Patent ID: 7458238

Claim:
A locking device for releasably securing an object, said device comprising: (a) an elongate flexible member having a first end and a second end, with a closed loop being formed in the flexible member at said second end by folding the second end of the flexible member against an inner portion of the flexible member, and fixing said second end thereto; (b) an abutment plate having an opening, said abutment plate being slidably retained on the flexible member in a selected region spaced away from the loop, with the flexible member passing through the opening in the abutment plate; and (c) first and second stop members fixed to the flexible member at a selected spacing, one on each side of the abutment plate, so as to limit the range of sliding movement of the abutment plate along the flexible member, said first stop member being positioned between the abutment plate and the first end of the flexible member, and said second stop member being positioned between the abutment plate and the second end of the flexible member; wherein the loop and the abutment plate are configured such that the abutment plate, the first end of the flexible member, and the first stop member can be passed through the loop, allowing the loop to be positioned between the abutment plate and the second stop member.