Patent ID: 7520788

Claim:
A marine reciprocating oar with a propulsion reversing mechanism, comprising: an elongate oar shaft having first and second shaft portions, the first shaft portion being contiguous with and extending substantially perpendicularly relative to the second shaft portion, the oar shaft configured for a reciprocating movement between forward and reverse oar strokes; a mounting arrangement configured for rotatably mounting the oar shaft on a sidewall of a boat; a handle bar disposed at an end of the first shaft portion; a blade housing having an opening and disposed at an end of the second shaft portion, the blade housing extending substantially in a plane to define a first side and an opposing second side of the blade housing; a plurality of blades pivotally movable between an open position and a closed position with each stroke of the oar, each blade pivotally attached to the blade housing by a hinge disposed at a lower edge of the respective blade and pivotable about an axis substantially perpendicular to the second shaft portion, wherein in the closed position the blades are positioned to substantially block the opening of the housing to obstruct water passage therethrough, and wherein in the open position the blades are positioned to substantially unblock the opening of the housing to allow water passage through the housing; a plurality of gates pivotally attached to the blade housing, the gates being configured for selectively stopping the pivoting movement of the blade at the blade housing or allowing the blades to pass from one of the sides of the housing to the opposing one the sides of the housing; and a reversing mechanism for reversing the propulsion direction of the oar, the reversing mechanism comprising at least one lever connected to the gates by a cable, the lever being operable to selectively pivot each gate to allow the blades to reverse the direction of propulsion.