Patent ID: 8172597

Claim:
An electrical connector, comprising: a socket with a plurality of electrical contacts; and a loading mechanism surrounding the socket and comprising a stiffener, a load plate mounted to one end of the stiffener and rotating from an open position to a closed position, and a sliding latch mounted to an opposite end of the stiffener, the load plate including a plate portion and a tongue extending downwardly from the plate portion at said opposite end, the sliding latch moving on the stiffener in both a horizontal direction and a vertical direction to lock or unlock the tongue of the load plate; wherein the stiffener has a flat portion and a pair of first sidewalls bending from opposite ends of the flat portion, and the sliding latch is attached to one of the first sidewalls; and wherein the pair of first sidewalls bending downwardly from the flat portion and the flat portion defines a notch for receiving the sliding latch.