Electronics package for synthetic jet ejectors

• US 20070272393A1
• Filed: 02/22/2007
• Published: 11/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nuventix, Inc. (LTI Flexible Products Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Nuventix, Inc. (LTI Flexible Products Inc.)
• Inventors: Reichenbach, Robert, Booth, John
• Granted Patent: US 8,035,966 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 165/84
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 2021/0031 Radiators for recooling a coolant of cooling systems
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 2265/28 for preventing noise by preventing vibrations F28F2265/30
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 27/00 Control arrangements or safety devices specially adapted for heat-exchange or heat-transfer apparatus control arrangements in general G05
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1917 using digital means

Abstract

A thermal management system (101), comprising (a) a synthetic jet actuator (103), and (b) a processor (107) in communication with the synthetic jet actuator, the processor being adapted to receive programming instructions, and being further adapted to modify the operation of the synthetic jet actuator in response to the programming instructions.

Claims

1. A thermal management device, comprising:

a synthetic jet ejector adapted to operate at a variable operating characteristic selected from the group consisting of frequency and amplitude; and

a controller adapted to modify the operating characteristic of the synthetic jet ejector.

2. The thermal management device of claim 1, further comprising a programming bus, in communication with said controller, which is adapted to provide programming instructions to said controller.

3. The thermal management device of claim 2, wherein said programming bus is in communication with a communications network.

4. The thermal management device of claim 3, wherein said programming bus is programmable over the communications network.

5. The thermal management device of claim 4, wherein the communications network is the Internet.

6. The thermal management device of claim 2, wherein said device is incorporated into a host system, and wherein said programming bus is programmable by the host system.

7. The thermal management device of claim 1, wherein said synthetic jet ejector is driven by a fixed voltage power source.

8. The thermal management device of claim 1, wherein said synthetic jet ejector is driven by a variable voltage power source.

9. The thermal management device of claim 8, further comprising a voltage regulator adapted to provide said microprocessor with a predefined voltage.

10. The thermal management device of claim 8, further comprising an H bridge integrated circuit electrically disposed between the power source and the synthetic jet ejector.

11. The thermal management device of claim 10, further comprising a current sampling resistor adapted to sample the current input into the H bridge.

12. The thermal management device of claim 1, wherein said device is equipped with a temperature input.

13. The thermal management device of claim 1, wherein said device is equipped with a tachometer output.

14. The thermal management device of claim 1, wherein said device is equipped with an audio input.

15. The thermal management device of claim 14, wherein said audio input is equipped with a microphone such that the processor can receive audio input relating to the operation of said synthetic jet ejector.

16. The thermal management device of claim 1, wherein said device is equipped with a pulse width modulation (PWM) input.

17. A thermal management system, comprising:

a synthetic jet actuator; and

a controller in communication with said synthetic jet actuator, said controller being adapted to receive programming instructions, and being further adapted to modify the operation of said synthetic jet actuator in response to the programming instructions.

18. The thermal management system of claim 17, wherein the programming instructions modify the frequency at which the synthetic jet actuator operates.

19. A thermal management system embedded in a host system, the thermal management system comprising:

a plurality of synthetic jet ejectors; and

a processor adapted to control the operation of said plurality of synthetic jet ejectors in accordance with programming instructions.

20. The thermal management system of claim 19, wherein said processor is in communication with the host system.

21. The thermal management system of claim 19, wherein said programming instructions are received from said host system.

22. The thermal management system of claim 19, wherein said host system is adapted to modify said programming instructions.

23. The thermal management system of claim 19, wherein each of said plurality of synthetic jet ejectors has a dedicated H bridge integrated circuit associated with it.

24. The thermal management system of claim 19, wherein said processor is adapted to sample the current supplied to each actuator.

25. The thermal management system of claim 19, further comprising a programming bus, in communication with said processor, which is adapted to provide programming instructions to said processor.

26. The thermal management system of claim 25, wherein said programming bus is in communication with a communications network.

27. The thermal management system of claim 26, wherein said programming bus is programmable over the communications network.

28. The thermal management system of claim 27, wherein the communications network is the Internet.

29. The thermal management system of claim 25, wherein said programming bus is programmable by the host system.

30. The thermal management device of claim 19, wherein said system is equipped with a temperature input.

31. The thermal management device of claim 19, wherein said system is equipped with a tachometer output.

32. The thermal management device of claim 19, wherein said system is equipped with an audio input.

33. The thermal management device of claim 32, wherein said audio input is equipped with a microphone such that the processor can receive audio input relating to the operation of one or more of said plurality of synthetic jet ejectors.

34. The thermal management device of claim 19, wherein said system is equipped with a pulse width modulation (PWM) input.

35. A monitoring system, comprising:

a plurality of monitored systems, wherein each of said plurality of monitored systems has a plurality of system components, and wherein each of said system components has at least one synthetic jet ejector associated therewith; and

a central facility, remotely disposed from said plurality of monitored systems, which is adapted to monitor the operation of the synthetic jet ejectors associated with the system components of each of said plurality of monitored systems.

36. The system of claim 35, wherein said central facility is further adapted to gather data relating to a given system component by way of the synthetic jet ejector associated with the system component.

37. The system of claim 35, wherein the synthetic jet ejector associated with a system component is adapted to provide thermal management of the component.

38. The system of claim 35, wherein each of said plurality of monitored systems is a server.

39. A method for collecting information from a plurality of systems, wherein each of said plurality of systems has a plurality of system components, the method comprising:

providing at least one synthetic jet ejector which is associated with each of said plurality of system components; and

collecting information about said system components from the synthetic jet ejectors.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein said information is data relating to the temperature of said system components.

41. The method of claim 39, further comprising the step of utilizing said information to optimize the thermal management of said system components.