention (figs. 4D-4F), the mouth bottom 61 is fashioned from a surface of the bend 11 d present in a lower part of the attachment braces 11 a, 11 b and is a vertical component of the fitting mouth 6 in the shape of an open C and is located on the bend 11 d in vertical direction below a bottom edge 112a of the back brace 112 and is directed towards the seat portion. Integral with the trough bottom 61 of the horizontal channel, at a certain distance V from each other, are horizontal upper and lower jaws 62, 63 positioned one above the other.
In a second embodiment of the invention, which is illustrated in figs. 4A-4D, the fitting 2 is a separate piece of plastic which is fixed in a removable manner between a bottom edge 112a of the vertical back brace 112 mounted on an upper part of the vertical attachment braces 111 a, 111 b and a horizontal tubular frame 122 of the seat portion. The separate piece is formed with a horizontal channel 61, 62, 63 with a trough bottom 61 in the shape of a gently curving C. Integral with the horizontal channel's trough bottom 61 at a distance from each other are horizontal upper and lower jaws 62, 63 one above the other.
In the fitting 6 according to either embodiment of the invention, the upper and lower jaws 62, 63 are located one above the other and are co-directional with each other or at an acute angle relative to each other and between what in a view of the mouth bottom 61 are furthermost edges 62b, 63b is left an entrance 64 of the fitting mouth which, in a view from the mouth bottom 61, is located in its entirety ahead of a sitting section 121 of the chair's seat portion and is opening towards said sitting section 121.
Between the horizontal superimposed upper and lower jaws 62, 63, integral at a distance from each other with the horizontal channel's trough bottom 61, is left a specific gap V over the entire length thereof. Between the upper and lower jaws 61, 62 of the fitting mouth 6 is left a horizontal mouth opening 65, by way of whose midline extends a middle plane K which is co-directional with the upper and lower jaws, i.e. horizontal. The horizontal mouth opening 65 is confined in its lengthwise direction by the earlier mentioned entrance 64 as well as by the mouth bottom 61.
Between the middle plane K of a mouth opening 65 left between the upper and lower jaws 61, 62 of the fitting mouth 6 and a middle plane T of the tabletop is established an acute angle a, once the upper and lower jaws 62, 63 of the fitting 2 included in the back 12 is first arranged above and below the tabletop and then the chair has been released to hang freely by the fitting 2 from the tabletop 71. The coupling method will be subsequently described in even more detail. Thereby is reached a condition, wherein the fitting mouth 6 has its trough bottom 61 and upper jaw 62 bearing against a top surface 71 a of the tabletop 71 and the fitting mouth 6 has its lower jaw 63 bearing against a bottom surface 71 b of the tabletop. Specifically, the fitting mouth has its mouth bottom 61 bearing against an upper corner 710a of the tabletop 71 and the fitting mouth has its lower jaw 63 bearing against a lower corner 710b of the tabletop 71.
Preferably, between the middle plane K of the horizontal mouth opening 65 left between the upper and lower jaws 62, 63 of the fitting mouth 6 and the middle plane T of the tabletop is thereby established an acute angle (a), which is 1-20 degrees, once the chair 1 has been coupled by way of the fitting 2 to the tabletop 71.
In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the fitting mouth 6 has its entrance 64, in a view from the back's support rack 111, located in its entirety ahead of a virtual straight line S connecting the chair's backrest 112 and the rear edge 121 a of the chair's sitting section 121.
More specifically, the chair 1 is coupled to the tabletop 71 by way of a pair of fittings 2 of the back as follows:

a pair of fittings 20 mounted on a support rack of the chair's back is positioned relative to the tabletop 71 of a table in such a way that the middle plane K of the mouth opening 65 of the fitting mouth 6 of each fitting 2; 2', 2" in the pair of fittings 20 becomes co-directional with the middle plane T of the tabletop and the mouth opening 65 of each fitting mouth shall enclose a part of a forward portion 710 of the tabletop 71 while the chair has its legs 15 below the tabletop plane T;
the pair of fittings 20 of the chair's back 11 is pushed towards the tabletop 71 until the mouth bottom 61 of each fitting mouth 6 of the pair of fittings 20 reaches a front edge 71; 710c of the tabletop while the chair continues to have its seat portion and chair legs below the tabletop 71,
the chair 1 is allowed to rest gravitationally against the tabletop 71 by way of the pair of fittings 20, whereby the chair rotates upon the fitting 2 in such a way that the mouth has its trough bottom 61 and its upper jaw 62 bearing against a top surface 71 a of the tabletop 71 and the mouth has its lower jaw 63 bearing against a bottom surface 71 b of the tabletop, specifically in such a way that the mouth's trough bottom 63 bears against an upper corner 710a of the tabletop 71 and the mouth's lower jaw 62 bears against a lower corner 710b of the tabletop 71.

The above-described chair and table coupling method enables, by way of the pair of fittings 20, the establishment of a fitting-tabletop combination 3 illustrated more precisely with figs. 1, 2, 3, 4C and 4F, In the fitting-tabletop engagement 3, the support rack 111 of a chair's back 12 has mounted thereon a pair of fittings 20 each of which consists of two side-by-side fittings 2; 2', 2; 2". The chair 1 is coupled, by way of the pair of fittings 20 present on the back 12, to the tabletop 71 by arranging the tabletop 71 into a mouth opening of each fitting mouth 6 and by allowing the chair to rest gravitationally against the tabletop 71 by way of said pair of fittings 20. Hence, between the middle plane J of a mouth opening left between the upper and lower jaws 62, 63 of each fitting mouth 6 and the plane T of a tabletop is established, as described earlier, an acute angle a of 1-20 degrees.
The acute angle a has its size depending on a mutual distance V of the mouth's upper and lower jaws 62, 63 and on the thickness of a tabletop. Adjustment of the acute angle size enables a protrusion Y of the chair's rear legs 15a from a front edge 710c of the tabletop 71 to be retained at less than 100 mm.

The above description discusses just a few embodiments of the invention and it is obvious for a person skilled in the art that there are other possible ways of implementing the invention within the inventive concept presented in the claims.

List of reference numerals for main components

1	Chair
11	back
15	leg
15a	rear leg
15b	front leg
111	support rack for the back
111a,111b	support rack attachment braces
111c	bridge
111d	bend
112	backrest
12	seat portion
121	sitting section
121a	rear edge of the sitting section
122	frame of the seat portion
2	Fitting
20	Pair of fittings
3	Fitting-tabletop combination
4	Floor level
6	Fitting mouth
61	trough bottom, mouth bottom
62	upper jaw of the mouth
63	lower jaw of the mouth
64	entrance of the mouth
65	mouth opening
66	bridge
7	Table
71	tabletop
72	table legs
71 a	top surface of the tabletop
71 b	bottom surface of the tabletop
710	front part of the table
710a	upper corner of the table's front part
710b	lower corner of the table's front part
710c	forward edge of the table's front part

a: Angle between the mouth opening's middle and the tabletop's middle plane
K: Middle plane of the mouth opening
P: Vertical line extending by way of the tabletop's forward edge
S: line connecting the backrest and the sitting section's rear edge
T: Middle plane of the tabletop
Y: Protrusion of the chair's rear legs
V: Interval (distance) between the mouth's upper and lower jaws

Claims

A fitting (2) for coupling a chair (1) and a table (7) to each other in a removable manner, the table (7) comprising a tabletop (71) which rests upon table legs (72) and the chair (1) comprising a back (11) as well as a seat portion (12) provided with chair legs, said seat portion (12) including a sitting section (121) which bears against a horizontal frame (122) of the seat portion to which frame is also linked the upward directed back (11) by way of a support rack (111), whereby on the support rack (111) of the chair's back (11) is mounted the fitting (2) at least in a partially removable manner, characterized in that the fitting (2) includes a mouth (6), which comprises a mouth bottom (61) as well as an upper jaw (62) of the mouth and a lower jaw (63) of the mouth integral with the mouth bottom (61) and extending at a distance (V) from each other over the entire length thereof, whereby the upper and lower jaws (62, 63) are co-directional with or at an angle relative to each other and between what in a view from the mouth bottom are furthermost edges (62b, 63b) thereof is left an entrance (64) of the mouth which, in a view from the mouth bottom, is located in its entirety ahead of the sitting section (121) of the chair's seat portion and opens towards said sitting section in such a way that between a middle plane (K) of a mouth opening (65) left between the mouth's upper and lower jaws (62, 63) and a middle plane (T) of the tabletop is established an acute angle (b) as the chair (1) has been coupled by way of the fitting (2) to the tabletop (71) by arranging the tabletop (71) in the mouth opening (65) in such a way that the mouth has its trough bottom (61) and upper jaw (62) bearing against a top surface (71 a) of the tabletop (71) and the mouth has its lower jaw (63) bearing against a bottom surface (71 b) of the tabletop.
A fitting (2) according to claim 1, characterized in that the mouth has its mouth bottom (61) bearing against an upper corner (710a) of the tabletop (71) and the mouth has its lower jaw (63) bearing against a lower corner (710b) of a forward part of the tabletop (71).
A fitting (2) according to claim 1 or 2 for coupling a chair (1) and a table (7) to each other, characterized in that the back (11) has its support rack (111) provided with two upward directed tubular attachment braces (111a, 111 b) in a removable manner, whereby the fitting (2) is preferably accommodated between a bottom edge of a backrest (112) fixed to the back's support rack (111) and the frame (122) of the seat portion.
A fitting (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the fitting (2) is fixed to a rearward directed bend present between a bottom edge of the backrest (112) of the tubular attachment brace (111 a, 111 b) and the frame (122) of the seat portion.
A fitting (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that, in a view from the back's support rack (111), an entrance (64) of the fitting mouth is located in its entirety ahead of a vertical plane (P) connecting the chair's backrest (112) and a rear edge (121 a) of the chair's sitting section (121).
A fitting (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that between a middle plane of a mouth opening (65) left between the upper and lower jaws (62, 63) of the fitting mouth (6) and a middle plane (T) of the tabletop is established an acute angle (a), which is 1-20 degrees as the chair (1) has been coupled to the tabletop (71) by way of the fitting (2).
A fitting (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the fitting mouth (6) is a separate piece, which is attached removably or fixedly to the back's support rack (111) and which is formed with a horizontal channel (61, 62, 63) having a trough bottom or mouth bottom (61) in the shape of a gently curving C.
A fitting (2) according to any of the preceding claims 1-6, characterized in that the mouth bottom (61) is a gently curving C-shaped, open-sided horizontal channel, which is fashioned from the back's support rack and which is defined from above and below by the fitting mouth's upper and lower jaws (62, 63) integral with the mouth bottom.
A fitting (2) according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the horizontal upper and lower jaws (62, 63) of the mouth deflect after the entrance (64) into a vertical plane coupling by way of a bridge (66) to the back's support rack (111) or to the seat portion's frame (122).
A fitting (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the fitting mouth's lower jaw (63) has its average orientation co-directional with the sitting section (121), preferably the fitting mouth's lower jaw (63) and an upper edge of the sitting section (121) being coplanar with each other.
A fitting (2) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that once the chair (1) is coupled by way of the fitting (2) to the tabletop (71) by arranging a part of the tabletop (1) in the mouth opening (65), between the middle plane (K) of the mouth opening (65) left between the upper and lower jaws (62, 63) of the fitting mouth (6) and the middle plane (T) of the tabletop will be established an angle (a), which depends on a mutual distance (V) between the mouth's upper and lower jaws (62, 63) and on the thickness of a tabletop, such that a protrusion (Y) of the chair's rear legs (15a) from a front edge (710c) of the tabletop remains less than 100 mm.
A chair-table coupling (3), wherein to a support rack of the chair's back is coupled a pair of fittings (20) which consists of two side-by-side fittings (2) according to any of the claims 1-11, by way of which pair of fittings (20) the chair (1) is coupled to a tabletop (71) of the table by arranging the tabletop in a mouth opening (65) of each fitting mouth (6) in such a way that between a middle plane of the mouth opening left between upper and lower jaws (62, 63) of the fitting mouth and a plane of the tabletop is established an acute angle such that the mouth has its mouth bottom (61) and its upper jaw (62) bearing against a top surface (71 a) of the tabletop and the mouth has its lower jaw (63) bearing against a bottom surface (71 b) of the tabletop, specifically in such a way that the mouth has its mouth bottom (61) bearing against an upper corner (710a) of the tabletop (71) and the mouth has its lower jaw (63) bearing against a lower corner (710b) of the tabletop (71).
A method for coupling a chair and a table to each other with a fitting (2) of claim 1, characterized in that the method comprises at least the following steps of:
- moving a tabletop (71) of the table and a pair of fittings (20) mounted on a support rack of the chair's back relative to each other in such a way that each fitting (2; 2', 2") of the pair of fittings has a middle plane (K) of a mouth opening (65) of its fitting mouth (6) co-directional with a middle plane (T) of the tabletop and the mouth opening (65) of each fitting mouth will enclose a part of the tabletop (71), and continuing the movement until a mouth bottom (61) of each fitting mouth in the pair of fittings (20) reaches a front edge (71; 710c) of the tabletop while the chair's seat portion is at the same time arranged below the tabletop (71),

- allowing the chair (1) to rest gravitationally on the tabletop (71) by way of the pair of fittings, the chair being adapted to rotate in the fitting (2) such that the mouth has its mouth bottom (61) and its upper jaw (62) bearing against a top surface (71 a) of the tabletop (71) and the mouth has its lower jaw (63) bearing against a bottom surface (71 b) of the tabletop, specifically in such a way that the mouth has its mouth bottom (61) bearing against an upper corner (710a) of the tabletop (71) and the mouth has its lower jaw (63) bearing against a lower corner (710b) of the tabletop (71).
A method according to claim 13, characterized in that, as the chair (1) is allowed to rest gravitationally on the tabletop (71) by way of the pair of fittings (20), between the middle plane (K) of a mouth opening (65) left between the fitting mouth's upper and lower jaws (62, 63) and the middle plane (T) of the tabletop will be established an angle (a), which depends on a distance (V) between the upper and lower jaws (62, 63) of the fitting mouth (6) and on the thickness of a tabletop, said angle being such that a maximum protrusion (Y) of the chair's rear legs (15a) from a vertical plane extending by way of a front edge of the tabletop remains less than 100 mm.