Propeller guarding assembly

Abstract

A propeller guard assembly for enclosing the propeller blades of a marine propeller to prevent them from striking marine animals. The propeller guard assembly comprises a front cage portion hingedly attached to a back cage portion. The front cage portion and back cage portion are each defined by a plurality of bars extending radially from a center area to a circumferential bar. The front cage portion and back cage portion are hingedly coupled by a hinge, thereby enabling them to swing between an open position and a closed position. When in the closed position, the front cage portion and back cage portion can be selectively fastened together by a fastening clip.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A propeller guard assembly, comprising:
 a front cage portion defined by a plurality of front radial bars extending from a center member to a front circumferential bar;   a back cage portion defined by a plurality of back radial bars extending from a center element to a back circumferential bar, wherein said back cage portion and front cage portion are hingedly attached so as to enable them to swing between an open position and a closed position; and   a fastening clip integral with at least one of the front circumferential bar and the back circumferential bar, wherein the fastening clip is configured to selectively fasten said front circumferential bar and back circumferential bar together when the front cage portion and back cage portion are in the closed position.   
     
     
         2 . The propeller guard assembly of  claim 1 , wherein each of said front radial bars extend from the center member to the front circumferential bar without intersecting any other structures. 
     
     
         3 . The propeller guard assembly of  claim 1 , wherein each of said back radial bars extend from the center element to the back circumferential bar without intersecting any other structures. 
     
     
         4 . The propeller guard assembly of  claim 1 , wherein said center element includes a hollow center configured to receive and hold an connecting structure from which a marine propeller extends. 
     
     
         5 . The propeller guard assembly of  claim 4 , wherein said center element includes a center gap configured to enable an connecting structure from which a marine propeller extends to pass into the hollow center. 
     
     
         6 . The propeller guard assembly of  claim 5 , wherein said center gap is selectably closeable by operation of a spring loaded fastener disposed on said center element. 
     
     
         7 . The propeller guard assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the back circumferential bar includes an attachment space configured to enable an connecting structure from which a marine propeller extends to pass into the back cage portion.