Patent ID: 8267719

Claim:
An electrical wiring system for use in an AC electrical power distribution circuit including at least one upstream AC power conductor disposed between an upstream AC power distribution element and a device box and at least one downstream AC power conductor disposed between the device box and at least one load disposed downstream from the device box, the at least one upstream AC power conductor and the at least one downstream AC power conductor being routed into an interior portion of the device box and accessible via a front open face of the device box, the system comprising: an electrical wiring device including a device housing having a front portion and a back body portion, the back body portion including a rear major surface, the front portion including a heat sink and at least one user-accessible control element, the at least one user-accessible control element being coupled to a power regulation circuit, the power regulation circuit being thermally coupled to the heat sink and electrically coupled to a plurality of device contacts, the power regulation circuit being substantially disposed in a first interior region between the heat sink and the back body portion, the plurality of device contacts being provided by an electrical interface accessible via the back body portion, the electrical interface being substantially disposed in a second interior region between the heat sink and the back body portion adjacent the first interior region, the power regulation circuit being configured to regulate an amount of power directed from the upstream AC power distribution element to the at least one load in response to at least one control input provided by the at least one user-accessible control element; and a connector device including a connector housing having a first connector housing portion and a second connector housing portion, the first connector housing portion including a plurality of connector contacts disposed therein, the plurality of connector contacts being mated with the plurality of device contacts when the first connector housing portion is coupled to the electrical interface, the connector housing including a plurality of termination structures coupled to the plurality of connector contacts, the plurality of termination structures being configured to couple the at least one upstream AC power conductor and the at least one downstream AC power conductor to corresponding contacts of the plurality of connector contacts, the second connector housing portion being substantially parallel to the rear major surface of the back body portion when the first connector housing portion is coupled to the electrical interface.