U.S. patent application number 11/115176 was filed with the patent office on 2006-03-02 for fan frame and fan utilizing the same.
This patent application is currently assigned to Delta Electronics, Inc.. Invention is credited to Huan-Chi Chen, Ying-Chi Chen, Te-Tsai Chuang, Wen-Shi Huang.
Application Number | 20060045744 11/115176 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 35745794 |
Filed Date | 2006-03-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060045744 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Chen; Huan-Chi ; et
al. |
March 2, 2006 |
Fan frame and fan utilizing the same
Abstract
A fan frame and a fan utilizing the same are provided. A fan
frame includes a case, a motor base, at least one airflow guiding
component, and a line leading mechanism. The case has a through
hole. The motor base is disposed in the case. The airflow guiding
components, such as static blades or curved ribs, are radially
disposed between the case and the motor base. The line leading
mechanism, for positioning a power line and leading the power line
out of the case, is integrated with one of the airflow guiding
components.
Inventors: |
Chen; Huan-Chi; (Taoyuan
Hsien, TW) ; Chen; Ying-Chi; (Taoyuan Hsien, TW)
; Chuang; Te-Tsai; (Taoyuan Hsien, TW) ; Huang;
Wen-Shi; (Taoyuan Hsien, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BIRCH STEWART KOLASCH & BIRCH
PO BOX 747
FALLS CHURCH
VA
22040-0747
US
|
Assignee: |
Delta Electronics, Inc.
|
Family ID: |
35745794 |
Appl. No.: |
11/115176 |
Filed: |
April 27, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
416/189 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 2924/0002 20130101;
H01L 2924/00 20130101; H01L 2924/0002 20130101; F04D 29/542
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
416/189 |
International
Class: |
B63H 1/16 20060101
B63H001/16 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Aug 27, 2004 |
TW |
093125864 |
Claims
1. A fan frame, comprising: a case comprising an opening; a motor
base disposed in the case for supporting an impeller; at least one
airflow guiding component disposed between the case and the motor
base; and a line leading mechanism for positioning a power line and
leading the power line out of the case; wherein the line leading
mechanism is integrated with one of the airflow guiding
components.
2. The fan frame as claimed in claim 1, wherein the line leading
mechanism comprises a line guiding groove, an opening of which
faces the outside of the case for allowing the power line to be
disposed therein.
3. The fan frame as claimed in claim 2, wherein the opening
penetrates through the case to form an airflow inlet and an airflow
outlet, and the airflow guiding components are disposed at the
airflow outlet.
4. The fan frame as claimed in claim 2, wherein the case further
comprises a hole, and the power line in the line guiding groove is
led out of the case by passing through the hole.
5. The fan frame as claimed in claim 2, wherein the line guiding
groove, connected between the motor base and the case, is exposed
out of the case, so that the power line is positioned and led out
of the case by the line guiding groove.
6. The fan frame as claimed in claim 5, wherein the line guiding
groove comprises a restraining portion for limiting the power line
in the line guiding groove.
7. The fan frame as claimed in claim 1, wherein the line leading
mechanism comprises a through hole, and the power line is disposed
in the through hole and is led out of the case.
8. The fan frame as claimed in claim 1, wherein the width of the
airflow guiding component integrated with the line leading
mechanism differs from that of any other airflow guiding component
not integrated with the line leading mechanism.
9. The fan frame as claimed in claim 1, wherein the airflow guiding
components are static blades or curved ribs.
10. A fan, comprising: an impeller; and a fan frame comprising: a
case comprising an opening; a motor base disposed in the case for
supporting the impeller; at least one airflow guiding component
disposed between the case and the motor base; and a line leading
mechanism for positioning a power line and leading the power line
out of the case; wherein the line leading mechanism is integrated
with one of the airflow guiding components.
11. The fan as claimed in claim 10, wherein the line leading
mechanism comprises a line guiding groove, an opening of which
faces the outside of the case for allowing the power line to be
disposed therein.
12. The fan as claimed in claim 11, wherein the opening penetrates
through the case to form an airflow inlet and an airflow outlet,
and the airflow guiding components are disposed at the airflow
outlet.
13. The fan as claimed in claim 11, wherein the case further
comprises a hole, and the power line in the line guiding groove is
led out of the case by passing through the hole.
14. The fan as claimed in claim 11, wherein the line guiding
groove, connected between the motor base and the case, is exposed
out of the case, so that the power line is positioned and led out
of the case by the line guiding groove.
15. The fan as claimed in claim 14, wherein the line guiding groove
comprises a restraining portion for limiting the power line in the
line guiding groove.
16. The fan as claimed in claim 10, wherein the line leading
mechanism comprises a through hole, and the power line is disposed
in the through hole and is led out of the case.
17. The fan as claimed in claim 10, wherein the width of the
airflow guiding component integrated with the line leading
mechanism differs from that of any other airflow guiding component
not integrated with the line leading mechanism.
18. The fan as claimed in claim 10, wherein the airflow guiding
components are static blades or curved ribs.
19. The fan as claimed in claim 10, wherein the fan is an
axial-flow fan.
Description
[0001] This Non-provisional application claims priority under
U.S.C..sctn. 119(a) on Patent Application No(s). 093125864 filed in
Taiwan, Republic of China on Aug. 27, 2004, the entire contents of
which are hereby incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The invention relates to a fan frame, and in particular, to
a fan frame for a fan.
[0003] Heat dissipating devices or systems are commonly used in
electronic devices. A heat dissipating device can dissipate heat
generated by an electronic device, thus preventing the electronic
device from overheating or burnout. Heat dissipating devices are
particularly important to micro-electronic devices, such as
integrated circuits. Currently, the most commonly used heat
dissipating device is a fan. Typically, blades are disposed in a
case of a fan, and the frame is disposed at a position
corresponding to a vent of a computer housing, or near the heat
generating electronic devices. When a motor drives the blades to
rotate, heat generated by the electronic devices is dissipated and
exhausted through the vent.
[0004] Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram
of a case of a conventional axial-flow fan. FIG. 1B is a
cross-section of the conventional axial-flow fan in FIG. 1A along
the line A-A. In the conventional axial-flow fan 10, a fan frame 11
accommodates a motor (not shown in drawings), an impeller 17, and
other components. In FIG. 1B, the fan frame 11 is a case having an
opening, and the opening penetrates through the case 11 to
separately form an airflow inlet 12 and an airflow outlet 13 on the
case 11. The motor base 14 is disposed in the case 11 and is
preferably at the airflow outlet 13 for supporting the impeller 17.
A plurality of static blades 16 are radially disposed between the
case 11 and the motor base 14 for guiding airflow F.
[0005] Conventionally, power lines 15 connected with the impeller
17 are bundled and disposed along one of the static blades 16.
Also, a limiting strap 18 is added for fixing the bundled power
lines 15 on the case 11. Usually, the limiting strap 18 is disposed
a place on the case 11 where the static blade 16 is connected to
the case 11.
[0006] In the conventional axial-flow fan 10, however, the power
lines 15 may block the airflow outlet 13. The bundled power lines
15 are disposed along one of the static blades 16, hence, the
smooth airflow entering the airflow inlet 12 encounters a rough
surface, which is caused by the bundled power lines 15, thus
producing wind drag and reducing airflow pressure and volume of the
axial-flow fan 10. Especially, this disadvantage is more obviously
seen in large-sized fans.
[0007] Referring to FIG. 1C, FIG. 1C is a schematic diagram of a
case of another conventional axial-flow fan. In this axial-flow
fan, a plurality of rectangular ribs 19 are radially disposed
between the case 11 and the motor base 14 for supporting the motor
base 14. The power lines 15 connected to the impeller are disposed
behind the ribs 19 in order to prevent a rough surface from being
formed, as shown in FIG. 1B. The ribs 19, however, cannot satisfy
all character requirements of various airflow pressures and volumes
during fans' operation.
SUMMARY
[0008] Embodiments of the invention provide a fan frame and a fan
utilizing the same. An exemplary embodiment of a fan frame includes
a case, a motor base, at least one airflow guiding component, and a
line leading mechanism. The case includes an opening. The motor
base is disposed in the case for supporting an impeller. The
airflow guiding component is disposed between the case and the
motor base. The line leading mechanism is used for positioning a
power line and leading the power line out of the case. The line
leading mechanism is integrated with one of the airflow guiding
components.
[0009] An exemplary embodiment of a fan includes an impeller and a
fan frame. The fan frame includes a case, a motor base, at least
one airflow guiding component, and a line leading mechanism. The
case includes an opening. The motor base is disposed in the case
for supporting the impeller. The airflow guiding component is
disposed between the case and the motor base. The line leading
mechanism is used for positioning a power line and leading the
power line out of the case. The line leading mechanism is
integrated with one of the airflow guiding components.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] Fan frames and fans can be more fully understood by reading
the subsequent detailed description and examples with references
made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
[0011] FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram of a case of a conventional
axial-flow fan.
[0012] FIG. 1B is a cross-section of the conventional axial-flow
fan in FIG. 1A along the line A-A.
[0013] FIG. 1C is a schematic diagram of a case of another
conventional axial-flow fan.
[0014] FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of a case of an embodiment of
an axial-flow fan.
[0015] FIG. 2B is a cross-section of the axial-flow fan in FIG. 2A
along the line B-B.
[0016] FIG. 2C is an enlarged diagram of the `Q` region of FIG.
2B.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0017] A Fan frame will be described in greater detail in the
following. Referring to FIGS. 2A and 2B, FIG. 2A is a schematic
diagram of a case of an embodiment of an axial-flow fan. FIG. 2B is
a cross-section of the axial-flow fan in FIG. 2A along the line
B-B. The fan frame 21 of the fan 20 accommodates a motor base 24,
an impeller 27, and a motor (not shown in drawings). The fan 20 is
preferably an axial-flow fan appropriate for a large-sized machine,
a server system, a combined fan system, or other heat generating
electronic devices.
[0018] The fan frame 21 is a case 21 having an opening. The fan
frame 21 also includes a motor base 24, at least one airflow
guiding component 26, and a line leading mechanism 28. In FIG. 2B,
the opening penetrates through the case 21 to separately form an
airflow inlet 22 and an airflow outlet 23 on the case 21. The motor
base 24 is disposed in the case 21 and preferably at the airflow
outlet 23 for supporting the impeller 27.
[0019] The airflow guiding components 26 are disposed between the
case 21 and the motor base 24. In this embodiment, the airflow
guiding components 26 are static blades having functions of guiding
airflow F. The airflow guiding components 26 are radially disposed
at the airflow outlet 23. Alternatively, the airflow guiding
components 26 can be curved ribs capable of forming a smooth
surface and guiding airflow F. Also, the curved ribs can be
appropriately resigned for various cambered surfaces in order to
achieve required airflow pressures or airflow volumes.
[0020] Referring to FIGS. 2B and 2C, FIG. 2C is an enlarged diagram
of the `Q` region of FIG. 2B. The line leading mechanism 28
positions a power line 25 of the fan 20 and leads the power line 25
out of the case 21. The line leading mechanism 28 is integrated
with one of the static blades 26, i.e. the airflow guiding
components 26. The line leading mechanism 28 includes a line
guiding groove 31, and the opening of the line guiding groove 31
faces outside of the case 21 for allowing the power line 25 being
disposed therein. The line guiding groove 31 is located below the
static blade 26, hence, the line leading mechanism 28 does not
directly face the airflow F. Thus, smooth airflow entering the
airflow inlet 22 encounters smooth surfaces of the static blades
26. Then, the static blades 26 guide the airflow F to directly exit
the airflow outlet 23. Because the power line 25 is disposed in the
line guiding groove 31 below one of the static blades 26, it also
solves the conventional problem that the bundled power lines block
airflow F, and prevents the power lines from blocking airflow
F.
[0021] Alternatively, the line guiding groove 31, connected between
the motor base 24 and the case 21, is exposed out of the case 21,
so that the power line 25 is positioned by the line guiding groove
31 and led out of the case 21. Additionally, the line guiding
groove 31 includes a restraining portion 29, such as a clasp or a
limiting strap, for limiting the power line 25 in the line guiding
groove 31, as shown in FIG. 2A.
[0022] Alternatively, one end of the line guiding groove 31 is
connected with the motor base 24, and the other end is connected
with the case 21. The case 21 further includes a through hole so
that the power line 25 is disposed in the through hole and the
power line 25 can be led out of the case 21 by passing through the
through hole.
[0023] In addition to the line guiding groove 31, the line leading
mechanism 28 can support the power line 25 in other ways. For
example, one of the static blades 26 can include a through hole,
and the power line 25 can be disposed in the through hole and led
out of the case 21.
[0024] In an embodiment of an axial-flow fan frame, the width of
each airflow guiding component can be the same or not, as long as
the airflow guiding components satisfy airflow pressure and volume
requirements. For example, the width of the static blade 26
integrated with the line leading mechanism 28 is greater than that
of any other static blade 26 which is not integrated with the line
leading mechanism 28. In an embodiment of a fan frame, the line
guiding groove is integrated with the airflow guiding component to
form a smooth surface against the airflow, thus reducing wind drag
and potentially improving fan performance.
[0025] While the invention has been described by way of example and
in terms of several embodiments, it is to be understood that the
invention is not limited thereto. To the contrary, it is intended
to cover various modifications and similar arrangements (as would
be apparent to those skilled in the art). Therefore, the scope of
the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation
so as to encompass all such modifications and similar
arrangements.
* * * * *