Patent Application
20070086169
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fastening structure, more particularly a kind of fastening structure that secures a heatsink module to a circuit board in a simple manner to facilitate the heat dissipation of central processing unit (CPU) and other chips.
2. Description of the Related Art
Heatsink modules installed in computers are typically designed for the heat dissipation of CPU which tends to produce the greatest amount of heat. The required components of casing, fan and heat tube are frequently built into one module as that disclosed in Taiwan patent number I231416 and Taiwan published number 582586 and 581381 to facilitate the production and installation of heatsink module.
The modularized radiation devices disclosed in the aforementioned patents improve heat dissipation efficiency. Nevertheless, they are unable to dissipate directly heat generated by other chips on the same circuit board. Thus even through those heatsink modules offer good efficiency, they fail to enhance the overall heat dissipation efficiency of the computer.
In addition, convention heatsink module is fastened to the circuit board by screws. Improper screwing resulting from the incorrect force or method used by the operator might affect the performance of heatsink module, or even damage the module or the circuit board.
Addressing the drawbacks of prior art, the object of the present invention is to provide a fastening structure that offers better heat dissipation for two or more chips on a circuit board.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a fastening structure attached to the CPU heatsink module, which fastens the heatsink module to a circuit board and forcibly cool a chip.
To achieve the aforesaid objects, the present invention provides a fastening structure including at least a first fastening piece secured to a circuit board and having a first fastening member, a heat spreader having a predetermined area extending over a predetermined portion of the circuit board and its attached side connected to a corresponding portion of a heatsink module, hence able to swing vertically; and a second fastening piece having a second fastening member to engage the first fastening member and a fulcrum to suppress the upper end surface of the heat spreader, the second fastening piece having suitable elasticity for the second fastening member to swing vertically and axially around the fulcrum.
The working of the elements described above allows the heat transfer parts of the heatsink module to get in contact with a CPU and/or another chip through the fastening structure, thereby improving the overall heat dissipation efficiency of the circuit board with such fastening structure thereon.
The objects, features and functions of the present invention are explained in detail below with an example and accompanying drawings.
Referring to
The first fastening pieces 13 are respectively disposed on the circuit board 12 at a proper distance apart and in ring shape to form a first fastening member 30 with an aperture on the same axis line.
The heat spreader 14 is a metal piece in somewhat rectangular shape and having an attached side 40, which is connected to the outer casing of heatsink module 11 in one body, so the heat spreader 14 can swing vertically (based on the direction of the figure) to an extent and axially around the attached side 40; a pair of notch 42 each is disposed at the center of the two mobile sides 44 adjacent to the attached side 40 of heat spreader 14.
The second fastening piece 15 is a long-strip metal piece with proper length and elasticity formed in one-piece molding, including a fulcrum 50 at its center section; two connecting members 52 in inverse U-shape on each end; two second fastening members 54 in inverse hook shape respectively disposed at the outer side of the corresponding connecting members 52 and able to swing somewhat horizontally (based on the direction of the figure) and axially around the middle section of connecting member 52.
For assembly, the heat spreader 14 is disposed on the top of circuit board 12 to sandwich a heat-generating chip 20 therebetween and allow a corresponding the first fastening piece 13 to engage one of its notches 42 to help the operator determine the correct position; next, the second fastening members 54 are respectively inserted into the corresponding first fastening members 30; through the second fastening piece 15 that possesses elasticity and is able to swing vertically and axially around fulcrum 50, the fulcrum 50 is forced to press the heat spreader 14 down, while the connecting members 52 similarly having proper elasticity can be used to stabilize and maintain the connection between the first fastening piece 13 and the second fastening piece 15. As such, the heat generated from chip 20 is rapidly transferred to the heatsink module 11 and dissipate through the forced close contact with the heat spreader 14.
To enhance the union between the fastening structure 10 and the circuit board 12, the present invention further disposes two first positioning members 46 in inverse hook shape at a proper distance apart on the head spreader 14 in one piece, and an imaginary line drawn between the first positioning members 46 are exactly perpendicular to an imaginary line drawn between the notches 42.
A suppressing member 16 is a bow-shape metal piece with proper length and elasticity; its middle section is secured to the top of fulcrum 50 in a manner that its long-axis is perpendicular to the second fastening piece 15, and a second positioning member 60 with long aperture is formed respectively at each end of suppressing member 16.
For operation, the first fastening pieces 13 engage the corresponding second fastening pieces 15, and the first positioning members 46 respectively pass through the corresponding second positioning members 60 to hook the end of long aperture. The downward bending middle section of the suppressing member 16 is pressed against the top of fulcrum 50 and prevents the elastic force from second fastening pieces 15 being directly transferred to the second positioning members 60 to ensure the state of secure engagement between first fastening pieces 13 and second fastening pieces 15.
The description above is merely a preferred embodiment of the invention which should not be construed as a limitation on the scope of claim. All modifications and alterations by those familiar with the skill without departing from the spirits of the invention shall remain within the protected scope and claims of the invention.
