U.S. patent application number 11/392355 was filed with the patent office on 2007-03-22 for heat dissipating system.
Invention is credited to Chien-Jung Chen, Te-Tsung Chen, Chih-Tsung Hsu.
Application Number | 20070062675 11/392355 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37193439 |
Filed Date | 2007-03-22 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070062675 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Chen; Chien-Jung ; et
al. |
March 22, 2007 |
Heat dissipating system
Abstract
A heat dissipating system includes: a heat sink adapted to be
connected to an electronic device; a coolant reservoir adapted for
storing a coolant therein; a driving mechanism; a cooling
mechanism; a coolant circulating conduit connected to the coolant
reservoir, the cooling mechanism, the heat sink, and the driving
mechanism such that the driving mechanism drives circulation of the
coolant in the coolant circulating conduit; and a pressure
stabilizing mechanism including a bypass connected to the coolant
reservoir and the coolant circulating conduit at a position
downstream of the driving mechanism, and a valve. The valve is
opened when the pressure inside the coolant circulating conduit
exceeds a predetermined value, thereby permitting fluid
communication between the coolant reservoir and the coolant
circulating conduit through the bypass.
Inventors: |
Chen; Chien-Jung; (Kaohsiung
Hsien, TW) ; Chen; Te-Tsung; (Kaohsiung Hsien,
TW) ; Hsu; Chih-Tsung; (Kaohsiung Hsien, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
GALLAGHER & LATHROP, A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION
601 CALIFORNIA ST
SUITE 1111
SAN FRANCISCO
CA
94108
US
|
Family ID: |
37193439 |
Appl. No.: |
11/392355 |
Filed: |
March 28, 2006 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
165/104.27 ;
165/104.21; 257/E23.098 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 2924/00 20130101;
H01L 2924/0002 20130101; H01L 23/473 20130101; H01L 2924/0002
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
165/104.27 ;
165/104.21 |
International
Class: |
F28D 15/00 20060101
F28D015/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Sep 21, 2005 |
TW |
094216236 |
Claims
1. A heat dissipating system for cooling an electronic device, said
heat dissipating system comprising: a heat sink adapted to be
connected to the electronic device for absorbing heat from the
electronic device; a coolant reservoir adapted for storing a
coolant therein; a driving mechanism for drawing the coolant from
said coolant reservoir; a cooling mechanism; a coolant circulating
conduit connected to said coolant reservoir, said cooling
mechanism, said heat sink, and said driving mechanism such that
said driving mechanism draws the coolant from said coolant
reservoir and drives circulation of the coolant in said coolant
circulating conduit through said heat sink and said cooling
mechanism so as to transfer heat from said heat sink to said
cooling mechanism through the coolant; and a pressure stabilizing
mechanism including a bypass connected to said coolant reservoir
and said coolant circulating conduit at a position downstream of
said driving mechanism, and a valve that is normally closed,
thereby forbidding fluid communication between said coolant
reservoir and said coolant circulating conduit through said bypass,
and that is opened when the pressure inside said coolant
circulating conduit exceeds a predetermined value, thereby
permitting fluid communication between said coolant reservoir and
said coolant circulating conduit through said bypass.
2. The heat dissipating system of claim 1, wherein said valve is
installed movably in said bypass, and is movable from a closed
position to an open position when the pressure in said coolant
circulating conduit exceeds the predetermined value.
3. The heat dissipating system of claim 1, wherein said heat sink
includes a container and a plurality of fins disposed in said
container.
4. The heat dissipating system of claim 1, wherein said cooling
mechanism includes a fan and a plurality of fins connected to said
coolant circulating conduit.
5. The heat dissipating system of claim 1, wherein said driving
mechanism includes a pump.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims priority of Taiwanese application
no. 094216236, filed on Sep. 21, 2005.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] This invention relates to a heat dissipating system, more
particularly to a heat dissipating system for cooling an electronic
device.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] As technology advances in the field of computers,
performance of the computer has become more and more powerful.
Therefore, considerable heat is generated by electronic devices,
such as a central processing unit (CPU), of the computer, thereby
resulting in a high temperature. The high temperature can cause
improper shut down of the computer and damage to the data stored in
the computer. Thus, heat dissipation is a major concern for
computer manufacturers.
[0006] FIG. 1 shows a conventional heat dissipating device 1 that
includes a heat sink 11, a coolant 12, a driving mechanism 13, a
cooling mechanism 14, and a conduit 112 allowing the coolant 12 to
flow therein and connected to the heat sink 11 and the driving
mechanism 13.
[0007] The heat sink 11 includes a body 111 heat-exchangably
connected to an electronic device 100, and defines an inner space
in the body 111. The coolant 12 is received in the inner space of
the heat sink 11, and flows through the space of the heat sink 11
so as to carry the heat from the electronic device 100.
[0008] The driving mechanism 13 is used to circulate the coolant 12
in the heat dissipating system 1.
[0009] The cooling mechanism 14 includes a plurality of heat
dissipating fins 142 spaced apart from each other and connected to
a tortuous section 141 of the conduit 112.
[0010] In operation, the heat generated by the electronic device
100 is transferred to the body 111 of the heat sink 11, and is
carried by the coolant 12 to the cooling mechanism 14 so as to be
dissipated thereat. The heat dissipating fins 142 of the cooling
mechanism 14 contact the tortuous section 141 of the conduit 112 so
as to facilitate heat dissipation. With the circulation of the
coolant 12, the heat generated by the electronic device 100 is
dissipated.
[0011] However, in the conventional heat dissipating device 1, when
the driving force generated by the driving mechanism 13 is too
strong, the pressure in the heat dissipating device 1 becomes too
high, thereby causing damage to the heat dissipating device 1, such
as breaking of the conduit 112. Therefore, there is a need in the
art to provide a heat dissipating system that can avoid pressure
therein from rising to an extent that could cause damage to the
heat dissipating system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide
a heat dissipating system for cooling an electronic device, which
can prevent the problem caused by excessive pressure as encountered
in the prior art.
[0013] According to this invention, a heat dissipating system for
cooling an electronic device comprises: a heat sink adapted to be
connected to the electronic device for absorbing heat from the
electronic device; a coolant reservoir adapted for storing a
coolant therein; a driving mechanism for drawing the coolant from
the coolant reservoir; a cooling mechanism; a coolant circulating
conduit connected to the coolant reservoir, the cooling mechanism,
the heat sink, and the driving mechanism such that the driving
mechanism draws the coolant from the coolant reservoir and drives
circulation of the coolant in the coolant circulating conduit
through the heat sink and the cooling mechanism so as to transfer
heat from the heat sink to the cooling mechanism through the
coolant; and a pressure stabilizing mechanism including a bypass
connected to the coolant reservoir and the coolant circulating
conduit at a position downstream of the driving mechanism, and a
valve. The valve is normally closed, thereby forbidding fluid
communication between the coolant reservoir and the coolant
circulating conduit through the bypass, and is opened when the
pressure inside the coolant circulating conduit exceeds a
predetermined value, thereby permitting fluid communication between
the coolant reservoir and the coolant circulating conduit through
the bypass.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] Other features and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent in the following detailed description of the
preferred embodiment of this invention, with reference to the
accompanying drawings, in which:
[0015] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a conventional heat
dissipating device;
[0016] FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the preferred embodiment of a
heat dissipating system according to this invention in a state
where a valve is closed; and
[0017] FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the preferred embodiment of a
heat dissipating system according to this invention in a state
where the valve is opened.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0018] Referring to FIG. 2, the preferred embodiment of a heat
dissipating system 2 according to this invention includes: a heat
sink 24 adapted to be connected to an electronic device 100 for
absorbing heat from the electronic device 100; a coolant reservoir
21 for storing a coolant 22 therein; a driving mechanism 25 for
drawing the coolant 22 from the coolant reservoir 21; a cooling
mechanism 26; a coolant circulating conduit 23 connected to the
coolant reservoir 21, the cooling mechanism 26, the heat sink 24,
and the driving mechanism 25 such that the driving mechanism 25
draws the coolant 22 from the coolant reservoir 21 and drives
circulation of the coolant 22 in the coolant circulating conduit 23
through the heat sink 24 and the cooling mechanism 26 so as to
transfer heat from the heat sink 24 to the cooling mechanism 26
through the coolant 22; and a pressure stabilizing mechanism 27
including a bypass 272 connected to the coolant reservoir 21 and
the coolant circulating conduit 23 at a position downstream of the
driving mechanism 25, and a valve 271.
[0019] In this embodiment, the valve 271 is installed movably in
the bypass 272. The bypass 272 includes a wider portion 273 near
the valve 271 for permitting movement of the valve 271 thereinto
when the valve 271 is pushed by the pressure in the coolant
circulating conduit 23. The valve 271 is normally closed, thereby
forbidding fluid communication between the coolant reservoir 21 and
the coolant circulating conduit 23 through the bypass 272 (see FIG.
2). On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, the valve 271 is pushed
into the wider portion 273 of the bypass 272 so as to be moved from
the closed position to an open position when the pressure inside
the coolant circulating conduit 23 exceeds a predetermined value,
thereby permitting fluid communication between the coolant
reservoir 21 and the coolant circulating conduit 23 through the
bypass 272 (see FIG. 3).
[0020] In this embodiment, the driving mechanism 25 includes a
pump. Preferably, the coolant 22 is water.
[0021] In this embodiment, the heat sink 24 includes a container
240 and a plurality of fins 241 disposed in the container 240. The
fins 241 are spaced apart from each other, and are in contact with
the coolant 22 in the container 240. The fins 241 provide a larger
surface area for heat-exchange from the electronic device 100 to
the coolant 22, thereby enhancing the heat dissipating
efficiency.
[0022] In this embodiment, the cooling mechanism 26 includes a
plurality of fins 261 and a fan 262. The fins 261 of the cooling
mechanism 26 are spaced apart from each other, and contact the
coolant circulating conduit 23, such that heat is transferred to
the fins 261 of the cooling mechanism 26 from the coolant 22
through the coolant circulating conduit 23. The fan 262 of the
cooling mechanism 26 is used to cool the fins 261 of the cooling
mechanism 26.
[0023] In operation, the heat generated by the electronic device
100 is transferred to the fins 241 of the heat sink 24. The coolant
22 passes through the heat sink 24, and absorbs heat from the fins
241 of the heat sink 24 so as to carry the heat from the heat sink
24. The heated coolant 22 is cooled when passing through the
cooling mechanism 26. The cooled coolant 22 is re-circulated to the
heat sink 24 through the driving action of the pump 25, thereby
continuing the heat-exchanging circulation. When the pressure
inside the coolant circulating conduit 23 exceeds the predetermined
value, as described above, the valve 271 is moved to the open
position. As a consequence, a part of the coolant 22 flows back
into the coolant reservoir 21 through the bypass 272 so as to
prevent abnormal pressure inside the coolant circulating conduit
23. The remainder of the coolant 22 continues the heat-exchanging
circulation in the coolant circulating conduit 23.
[0024] In this embodiment, the electronic device 100 is directly
connected to the heat sink 24. However, this invention is not
limited to the disclosed embodiment. For example, the electronic
device 100 can be directly connected to the reservoir 21.
[0025] With the pressure stabilizing mechanism 27, the problem
caused by excessive pressure as encountered in the prior art can be
avoided.
[0026] While the present invention has been described in connection
with what is considered the most practical and preferred
embodiment, it is understood that this invention is not limited to
the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various
arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest
interpretation and equivalent arrangements.
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