Liquid cooling module

Abstract

A liquid-cooled module is provided for inserting plug-in electronic modules to dissipate heat. The liquid-cooled module includes a liquid-cooling body, a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets, and a plurality of heat-conducting clamps. The liquid-cooling body includes a main cold plate and a plurality of secondary cold plates. Each secondary cold plate is disposed on the main cold plate to form an insertion space. Each secondary cold plate has two opposing attachment surfaces. Each flexible heat-conducting sheet is disposed on its respective attachment surface. Each heat-conducting clamp is disposed on its respective secondary cold plate and includes two elastic arms. Each elastic arm elastically abuts against its corresponding flexible heat-conducting sheet. When the plug-in electronic module is inserted into the insertion space, the elastic arms on both sides of the insertion space elastically clamp the plug-in electronic module and tightly abut against its corresponding flexible heat-conducting sheet. In this way, while firmly clamping the plug-in electronic module, it is also ensured that it can be cooled by the heat dissipation of the secondary cold plates on both sides.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of liquid cooling, and more particularly to a liquid cooling module for plugging into and cooling pluggable electronic modules. Prior Technology

[0002] In electronic devices such as servers, plug-in electronic modules are often used to meet different usage requirements, enabling quick installation and removal. Common plug-in electronic modules include SSDs, RAM modules, GPUs, CPUs, PCIe expansion cards, and network cards, etc. They are mainly in plate or panel form for easy plugging and use, and generate heat during operation due to the thermal effect of electric current. Current cooling methods mainly use heat sinks and fans. Thermal paste is applied between the heat sink and the plug-in electronic module to conduct heat, and the fan blows away the heat generated by the plug-in electronic module.

[0003] However, most electronic devices require the simultaneous use of multiple plug-in electronic modules, and these modules are frequently plugged in and out to be replaced with those offering different functions. This can lead to thermal paste residue remaining on heatsinks or plug-in electronic modules, affecting thermal conductivity. Furthermore, as electronic devices become increasingly high-performance and thinner, the heat generated by various plug-in electronic modules during operation has significantly increased, making existing heat dissipation methods increasingly inadequate. Therefore, finding a way to quickly install, remove, and effectively dissipate multiple plug-in electronic modules simultaneously is a crucial issue that needs to be addressed.

[0004] In view of this, the author has devoted himself to researching and applying theoretical principles to address the shortcomings of the existing technology, and has made every effort to solve the aforementioned problems, which is the goal of the author's improvement. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This disclosure aims to secure the plug-in electronic module described in the clamp while ensuring that it can conduct heat through the flexible heat-conducting sheets on opposite sides via each elastic arm, and then be cooled by each auxiliary cold plate.

[0006] In one embodiment of this disclosure, a liquid cooling module is provided for inserting a plug-in electronic module to dissipate heat and cool the plug-in electronic module. The liquid cooling module includes a liquid cooling body, a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets, and a plurality of heat-conducting clamps. The liquid cooling body includes a main cold plate and a plurality of secondary cold plates. Each secondary cold plate is spaced apart on one side of the main cold plate to form at least one insertion space. Each secondary cold plate has a pair of opposing attachment surfaces. The liquid cooling body has a heat dissipation channel distributed inside the main cold plate and inside each secondary cold plate for a coolant to flow through. Each flexible heat-conducting sheet is disposed on its respective attachment surface, and each heat-conducting clamp... Each heat-conducting clamp is disposed on a secondary cold plate. Each heat-conducting clamp includes a pair of elastic arms. Each elastic arm of each heat-conducting clamp elastically abuts against at least a portion of each flexible heat-conducting sheet on each attachment surface of the corresponding secondary cold plate. When the plug-in electronic module is inserted into the insertion space, the elastic arms adjacent to both sides of the insertion space elastically clamp the plug-in electronic module and tightly abut against the corresponding flexible heat-conducting sheets, thereby conducting the heat generated by the plug-in electronic module during operation to the corresponding secondary cold plates through the elastic arms and the flexible heat-conducting sheets for heat dissipation through the coolant in the heat dissipation channel.

[0007] In one embodiment of this disclosure, when the plug-in electronic module is not inserted into the insertion space, each elastic arm in each heat-conducting clamp extends obliquely from the front end of the corresponding secondary cold plate in a direction away from the secondary cold plate.

[0008] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, each heat-conducting clamp further includes a pair of limiting portions, each limiting portion being bent from the end of the corresponding elastic arm and extending toward the other elastic arm and being constrained by a limiting member at the rear end of the corresponding secondary cold plate.

[0009] In one embodiment disclosed herein, the limiting portions of each heat-conducting clamp are misaligned with each other.

[0010] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, each heat-conducting clamp further includes a connecting portion, which is bent and connected between each elastic arm and abuts against the front end of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate.

[0011] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, each heat-conducting clamp further includes a pair of connecting portions, each connecting portion being bent from the front end of the corresponding elastic arm and extending toward the other elastic arm and fixed to the front end of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate by a fastener.

[0012] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets are provided on each attachment surface, and the flexible heat-conducting sheets on each attachment surface are arranged at intervals along an insertion direction in which the plug-in electronic module is inserted into the insertion space.

[0013] In one embodiment of this disclosure, a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets are disposed on each attachment surface, and the flexible heat-conducting sheets on each attachment surface are arranged in a matrix.

[0014] In one embodiment disclosed herein, each auxiliary cold plate is vertically connected to the main cold plate, and each attached surface is parallel to each other.

[0015] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the liquid cooling body further has a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet being disposed on the main cold plate and respectively connected to both ends of the heat dissipation channel.

[0016] The liquid cooling module disclosed herein uses flexible heat-conducting sheets disposed on the attachment surfaces of each secondary cold plate, and heat-conducting clamps disposed on each secondary cold plate, so that each elastic arm elastically abuts against at least a portion of the flexible heat-conducting sheets on the attachment surfaces of the corresponding secondary cold plates. Therefore, while firmly clamping the plug-in electronic module, it also ensures that the module can be tightly attached to the flexible heat-conducting sheets on both sides to conduct heat energy for cooling by the secondary cold plates, thereby avoiding the problem of poor heat conduction caused by residual thermal paste after the plug-in electronic module is inserted and removed. Simple Explanation of the Diagram

[0017] Figure 1 is a three-dimensional view of the exterior of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 2 is another three-dimensional view of the exterior disclosed herein.

[0019] Figure 3 is a three-dimensional exploded view of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 4 is a three-dimensional view of the heat-conducting clamp disclosed herein.

[0021] Figure 5 is a bottom view of the plug-in electronic module before it is inserted.

[0022] Figure 6 is a cross-sectional bottom view before the plug-in electronic module is inserted as disclosed in this paper.

[0023] Figure 7 is a cross-sectional bottom view of the plug-in electronic module after it has been inserted. Implementation

[0024] In the description of this disclosure, it should be understood that the terms "front," "rear," "left," "right," "front end," "rear end," "end," "longitudinal," "lateral," "vertical," "top," and "bottom," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are used only for the convenience of describing this disclosure and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limiting conditions of this disclosure.

[0025] Unless otherwise defined, terms such as "substantially" and "approximately" are used to describe and narrate small changes. When combined with an event or situation, the term may include the exact moment the event or situation occurred, or an approximate point in time. For example, when combined with a numerical value, the term may include a range of variation less than or equal to ±10% of the value, such as less than or equal to ±5%, less than or equal to ±4%, less than or equal to ±3%, less than or equal to ±2%, less than or equal to ±1%, less than or equal to ±0.5%, less than or equal to ±0.1%, or less than or equal to ±0.05%.

[0026] The detailed description and technical content of this disclosure will be explained in conjunction with the following drawings. However, the accompanying drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure.

[0027] This disclosure provides a liquid cooling module for inserting a plug-in electronic module A to dissipate heat and cool the plug-in electronic module A. In this embodiment, the plug-in electronic module A is an SSD hard drive, but this disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the plug-in electronic module A can also be a RAM memory module, a GPU graphics card, a CPU, a PCIe expansion card, or a network card, etc., as long as it is an electronic module that forms an electrical connection through plugging and is in the form of a board or card. It should be noted that after the plug-in electronic module A is inserted into the liquid cooling module of this disclosure, it can also protrude from the rear end of the liquid cooling module and be inserted into a connection slot (not shown) to form an electrical connection for transmitting power and signals. Therefore, the liquid cooling module of this disclosure is only used to position, fix, and dissipate heat for the plug-in electronic module A. In fact, the plug-in electronic module A still needs to be inserted into the connection slot to operate. Please refer to Figures 1 to 3. The liquid cooling module disclosed herein mainly includes a liquid cooling body 100, a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets 200, and a plurality of heat-conducting clamps 300.

[0028] In this embodiment, the liquid cooling body 100 is made of copper, but in other embodiments it can be made of aluminum or other metal materials with good thermal conductivity. The liquid cooling body 100 includes a main cooling plate 110 and a plurality of auxiliary cooling plates 120. The main cooling plate 110 and each auxiliary cooling plate 120 are flat plate structures. Each auxiliary cooling plate 120 is spaced apart on one side of the main cooling plate 110 to form at least one insertion space 130, in which the plug-in electronic module A can be inserted along an insertion direction D. In this embodiment, each auxiliary cooling plate 120 is substantially vertically connected to the bottom of the main cooling plate 110, and an insertion space 130 is formed between two adjacent auxiliary cooling plates 120, but this disclosure is not limited thereto. Each auxiliary cooling plate 120 has a front end 121 and a rear end 122 arranged opposite to each other on its front, rear, left, and right sides, as well as a pair of parallel attachment surfaces 123. Specifically, the front end 121 and rear end 122 of each sub-cold plate 120 are located between each attachment surface 123, and an insertion space 130 is formed between two opposing attachment surfaces 123 of two adjacent sub-cold plates 120. The liquid cooling body 100 has a heat dissipation channel (not shown), a liquid inlet 111, and a liquid outlet 112. The heat dissipation channel is distributed inside the main cold plate 110 and inside each sub-cold plate 120, so as to allow a coolant (not shown) to flow unidirectionally. The liquid inlet 111 and the liquid outlet 112 are provided on the main cold plate 110, and the liquid inlet 111 and the liquid outlet 112 are respectively connected to the two ends of the heat dissipation channel to allow the coolant to enter and leave the heat dissipation channel.

[0029] In this embodiment, the flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 is rectangular and made of a silicone substrate mixed with thermally conductive powder. However, in other embodiments, the flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 can also be a fiberglass cloth heat-conducting sheet or a flexible graphite sheet, etc., as long as it is a soft, compressible, deformable sheet or plate material with thermal conductivity. Each flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 is disposed on each attachment surface 123. In this embodiment, a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets 200 are disposed on each attachment surface 123, but in other embodiments, only one flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 may be disposed on each attachment surface 123. In this embodiment, the flexible heat-conducting sheets 200 on each attachment surface 123 are arranged at intervals along the insertion direction D, that is, the flexible heat-conducting sheets 200 on each attachment surface 123 are arranged at intervals along the front-back direction. More specifically, in this embodiment, the flexible heat-conducting sheets 200 on each attachment surface 123 are arranged in a matrix, but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0030] In this embodiment, the heat-conducting clamp 300 is made of copper, but in other embodiments it can be made of aluminum or other metal materials with good thermal conductivity. Each heat-conducting clamp 300 is disposed on each secondary cold plate 120. Each heat-conducting clamp 300 mainly includes a pair of elastic arms 310. Each elastic arm 310 of each heat-conducting clamp 300 elastically abuts against at least a portion of each flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 on each attachment surface 123 of the corresponding secondary cold plate 120. In other words, each elastic arm 310 is configured corresponding to one of the attachment surfaces 123, and each elastic arm 310 elastically abuts against at least a portion of each flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 on that attachment surface 123. Specifically, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, when the plug-in electronic module A is not inserted into the insertion space 130, each elastic arm 310 in each heat-conducting clamp 300 extends obliquely from the front end 121 of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate 120 in a direction away from the auxiliary cold plate 120. That is, each elastic arm 310 in each heat-conducting clamp 300 gradually expands outward from front to back along the insertion direction D. Therefore, when the plug-in electronic module A is not inserted into the insertion space 130, the width at the front end 121 of each insertion space 130 is slightly smaller than the width at the rear end 122. In other words, when the plug-in electronic module A is not inserted into the insertion space 130, the compression of the front side (the side facing the front end 121 of the auxiliary cold plate 120) of each flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 by the elastic arm 310 is greater than the compression of the rear side (the side facing the rear end 122 of the auxiliary cold plate 120) by the elastic arm 310. Furthermore, the flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 adjacent to the rear end 122 of the auxiliary cold plate 120 can also be set to temporarily not contact the corresponding elastic arm 310, as shown in Figure 5.

[0031] Please refer to Figure 7. When the plug-in electronic module A is inserted into the insertion space 130 along the insertion direction D, the elastic arms 310 on both sides of the insertion space 130 will push against their corresponding secondary cold plates 120, so that the elastic arms 310 adjacent to both sides of the insertion space 130 can jointly and elastically clamp the plug-in electronic module A, and each elastic arm 310 is tightly abutting against the corresponding flexible heat-conducting sheet 200, thereby conducting the heat generated by the plug-in electronic module A during operation to the corresponding secondary cold plates 120 through the elastic arms 310 and the flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 for heat dissipation through the coolant in the heat dissipation channel. More specifically, since each flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 is made of a compressible material, when each elastic arm 310 is pushed towards the corresponding secondary cold plate 120 by the plug-in electronic module A, each elastic arm 310 can tightly abut against the corresponding flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 on the corresponding attachment surface 123 through the collapse of the flexible heat-conducting sheet 200, thereby ensuring that the heat energy of the plug-in electronic module A is conducted to the secondary cold plate 120 for heat dissipation. In other words, when the plug-in electronic module A is inserted into the insertion space 130 along the insertion direction D, the compression amount of each flexible heat-conducting sheet 200 on each attachment surface 123 is approximately the same.

[0032] Please refer to Figure 4 in conjunction with Figures 1, 2, and 5. In each heat-conducting clamp 300, the heat-conducting clamp 300 also includes a pair of limiting portions 320 corresponding to each elastic arm 310. Each limiting portion 320 is bent from the end of the corresponding elastic arm 310 and extends toward the other elastic arm 310, and each limiting portion 320 is constrained at the rear end 122 of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate 120 by a limiting member B. In this embodiment, the limiting member B is a bolt having a head B1 and a rod portion B2, but this disclosure is not limited thereto. Specifically, the rod portion B2 of each limiting member B passes through a through hole 321 on the corresponding limiting portion 320 and is then screwed into a screw hole 124 at the rear end 122 of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate 120, thereby restricting the limiting portion 320 to move only within a certain range and preventing it from detaching through its head B1. Specifically, in this embodiment, the through hole 321 of each limiting part 320 is an elongated hole extending to the left and right, so that the limiting part 320 is restricted to only being able to move laterally to drive the corresponding elastic arm 310 toward or away from the corresponding auxiliary cold plate 120. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the limiting parts 320 of each heat-conducting clamp 300 are staggered vertically to avoid overlapping of the limiting parts 320 and increased thickness, but this is not a limitation.

[0033] Furthermore, each heat-conducting clamp 300 in this embodiment includes two implementation forms, but this disclosure is not limited thereto. As shown in FIG4, in each heat-conducting clamp 300, the heat-conducting clamp 300 also includes a connecting portion 330 or a pair of connecting portions 330, which are described in detail below.

[0034] The following description focuses on an embodiment where the heat-conducting clamp 300 includes only a single connecting portion 330. In each heat-conducting clamp 300, the connecting portion 330 is bent and connected between the front ends 121 of each elastic arm 310, and the connecting portion 330 abuts against the front end 121 of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate 120, as shown in Figures 1, 5, and 6. Therefore, when installing the heat-conducting clamp 300 onto the corresponding auxiliary cold plate 120, it is only necessary to open each elastic arm 310 of the heat-conducting clamp 300 and fit it onto the auxiliary cold plate 120, then push the heat-conducting clamp 300 to slide towards the auxiliary cold plate 120 until the connecting part 330 abuts against the front end 121 of the auxiliary cold plate 120 and each limiting part 320 is located at the rear end 122 of the auxiliary cold plate 120. Finally, each of the limiting members B is fixed to the rear end 122 of the auxiliary cold plate 120 to limit each limiting part 320. The installation is simple and quick.

[0035] The following description describes an embodiment where the heat-conducting clamp 300 includes two connecting portions 330. In each heat-conducting clamp 300, each connecting portion 330 extends from the front end 121 of the corresponding elastic arm 310 towards the other elastic arm 310, and each connecting portion 330 is fixed to the front end 121 of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate 120 by a fastener C. In this embodiment, the fastener C can be a bolt or a rivet, thereby fixing the connecting portion 330 to the front end 121 of the auxiliary cold plate 120 so that it cannot move, but the form of the fastener C is not limited to this. Therefore, when installing the heat-conducting clamp 300 onto the corresponding auxiliary cold plate 120, each connecting part 330 is first abutted against the front end 121 of the auxiliary cold plate 120, and the corresponding elastic arm 310 is configured with the corresponding attachment surface 123 so that the corresponding limiting part 320 is located at the rear end 122 of the auxiliary cold plate 120. Then, each connecting part 330 is fixed with each of the aforementioned fasteners C. Finally, each of the aforementioned limiting members B is fixed to the rear end 122 of the auxiliary cold plate 120 to limit each limiting part 320. The advantage of this embodiment is that the heat-conducting clamp 300 is split into two symmetrical parts, which facilitates manufacturing and inventory preparation.

[0036] The liquid cooling module disclosed herein utilizes flexible heat-conducting sheets 200 disposed on the attachment surfaces 123 of each secondary cold plate 120, and heat-conducting clamps 300 respectively disposed on each secondary cold plate 120, such that each elastic arm 310 elastically abuts against at least a portion of the flexible heat-conducting sheets 200 on the corresponding attachment surfaces 123 of the secondary cold plate 120. Therefore, while securely clamping the plug-in electronic module A, it also ensures that the elastic arms 310 are tightly attached to the flexible heat-conducting sheets 200 on opposite sides, conducting heat energy for cooling by the secondary cold plates 120. This avoids the problem of poor thermal conductivity caused by residual thermal paste after insertion and removal of the plug-in electronic module A. Thus, multiple plug-in electronic modules A can be quickly installed or removed from the liquid cooling module disclosed herein without the use of tools, and can also be effectively cooled by the liquid cooling module disclosed herein, avoiding the use of fans, reducing noise and power consumption, and improving space utilization.

[0037] In summary, the foregoing disclosure is intended to enable those skilled in the art to clearly understand the technical content of this disclosure and implement it accordingly, rather than to limit the scope of patent protection of this disclosure. In addition, this disclosure may naturally have other embodiments not listed. Without departing from the spirit and essence of this disclosure, those skilled in the art should be able to devise various corresponding changes and modifications based on this disclosure, but all such changes and modifications should fall within the scope of protection of the patent application filed under this disclosure.

[0038] 100: Liquid-cooled body 110: Main cold plate 111: Liquid Inlet Interface 112: Liquid outlet 120: Secondary cold plate 121: Frontend 122: Backend 123: Attachment 124: Screw hole 130: Insertion Space 200: Flexible thermal conductive sheet 300: Thermal conductive clamp 310: Flexible Arm 320: Limiting part 321: Through hole 330: Connecting part A: Plug-in electronic module B: Restrictive components B1: Head B2: Bar section C: Fasteners D: Insertion direction

Claims

1. A liquid-cooled module for inserting a plug-in electronic module to dissipate heat and cool the plug-in electronic module, the liquid-cooled module comprising: A liquid cooling body includes a main cold plate and a plurality of auxiliary cold plates, each auxiliary cold plate being spaced apart on one side of the main cold plate to form at least one insertion space, each auxiliary cold plate having a pair of opposing attachment surfaces, the liquid cooling body having a heat dissipation channel distributed inside the main cold plate and each auxiliary cold plate for a coolant to flow through; a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets disposed on each attachment surface; and a plurality of heat-conducting clamps disposed on each auxiliary cold plate, each heat-conducting clamp including a pair of elastic arms, each elastic arm of each heat-conducting clamp elastically abutting against at least a portion of each flexible heat-conducting sheet on each attachment surface of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate; When the plug-in electronic module is inserted into the insertion space, the elastic arms adjacent to both sides of the insertion space elastically clamp the plug-in electronic module and tightly abut against the corresponding flexible heat-conducting sheets, thereby conducting the heat generated by the plug-in electronic module during operation to the corresponding auxiliary cold plates through the elastic arms and the flexible heat-conducting sheets, so as to dissipate heat through the coolant in the heat dissipation channel.

2. The liquid-cooled module as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the plug-in electronic module is not inserted into the insertion space, each of the elastic arms in each of the heat-conducting clamps extends obliquely from the front end of the corresponding sub-cold plate in a direction away from the sub-cold plate.

3. The liquid cooling module as claimed in claim 1, wherein in each of the heat-conducting plates, the heat-conducting plate further includes a pair of limiting portions, each of the limiting portions being bent from the end of the corresponding elastic arm and extending toward the other elastic arm and being limited by a limiting member to the rear end of the corresponding sub-cold plate.

4. The liquid cooling module as described in claim 3, wherein the limiting portions of each of the heat-conducting plates are offset from each other.

5. The liquid cooling module as claimed in claim 3, wherein in each of the heat-conducting plates, the heat-conducting plate further includes a connecting portion that is bent and connected between each of the elastic arms and abuts against the front end of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate.

6. The liquid cooling module as claimed in claim 3, wherein in each of the heat-conducting plates, the heat-conducting plate further includes a pair of connecting portions, each connecting portion being bent from the front end of the corresponding elastic arm and extending toward the other elastic arm and fixed to the front end of the corresponding auxiliary cold plate by a fastener.

7. The liquid-cooled module as claimed in claim 1, wherein a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets are provided on each of the attachment surfaces, and the flexible heat-conducting sheets on each of the attachment surfaces are spaced apart along an insertion direction in which the plug-in electronic module is inserted into the insertion space.

8. The liquid cooling module as claimed in claim 1, wherein a plurality of flexible heat-conducting sheets are disposed on each of the attachment surfaces, and the flexible heat-conducting sheets on each of the attachment surfaces are arranged in a matrix.

9. The liquid cooling module as described in claim 1, wherein each of the auxiliary cold plates is perpendicularly connected to the main cold plate, and each of the attachment surfaces is parallel to each other.

10. The liquid cooling module as described in claim 1, wherein the liquid cooling body further has a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet being disposed on the main cold plate and respectively connected to both ends of the heat dissipation channel.

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