Patent ID: 8579635

Claim:
A vehicle charge inlet integrated into a port assembly surface, the vehicle charge inlet comprising: a plurality of electrical contacts configured to be electrically coupled to a second plurality of electrical contacts integrated into a charge connector, said plurality of electrical contacts comprising a first power contact, a second power contact, a ground contact, a pilot contact, and a proximity sense contact; an inlet housing having an inlet surface, a first end and a second end, wherein said first end is closed by a bottom surface and said second end is open and sized to accept said charge connector, wherein said plurality of electrical contacts are integrated into said bottom surface of said inlet housing, wherein a perimeter of said inlet surface is curvilinear and non-cylindrical, wherein a second perimeter corresponding to said charge connector is complementary to said perimeter of said inlet surface and sized to allow insertion of said charge connector into said inlet housing, and wherein said perimeter of said inlet surface and said second perimeter of said charge connector permit only a single orientation of said charge connector upon insertion of said charge connector into said vehicle charge inlet, wherein said single orientation aligns said charge connector to said vehicle charge inlet and aligns said plurality of electrical contacts to said second plurality of electrical contacts; a divider extending from said bottom surface and configured to fit within a complementary slot of said charge connector, said divider fabricated from an electrically insulating material, wherein said divider is separate from said plurality of electrical contacts; and a latching mechanism integrated within said inlet housing, wherein said latching mechanism is comprised of a pawl configured to pass through said inlet surface and fit within a slot in said charge connector when said charge connector is inserted into said vehicle charge inlet during vehicle charging.