GB2217974A

GB2217974A - A hand-held device for picking up objects

Info

Publication number: GB2217974A
Application number: GB8810755A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Thomas White; Timothy John Golding
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1988-05-06
Filing date: 1988-05-06
Publication date: 1989-11-08
Anticipated expiration: 2008-05-06
Also published as: GB8810755D0; GB2217974B

Abstract

A hand-held device for picking up objects, for example dogs mess, is constructed by folding a cardboard blank into a shape which has two hinged jaws (10, 12). The device can be folded flat and unfolded when required for use. One jaw may be smaller than the other so that it moves inside the other jaw when closed. The smaller jaw may have a serrated or castellated edge (16). There are means (18, 20) to facilitate use of the device by a single hand. <IMAGE>

Description

TITLE: A HAND-HELD DEVICE FOR PICKING UP OBJECTS This invention relates to a hand-held device which is designed particularly for disposing of dog mess but which may be used in other applications where it is necessary to pick up small objects without touching them.

Devices of this type for the disposal of dogs mess are known, but the known devices suffer from two main disadvantages. Firstly they tend to nip the object being picked up rather than picking it up cleanly, and secondly they are extremely bulky to carry around.

According to the present invention there is provided a hand-held device for picking up objects, the device comprising two jaws hinged to one another, with one jaw being smaller.than the other jaw so that the one jaw moves inside the other jaw when the jaws close, and means on the outside of each jaw to enable the device to be held in one hand and for the jaws to be opened and closed by the fingers of the same hand. The relative size of the two jaws results in the object being pushed by the smaller jaw inside the larger jaw rather than being nipped between the two jaws.

In this way it is much more likely that the object will be picked up cleanly, and it will be appreciated that the nipping action performed by the prior art device can have disastrous results when the object being picked up is a piece of dog mess.

In one embodiment the smaller jaw has a serrated or castellated edge.

The means on the outside of the jaws may take the form of loops into which fingers can be inserted so that the device is both held by the fingers and can be opened and closed by the same fingers.

Furthermore, it is preferred that the device be constructed by folding a suitably shaped cardboard blank which can be held in an assembled condition either by interengaging tabs and slots, or by suitably positioned areas of pressure sensitive adhesive.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a hand-held device for picking up objects, the device comprising two jaws hinged to one another and means on the outside of each jaw to enable the device to be held in one hand and for the jaws to be opened and closed by the fingers of the same hand, wherein both jaws and the means on the outside of each jaw are all formed by folding a single cardboard blank.

Preferably the blank can be folded into a small, flat form so that it can be placed in for example a shirt pocket and can be refolded from this compact form to its operating condition.

The device may be combined with a plastics bag into which the assembled device together with an object which has been picked up may be dropped, for disposal.

According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a cardboard blank adapted to be folded to form a hand-held device for picking up objects as set forth above.

The invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which; Figure 1 is a perspective view of a device in accordance with the invention; and Figure 2 is a plan view of a cardboard blank from which the device of Figure 1 is folded.

The device shown in Figure 1 has a smaller jaw 10 and a larger jaw 12 joined along a hinge line 14. The size of the jaw 10 is such that it can completely enter the jaw 12, ie in both longitudinal and transverse dimensions it is smaller than the jaw 12.

At the leading edge of the jaw 10 there is a castellated formation 16 to assist in pushing the object to be picked up into the other jaw. When picking up dog mess from grass, the castellated jaw passing under the mess helps to separate the mess from the grass.

On the back of each jaw, a pair of tabs 18, 20 are engaged with one another and form loops into which a finger and a thumb of one hand can be inserted with the finger holding one jaw and the thumb holding the other. The jaws can then be opened and closed by moving the finger and thumb. There may be a series of slits formed in one or both tabs 18, 20 so that the tabs can be engaged with each other to provide loops of various sizes.

The device is used by placing the larger jaw 12 on the ground or other surface where the object is and then moving the jaw 10 so that the leading castellated edge lifts and pushes the object into the larger jaw. When the object being picked up is a piece of dog mess, the jaws are then held closed, the finger and thumb are removed from the loop and the whole device is disposed of, possibly after having been first inserted and sealed inside a plastic bag.

Figure 2 shows the cardboard blank from which the device in Figure 1 is constructed. In the blank dotted lines indicate fold lines and solid lines indicate cut lines.

To form the two jaws, the blank is folded at all the fold lines including the hinge line 14, and locking tabs 22 are positioned from the outside through slits 24 where they are locked by lateral movement to engage the cut out on the edges of the tabs 22 over the ends of the slots 24. This engagement of the tabs in this way automatically brings the side walls 26 of the jaws into the correct position. Once the jaws have been thus folded it is only necessary to connect the tabs 18, 20 to one another to form the two loops for the finger and thumb, and thus the whole folding operation can be done in a very short time.

Additional fold lines 28 on the tabs 18, 20 allow the side walls 26 with their attached tabs to be folded inside the main part of the blank so that the device can be folded into a compact, rectangular package. If the device is sold with an accompanying plastic bag for disposal purposes, the plastic bag may also be folded inside the small rectangular package which can then be carried for example in the breast pocket of a shirt.

Figure 2 shows how the upper main part of the blank 30 is narrower than the lower part 32 so that the upper part forms the smaller jaw 10 and the lower part forms the larger jaw 12.

In place of the tab/slot engagements shown in Figure 2, the device may be provided with areas of pressure sensitive adhesive so that the appropriate parts can easily be secured to one another after having been folded as shown.

The adhesive may be on one only of the surfaces to be joined and may then be initially protected by a peel-off layer.

Preferably however both surfaces to be joined are coated with an adhesive of the type used on self-seal envelopes.

It will be appreciated that the device is intended to be used once and then discarded and to this end it can be made from light card.

Since the folded device is so small and compact it can easily be carried around ready for use. The construction as a cardboard blank means that production costs can be kept very low.

Claims

Claims:

1. A hand- held device for picking up objects, the device comprising two jaws hinged to one another, with one jaw being smaller than the other jaw so that the one jaw moves inside the other jaw when the jaw is closed, and means on the outside of each jaw to enable the device to be held in one hand and for the jaws to be opened and closed by the fingers of the same hand.

2. A device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the smaller jaw has a serrated or castellated edge.

3. A device as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the means on the outside of the jaws takes the form of loops into which the fingers can be inserted so that the device is both held by the fingers and can be opened and closed by the same fingers.

4. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, which has been constructed from folding a suitably shaped cardboard blank.

5. A device as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the cardboard blank is held in an assembled condition by interengaging tabs and slots.

6. A device as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the cardboard blank is held in an assembled condition by suitably positioned areas of pressure sensitive adhesive.

7. A hand-held device for picking up objects, the device comprising two jaws hinged to one another and means on the outside of each jaw to enable the device to be held in one hand and for the jaws to be opened and closed by the fingers of the same hand, wherein both jaws and the means on the outside of each jaw are all formed by folding a single cardboard blank.

8. A device as claimed in Claim 7, wherein the blank can alternatively be folded into a small, flat package.

9. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, combined with a plastics bag into which the assembled device together with an object which has been picked up maybe dropped.

10. A cardboard blank adapted to be folded to form a handheld device for picking up objects as claimed in any preceding claim.

11. A hand-held device for picking up objects substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

12. A cardboard blank adapted to be folded to form a handheld device for picking up objects, substantially as herein described with reference to Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings.