Patent ID: 7470137

Claim:
An electrical connector, comprising: (a) a housing attached to a cable; (b) an intermediate connector having a receptacle for removably receiving electrical contact pads, the intermediate connector electrically connected to the cable within a cavity of the housing; (c) a male connector portion connected to the housing, comprising: (i) one or more electrical contact pins for electrically connecting the connector to a socket when the connector is inserted into the socket; and (ii) one or more electrical contact pads that are removably received in the intermediate connector such that, when assembled, the one or more electrical contact pins and the cable are electrically connected via the removably received electrical contact pads and the intermediate connector; and (d) a locking mechanism removably received in the male connector portion, comprising: (i) a flexible tang; and (ii) a detent having a rear sloping surface with an external angle of more than 90° with located on the surface of the tang that locks into a corresponding feature of the socket, such that the detent is releasable from the socket upon application of an axial force to the connector.