Patent Application
20170241430
The present invention relates to a fan and a cooling device using the same and, in particular, to a combined fan and a cooling device using the same while combining strip structures to be closer to a heat source.
With the development in the electronic industry, the electronic component has enhanced performance and the chip set inside provides a faster computing speed. Due to the increase in the computing speed and the increase in the number of chips, the amount of heat generated by the chips during operation also increases. If the heat is not dissipated away in time, it will greatly compromise the performance of the electronic component and lower the computing speed of the electronic component. Moreover, the heat accumulation can result in malfunction and damage of the electronic component, so heat dissipation is required for the electronic component.
In a desktop computer or a notebook which has a limited installation space, a fan device is usually installed near the electronic component. The airflow generated by rotation of the blades in the fan device directly blows to the electronic component or to the heat sink installed on the electronic component to thereby dissipate heat. The conventional fan structure normally includes a hub and multiple blades extending outward linearly from the hub. The blades are disposed tilted along the same rotation direction. The magnitude of the airflow generated by the fan device depends on the rotation speed of the blades and also depends on the swept area and the angle of the blades.
However, the conventional design in the swept area and the angle of the blades cannot improve the heat dissipation effectively. Accordingly, the inventor made various studies to solve the above-mentioned problems, on the basis of which the present invention is accomplished.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a combined fan and a cooling device using the same, wherein strip structures are incorporated in order to be closer to a surface of the heat source to thereby dissipate the heat more effectively.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a combined fan for cooling a heat source. The combined fan comprises a hub and multiple blades. The hub has a first side and a second side opposite to each other. The blades are distributed along an outer circumferential surface of the hub, and each of the blades includes a first part extending from the hub and a second part connected to the first part, wherein each of the second parts protrudes beyond the first side or the second side, and each of the second parts is formed by a plurality of strip structures.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a cooling device for cooling a heat source, comprising the combined fan of the foregoing embodiment and a housing. The housing receives the combined fan, and each of the second parts is disposed toward the heat source.
The present invention further has the following features. Each of the blades is closer to the heat source by utilizing the feature that the second part (i.e. the strip structures) has better flexibility than the first part, so that the waste heat of the heat source can be dissipated away more effectively. The strip structures can be independently attached to and protrude beyond one side surface of each of the blades (i.e. the first part), or the strip structures can be combined with a joining portion to become a brush device which can be assembled to the side surface of each of the blades easily and conveniently.
The disclosure will become more fully understood from the detailed description and the drawings given herein below for illustration only, and thus does not limit the disclosure, wherein:
Detailed descriptions and technical contents of the present invention are illustrated below in conjunction with the accompany drawings. However, it is to be understood that the descriptions and the accompany drawings disclosed herein are merely illustrative and exemplary and not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.
Referring to
In the present embodiment, each of the blades 150 is preferably arranged at an angle and extends linearly toward the same rotation direction, for being applied in a centrifugal flow fan. Alternatively, each of the blades 150 can be curved outwardly from the outer circumferential surface 140 of the hub 110, for being applied in, for example, an axial flow fan, as shown in
In the embodiment shown in
Furthermore, the material of each of the strip structures 180 of each second part 170 preferably includes, but is not limited to, graphite, metal or other flexible heat-conductive material. The shape of each strip structure 180 can be, but not limited to, a fiber or a wire, e.g. a graphite fiber, a copper wire, an aluminum wire, or an alloy wire thereof. Each of the first parts 160, which is part of the body of the combined fan 100, is of greater rigidity than the rigidity of each of the second parts 170. That is to say, each of the second parts 170 is of greater flexibility than each of the first parts 160, so the strip structure 180 changes shape with respect to the first part 160, thereby increasing a swept area and enhancing the wind blowing effect.
The embodiment shown in
Furthermore, in another embodiment, each of the first parts 160 is integrally formed with each of the second parts 170. Alternatively, in still another embodiment, each of the second parts 170 and each of the first parts 160 can be formed by an insert-molding method; this may vary as required.
Please refer to
In the present embodiment, the housing 220 is preferably made from metal having good heat conductivity, such as iron, aluminum or alloy thereof. The housing 220 includes a first outer case 230 and a second outer case 240 covering the first case 230. The first outer case 230 has a suspension shaft 250 and at least one air inlet 260. When the first outer case 230 covers the second outer case 240, an air outlet 270 is formed at one side of the housing 220, so the at least one air inlet 260 is in a direction perpendicular or corresponding to the direction of the air outlet 270, and accordingly the combined fan 100 in the present embodiment is preferably a centrifugal flow fan.
The hub 110 of the combined fan 100 has a rotation shaft 112, for assembly with the suspension shaft 250 and has a recess 114 for accommodating a stator (not illustrated). One end of the rotation shaft 112 is preferably connected to a bottom of the second side 130 and is disposed in the center of the recess 114, so the combined fan 100 rotates about the suspension shaft 250 as center with respect to the housing 220.
Referring to
In the present embodiment, each of the second parts 170 is preferably not in contact with an inner surface of the second outer case 240 of the housing 220, i.e there is a very tiny gap D between each strip structure 180 and the inner surface of the second outer case 240. Therefore, each strip structure 180 does not contact the inner surface of the second outer case 240, thereby preventing noises, abrasion or other interference. However, in other embodiment, since each second part 170 can be made from a soft material, so each second part 170 can contact the inner surface of the second outer case 240 of the housing 220 to achieve the same effect mentioned above.
Please refer to
When the cooling device 200 of the present embodiment is disposed close to the surface of the heat source (not illustrated), each strip structure 180 is disposed more directly toward the heat source. Similarly, when the cooling device 200 is in operation, each strip structure 180 of the axial flow fan 100 is disposed in a manner closest to the surface of the heat source so as to dissipate away the waste heat of the heat source from the air outlet 270, thereby enhancing heat dissipation.
Furthermore, in the embodiment shown in
Please refer to
Each of the blades 150 can be closer to the heat source 210 by utilizing the feature that each second part 170 (i.e. the strip structures 180) has better flexibility than the first part 160, so that the waste heat of the heat source 210 can be dissipated away more effectively. Furthermore, the strip structures 180 can be independently attached to and protrude from one side surface of each of the blades 150 (i.e. the first part 160), or the strip structures 180 can be combined with a joining portion 192 to become a brush device 190 which can be assembled to the side surface of each of the blades 150 more easily and conveniently.
It is to be understood that the above descriptions are merely the preferable embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Equivalent changes and modifications made in the spirit of the present invention are regarded as falling within the scope of the present invention.
