Chassis module

Abstract

The present invention discloses a chassis module, which is suitable for selectively cooperating with a first motherboard or at least a second motherboard, and comprises a casing, a fixing mechanism, an external unit, and an adapter unit. The fixing mechanism is disposed in the casing. The first motherboard or the second motherboard is disposed on the fixing mechanism and fixed at the casing through the fixing mechanism. The external unit is disposed in the casing and includes at least one external card. The adapter unit is detachably arranged at the casing and includes an adapter board. The adapter board has a first side and a second side opposite to each other. When the chassis module is cooperated used with the first motherboard, the first motherboard is connected to the external unit. When the chassis module is cooperated used with the second motherboard, the second motherboard is connected to the first side of the adapter board, the second side of the adapter board is connected to the external unit, and the second motherboard is electrically connected to the corresponding external card.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to a chassis module, and more particularly to a chassis module that can meet the needs of different system applications. [Previous Technology]

[0002] The most prominent feature of computing devices, such as servers, is their powerful computing capabilities or large disk storage capacity. They can complete a large amount of work and store a large amount of data in a short time, and provide services to a large number of users. Servers typically use a network as a medium, providing services internally through an intranet or externally through the Internet.

[0003] In traditional server products, such as motherboards (MB) with a single CPU (Central Processing Unit) and motherboards with multiple CPUs, the size of the motherboard and the location of the input / output ports (I / O ports) are significantly different. Therefore, different sizes of chassis (cases) are usually designed to match motherboards with different numbers of CPUs, thereby producing server products with different motherboards. As a result, the versatility of existing server chassis is not good.

[0004] Therefore, how to design a chassis that can meet the different system applications of single motherboard and multi-motherboard is one of the most important issues for manufacturers. [Summary of the Invention]

[0005] In view of the above issues, the object of the present invention is to provide a chassis module that can meet the different system applications of single motherboard and multi-motherboard, and can be applied to server systems or computer systems with single or multiple CPU motherboards.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides a chassis module suitable for selectively using with a first motherboard or at least a second motherboard. The chassis module includes a housing, a fixing mechanism, an external unit, and an adapter unit. The fixing mechanism is disposed within the housing, and the first motherboard or at least a second motherboard is disposed on the fixing mechanism and fixed to the housing through the fixing mechanism. The external unit is disposed on one side inside the housing and includes at least one external card. The adapter unit is detachably disposed in the housing and includes an adapter plate having a first side and a second side opposite to each other. When the chassis module is used with the first motherboard, the first motherboard is engaged with the external unit and electrically connected to the external card; when the chassis module is used with the second motherboard, the second motherboard is engaged with the first side of the adapter plate, the second side of the adapter plate is engaged with the external unit, and the second motherboard is electrically connected to the corresponding external card.

[0007] In one embodiment, the first motherboard has a first width and the second motherboard has a second width, wherein the first width is greater than or equal to twice the second width.

[0008] In one embodiment, the adapter board includes a plurality of plug-in structures. When the chassis module is used in conjunction with a plurality of second motherboards, the number of external cards is a plurality. Each plug-in structure is plugged into each of the second motherboards, and the arrangement direction of the plug-in structures is parallel to the arrangement direction of the external cards.

[0009] In one embodiment, the adapter unit further includes at least one connection cable, and when the chassis module is used in conjunction with the second motherboard, the external card is electrically connected to the corresponding second motherboard through the connection cable.

[0010] In one embodiment, the external unit further includes a control module card. The second side of the adapter board has a connection port. When the chassis module is used in conjunction with the second motherboard, the control module card engages the connection port, so that the control module card is electrically connected to the second motherboard via the adapter board.

[0011] In one embodiment, when the chassis module is used in conjunction with a plurality of second motherboards, the number of external cards is a plurality of. The control module card is electrically connected to the second motherboards via an adapter board, and the adapter unit further includes a plurality of connection cables. Each second motherboard is electrically connected to the corresponding external card through each connection cable.

[0012] In one embodiment, the external unit further includes a control module card, and the first motherboard has a connection port. When the chassis module is used in conjunction with the first motherboard, the control module card engages the connection port to electrically connect the control module card to the first motherboard.

[0013] In one embodiment, the chassis module further includes at least one power supply unit disposed in the chassis; wherein, the adapter board has at least one connection port that is the same number as the power supply units and corresponds to the position of the power supply units. When the chassis module is used in conjunction with the second motherboard, the power supply units engage the connection port so that the power supply units provide power to the second motherboard via the adapter board.

[0014] In one embodiment, the chassis module further includes at least one power supply unit disposed in the chassis; wherein, the first motherboard has at least one connection port that is the same number and position as the power supply unit, and when the chassis module is used in conjunction with the first motherboard, the power supply unit provides power to the first motherboard through the connection port.

[0015] In one embodiment, there are two power supply units, which are located on opposite sides of the external unit.

[0016] As described above, the chassis module of the present invention can meet the different system applications of single motherboard and multiple motherboard, and can be applied to server systems or computer systems with single or multiple CPU motherboards.

Implementation Method

[0017] The chassis module according to some embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the relevant drawings, wherein the same elements will be described with the same reference numerals. The elements appearing in the drawings of the following embodiments are only used to illustrate their relative relationships and do not represent the actual size or proportion of the elements.

[0018] The chassis module of the present invention can be applied to server systems or computer systems. The chassis module in the following embodiments is used as an example for application to server systems.

[0019] Figures 1 and 2 are respectively a schematic diagram of the assembly and an exploded view of the chassis module according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 is a top view of the chassis module of Figure 1; Figures 4 and 5 are respectively a schematic diagram of the assembly and an exploded view of the chassis module according to another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 6 is a top view of the chassis module of Figure 4; Figures 7 and 8 are respectively a schematic diagram of the assembly and an exploded view of the chassis module according to yet another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 9 is a top view of the chassis module of Figure 7.

[0020] The chassis module of the present invention is suitable for selective use with a first motherboard M1 or at least a second motherboard M2. It should be noted that the chassis module 1 shown in Figures 1 to 3 is used in conjunction with one second motherboard M2, the chassis module 1a shown in Figures 4 to 6 is used in conjunction with two second motherboards M2a and M2b, and the chassis module 1b shown in Figures 7 to 9 is used in conjunction with one first motherboard M1.

[0021] In some embodiments, the first motherboard M1 may be, for example, a full-width motherboard (FLW MB) based on the OCP (Open Compute Project) data center modular hardware system (DC-MHS) architecture, which includes two central processing units (CPUs). The second motherboard M2 may be, for example, an M-SDNO (Modular Scalable DeNsity Optimized) A305 motherboard (M-SDNO A305 MB) or an M-SDNO A335 motherboard (M-SDNO A335 MB), which includes one CPU, but is not limited thereto.

[0022] Please refer to Figures 2 and 8. In a width direction D of the housing 11, the first motherboard M1 has a first width w1, and the second motherboard M2 has a second width w2. The first width w1 is greater than the second width w2, and the first width w1 may be greater than or equal to twice the second width w2. In one embodiment, the size of the DC-MHS FLW MB may be, for example, 348mm*423mm, while the size of the M-SDNO A305 MB may be, for example, 305mm*210mm, and the size of the M-SDNO A335 may be, for example, 335mm*210mm.

[0023] Please refer to Figures 1 to 3 first. The chassis module 1 in this embodiment includes a housing 11, an external unit 12, an adapter unit 13, and a fixing mechanism 14.

[0024] The fixing mechanism 14 is disposed inside the housing 11. The first motherboard M1 or at least one second motherboard M2 is disposed on the fixing mechanism 14 and fixed to the housing 11 through the fixing mechanism 14. In this embodiment, the fixing mechanism 14 includes at least one motherboard tray (MB tray) 141, and the second motherboard M2 is fixed (e.g., locked) to the motherboard tray 141 and fixed inside the housing 11 through the motherboard tray 141 and appropriate parts (e.g., screws, plungers or other components).

[0025] The external unit 12 is disposed on one side inside the housing 11 and includes at least one external card 121. When the chassis module 1 is used with the first motherboard M1, the first motherboard M1 engages with the external unit 12 and is electrically connected to the external card 121, and the number of external cards 121 is multiple; when the chassis module 1 is used with the second motherboard M2, the number of external cards 121 corresponds to the number of second motherboards M2. In this embodiment, the number of external cards 121 corresponds to the number of second motherboards M2, and is one in each case. In this embodiment, the external card 121 is fixed to the rear side R of the housing 11 and can be a high-speed network adapter card, such as an OCP NIC 3.0 network card, but is not limited to this model.

[0026] The adapter unit 13 is detachably disposed within the housing 11 and includes an adapter plate 131, which has a first side S1 and a second side S2 facing opposite directions. In this embodiment, the chassis module 1 is used in conjunction with the second motherboard M2. The adapter plate 131 is a circuit board. The second motherboard M2 is connected to the first side S1 of the adapter plate 131, and the second side S2 of the adapter plate 131 is connected to the external unit 12. The second motherboard M2 is electrically connected to the corresponding external card 121.

[0027] Specifically, the adapter board 131 of this embodiment includes a plurality of side-by-side plug-in structures 1314 and 1315 (FIG. 2), which are spaced apart on the first side S1 of the adapter board 131. In addition, the external unit 12 of this embodiment includes an external card 121 and a control module card 122, which is adjacent to the external card 121. The second side S2 of the adapter board 131 has a connection port 1311. When the chassis module 1 is used in conjunction with the second motherboard M2, one of the plug-in structures 1315 of the adapter board 131 can be plugged into the second motherboard M2, and the control module card 122 can be engaged with the connection port 1311 of the adapter board 131. This allows the control module card 122 to be electrically connected to the second motherboard M2 via the adapter board 131, thereby enabling data transmission between the control module card 122 and the second motherboard M2. The other side of the control module card 122 is fixed to the rear side R of the housing 11. In some embodiments, the control module card 122 is, for example, but not limited to, a Datacenter-ready Secure Control Module (DC-SCM) card.

[0028] In addition, the adapter unit 13 of this embodiment includes an adapter board 131 and a connecting cable 132. The two sides of the connecting cable 132 are respectively connected to the external card 121 and the second host board M2. That is, one end of the connecting cable 132 has a corresponding connection port with the external card 121, and the other end of the connecting cable 132 also has a corresponding connection port with the second host board M2. This allows the external card 121 to be electrically connected to the corresponding second host board M2 through the connecting cable 132, thereby enabling the external card 121 and the second host board M2 to transmit high-speed signals.

[0029] To provide power to the components of the chassis module 1, the chassis module 1 further includes at least one power supply unit, which is disposed within the housing 11. In this embodiment, the chassis module 1 includes two power supply units 15a and 15b, located on opposite sides of the external unit 12. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the power supply units 15a and 15b are fixed to the housing 11, and the adapter plate 131 also has two connection ports 1312 and 1313, the same number and corresponding in position as the power supply units 15a and 15b. The power supply units 15a and 15b respectively engage with the connection ports 1312 and 1313 of the adapter plate 131, thereby allowing the power supply units 15a and 15b to provide power to the second motherboard M2 via the adapter plate 131. Of course, the power supply units 15a and 15b can also provide power to other components of the chassis module 1. Here, the power supply of the chassis module 1 adopts a redundant design. When one power supply unit (e.g., 15a) fails, the other power supply unit (e.g., 15b) can still continuously provide power to the second motherboard M2, thus achieving high reliability.

[0030] Additionally, please refer to Figures 4 to 6. The chassis module 1a of this embodiment is largely the same as the chassis module 1 of the aforementioned embodiment. The main difference from chassis module 1 is that the chassis module 1a of this embodiment is used in conjunction with two second motherboards M2a and M2b. Here, the second motherboards M2a and M2b are arranged side by side on the fixing mechanism 14 (host tray 141) and fixed to the housing 11 through the fixing mechanism 14. In addition, the external unit 12a includes two external cards 121a and 121b arranged side by side, and the adapter unit 13 includes two connecting cables 132a and 132b, and the external cards 121a and 121b are electrically connected to the corresponding second motherboards M2a and M2b through the connecting cables 132a and 132b, respectively. Here, one end of the connecting cable 132a has a corresponding port to the external card 121a, and the other end of the connecting cable 132a also has a corresponding port to the second motherboard M2a; one end of the connecting cable 132b has a corresponding port to the external card 121b, and the other end of the connecting cable 132b also has a corresponding port to the second motherboard M2b, so that the external card 121a can be electrically connected to the corresponding second motherboard M2a through the connecting cable 132a, and the external card 121b can be electrically connected to the corresponding second motherboard M2b through the connecting cable 132b.

[0031] In addition, each of the plug-in structures 1314 and 1315 of the adapter board 131 is plugged into each of the second mainboards M2a and M2b respectively (plug-in structure 1314 is plugged into the second mainboard M2a, and plug-in structure 1315 is plugged into the second mainboard M2b), and the arrangement direction of the plug-in structures 1314 and 1315 (i.e., along the width direction D of the housing 11) is parallel to the arrangement direction of the external cards 121a and 121b, so that when the second mainboards M2a and M2b are connected to the adapter board 131, they can be arranged along the arrangement direction of the external cards 121a and 121b, ensuring that the connecting cables 132a and 132b do not interfere with each other when connecting the external cards 121a and 121b to the second mainboards M2a and M2b. Furthermore, the control module card 122 is still electrically connected to the second mainboards M2a and M2b via the connection port 1311 of the adapter board 131.

[0032] Please refer to Figures 7 to 9. The chassis module 1b of this embodiment is substantially the same as the chassis module 1 or 1a of the aforementioned embodiments. The main difference from chassis module 1 or 1a is that the chassis module 1b of this embodiment is used in conjunction with the first motherboard M1. Here, chassis module 1b does not include the adapter unit 13, while the external unit 12b directly connects to the first motherboard M1 and is electrically connected to the first motherboard M1.

[0033] In detail, the first motherboard M1 includes two connection ports M1a and M1b corresponding to the two external cards 121a and 121b. One side of the external card 121a is directly connected to the connection port M1a of the first motherboard M1, and one side of the external card 121b is directly connected to the connection port M1b of the first motherboard M1. The other side of the external cards 121a and 121b is fixed to the rear side R of the housing 11. In addition, the first motherboard M1 also includes a connection port M1c. The control module card 122 is directly connected to the connection port M1c, so that the control module card 122 can be electrically connected to the first motherboard M1. In addition, the first motherboard M1 in this embodiment also includes connection ports M1d and M1e, which are the same number and corresponding in position as the power supply units 15a and 15b. The power supply unit 15a is directly connected to the connection port M1d, and the power supply unit 15b is directly connected to the connection port M1e, so that the power supply units 15a and 15b can provide power to the first motherboard M1 through the connection ports M1d and M1e.

[0034] As can be seen from the above three embodiments, in order to reduce the variety of chassis styles and improve the efficiency of general-purpose chassis, the chassis module of the present invention uses the DC-MHS FLW motherboard (i.e., the first motherboard) launched by the OCP Association as the main body. Through a detachable adapter unit (including an adapter board and a connecting cable), two motherboards, such as M-SDNO A305 or A335 (i.e., the second motherboard), are connected in series with the signal and power units of external units. At the same time, the input / output (I / O) is set in a position that conforms to the full-width motherboard specification, unifying the output method on the rear of the chassis, thereby conforming to different system applications with single motherboards and multiple motherboards. Therefore, the chassis module of the present invention can be applied to server systems or computer systems with single or multiple CPU motherboards.

[0035] In summary, in the chassis module of the present invention, a first motherboard or at least one second motherboard is mounted on a fixing mechanism and fixed to a housing through the fixing mechanism; an external unit is disposed on one side inside the housing and includes at least one external card; when the chassis module is used with the first motherboard, the first motherboard engages the external unit and is electrically connected to the external card, and the number of external cards is multiple; when the chassis module is used with the second motherboard, the number of external cards corresponds to the number of second motherboards; and an adapter unit is detachably disposed inside the housing and includes an adapter board; wherein, when the chassis module is used with the second motherboard, the second motherboard engages the first side of the adapter board, the second side of the adapter board engages the external unit, and the second motherboard is electrically connected to the corresponding external card, the structural design of the chassis module of the present invention can meet different system applications of single motherboard and multiple motherboards, and can be applied to server systems or computer systems with single or multiple CPU motherboards.

[0036] The above description is merely illustrative and not restrictive. Any equivalent modifications or alterations made without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention should be included in the appended claims. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0037] Figures 1 and 2 are respectively a schematic diagram of the assembly and an exploded view of the chassis module according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is a top view of the chassis module of Figure 1. Figures 4 and 5 are respectively a schematic diagram of the assembly and an exploded view of the chassis module according to another embodiment of the present invention. Figure 6 is a top view of the chassis module of Figure 4. Figures 7 and 8 are respectively a schematic diagram of the assembly and an exploded view of the chassis module according to yet another embodiment of the present invention. Figure 9 is a top view of the chassis module of Figure 7.

Claims

1. A chassis module, suitable for selective use with a first motherboard or at least a second motherboard, the chassis module comprising: A casing; A fixing mechanism is disposed within the housing, wherein the first motherboard or at least one second motherboard is disposed on the fixing mechanism and fixed to the housing through the fixing mechanism; an external unit is disposed on one side inside the housing and includes at least one external card; and an adapter unit is detachably disposed in the housing and includes an adapter plate having a first side and a second side opposite to each other; wherein, when the chassis module is used with the first motherboard, the first motherboard is engaged with the external unit and electrically connected to the external card; when the chassis module is used with the second motherboard, the second motherboard is engaged with the first side of the adapter plate, the second side of the adapter plate is engaged with the external unit, and the second motherboard is electrically connected to the corresponding external card.

2. The chassis module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first motherboard has a first width, the second motherboard has a second width, and the first width is greater than or equal to twice the second width.

3. The chassis module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the adapter board includes a plurality of plug-in structures, and when the chassis module is used in conjunction with a plurality of the second motherboards, the number of external cards is a plurality, each of the plug-in structures is plugged into each of the second motherboards, and the arrangement direction of the plug-in structures is parallel to the arrangement direction of the external cards.

4. The chassis module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the adapter unit further includes at least one connecting cable, wherein when the chassis module is used in conjunction with the second motherboard, the external card is electrically connected to the corresponding second motherboard through the connecting cable.

5. The chassis module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the external unit further includes a control module card, and the second side of the adapter board has a connection port, wherein when the chassis module is used in conjunction with the second motherboard, the control module card engages the connection port, thereby electrically connecting the control module card to the second motherboard via the adapter board.

6. The chassis module as described in claim 5, wherein, When the chassis module is used in conjunction with a plurality of the second motherboards, there are a plurality of external cards. The control module card is electrically connected to the second motherboards via the adapter board, and the adapter unit further includes a plurality of connection cables. Each of the second motherboards is electrically connected to the corresponding external card through each of the connection cables.

7. The chassis module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the external unit further includes a control module card, the first motherboard has a connection port, and when the chassis module is used in conjunction with the first motherboard, the control module card engages the connection port to electrically connect the control module card to the first motherboard.

8. The chassis module as described in claim 1, further comprising: At least one power supply unit is disposed within the chassis; wherein the adapter board has at least one connection port that is the same number and position as the power supply unit. When the chassis module is used in conjunction with the second motherboard, the power supply unit engages the connection port, so that the power supply unit provides power to the second motherboard via the adapter board.

9. The chassis module as described in claim 1, further comprising: At least one power supply unit is disposed within the chassis; wherein the first motherboard has at least one connection port, which is the same number and position as the power supply unit, and when the chassis module is used in conjunction with the first motherboard, the power supply unit provides power to the first motherboard through the connection port.

10. The chassis module as claimed in claim 8 or 9, wherein the number of the at least one power supply unit is two, and the two power supply units are located on opposite sides of the external unit.

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