Arrangement in cooling electronic equipment

• US 5,982,618 A
• Filed: 03/19/1998
• Issued: 11/09/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Roos, Sture Gosta
• Primary Examiner(s): THOMPSON, GREGORY D
• Application Number:
  US09/043,414
• Time in Patent Office: 600 Days
• Field of Search: 361/688-697, 361/752, 361/796, 361/797
• US Class Current: 361/695
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/20136 Forced ventilation, e.g. by fans H05K7/202 takes precedence

Abstract

An arrangement is provided that may be used for cooling electronic equipment, where the electronic equipment is housed in a rack arrangement with an arrangement for transferring the heat energy produced by the equipment to one or more rack-related cooling units each of which is designed to transfer heat energy by means of convection to the ambient air about the rack and the equipment. At least one of the cooling units contains vertically-oriented cooling flanges, positioned next to one another, and a fan unit that is designed to be able to provide, on demand, the cooling unit and the cooling flanges with a stream of forced air, thereby increasing heat emission from the cooling flanges to the ambient air. The fan unit is located at the side of a rack unit, and positioned beside, or part way inside, the cooling unit. The fan unit is arranged to provide a stream of forced air to each space that is formed between the flanges of the cooling unit; the flow of said stream of forced air is restricted to within the area for the sections of the cooling unit flanges that faces towards the rack unit. The stream of air produced for several collateral spaces is aimed to flow in an upward direction.

Claims

1. An arrangement for cooling electronic equipment, comprising:

a rack arrangement for housing electronic equipment to be cooled, the rack arrangement including heat transfer bodies for transferring the heat energy produced by the electronic equipment to one or more rack-related cooling units, each of the one or more rack-related cooling units being adapted to transfer heat energy by convection to ambient air about the rack arrangement and the electronic equipment;

at least one of the cooling units includes vertically-oriented cooling flanges, positioned next to one another, successive ones of the cooling flanges defining spaces therebetween, and a fan unit adapted to provide the cooling unit and the cooling flanges with a stream of forced air such that heat emission from the cooling flanges to the ambient air is increased, the fan unit being positioned proximate the cooling flanges and located at a side of the rack unit;

the fan unit being arranged to provide a stream of forced air to each of the spaces formed between the cooling flanges of the cooling unit, a flow of the stream of forced air being restricted to within an area defined by portions of the cooling flanges that face toward the rack unit, and the flow of the stream of forced air being in an upward direction for at least several spaces, wherein at least one of the cooling units includes several parallel flanges, oriented away from the rack, extending away from a rack-related base plate.

2. An arrangement according to claim 1, wherein a distance between adjacent flanges and a width of the flanges for one or more given spaces restrict the flow of forced air to within inner sections of the spaces, and to keep it flowing upwards.

3. An arrangement according to claim 2, wherein a zone between the forced air and convected air has increased turbulence relative to a zone remote from the convected air.

4. An arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the base plate includes a holder formed in part in the base plate and in part in the rack, the holder having the shape of a recess in the base plate for holding the fan unit.

5. An arrangement according to claim 4, wherein the recess in the base plate extends through the base plate and into the cooling flanges.

6. An arrangement according to claim 5, operating mode wherein the fan unit produces a first stream of forced air, and the arrangement includes a temperature monitoring means that sends a signal to the fan unit when a predetermined temperature is reached and cause the fan unit to operate in a second operating mode wherein the fan unit produces a second stream of forced air that is greater than the first stream of forced air.

7. An arrangement according to claim 6, wherein the arrangement includes a plurality of fan units and temperature-monitoring equipment for activating one or more of the plurality of fan units as a function of monitored temperature.

8. An arrangement according to claim 4, wherein the fan unit is attached to the rack and the base plate.

9. An arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the cooling unit is sized to provide sufficient heat transfer to prevent a temperature of the cooling unit from exceeding a predetermined value during a hottest normal operating mode of the electronic equipment.

10. An arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the fan unit has a first operating mode wherein the fan unit produces a first stream of forced air, and the arrangement includes a temperature monitoring means that sends a signal to the fan unit when a predetermined temperature is reached and cause the fan unit to operate in a second operating mode wherein the fan unit produces a second stream of forced air that is greater than the first stream of forced air.

11. An arrangement according to claim 10, wherein the arrangement includes a plurality of fan units and temperature-monitoring equipment for activating one or more of the plurality of fan units as a function of monitored temperature.

12. An arrangement according to claim 1, wherein a distance between adjacent flanges is between 10 and 25 mm, and a width of the flanges is between 30 and 120 mm.

15. An arrangement according to claim 11, wherein a predetermined number of telephone exchange-related line circuits are coordinated to a block of a plurality of blocks, and each of the blocks is insertable into and removable from a corresponding rack arrangement using ones of the heat transfer bodies forming a parallel bar arrangement.

16. An arrangement according to claim 12, wherein bars of the parallel bar arrangement are in direct contact with cooling flanges.

17. An arrangement according to claim 12, wherein heat-emitting discrete components are positioned in the block proximate the bars.

18. An arrangement according to claim 17, wherein the block is equipped with one or more surface enlargements.

19. An arrangement according to claim 12, wherein each block of the plurality of blocks includes a metallic cover enclosing a printed board with discrete components.

20. An arrangement according to claim 15, wherein the cover transfers heat via the bars of the parallel bar arrangement to the cooling unit.

21. An arrangement according to claim 15, wherein the cover is sealed such that it provides protection against electromagnetic interference (EMI).

22. An arrangement according to claim 15, wherein cooling flanges are integral with the bars.

13. An arrangement for cooling electronic equipment, comprising:

a rack arrangement for housing electronic equipment to be cooled, the rack arrangement including with heat transfer bodies for transferring the heat energy produced by the electronic equipment to one or more rack-related cooling units, each of the one or more rack-related cooling units being adapted to transfer heat energy by convection to ambient air about the rack arrangement and the electronic equipment;

at least one of the cooling units includes vertically-oriented cooling flanges, positioned next to one another, successive ones of the cooling flanges defining spaces therebetween, and a fan unit adapted to provide the cooling unit and the cooling flanges with a stream of forced air such that heat emission from the cooling flanges to the ambient air is increased, the fan unit being positioned proximate the cooling flanges and located at a side of the rack unit;

the fan unit being arranged to provide a stream of forced air to each of the spaces formed between the cooling flanges of the cooling unit, a flow of the stream of forced air being restricted to within an area defined by portions of the cooling flanges that face toward the rack unit, and the flow of the stream of forced air being in an upward direction for at least several spaces,

wherein the arrangement includes a plurality of fan units and temperature-monitoring equipment for activating one or more of the plurality of fan units as a function of monitored temperature.

14. An arrangement for cooling electronic equipment, comprising:

a rack arrangement for housing electronic equipment to be cooled, the rack arrangement including with heat transfer bodies for transferring the heat energy produced by the electronic equipment to one or more rack-related cooling units, each of the one or more rack-related cooling units being adapted to transfer heat energy by convection to ambient air about the rack arrangement and the electronic equipment;

at least one of the cooling units includes vertically-oriented cooling flanges, positioned next to one another, successive ones of the cooling flanges defining spaces therebetween, and a fan unit adapted to provide the cooling unit and the cooling flanges with a stream of forced air such that heat emission from the cooling flanges to the ambient air is increased, the fan unit being positioned proximate the cooling flanges and located at a side of the rack unit;

the fan unit being arranged to provide a stream of forced air to each of the spaces formed between the cooling flanges of the cooling unit, a flow of the stream of forced air being restricted to within an area defined by portions of the cooling flanges that face toward the rack unit, and the flow of the stream of forced air being in an upward direction for at least several spaces,

wherein the electronic equipment and the rack arrangement include a main distribution arrangement for a telephone exchange, including a rack, a plurality of switchboard-related connectors whose positions are affixed to the rack, coordinated to one or more connection terminals, and a plurality of connectors that belong to telephone exchange-related line circuits, also affixed to the rack and coordinated to one or more connection terminals;

the connection terminals being situated proximate one another, and being arranged, along with main distribution conductors, to connect switchboard-related connectors with telephone exchange-related connectors.