Patent ID: 7708745

Claim:
A device for manipulation of material in a body, comprising: a handle; a sheath extending from the handle and comprising at least one lumen, a distal end, a proximal portion, a distal portion, and an intermediate portion, each of the proximal, intermediate, and distal portions being comprised of multiple layers of material and configured for insertion in a body cavity, the intermediate portion of the sheath being more flexible than the proximal and distal portions of the sheath and comprising at least one fewer layer of material than the layers of material in the proximal and distal portions; and an object engaging unit, the object-engaging unit and sheath moveable relative to each other to achieve a collapsed state of the object-engaging unit in which the object-engaging unit is collapsed within the lumen of the distal portion of the sheath and another state in which the object-engaging unit extends from the distal end of the sheath, wherein the distal portion of the sheath comprises sufficient rigidity to resist deformation of the distal portion of the sheath when the object-engaging unit moves relative to the sheath.