Patent ID: 7806621

Claim:
A connector assembly comprising: a female connecting element comprising a socket; a male connecting element; and a locking device operably connecting the male and female connecting elements, wherein the locking device includes: a sleeve provided with a female thread defined on an inner wall of the sleeve, the female thread being engaged with a male thread of the female connecting element such that the locking device is in threaded engagement with the female connecting element; an indexing assembly housed in the sleeve and engaged with the male connecting element and indexed by threaded engagement of the locking device to the female connecting element, the indexing assembly including a first washer and a second washer, each washer having teeth on an axially directed face of the washer, the first washer and second washer being positioned such that the teeth of the first washer interlock with the teeth of the second washer; and a compression device mounted and slidable within the sleeve, the compression device including a compression ring retained between the inner wall of the sleeve and an outer wall of the male connecting element, and at least one protuberance integral with the compression ring and protruding in an axial direction of the sleeve, wherein the at least one protuberance abuttably engages with the female connecting element thereby urging the compression device toward the indexing assembly, forcing the compression device into operable engagement with the second washer, increasing a contact pressure between the first washer and the second washer of the indexing assembly.