US Patent 11974682 Tong with one-handed locking mechanism

A tong with a lock that can be actuated using one hand without changing a grip on the tong and without having to change an orientation of the tong. The lock can be engaged and disengaged. by squeezing arms of the tong together. The lock can have a latch on one arm and a strike on the other arm. When the arms are squeezed together the strike engages the latch into a locked configuration. From the locked configuration, when the arms are squeezed again, the latch releases the strike.