Patent ID: 8025645

Claim:
A guard for use with a tubing assembly, the tubing assembly having a length of flexible tubing and a tubing clamp disposed therealong and therearound operable between two states, an unclamping state and a tubing-clamping state occluding the flexible tubing, the tubing clamp being such that the clamp has a larger overall transverse dimension when unclamped and a smaller overall transverse dimension when clamped, comprising: a housing body having an interior, first and second ends and a first end wall, and having an opening extending between the first and second ends for passage therethrough of flexible tubing, the housing body adapted to self-retain on the tubing and be slidable therealong, the second end of the housing body having no end wall and being open and configured to receive thereinto the tubing clamp in the clamped state when slid along the tubing, whereby the housing body is adapted to receive thereinto and substantially surround the tubing clamp in the clamped state by being slid along the tubing and about the tubing clamp to thereafter prevent the clamp from inadvertently releasing from its clamped state with respect to the tubing, and to be removable from around the tubing clamp, and the housing body being shaped and dimensioned at its second end to receive the tubing clamp when the clamp presents a smaller overall transverse dimension by being in a tubing-clamping state but not when the tubing clamp is in an unclamped state presenting a larger overall transverse dimension.