Patent Application
20130088835
The present invention is directed, in general, to a cooling device and, more specifically, to a device for cooling electronic circuits.
Components on electronic circuit boards generate heat which must be dissipated; otherwise the components operate at too high a temperature, which can lead to premature failure and diminished long-term reliability of the heat generating component or other components on the electronic circuit board.
One embodiment includes a device, comprising a casing and a motorized air-mover. The casing encloses an air-inlet duct, air-outlet duct and a cavity located between the air-inlet duct and the air-outlet duct and in air-flow communication with the air-inlet duct and the air-outlet duct. The motorized air-mover is located in the cavity, the motorized air-mover configured to move air from the air-inlet duct to the air-outlet duct, wherein there is a gap between an outer-surface of the motorized air-mover and an interior wall of casing defining the cavity.
In some embodiments, the gap is configured such that a distance separating the outer-surface of the motorized air-mover and the interior wall is a gap value in a range of 10 to 1000 microns. In some embodiments, the casing is configured such that a direction of air expelled from the air-outlet duct is in substantially a same direction of outside air-flow taken into the air-inlet duct. In some embodiments, one or both of the air-inlet duct or cavity are surrounded by a high-thermal conductivity material. In some embodiments, the high-thermal conductivity material is configured as a vapor chamber or a thermal siphon. In some embodiments, the high-thermal conductivity material includes channels that allow the circulation of a single or two-phase fluid there-through. In some embodiments, the motorized air-mover is configured as an impeller. In some embodiments, blades of the impeller are configured to increase in height from a central location of the impeller to a perimeter of the impeller. In some embodiments, the motorized air-mover is conically-shaped. In some embodiments, the motorized air-mover is cylindrically shaped. In some embodiments, the cavity is configured to have a shape that matches at least a portion of the exterior shape of the motorized air-mover such that the gap is present on all sides of the motorized air-mover except for sides that are facing the air-inlet duct or the air-outlet duct.
Another embodiment is an apparatus. The apparatus comprises an electronic circuit board having one or more heat sources thereon. The apparatus also comprises one or more devices located proximate to one of the heat sources, each of the devices including the above-described casing and motorized air-mover.
In some embodiments, each of a plurality of the devices is configured to expel air from the air-outlet duct in substantially a same direction as each other. In some embodiments, each of the devices is configured to intake air from the air-inlet duct substantially a same direction as each other. In some embodiments, for each of the one or more devices a direction of air expelled from the air-outlet duct is substantially the same as a direction of outside air-flow taken into the air-inlet duct. In some embodiments, the heat source includes one or more active devices. In some embodiments, the heat source includes one or more passive devices. In some embodiments, the gap is configured such that a distance separating the outer-surface of the motorized air-mover and the interior wall is a gap value in a range of 10 to 1000 microns.
The embodiments of the disclosure are best understood from the following detailed description, when read with the accompanying FIGURES. Some features in the figures may be described as, for example, “top,” “bottom,” “vertical” or “lateral” for convenience in referring to those features. Such descriptions do not limit the orientation of such features with respect to the natural horizon or gravity. Various features may not be drawn to scale and may be arbitrarily increased or reduced in size for clarity of discussion. Reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
The description and drawings merely illustrate the principles of the invention. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the invention and are included within its scope. Furthermore, all examples recited herein are principally intended expressly to be only for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the principles of the invention and the concepts contributed by the inventor(s) to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the invention, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof. Additionally, the term, “or,” as used herein, refers to a non-exclusive or, unless otherwise indicated. Also, the various embodiments described herein are not necessarily mutually exclusive, as some embodiments can be combined with one or more other embodiments to form new embodiments.
Some embodiments of the present disclosure improve the dissipation of heat from heat generating electronic components (e.g., heat sources) by combing a casing having internal duct-work and a motorized air-mover, the device situated in close proximity to the heat source on an electronic circuit board.
One embodiment of the disclosure is a device.
In some embodiments, the cavity 105 is configured to provide the gap 130 such that that there is efficient heat transfer from a heat source 145 through air in the gap 130 to the air circulating through the motorized air-mover 125. Too large an air gap 130 may undesirably reduce heat transfer. For example, in some embodiments, a distance 147 (e.g., a gap value) separating the outer-surface 135 of the motorized air-mover 125 and the interior wall 140 is less than about 1000 microns, in some cases preferably a value in a range of 100 to 1000 microns, and, in some cases, in a range of 10 to 1000 microns. In some cases a gap 130 of greater than 1000 microns is considered too large. In some embodiments, the gap 130 distance 147 remains substantially uniform (e.g. within about ±20 percent and in some case less than about ±10 percent with respect to a side 170 opposing the wall 140) when the motorized air-mover 125 is actively moving air (e.g., the motor is rotating).
In some embodiments, the casing 105 and its interior duct work (e.g., defining the inlet and outlet ducts 110, 115) can be configured to direct air flow through the device 100 in a desired direction to facilitate heat dissipation from the heat source 145. For instance, as illustrated in
However, in other cases such as illustrated in
As further illustrated in
In some embodiments, as illustrated in
For clarity only two of a plurality of blades 310 are shown in
In some cases the center of the central wheel 305 can be open, e.g., to facilitate air flow communication to the spaces between the impeller blades 310. In some cases, such as illustrated in
As illustrated in
Another embodiment of the disclosure is an electronics apparatus.
As illustrated in
Although the present disclosure has been described in detail, those skilled in the art should understand that they can make various changes, substitutions and alterations herein without departing from the scope of the invention.
The present application claims the benefit to the previously filed U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/545,999 of the same title, filed Oct. 11, 2011 by Todd R. Salamon, and which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61545999 | Oct 2011 | US |
