U.S. patent application number 12/246639 was filed with the patent office on 2009-01-29 for cooler device.
Invention is credited to Tsung-Hsien Huang.
Application Number | 20090025906 12/246639 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39168404 |
Filed Date | 2009-01-29 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090025906 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Huang; Tsung-Hsien |
January 29, 2009 |
COOLER DEVICE
Abstract
A cooler device includes a metal base member and a plurality of
metal radiation fins. The metal base member has parallel locating
grooves; the metal radiation fins are fastened to one another in a
stack by respective hooked portions thereof or by means of
closed-end heat tubes, the metal radiation fins each having
backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portions respectively
fitted into the locating grooves of the metal base and fixedly
secured thereto by means of compacting the locating grooves of the
metal base member without electroplating or using solder paste or
bonding means.
Inventors: |
Huang; Tsung-Hsien; (I-Lan
Hsien, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
PAI PATENT & TRADEMARK LAW FIRM
1001 FOURTH AVENUE, SUITE 3200
SEATTLE
WA
98154
US
|
Family ID: |
39168404 |
Appl. No.: |
12/246639 |
Filed: |
October 7, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11530149 |
Sep 8, 2006 |
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12246639 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
165/80.3 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 23/467 20130101;
F28F 2275/122 20130101; Y10T 29/49353 20150115; F28D 15/0275
20130101; H01L 23/3672 20130101; F28F 2275/12 20130101; H01L
2924/00 20130101; H01L 2924/0002 20130101; F28F 1/30 20130101; H01L
2924/0002 20130101; H01L 23/427 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
165/80.3 |
International
Class: |
F28F 7/00 20060101
F28F007/00 |
Claims
1. A cooler device comprising a metal base member, which is a solid
cylinder having a top side, a bottom side and a lateral periphery
between the top side and the bottom side, and a plurality of metal
radiation fins mounted on the lateral periphery of said metal base
member, wherein said metal radiation fins each have an outer side,
at least one hooked portion respectively extending from the outer
side, an inner side, and at least one backwardly curved and crimped
bottom mounting portion respectively extending from the inner side,
the at least one hooked portion of one of said metal radiation fins
being fastened to the at least one hooked portion of another one of
said metal radiation fins; said metal base member has a plurality
of deep locating grooves formed on the lateral periphery, extending
along a length of the lateral periphery in parallel with one
another and spaced around the lateral periphery, said deep locating
grooves respectively receiving the backwardly curved and crimped
bottom mounting portions of said radiation fins; and said metal
base member is compressed to fixedly secure the backwardly curved
and crimped bottom mounting portions of said radiation fins to said
metal base member.
2. The cooler device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said base
member has a plurality of shadow grooves formed on the lateral
periphery in parallel to said deep locating grooves and
respectively spaced between each two adjacent deep locating
grooves.
3. The cooler device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the backwardly
curved and crimped bottom mounting portions of said metal radiation
fins show a U-shaped profile.
4. The cooler device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the backwardly
curved and crimped bottom mounting portions of said metal radiation
fins show an L-shaped profile.
5. The cooler device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the backwardly
curved and crimped bottom mounting portions of said metal radiation
fins show a triangular profile.
6. The cooler device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the backwardly
curved and crimped bottom mounting portions of said metal radiation
fins show an inverted T-shaped profile.
7. The cooler device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the backwardly
curved and crimped bottom mounting portions of said metal radiation
fins show a scroll-shaped profile.
8. The cooler device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a
metal bottom panel formed integral with the bottom side of said
base member.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a divisional application of prior U.S.
application Ser. No. 11/530,149, filed Sep. 8, 2006, which is now
pending. The entirety of the prior application is incorporated by
reference herein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] (a) Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a cooler device and more
particularly to the mounting arrangement of the metal base member
and metal radiation fins of a cooler device, which greatly
increases the contact surface area between the metal base member
and the metal radiation fins and is environmentally friendly.
[0004] (b) Description of the Prior Art
[0005] Conventional heat sinks are commonly comprised of a base
member and a plurality of radiation fins arranged in parallel on
the metal base member. The base member and the radiation fins are
generally extruded from aluminum or copper. Therefore, the base
member of a conventional heat sink is called the aluminum base or
copper base. Further, regular heat sinks include heat sinks with
heat tubes and heat sinks without heat tube. In a heat sink without
heat tube, the radiation fins are arranged in parallel and fastened
to one another by respective hooked portions thereof. In a heat
sink with heat tubes, heat tubes are fastened to the radiation fins
to secure the radiation fins together. Further, a heat sink may be
provided with an electric fan to enhance heat dissipation.
[0006] Further, the radiation fins of a conventional heat sink are
soldered to the base member with the application of a solder paste
or bonding agent. Further, when fastening copper heat tubes to an
aluminum base member, a nickel-plating procedure is necessary. The
use of a solder paste or bonding agent or the application of a
nickel-plating procedure greatly increases the manufacturing cost
of the heat sink. Further, the application of a nickel-plating
procedure is not environmentally friendly.
[0007] There are heat sinks in which the base member is secondarily
processed to provide parallel mounting grooves and then the base
member is compacted to secure the radiation fins in place after
insertion of the radiation fins into the mounting grooves. However,
the secondary processing of the base member greatly increases the
cost. Further, the limited contact surface area between the base
member and the radiation fins does not allow quick transmission of
heat energy from the base member to the radiation fins for quick
dissipation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The present invention has been accomplished under the
circumstances in view. According to one aspect of the present
invention, the cooler device comprises a metal base member, and a
plurality of metal radiation fins mounted on the metal base member.
The metal radiation fins each have at least one backwardly curved
and crimped bottom mounting portion. The metal base member has a
plurality of deep locating grooves, which receive the backwardly
curved and crimped bottom mounting portions of the radiation fins;
the metal base member is compressed to fixedly secure the
backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portions of the
radiation fins to the metal base member. Therefore, the radiation
fins are quickly and easily affixed to the base member without
electroplating or the use of solder paste or bonding means, i.e.,
the mounting procedure of the present invention is environmentally
friendly.
[0009] According to another aspect of the present invention, each
radiation fin has a plurality of backwardly curved and crimped
bottom mounting portions respectively fastened to the base member.
Therefore, the thickness of the bottom side of each radiation fin
is relatively increased, i.e., the contact surface area between the
radiation fins and the base member is relatively increased for
quick transmission of heat energy from the base member to the
radiation fins.
[0010] According to still another aspect of the present invention,
the backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portions of said
metal radiation fins can be made to show a U-shaped profile, a
L-shaped profile, a triangular profile, an inverted T-shaped
profile, or a scroll-shaped profile.
[0011] According to still another aspect of the present invention,
each radiation fin has the bottom side turned backwards and
crimped, therefore the bottom mounting side of each radiation fin
has a certain wall thickness, and the base member can be directly
extruded from aluminum or copper to provide the matching locating
grooves for the mounting of the backwardly curved and crimped
mounting portions of the radiation fins quickly and efficiently
without a secondary processing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1 is an oblique elevation view of a cooler device in
accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention.
[0013] FIG. 2 is an oblique elevation view of a base member for
cooler device before formation of shadow transverse grooves
according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
[0014] FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the cooler device according to
the first embodiment of the present invention.
[0015] FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the cooler device according to
the first embodiment of the present invention.
[0016] FIG. 5 is an exploded view in an enlarged scale of a part of
the cooler device according to the first embodiment of the present
invention.
[0017] FIG. 6 is an oblique elevation view of a cooler device
according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
[0018] FIG. 7 is an exploded view of the cooler device according to
the second embodiment of the present invention.
[0019] FIG. 8 is an elevational view showing a second form of the
backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portion of the
radiation fin.
[0020] FIG. 9 shows the backwardly curved and crimped bottom
mounting portions of the second form of the radiation fins fastened
to the base member according to the present invention.
[0021] FIG. 10 is an elevational view showing a third form of the
backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portion of the
radiation fin.
[0022] FIG. 11 shows the backwardly curved and crimped bottom
mounting portions of the third form of the radiation fins fastened
to the base member according to the present invention.
[0023] FIG. 12 is an elevational view showing a fourth form of the
backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portion of the
radiation fin.
[0024] FIG. 13 shows the backwardly curved and crimped bottom
mounting portions of the fourth form of the radiation fins fastened
to the base member according to the present invention.
[0025] FIG. 14 is an elevational view showing a fifth form of the
backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portion of the
radiation fin.
[0026] FIG. 15 shows the backwardly curved and crimped bottom
mounting portions of the fifth form of the radiation fins fastened
to the base member according to the present invention.
[0027] FIG. 16 is an oblique elevation view of a cooler device
according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
[0028] FIG. 17 is an oblique elevation view of a cooler device
according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
[0029] FIG. 18 is a top view of the cooler device according to the
fourth embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0030] Referring to FIGS. 1.about.5, a cooler device in accordance
with a first embodiment of the present invention is shown comprised
of a set of radiation fins 1, a plurality of heat tubes 2, and a
base member 3.
[0031] The radiation fins 1 have same or different shapes, and are
arranged in parallel. Further, each radiation fin 1 has a plurality
of backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portion 11 (see
FIGS. 4 and 5).
[0032] The heat tubes 2 are double closed-end U-tubes filed with a
working fluid (not shown) and fixedly fastened to the radiation
fins 1 to keep the radiation fins 1 in parallel.
[0033] The base member 3 is a solid flat metal block extruded from
aluminum or copper, having two longitudinal positioning grooves 31
(of semicircular cross section) formed on the top wall and
respectively fitting under the periphery of a part of each of the
heat tubes 2, a plurality of deep transverse locating grooves 32
formed on the top wall and adapted to receive the backwardly curved
and crimped bottom mounting portions 11 of the radiation fins 1,
and a plurality of shadow transverse grooves 33 formed on the top
wall between each two adjacent deep transverse locating grooves 32.
FIG. 2 is an oblique top elevation view of the base member 3 before
the shadow transverse grooves 33 are formed.
[0034] After the backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting
portions 11 of the radiation fins 1 are inserted into the deep
transverse locating grooves 32, the base member 3 is compressed (in
the direction indicated by the arrowhead signs shown in FIG. 4) to
secure the radiation fins 1 firmly in place. This radiation fin and
base member mounting arrangement is easy and inexpensive. Because
the invention eliminates the use of electroplating, solder paste,
or other bonding means, the manufacturing cost of the cooler device
is low and, the fabrication of the cooler device is environmentally
friendly. Further, because extruding the base member 3 from
aluminum or copper forms the deep transverse locating grooves 32,
the invention eliminates a secondary processing process to form the
transverse locating grooves on the base member.
[0035] FIGS. 6 and 7 show a cooler device in accordance with a
second embodiment of the present invention. According to this
design, the cooler device is comprised of a set of radiation fins
1, and a base member 3.
[0036] The radiation fins 1 each have a plurality of hooked
portions 12 protruded from one side, namely, the top side, and a
plurality of backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portions
11. Further, the radiation fins 1 are flat metal sheet members of
same or different contours. By means of hooking the hooked portions
12 of one radiation fin 1 to another, the radiation fins 1 are
fastened together in a parallel manner.
[0037] The base member 3 is a solid flat metal block extruded from
aluminum or copper, having a plurality of deep transverse locating
grooves 32 formed on the top wall and adapted to receive the
backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portions 11 of the
radiation fins 1, and a plurality of shadow transverse grooves 33
formed on the top wall between each two adjacent transverse deep
locating grooves 32.
[0038] After the backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting
portions 11 of the radiation fins 1 are inserted into the deep
transverse locating grooves 32, the base member 3 is compressed to
deform the shadow transverse grooves 33, thereby securing the
radiation fins 1 firmly to the base member 3.
[0039] Because each radiation fin 1 has a plurality of backwardly
curved and crimped bottom mounting portions 11, the thickness of
the bottom side of each radiation fin 1 is relatively increased,
i.e., the contact surface area between the radiation fins 1 and the
base member 3 is relatively increased for quick transmission of
heat energy from the base member 3 to the radiation fins 1.
[0040] The backwardly curved bottom mounting portions 11 of the
radiation fins 1 may be variously shaped. In FIG. 5, each
backwardly curved bottom mounting portion 11 shows a U-shaped
profile. In FIGS. 8 and 9, each backwardly curved bottom mounting
portion 11 shows an L-shaped profile. In FIGS. 10 and 11, each
backwardly curved bottom mounting portion 11 shows a substantially
triangular profile. In FIGS. 12 and 13, each backwardly curved
bottom mounting portion 11 shows an inverted T-shaped profile. In
FIGS. 14 and 15, each backwardly curved bottom mounting portion 11
shows a scroll-shaped profile.
[0041] FIG. 16 shows a cooler device in accordance with a third
embodiment of the present invention. According to this embodiment,
the cooler device is comprised of a base member 3a and a plurality
of radiation fins 1. The base member 3a is a metal cylinder having
a plurality of deep transverse mounting grooves extending along the
length and alternatively arranged in parallel around the periphery.
The backwardly curved and crimped bottom mounting portions (not
shown) of the radiation fins 1 are respectively fastened to the
deep transverse mounting grooves of the base member 3a.
[0042] FIGS. 17 and 18 show a cooler device in accordance with a
fourth embodiment of the present invention. According to this
embodiment, the cooler device is comprised of a flat panel 34, a
cylindrical base member 3a perpendicularly extended from the top
side of the flat panel 34, and a plurality of radiation fins 1
radially fastened to the periphery of the cylindrical base member
3a. Alternatively, the cylindrical base member 3a and the flat
panel 34 can be directly made from a metal material in one integral
piece.
[0043] A prototype of cooler device has been constructed with the
features of FIGS. 1.about.18. The cooler device functions smoothly
to provide all of the features disclosed earlier.
[0044] Although particular embodiments of the invention have been
described in detail for purposes of illustration, various
modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from
the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention
is not to be limited except as by the appended claims.
* * * * *