Patent ID: 7571522

Claim:
A universal cradle apparatus, comprising: a telescoping clamping mechanism, comprising: (i) a male drive shaft and a mating female drive channel, the female drive channel further comprising a pair of spaced apart walls at least one of the walls having an opening thereinto, and the male drive shaft further comprising a portion thereof sized to be received between the spaced apart walls of the female drive channel, (ii) a biasing member positioned between the drive shaft and the spaced apart walls of the drive channel and elastically biasing the drive shaft toward the drive channel substantially along a common axis, (iii) a discrete key positioned between the spaced apart walls of the female drive channel and coupled into the opening into the wall, the key constraining the biasing member between the drive shaft and the drive channel, and (iv) one of the drive shaft and the drive channel being structured for being secured to an external mounting surface; and a pair of substantially rigid jaw structures each being secured to a respective one of the male and female portions of the clamping mechanism, each of the jaw structures projected from a respective one of the drive shaft and drive channel and having mutually opposing interior clamping surfaces arranged therebetween.