Electronic equipment and television game machine having heat radiation structure

• US 6,565,444 B2
• Filed: 01/26/2001
• Issued: 05/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Takamoto, Junji, Hori, Yuji, Nagata, Hideo
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, KIM T
• Application Number:
  US09/769,724
• Publication Number:
  US 20010027132A1
• Time in Patent Office: 844 Days
• Field of Search: 463/1, 463/30-31, 463/34, 463/40-47, 361/687-697, 361/701-704, 361/709-714, 361/717-722, 165/80.2, 165/80.3, 165/104.33, 165/104.34, 165/122, 165/126, 165/164, 165/171-178, 165/185, 174/15-- 1, 174/16.1, 174/16.3, 257/701, 257/706-707, 257/711-713, 257/717, 257/720, 257/722, 454/184, 454/253, 454/354, 415/211.1, 415/213.1, 415/175-178
• US Class Current: 463/46
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/20 characterised by details of the game platform
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 9/24 Electric games; Games using electronic circuits not otherwise provided for video games A63F13/00; computerized gaming systems G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/20 Cooling means

Abstract

A television game machine includes a housing having an air intake and air exit in side surfaces, and forms an air flow passage in a space of air flow on a line connecting between the air intake and the air exit. A heat-radiating member formed with heat-radiating fins is attached in a state electrically insulated from a semiconductor device mounted on the printed board in order to transfer heat generated from the semiconductor device. The heat-radiating member is arranged related to the semiconductor device and printed board such that the heat-radiating fins are along the air flow passage. When ambient air is taken through the air intake and caused to flow through the grooves between the heat-radiating fins of the heat-radiating member to be released outside through the air exit, a fan releases the heat dissipated from the heat-radiating fins together with flowing air to an outside.

Claims

1. An electronic equipment including an electronic game machine, comprising:

at least one semiconductor device for causing the game machine of the electronic equipment to effect a desired operation, wherein hear generating occurs during the operation;

a printed board on which said semiconductor device is mounted;

a housing having a space for accommodating said printed board and forming an air exit in a first side surface of the housing and an air intake in a second side surface of the housing at a position distant from and corresponding to said air exit, to have an air flow passage allowing air to flow on a line linearly between said air exit and said air intake;

a hear-radiating member having a first open end portion and a second open end portion, the hear-radiating member arranged on said air flow passage in a manner so that said first open end portion is close to the air exit and the second open end portion is close to the air intake, the heat-radiating member being electrically insulated from said semiconductor device and capable of transferring heat generated from said semiconductor device, and forming a plurality of heat-radiating fins and linear grooves along said air flow passage, said fins and grooves extending between the first and second open end portions of the heat-radiating member,

wherein a width of the air exit is smaller than a width in a depth direction of the first side surface of the housing, a width of the air intake is smaller than a width in a depth direction of the second side surface of the housing;

a fan arranged between at least one of said air intake and said air exit and one end of said heat-radiating member to cause air taken through said air intake to flow along the grooves of said heat-radiating member and forcibly release heat generated from said semiconductor device through said air exit; and

wherein said printed board and said heat radiating member are located within a case (51a, 51b) located in said housing, and wherein an optical information reading unit and an optical disc are mounted above an upper surface of said case.

2. The electronic equipment according to claim 1, wherein said case is a metal case and is accommodated within said housing and formed in a box form covering back and top surfaces of said printed board to confine heat dissipated from said heat-radiating member placed over said printed board, wherein

said metal case has a first penetration hole formed with a wider width in a position corresponding to said air intake and a second penetration hale formed with a wider width in the vicinity of said fan.

3. The electronic equipment according to claim 2, further comprising a duct provided between at least one of the first penetration hole and the second penetration hole of said metal case and said fan, to efficiently release heat in air flowing along the grooves of said heat-radiating member in said metal case.

4. The electronic equipment of claim 1, wherein the heat-radiating member is formed by a hot extrusion forming.

5. An electronic equipment to be connected to a display device of a gaming machine and removably attached with an optical information recording medium optically recording data for image display, comprising:

an optical information reading unit for reading out data for image display recorded on said optical information recording medium;

at least one semiconductor device for processing data for image display read out by said optical information reading unit to generate image data, wherein heat generation occurs during processing operation thereof;

a printed board on which said semiconductor device is mounted;

a housing having an attaching portion formed on a top surface of the housing to removably attach said optical information recording medium on the housing, the housing having a space to stack and accommodate in a height direction at least said optical information reading unit and said printed board, accommodating said optical information reading unit in a position related to said attaching portion, and accommodating said printed board in a position below said optical information reading unit with a predetermined spacing,

the housing including an air exit in a first side surface of the housing and an air intake in a second side surface of the housing at a position distant from and corresponding to said air exit so as to have an air flow passage for flowing air on a line linearly connecting between said air exit and said air intake;

a heat-radiating member having a first open end portion and a second open end portion, the heat-radiating member arranged on said air flow passage in a manner so that the first open end portion is close to the air exit and the second open end portion is close to the air intakes the heat-radiating member being electrically insulated from said semiconductor device and capable of transferring heat generated from said semiconductor device, and the heat-radiating member having a plurality of heat-radiating fins and linear grooves formed along said air flow passage, said fins and grooves extending between the first and second open end portions of the heat-radiating member;

wherein a width of the air exit is smaller than a width in a depth direction of the first side surface of the housing, a width of the air intake is smaller than a width in a depth direction of the second side surface of the housing; and

a heat-radiating fan provided between at least one of said air intake and said air exit and a corresponding end of said heat-radiating member to cause air taken through said air intake to flow along the grooves and heat generated from said semiconductor device to be forcibly released through said air exit.

6. the electronic equipment according to claim 5, further comprising

a metal case accommodated within said housing and formed in a box form covering back and top surfaces of said printed board, to confine heat dissipated from said heat-radiating member placed over said printed board, wherein

said metal case having a first penetration hole formed in a position corresponding to said air intake and a second penetration hole formed in the vicinity of said heat-radiating fan.

7. the electronic equipment according to claim 5, wherein said housing is formed, in a bottom surface of the housing, with a first recess to removably receive a writable-and-readable semiconductor memory unit for functional extension for said electronic equipment,

said printed board being formed with a first connector for electrical connection to said semiconductor memory unit received in said first recess, and

said semiconductor memory unit in a state received in said first recess being connected to said first connector.

8. the electronic equipment according to claim 7, wherein said housing is fanned, in a bottom surface of the housing, with a second recess to removably receive a communication modem unit for extending a communication function for said electronic equipment, said printed board being formed with a second connector for electrical connection to said communication modem unit received in said second recess, and said communication modern unit in a state received in said second recess being connected to said second connector.

9. The electronic equipment according to claim 5, wherein said electronic equipment is a television game machine to be connected to a television receiver, said optical information recording medium optically readably recording game program data for game image display, and

said semiconductor device generating a game image by processing the game program data read out by said optical information reading unit and supplying the game image to said television receiver thereby displaying said game image.

10. An electronic game equipment to be used in conjunction with a display device, comprising:

an optical information reading unit for reading out data for image display recorded on an information recording medium;

at least one semiconductor device for processing data for image display read out by said optical information reading unit, so as to generate image data, and wherein heat generation occurs during processing operation of the semiconductor device;

a circuit board supporting said semiconductor device;

a housing having a space to stack and accommodate at least said optical information reading unit and said circuit board, with the circuit board being located at an elevation below said optical information reading unit;

the housing including an air exit in a first side of the housing and an air intake in a second side of the housing, and a linear air flow path being defined in a linear manner between the air intake and the air exit;

a heat-radiating member having a plurality of parallel elongated fins and grooves extending in a manner so as to be aligned with each of the air intake and the air exit, the heat-radiating member being located in the linear air flow path directly between the air intake and the air exit and below the optical information reading unit, and the heat-radiating member being electrically insulated from said semiconductor device and capable of transferring heat generated from said semiconductor device; and

a fan provided between at least one of said air intake and said air exit and a corresponding end of said heat-radiating member to cause air taken through said air intake to flow along the grooves and heat generated from said semiconductor device to be forcibly released through said air exit.

11. The electronic game equipment of claim 10, wherein said electronic game equipment is a television game machine to be connected to a television receiver, said optical information recording medium optically readably recording game program data for game image display.