Patent ID: 8602814

Claim:
An electric meter socket assembly for connecting an electric meter to a power line, the assembly comprising: an electrically non-conductive meter base including a terminal for connecting a power line to the base and a primary jaw contact electrically connected to the terminal for releasably receiving a primary blade connector of the electric meter to electrically connect the primary blade connector of the electric meter to the power line, the meter base further including a track and an opening positioned along the track; an auxiliary jaw mount having a portion sized and shaped to engage the track and to prevent the auxiliary jaw mount from moving in a direction perpendicular to the track when engaged with the track, the auxiliary jaw mount having an opening that is aligned with the opening in the meter base when the portion of the auxiliary jaw mount is in a predetermined position along the track; and an auxiliary jaw element having an auxiliary jaw contact for releasably receiving an auxiliary blade connector of the electric meter, the auxiliary jaw element including a flexible prong extending from the auxiliary jaw contact sized and spaced for insertion through the opening in the auxiliary jaw mount and into the opening in the meter base, the prong preventing the auxiliary jaw mount from moving from the predetermined position along the track when the prong is inserted through the opening in the auxiliary jaw mount and into the opening in the meter base, the prong engaging at least one of the auxiliary jaw mount and the meter base when the prong is inserted through the opening in the auxiliary jaw mount and into the opening in the meter base to prevent the prong from being removed from the opening in the meter base to prevent the auxiliary jaw mount from moving from the predetermined position along the track without disengaging the prong from the at least one of the auxiliary jaw mount and the meter base and removing the prong from the opening in the meter base.