Cooled electronic housing

• US 5,485,350 A
• Filed: 11/18/1994
• Issued: 01/16/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Hecht, Franz, Schinn, Volker, Hentschel, Mona, Kranz, Hans-Werner, Kurze, Bernd, Weichselbaum, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Tolin, Gerald P.
• Application Number:
  US08/342,185
• Time in Patent Office: 424 Days
• Field of Search: 312/223.1, 454/184, 363/141, 257/706, 257/707, 257/712, 257/713, 257/721, 257/722, 165/122, 165/126, 165/80.3, 165/185, 361/689, 361/690, 361/692, 361/694, 361/695, 361/697, 361/703, 361/704, 361/707-710, 361/717-719, 361/736, 361/752
• US Class Current: 361/692
• CPC Class Codes: H02B 1/56 Cooling; Ventilation
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/003 Constructional details, e.g. physical layout, assembly, wiring or busbar connections
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/1432 specially adapted for power drive units or power converters
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/14322 wherein the control and power circuits of a power converter are arranged within the same casing
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/20909 Forced ventilation, e.g. on heat dissipaters coupled to components

Abstract

A housing may hold a control device equipped with heat-producing components. A die-cast housing includes a side wall, a rear wall, a bottom, a cover, a front strut, a cooling element and an air guide device, a cover plate and a front cover. The cooling ribs of the cooling element run parallel to the rear wall, end in the plane of the side wall, and are covered with a bulkhead plate. The bottom and the cover are each provided with perforations for removing heat from the front housing half and openings through which connection lines may be passed. The front strut serves as a lateral frame part for the removable cover plate that covers a lateral access opening of the housing, and for the front cover which can close off the front-side opening of the housing. This results in a housing for a control device in book size format, where the number of assembly parts, the assembly effort and the assembly time are significantly reduced.

Claims

1. A die cast housing to hold a control device that is equipped with heat-producing components, comprising

a side wall;

a rear wall;

a bottom;

a cover;

a front strut;

a cooling element;

an air guide device coupled to said cooling element;

a cover plate; and

a front cover;

wherein the cooling element includes cooling ribs that run parallel to said rear wall, end in the plane of said side wall and are covered with a bulkhead plate, said cooling ribs forming cooling channels that are open on a frontal side and begin at the air guide device connected with the bottom, and end at the cover;

wherein said cover and said bottom are each provided with perforations in the region of the front housing half for removing heat from this housing half and an opening to pass through connection lines; and

wherein said front strut between the bottom and the cover is structured as a lateral frame part for the cover plate which covers a lateral access opening of the housing in removable manner and for the front cover which can close off the one front-side opening of the housing.

2. The housing of claim 1, wherein said rear wall is provided with a hanger in a top part and with an attachment at said bottom part.

3. The housing of claim 1, further comprising an additional separate cooling channel arranged between the cooling element and the rear wall of the die-cast housing with at least one holder device for components of a control device to be cooled projects into this cooling channel, and wherein the bottom and the cover are each provided with perforations in the region of the separate cooling channel.

4. The housing of claim 1, wherein a molded part which is provided with an opening for passing through connection lines is arranged in the die-cast housing next to the air guide device.

5. The housing of claim 1, wherein two stays, at a distance from one another, are each arranged on an inside of the side wall of the die-cast housing, in the region of the openings for passing through connection lines.

6. The housing of claim 1, wherein the inside of the side wall of the die-cast housing has connection domes to attach components of the control device.

7. The housing of claim 1, wherein said front strut is structured in such a way that a rotating hinge of said front cover can be attached to it.

8. The housing of claim 1, wherein an electronics box is attached in the front housing region, in such a way that a frontal opening of the box runs parallel to the frontal opening of the housing.

9. The housing of claim 1, wherein an electrical module is inserted into the access opening of the housing, which is closed by said cover plate and wherein the heat-producing electrical components of the control device to be electrically conductive, and wherein a plate of insulating material is arranged between said circuit board of this electrical module and the cover plate.

10. The housing of claim 1, wherein the bottom and the cover of the die-cast housing each have a contact rib with an adjacent threaded bore parallel to the opening, to pass through connection lines.

11. The housing of claim 1, wherein the bottom and the cover of the die-cast housing are provided with a support shoulder on the circumference and a threaded bore.

12. The housing of claim 1, wherein said cover plate rests against a continuous shoulder around the circumference, along the access opening.

13. The housing of claim 1, wherein two hooks which lie in the plane of the rear wall of the die-cast housing are provided as the hanger.

14. The housing of claim 1, wherein a control panel is housed in said front cover.

15. The housing of claim 1, wherein said cover plate is made of metal.

16. The housing of claim 1, wherein the opening in the bottom is provided with a grate cover in the vicinity of the air guide device.

17. The housing of claim 1, wherein a fan can be located at the entrance of the air guide device and its connections can be located in a recess located next to said air guide device.

18. The housing of claim 2, wherein a flange is provided as the attachment.