Sprinkler head and riser protector

Claim 1

An improved protector for a sprinkler head and for a riser for said sprinkler head, where the sprinkler head is of the type including a base, a spray nozzle, and a cylindrical poppet coupling said spray nozzle to said base for moving said spray nozzle between an elevated position and a retracted position, and where the riser connects said base of said sprinkler head to a pressurized water supply; said protector comprising: a guard member of unitary construction, said guard member having a substantially square bottom surface having a plurality of upwardly extending concavities, a substantially round top surface having a surface area substantially less than the surface area of said bottom surface, a contiguous and concave side surface connecting said bottom surface to said top surface, said side surface being provided with a pair of vertical separation slots extending downwardly from said side surface towards said bottom surface, where said pair of slots are perpendicular to and intersect each other and are tangential to said top surface, and a cavity extending between said top surface and said bottom surface which is receptive to said sprinkler head, where the inner surface of said cavity is not in contact with said sprinkler head when said sprinkler head is inserted into said cavity, wherein said cavity includes a bottom bore extending upwardly from said bottom surface, and a top bore extending downwardly from said top surface, said top bore having a larger diameter than said bottom bore, and further comprising a middle bore extending between a bottom of said top bore and a top of said bottom bore, said middle bore having a diameter less than that of said top bore to provide a first shoulder, and said middle bore having a diameter greater than that of said bottom bore to provide a second shoulder; cover means including a fixed cover portion coupled to said guard member, wherein said fixed cover portion is annular member having an outer diameter substantially the same as a diameter of said top bore, said fixed cover portion being adapted to rest upon said first shoulder of said guard, and wherein said movable cover portion is an annular member having an outer diameter substantially the same as an inner diameter of said fixed cover member, and having an inner diameter substantially the same as the outer diameter of said poppet, and a movable cover portion coupled to said poppet, said fixed cover portion and said movable cover portion being matingly engagable when said poppet is in said retracted position; and a poppet guide including a hub portion having an aperture receptive to said poppet and a plurality of spoke portions coupling said hub portion to said inner surface of said cavity.