Patent ID: 8381748

Claim:
A combined walking and pickup stick including: a. a shaft; b. a pickup mechanism at or near one end of the shaft; c. an actuator assembly at or near the other end of the shaft; d. an actuation line running from the actuator assembly along the shaft to the pickup mechanism; e. two or more movable turning points at least partly defining a path of the actuation line, each movable turning point having a movable position or axis; wherein the actuator assembly includes first and second actuators each configured, in use, to cause movement of the position or axis of one or more of the moveable turning points, thereby altering the path of the actuation line such that one or both ends of the actuation line are either moved by applied tension or allowed to move by released tension; wherein the first actuator controls configuration of the combined walking and pickup stick as either a walking stick or a pickup stick and the second actuator controls the pickup mechanism.