Patent ID: 7695342

Claim:
A mechanism for supporting a figure having a torso and one or more appendages, the mechanism comprising: a base; a supporting element extending from the base; a first grasping member at an end of at least one of the appendages, the first grasping member comprising, a center portion comprising an aperture element for receiving the supporting element, a front portion, and a rear portion; a biasing element coupled to the center portion between the front portion and the rear portion; a front pivoting connection between the center portion and the front portion; a rear pivoting connection between the center portion and the rear portion, each of said front pivoting connection and said rear pivoting connection being pivotally mounted on the center portion to pivot between an opened position and a closed position; a plate that is substantially vertically configured and spring loaded by connection with said biasing element; and a first cam attached to the front portion and operating with the plate to extend the front portion to the opened position from the closed position, wherein the plate operates as a cam follower in contact with said first cam, causing said front portion to pivot to the closed position upon the aperture element receiving the supporting element thereby causes the front portion of said grasping member to move towards the closed position.