GB2122077A

GB2122077A - Improved walking stick

Info

Publication number: GB2122077A
Application number: GB08312032A
Authority: GB
Inventors: John Robertson Herrod
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1982-06-15
Filing date: 1983-05-03
Publication date: 1984-01-11
Also published as: GB8312032D0; AU1580083A; NZ200963A

Abstract

A walking stick 2 which may be adjustable in length and which is fitted with a pick-up device 5 which includes a curved arm 7 pivotally secured near the foot of the stick and arranged to be pivoted towards and away from said foot 6 by a pivoting means which is controlled from a position adjacent the handle of the stick. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improved walking stick The present invention relates to an improved walking stick.

Many of the people who use walking sticks do so because they have stiffened joints due to e.g.

arthritis or rheumatism, and such people frequently have difficulty in bending down to pick up objects and/or in stretching to pick up distance objects. To be of practical value, any device for picking up objects must be in a. form in which it is always to hand, since its usefulness is lost if the user has to get up to fetch it. It its therefore an object of the present invention to-provide a walking stick which not only functions as a conventional walking stick but aiso enables the user to pick up objects without having to reach out or bend down.

The present invention provides-a walking stick comprising: a straight supporting portion having a handle secured to one end thereof and a foot secured to the other end thereof; and a pick-up device which inciudes an arm pivoted to said straight portion, said arm being shaped and dimensioned so as to extend from said pivot point in a curve towards said foot terminating adjacent said foot, and means for pivoting said arm towards and away from said foot.

Preferably, the pivoting means consists of a shaft whose longitudinal axis is substantially parallel to that of the straight portion, one end of the shaft being pivoted to the arm and the other end being either pivoted to, or slidably secured to, the straight portion, adjacent the handle.

By way of example only, two preferred embodiments of the present invention are described in detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a side view of a first embodiment of the invention; and Fig. 2 is a side view of a second embodiment of the invention.

Referring to the drawings, a walking stick 2 comprises a straight supporting portion 3, a curved handle 4, and a pick-up device 5. The portion 3 is formed integrally with the handle 4 and the free end of the portion 3 is fitted with a rubber foot 6, to prevent the stick from slipping on hard floors. The portion 3 and handle 4 may be made of any suitable material e.g. wood, or aluminium-alioy tube.

Referring to Fig. 1 , the pick-up device 5 comprises a curved arm 7 which is pivotally mounted near one end to a collar 8 secured around the straight portion 3 of the stick at a position such that the other end 9 of the arm 7 lies opposite the foot 6. The arm 7 curves towards the foot 6, and the surface of the end 9 adjacent the foot 6 is covered with a non-slip material (e.g.

textured rubber) so that the objects can be grasped between the end 9 and the foot 6 without slipping.

The end 10 of the arm 7 projects beyond the collar 8, and one end of a shaft 11 is pivoted to said end 10. The other end of the shaft 11 is -pivoted to a lever 12 which is pivoted to a second collar 1 3 secured around the straight portion 3 of the stick adjacent the handle 4. The free end of the lever 12 is curved upwards so that it can be grasped easily by a person holding the handle 4.

The longitudinal axes of the shaft 11 and the straight portion 3 are substantially parallel.

In the position shown in Fig. 1 , the gap y between the foot 6 and the end 9 can be widened by pushing the lever 1 2 in the direction of arrow A.

The stick is then positioned by the user so that the object to be picked up lies in the gap y, and the end 9 is closed on the object by pulling the lever 12 in the direction of arrow B until the object is firmly grasped between the foot 6 and the end 9, and thus can be brought towards the user by moving the stick.

Turning now to Fig. 2, the pick-up device 5 comprises an arm 15 one end of which is formed with an end 1 6 identical in construction to the end 9 described with reference to Fig. 1. The other end of the arm 1 5 terminates in a y-shaped yoke 17 each limb of which is pivoted to a collar 18 mounted on the portion 3. A shaft 1 9 is pivoted at one end to the junction of the yoke 17; the longitudinal axis of the shaft 1 9 is substantially parallel to that of the portion 3 and is held siidably in this position by a bracket 21 secured to the portion 3 adjacent to the handle 4, and surrounding the shaft 19. The other end of the shaft 1 9 is fitted with a knob 22 so that it may be grasped easily by a user.

The stick shown in Fig. 2 is operated in broadiy the same manner as that shown in Fig. 1 , except that the pick-up device 5 operates in the opposite sense i.e. to widen the gap y the knob 22 must be pulled upwards in the direction of arrow B, and to close the gap y on an object to be grasped between the foot 6 and end 16, the knob 22 must be pushed in the direction of arrow A.

In both of the described embodiments, the shafts 11 or 19 and handle 12 or knob 22 may be mounted on the opposite side of the stick to that illustrated; if this is done, the shafts will be moved in the opposite sense to that described above.

The collars 8, 13 and 1 8 preferably are formed as open rings, to allow easy fitting to any diameter of the stick. The shafts 11, 1 9 may be adjustable in length to accommodate different stick lengths.

In both of the above described embodiments, the straight supporting portion 3 of the stick and the shafts 11, 19 are adjustable in length e.g. by making said portion 3 and said shaft 11, 1 9 as two telescopic portions securable in any of a range of selected portions by a suitable securing means such as a spring-loaded push-button.

It is also envisaged that existing walking-sticks may be modified by fitting the pick-up device 5, of either type, to them.

1. A walking stick comprising: a straight supporting portion having a handle secured to one end thereof and a foot secured to the other end

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. SPECIFICATION Improved walking stick The present invention relates to an improved walking stick. Many of the people who use walking sticks do so because they have stiffened joints due to e.g. arthritis or rheumatism, and such people frequently have difficulty in bending down to pick up objects and/or in stretching to pick up distance objects. To be of practical value, any device for picking up objects must be in a. form in which it is always to hand, since its usefulness is lost if the user has to get up to fetch it. It its therefore an object of the present invention to-provide a walking stick which not only functions as a conventional walking stick but aiso enables the user to pick up objects without having to reach out or bend down. The present invention provides-a walking stick comprising: a straight supporting portion having a handle secured to one end thereof and a foot secured to the other end thereof; and a pick-up device which inciudes an arm pivoted to said straight portion, said arm being shaped and dimensioned so as to extend from said pivot point in a curve towards said foot terminating adjacent said foot, and means for pivoting said arm towards and away from said foot. Preferably, the pivoting means consists of a shaft whose longitudinal axis is substantially parallel to that of the straight portion, one end of the shaft being pivoted to the arm and the other end being either pivoted to, or slidably secured to, the straight portion, adjacent the handle. By way of example only, two preferred embodiments of the present invention are described in detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a side view of a first embodiment of the invention; and Fig. 2 is a side view of a second embodiment of the invention. Referring to the drawings, a walking stick 2 comprises a straight supporting portion 3, a curved handle 4, and a pick-up device 5. The portion 3 is formed integrally with the handle 4 and the free end of the portion 3 is fitted with a rubber foot 6, to prevent the stick from slipping on hard floors. The portion 3 and handle 4 may be made of any suitable material e.g. wood, or aluminium-alioy tube. Referring to Fig. 1 , the pick-up device 5 comprises a curved arm 7 which is pivotally mounted near one end to a collar 8 secured around the straight portion 3 of the stick at a position such that the other end 9 of the arm 7 lies opposite the foot 6. The arm 7 curves towards the foot 6, and the surface of the end 9 adjacent the foot 6 is covered with a non-slip material (e.g. textured rubber) so that the objects can be grasped between the end 9 and the foot 6 without slipping. The end 10 of the arm 7 projects beyond the collar 8, and one end of a shaft 11 is pivoted to said end 10. The other end of the shaft 11 is -pivoted to a lever 12 which is pivoted to a second collar 1 3 secured around the straight portion 3 of the stick adjacent the handle 4. The free end of the lever 12 is curved upwards so that it can be grasped easily by a person holding the handle 4. The longitudinal axes of the shaft 11 and the straight portion 3 are substantially parallel. In the position shown in Fig. 1 , the gap y between the foot 6 and the end 9 can be widened by pushing the lever 1 2 in the direction of arrow A. The stick is then positioned by the user so that the object to be picked up lies in the gap y, and the end 9 is closed on the object by pulling the lever 12 in the direction of arrow B until the object is firmly grasped between the foot 6 and the end 9, and thus can be brought towards the user by moving the stick. Turning now to Fig. 2, the pick-up device 5 comprises an arm 15 one end of which is formed with an end 1 6 identical in construction to the end 9 described with reference to Fig. 1. The other end of the arm 1 5 terminates in a y-shaped yoke 17 each limb of which is pivoted to a collar 18 mounted on the portion 3. A shaft 1 9 is pivoted at one end to the junction of the yoke 17; the longitudinal axis of the shaft 1 9 is substantially parallel to that of the portion 3 and is held siidably in this position by a bracket 21 secured to the portion 3 adjacent to the handle 4, and surrounding the shaft 19. The other end of the shaft 1 9 is fitted with a knob 22 so that it may be grasped easily by a user. The stick shown in Fig. 2 is operated in broadiy the same manner as that shown in Fig. 1 , except that the pick-up device 5 operates in the opposite sense i.e. to widen the gap y the knob 22 must be pulled upwards in the direction of arrow B, and to close the gap y on an object to be grasped between the foot 6 and end 16, the knob 22 must be pushed in the direction of arrow A. In both of the described embodiments, the shafts 11 or 19 and handle 12 or knob 22 may be mounted on the opposite side of the stick to that illustrated; if this is done, the shafts will be moved in the opposite sense to that described above. The collars 8, 13 and 1 8 preferably are formed as open rings, to allow easy fitting to any diameter of the stick. The shafts 11, 1 9 may be adjustable in length to accommodate different stick lengths. In both of the above described embodiments, the straight supporting portion 3 of the stick and the shafts 11, 19 are adjustable in length e.g. by making said portion 3 and said shaft 11, 1 9 as two telescopic portions securable in any of a range of selected portions by a suitable securing means such as a spring-loaded push-button. It is also envisaged that existing walking-sticks may be modified by fitting the pick-up device 5, of either type, to them. CLAIMS

1. A walking stick comprising: a straight supporting portion having a handle secured to one end thereof and a foot secured to the other end thereof; and a pick-up device which includes an arm pivoted to said straight portion, said arm being shaped and dimensioned so astro extend from said pivot point in a curve towards said foot, terminating adjacent said foot, and means for pivoting said arm towards and away from said foot.

2. The walking stick as claimed in Claim 1 wherein said pivoting means comprises a shaft the longitudinal axis of which is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of said straight portion, one end of said shaft being pivoted to the arm and the other end of said shaft being pivoted to a trigger which is pivoted to the stick adjacent the handle.

3. The walking stick as claimed in Claim 1 wherein said pivoting means comprises a shaft the longitudinal axis of which is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of said straight portion, one end of said shaft being pivoted to the arm and the other end of said shaft being slidably secured to said straight portion adjacent the handle.

4. The walking stick as claimed in Claim 2 or Claim 3 wherein the straight supporting portion of the stick and the shaft of the pivoting means both are adjustable in length.

5. A walking stick substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings.

6. A walking stick substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in Fig. 2 of the accompanying drawings.