Patent ID: 7114971

Claim:
In an electrical receptacle for a power distribution system for use with an elongate power distribution assembly having a plurality of electrical conductors extending longitudinally therein said conductors comprising at least one hot conductor and one neutral conductor to define at least one circuit and comprising at least one ground conductor associated with said circuit, said power distribution assembly further including access ports which provide access to said conductors, said electrical receptacle having a housing with a back wall and front wall, and electrical terminals that are configured to engage rearwardly from said back housing wall with said conductors of said power distribution assembly through said access ports for electrical connection of said receptacle with at least one said electrical circuit of said power distribution assembly, said receptacle further including groups of plug openings which are accessible through said front housing wall and are adapted to receive a multi-prong electrical plug therein; comprising the improvement wherein said receptacle includes contact strip assemblies which are supported within said housing and are adapted to respectively connect to at least a hot conductor and a neutral conductor of said power distribution assembly, each said contact strip assembly including an elongate contact strip mounted adjacent to an inside face of said front housing wall of said receptacle housing and are accessible adjacent to said plug openings thereof and a respective one of said electrical terminals supported on said back housing wall and adapted to engage said ports of said power distribution assembly for removable engagement with a respective one of said conductors, each said contact strip including a plurality of spaced apart contact seats each adapted to tight-fittingly receive a prong of an electrical plug wherein said prong seats each align with a respective one of said prong openings and said prong seats are joined together by an intermediate web of conductive material, said contact strip and said respective terminal being joined together with a flexible intermediate conductor wherein one end of said intermediate conductor is joined to said terminal and the other end of said intermediate conductor is joined to said web of said contact strip, said intermediate conductor being flexible in a front-to-back direction between said front and back housing walls to permit displacement of said terminal relative to said contact strip in the front-to-back direction, and also being flexible laterally to permit movement of said terminal parallel to said front and back housing walls.