Patent ID: 7625391

Claim:
A forceps comprising: a first member having a clamping portion at a first end and a gripping portion at a second end; a second member pivotally connected to said first member at a first pivot point, said second member having a clamping portion at a first end and a gripping portion at a second end, said first and second gripping portions adapted to be gripped by the thumb and fingers of a hand; a leaf spring mounted on the first members, the leaf spring having first and second ends, the first end mounted on the first member, the leaf spring spaced along a length of the first member, the leaf spring having a length greater than the length between the first and second ends along the first member so that the leaf spring can lie on either side of a straight line connecting the first and second ends thereof; a locking element mounted on said first member for engaging a complimentary locking element on said second member, said locking element on the first member having an element engaging the leaf spring for moving the leaf spring from a first side of the line to a second side of the line; and an actuator mounted on said first member for moving said locking element between a first locked position and a second unlocked position, the leaf spring biasing the locking element toward the first locked position when on the first side of the line and biasing the locking element toward the second unlocked position when on the second side of the line, said actuator adapted to be moved by said thumb or fingers of said hand while said gripping portions of said first and second members are gripped.