Device for retrieving items

A manually-operable device for use by tree stand hunters for retrieving items that have been left on the ground or that have fallen from the hunter or tree stand onto the ground, includes an elongated shank, a rope having one end attached to the shank and an opposite end for grasping by the hunter situated in the tree stand, a plurality of flexible arms attached to the shank which are movable from an open position to a gripping position and are radially disposed circumjacent the longitudinal axis of the shank, a trigger plate slidably mounted on the arms for selectively spreading the arms and selectively closing the arms so that the item can be retrieved and released, and a weighted disc mounted on the shank for linear, reciprocable movement thereon so that the movement of the disc on the shank causes the disc to contact the trigger plate thereby forcing the trigger plate to slide on the arms, thus drawing the arms toward the shank axis so that the arms engage and retrieve the item.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to devices for retrieving items and, more 
particularly, pertains to a manually-operable device usable by a hunter 
situated in a tree stand for retrieving items that have been left on the 
ground or that have fallen from the tree stand onto the ground. 
Contemporary hunting can take many forms, including: a single hunter 
walking slowly through a field in order to flush game out of the 
undergrowth; a party of hunters divided into groups with one party driving 
the game into a clearing or through an open field and the other party 
located at an unhindered shooting vantage; or a solitary, camouflaged 
archery hunter concealed behind shrubbery or trees patiently waiting for 
the game animal to come into range. 
Another popular form of hunting is tree stand hunting. Tree stands come in 
a variety of designs, but all tree stands are essentially two-piece items 
that include a metal structure for gripping the tree trunk so that both 
portions of the tree stand can be locked onto the tree trunk adjacent the 
base 180 degrees opposite each other. In order to walk the tree stand up 
the trunk, the hunter, while sitting in the seat portion, must 
continuously depress and release a peddle or treadle, causing the metal 
structure to firmly grip the tree trunk so that the tree stand can be 
slowly walked up the trunk to the desired height. It is a slow and arduous 
task to walk the tree stand up the tree trunk. Upon reaching the desired 
height, which may be fifteen or twenty feet above the ground, the hunter 
locks the two portions of the tree stand to the tree and begins to arrange 
and prepare his equipment for hunting. 
Tree stand seats are small and compact, and the tree stands themselves do 
not provide an adequate flat surface area or hooks, pegs, handles, shelves 
or compartments for holding or storing items. The hunter does not want to 
leave any piece of equipment or any item on the ground adjacent the tree 
for fear that the unfamiliar item would spook the game or that the human 
scent exuded, however minute, would provide a warning and scare off the 
species of game animal being hunted. Thus, should any piece of equipment 
or item, such as binoculars, grunt calls, arrows, quivers, thermos, hats, 
gloves, rope, knives, small food and snack packages fall onto the ground, 
the hunter must unlock the tree stand and slowly and laboriously walk the 
tree stand down the tree trunk until the hunter reaches the base of the 
tree trunk, whereupon the hunter unstraps himself from the seat and 
retrieves the item. Then the hunter must strap himself back into the seat 
and commence the slow and difficult process of again walking the tree 
stand up the tree trunk to the appropriate position. 
During this entire process of coming down the tree to retrieve the item and 
then walking the tree stand up the tree, the hunter runs the obvious 
danger of exposing his position to any game animals in the area and 
leaving his scent upon the ground. Once the hunter is situated in the tree 
stand, he does not want to leave the tree stand until he is done hunting 
because of the labor and time involved in such movement and the high 
likelihood that such movement, noise, and human scent left behind will 
spook and frighten off game animals that may otherwise come within the 
hunter's range. 
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
In order to avoid the time and labor involved in walking the tree stand up 
and down the tree trunk to retrieve items that have inadvertently fallen 
from the hunter's clothing or from the tree stand, the hunter could 
possibly devise a makeshift retrieval device consisting of a grappling 
hook tied to one end of a twenty-foot long rope or perhaps some type of 
magnet and hook arrangement. U.S. Pat. No. 1,271,435 discloses a device 
for retrieving clothing items that have fallen from a clothesline. The 
device includes two elongated members each of which terminates with 
oppositely-disposed hooks and a weighted ring which can slide along the 
elongated members. 
However, neither the above-described makeshift devices nor the clothes hook 
of the above-cited patent can retrieve fallen items like pencil-thin 
arrows, a snuff can or a candy bar. Moreover, the above devices would be 
awkward and difficult to maneuver on uneven terrain dotted with rocks, 
fallen trees, decaying logs, and blanketed with a dense undergrowth. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention comprehends a device for retrieving items and, more 
particularly, comprehends a device manually operable by a hunter seated in 
a tree stand for retrieving hunting equipment, items and personal 
belongings inadvertently left on the ground or that have fallen from the 
hunter's clothing or tree stand onto the ground adjacent the trunk of the 
tree supporting the tree stand. 
The item retrieval device of the present invention includes an elongated 
shank which defines a longitudinal axis and has a first end and an 
opposite second end. Projecting in axial alignment from the first end of 
the shank is an eye and to which one end of a rope, approximately fifteen 
to twenty-five feet long, is tied. The other end of the rope is held by 
the hunter for manipulation of the device during item retrieval. Secured 
to the second end of the shank are a plurality of elongated, flexible, 
curvilinear arms, and the arms are radially disposed about the 
longitudinal axis of the shank. The distal portion of each arm terminates 
with an integral finger for grasping the item. 
The arms are capable of moving between an open or release position and a 
gripping position in order to grasp and retrieve the item from the ground 
and then release the item after the hunter has drawn the device holding 
the retrieved item up to the tree stand. A circular trigger plate is 
mounted on the arms adjacent the second end of the shank, and the trigger 
plate includes a plurality of apertures radially spaced about the 
periphery of the trigger plate so that one respective arm extends through 
each aperture. This allows the trigger plate to travel in a 
linearly-reciprocable manner on the arms. A locking rod or pin is attached 
to the trigger plate transverse to the diameter of the plate, and a 
portion of the each opposed end of the locking rod extends past the 
periphery of the plate. Thus, the hunter can grasp the opposed ends of the 
rod in order to pull the trigger plate toward the second end of the shank 
thereby causing the arms to radially separate to the open position. 
A weighted disc is mounted on the shank and has a central opening which 
allows the disc to freely travel in a linearly-reciprocable manner on the 
shank. As the device is dropped on the item, the weighted disc strikes the 
trigger plate and forces the trigger plate to travel downward on the arms 
toward the fingers, thereby drawing the arms radially together so that the 
fingers can grip the item for its retrieval by the hunter. 
It is an objective of the present invention to provide a device for 
retrieving items that have been left on the ground or that have fallen 
from a hunter's tree stand which is lightweight, easy to operate, and 
capable of storage in the hunter's hunting jacket or pants pocket. 
It is another objective of the present invention to provide a device for 
retrieving hunting equipment and items that can grasp and hold a wide 
variety of irregularly-shaped items. 
Yet another objective of the present invention is to provide a device for 
retrieving items which can retrieve hunting equipment and items from 
rocky, cluttered, uneven terrain. 
These and other objects, features, and aspects of the present invention 
will be better understood from the following detailed description of the 
preferred embodiment when read in conjunction with the appended drawing 
figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Illustrated in FIGS. 1-6 is a manually-operable item retrieval device 10 
for grasping or grabbing stationary items at one location or position and 
drawing and retrieving the items by pulling the device 10 upward to a 
second location or position at a greater elevation than the original 
location of the item. Specifically, the item retrieval device 10 is 
predominantly for use by tree stand hunters to retrieve hunting items and 
equipment that have either been inadvertently left on the ground by the 
hunter or which have fallen from the hunter as the tree stand is being 
walked up the tree trunk to the desired height. In addition, upon reaching 
the desired height on the tree and having locked the tree stand to the 
tree trunk, the item retrieval device 10 can then be used to retrieve 
items that have accidentally fallen from or inadvertently been knocked off 
the tree stand onto the ground. It is advisable not to use the item 
retrieval device 10 to pick up archery bows or rifles that are laying on 
the ground, but other items, such as grunt calls, quivers, arrows, hats, 
gloves, binoculars, and even a thermos jug can be retrieved. The device 10 
is lightweight and sized to easily fit into the pocket of a hunting jacket 
or the pocket of camo hunting pants. 
As shown in FIGS. 1-6, the item retrieval device 10 includes an elongated 
shaft, handle or shank 12 having a first end 14 and an opposite second end 
16. The shank 12 can be solid throughout its length or the shank 12 can 
include a passageway or bore extending therethrough and coequal in length 
with the shank 12. The shank 12 is a generally rigid, non-bendable 
structure and defines an axis which extends longitudinally through the 
body of the shank 12. The shank 12 can also be manufactured as a solid, 
cylindrical, elongated object. Attached to the first end 14 of the shank 
12 and projecting in axial alignment therewith is an eye or loop 18. As 
shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, in order to lower the device 10 onto the item and 
then retrieve the item by pulling the device 10 up to the tree stand, a 
rope is used which has one end tied to the loop 18 and a second end which 
is manually graspable by the hunter situated in the tree stand. 
Illustrated in FIGS. 1-6 is a grasping and retrieving means which 
physically engages or contacts the item so that the item can be retrieved. 
More specifically, the grasping and retrieving means for the present 
invention includes a plurality of elongated, flexible, curvilinear arms 20 
attached to the second end 16 of the shank 12. When the device 10 is 
disposed in the operative position, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the arms 20 
are pendent from the shank 12. The arms 20 can be manufactured from a 
number of different materials, the preferred material being stainless 
steel or spring steel, which has the qualities of both flexibility and 
tensile strength. The arms 20 are attached to the second end 16 of the 
shank 12 so that they are radially disposed about the imaginary 
longitudinal axis of the shank 12. The arms 20 are capable of independent 
movement from each other despite the fact that they are mounted at their 
respective base portions to the second end 16 of the shank 12. The 
elongated and flexible nature of the arms 20, combined with structure 
which will be hereinafter further described, permits the arms 20 to 
selectively move from a radial and concentric disposition about the 
longitudinal axis of the shank 12, to a disposition in which the arms 20 
are radially contracted or drawn together inwardly toward the longitudinal 
axis of the shank 12. Each arm 20 terminates at its distal end 22 with a 
finger 24, and each finger 24 may have a protective covering, such as a 
rubber jacket or sleeve, to protect items, such as binoculars, from being 
scratched or marred as they are being retrieved. When the arms 20 are 
disposed in the non-use or open position, the fingers 22 are spaced from 
each other and are radially disposed circumjacent the longitudinal axis of 
the shank 12. When the device 10 is actually in the gripping state for 
grasping an item whereupon the arms 20 have been radially drawn or 
contracted together about the axis of the shank 12, at least some of the 
fingers 24 may overlap or be interleaved with one another concomitant with 
the contact or engagement of the item by the fingers 22. 
As shown in FIGS. 1-6, several structural elements are necessary to move 
the arms 20 from the open or non-use position to the closed grasping or 
gripping position in a simple, efficient, and reliable manner that only 
requires the hunter to set or cock the device 10, position the device 10 
over the target item, and lower the device 10 to a position immediately 
above the item whereupon the device 10 can be dropped onto the item for 
retrieval thereof. Mounted on the shank 12 is a weighted member 26 which 
is capable of linear reciprocal movement from the first end 14 of the 
shank 12 to the second end 16 and then past the second end 16 a short 
distance along a portion of the arms 20 adjacent the second end 16. It 
should be noted that the weighted member 26 does not slide upon the shank 
12 or the portion of the arms 20 adjacent the second end 16 of the shank 
12. As the device 10 is dropped onto the item for retrieval of the item, 
the weighted member 26 drops freely on the shank 12 and the portion of the 
arms 20 adjacent the second end 16, thereby initiating a series of 
mechanical movements that result in the item being gripped by the fingers 
24. 
As shown in FIGS. 1-6, the weighted member 26 is a frustrum-shaped disc 
having a central aperture 28 and which is mounted on the shank 12 by 
inserting the shank 12 through the central aperture 28. The weighted 
member 26 does not come off the first end 14 of the shank 12 because the 
diameter of the loop 18 is greater than the diameter of the central 
aperture 28, thus the loop 18 helps to confine or restrict the movement of 
the weighted member 26 on the shank 12. If the weighted member 26 is too 
light, the weighted member 26 will not be able to initiate the action 
which results in the radial contraction or drawing together of the arms 20 
so that the fingers 24 can grasp the item. If the weighted member 26 is 
too heavy, the weighted member 26 will prematurely initiate the action 
which causes the fingers 24 to radially draw together for item retrieval 
as the device 10 begins its descent from the tree stand to a hovering 
position over the item. This will dispose the fingers 24 to the gripping 
position before they have even come in contact with the item to be 
retrieved. The weighted member 26 must have just enough mass so that the 
weighted member 26 will not cause the arms 20 to radially contract as the 
hunter is initially lowering the device 10 over the item. In addition, the 
weighted member 26 must have the appropriate mass to initiate the action 
which causes the radial contraction of the arms 20 during the last several 
inches through which the device 10 travels as the device 10 drops onto the 
item. 
In addition to the weighted member 26 shown in FIGS. 1-6, the device 10 
includes a trigger means for spreading and temporarily locking the arms 20 
in the open or non-use position whereupon the arms 20 are radially spread 
about the axis of the shank 12, and also for causing the arms 20 to 
radially contract or draw together around the axis of the shank 12 so that 
the fingers 24 can grip and retrieve the item. The trigger means operates 
in conjunction with the weighted member 26 to selectively spread the arms 
20 and selectively contract or draw the arms 20 together or toward each 
other in order to both grasp and then release the item. The trigger means 
includes a circular trigger plate 30 that includes a plurality of 
equidistantly-spaced apertures 32 located adjacent the periphery of the 
trigger plate 30. Each aperture 32 is sized so as to receive therethrough 
one respective arm 20, and the diameter of each aperture 32 is greater 
than the outside diameter of the respective arms 20 so that the trigger 
plate 30 can freely move and slide in a linearly-reciprocable manner upon 
the arms 20. Mounted to the trigger plate 30 is a locking pin or rod 34, 
and the locking rod 34 extends across the diameter of the trigger plate 30 
so that the opposite ends 36 of the locking rod 34 project past the 
periphery of the plate 30. This allows the hunter to grasp one end 36 of 
the locking rod 34 with, for example, his or her index finger and the 
opposite end 36 of the locking rod 34 with the middle finger to slide the 
trigger plate 30 on the arms 20 in order to draw the trigger plate 30 
toward the second end 16 of the shank 12 until the trigger plate 30 can be 
pulled or drawn back no further on the arms 20. When the trigger plate 30 
reaches the limit of its rearward movement, the trigger plate is now 
disposed in the locked or locking state. The trigger plate 30 will remain 
in this state until an oppositely directed force is applied to it, 
whereupon the plate 30 will be dislodged or unlocked. The locking rod 34 
can be a cotter pin welded to the trigger plate 30; but, in any case, the 
locking rod 34 should not impede the movement or travel of the trigger 
plate 30 on the arms 20 nor should the locking rod 34 interfere with any 
of the apertures 32 on the trigger plate 30. 
With reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, the use of the device 10 can occur in the 
following manner. First, the hunter (not shown) will be situated in his or 
her tree stand (not shown), with the tree stand generally located fifteen 
to twenty feet above the ground 38. An item, such as a hat 40, will have 
either fallen onto the ground 38 or been left on the ground 38 and would 
be located in a position adjacent to the tree trunk 42 and within the 
radius of the tree stand. Items located beyond the radius of the tree 
stand, and also beyond the hunter's reach will, obviously, not be 
retrievable. Upon determining that the item is within reach and generally 
located adjacent to the base of the tree trunk 42, the hunter will grasp 
the trigger plate 30 and draw the trigger plate 30 rearward on the arms 20 
and toward the second end 16 of the shank 12. The trigger plate 30 will be 
slid or moved rearward on the arms 20 until the trigger plate 30 is 
tightly locked on the arms 20 and no further rearward movement of the 
trigger plate 30 is possible. Simultaneous with the hunter manually 
drawing the trigger plate 30 rearward on the arms 20, the arms 20 radially 
separate as a result of the rearward movement of the trigger plate 30. 
Thus, the greatest radial separation of the arms 20 is achieved at the 
point when the trigger plate 30 locks and can be forced no further 
rearward on the arms 20. The fingers 24 would also separate from each 
other and would be concentrically disposed about the axis of the shank 12. 
While the trigger plate 30 would be in the locked position, forcibly and 
tightly wedged at the base portions of the arms 20, the device 10 would 
now be in the open or non-use state. 
The hunter would then grasp one end of the rope 44 and carefully position 
the device 10 with the arms 20 pointing downward toward the ground 38, and 
then the hunter would slowly and carefully lower the device 10 over the 
hat 40. The weighted member 26 would actually rest against the trigger 
plate 30 and the weighted member 26 would remain resting against the 
trigger plate 30 as the device 10 is lowered over the hat 40. The device 
10 would be lowered down toward the hat 40 until only a distance of 
several inches separated the hat 40 from the fingers 24, and then the 
hunter would hold the rope 44 and halt the further downward movement of 
the device 10 at that point. Taking care to precisely align the device 10 
over the hat 40, the hunter would then drop the device 10 onto the hat 40 
and thereby retrieve the hat 40. Immediately upon striking the item or 
ground 38, the weighted member 26 is activated or actuated and travels 
downward by gravity a slight distance on the arms 20, thereby striking, 
unlocking, and forcing the trigger plate 30 to also travel downward on the 
arms 20 toward the fingers 24. The downward movement of the trigger plate 
30 toward the fingers 24 will quickly cause the arms 20 to radially 
contract and draw together thereby also causing the fingers 24 to contact 
and grip the hat 40. In effect, the swift downward movement of the 
weighted member 26 will cause the trigger plate 30 to travel a short 
distance on the arms 20 and simultaneously contract the arms 20 toward the 
axis of the shank 12. The trigger plate 30 traveling over the short 
distance causes the arms 20 to draw together toward the axis of the shank 
12, enabling the fingers 24 to engage, close upon, and grip the hat 40. 
As shown in FIG. 6, the device 10 has now been disposed in the gripping 
state or position with the hat 40 firmly grasped by the fingers 24 and 
perhaps a portion of the arms 20, depending upon the size and 
configuration of the item. The hunter can then pull the rope 44 up, 
thereby retrieving the hat 40. Because of the spacing and number of the 
arms 20 and the curvature of the arms 20 adjacent and continuing through 
each finger 24, the hat 40 is held securely by and between the fingers 24 
and will not fall out as the rope 44 is drawn up by the hunter. Upon 
drawing the device 10 up to the tree stand, the hunter can simply grasp 
the trigger plate 30 with the fingers of one hand and pull back on the 
trigger plate 30, thereby causing the arms 20 to radially separate and 
release the hat 40. The trigger plate 30 can be fully drawn back on the 
arms until it stops for disposing the device 10 in the locking position so 
that the device 10 is ready for the next use of retrieving an item. 
While a preferred embodiment is herein disclosed, it is to be clearly 
understood that the invention is not to be limited to the exact 
constructions, mechanisms, and devices illustrated and described because 
various modifications of these details may be provided in putting the 
invention into practice.