Electronic device and heat dissipation assembly

Abstract

An electronic device includes a housing and a heat dissipation assembly. The heat dissipation assembly includes a first circuit board, a second circuit board, at least one heat source, and a heat sink. The first circuit board and the second circuit board are layered within the housing. The first circuit board has at least one thermally conductive portion. The at least one heat source is disposed on the second circuit board. The at least one heat source is located between the second circuit board and the first circuit board. The heat sink is disposed within the housing and includes a thermally conductive base and a fin portion. The fin portion is connected to one side of the thermally conductive base. The thermally conductive base and the at least one heat source are thermally coupled to opposite sides of the at least one thermally conductive portion.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to an electronic device and a heat dissipation assembly, particularly an electronic device and a heat dissipation assembly having a multi-layer circuit board. [Previous Technology]

[0002] Modern society is in an era of rapid development of information technology, and most users rely on servers to complete various tasks. Taking vehicle servers as an example, their functions can be enhanced through automotive electronics technology to improve the use of the in-vehicle environment and user experience. For instance, it has gradually become mainstream to use servers for in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) systems to connect various in-vehicle devices or wearable devices.

[0003] Server chassis often contain upper and lower circuit boards, each housing chips such as CPUs. Since these chips generate heat during operation, manufacturers install cooling devices to dissipate heat. Generally, manufacturers install separate cooling devices on each circuit board to cool the chips individually, or they cool the chips directly through the chassis, or they provide openings on the upper circuit board through which cooling devices on the lower circuit board dissipate heat. However, installing separate cooling devices on each circuit board increases installation costs, and the limited space within the chassis already contains upper and lower circuit boards, making it difficult to install additional cooling devices. Furthermore, the chassis has low heat dissipation efficiency and its structural design may hinder chip cooling. Furthermore, openings on the upper circuit board reduce the space available for circuit layout. Additionally, increasing the opening area to accommodate heat dissipation devices will require increasing the assembly space, which in turn affects the structural strength of the upper circuit board. Therefore, one of the problems that developers need to solve is how to dissipate heat from the chips mounted on the upper and lower circuit boards within the confined space of the casing without affecting the circuit layout and structural strength. [Summary of the Invention]

[0004] The present invention provides an electronic device and a heat dissipation component, which can dissipate heat from the chips disposed on the upper and lower circuit boards in a small space within the casing, without affecting the circuit configuration and structural strength of the circuit board.

[0005] An embodiment of the present invention discloses an electronic device comprising a housing and a heat dissipation assembly. The heat dissipation assembly includes a first circuit board, a second circuit board, at least one heat source, and a heat sink. The first circuit board and the second circuit board are disposed in layers within the housing. The first circuit board has at least one heat-conducting portion. The at least one heat source is disposed on the second circuit board. The at least one heat source is located between the second circuit board and the first circuit board. The heat sink is disposed within the housing and includes a heat-conducting base and a fin portion. The fin portion is connected to one side of the heat-conducting base. The heat-conducting base and the at least one heat source are respectively thermally coupled to opposite sides of the at least one heat-conducting portion.

[0006] Another embodiment of the present invention discloses a heat dissipation assembly for mounting in a housing, comprising a first circuit board, a second circuit board, at least one heat source, and a heat sink. The first circuit board and the second circuit board are disposed in layers within the housing. The first circuit board has at least one heat-conducting portion. The at least one heat source is disposed on the second circuit board. The at least one heat source is located between the second circuit board and the first circuit board. The heat sink is mounted within the housing and comprises a heat-conducting base and a fin portion. The fin portion is connected to one side of the heat-conducting base. The heat-conducting base and the at least one heat source are thermally coupled to opposite sides of the at least one heat-conducting portion.

[0007] According to the electronic device and heat dissipation assembly of the above embodiments, since the first circuit board has a heat-conducting part, such as bare copper, and the heat generated by the heat source is transferred from the second circuit board to the heat sink through the heat-conducting part of the first circuit board via the first heat-conducting pad and the second heat-conducting pad, the heat dissipation assembly uses the copper foil of the first circuit board itself to transfer heat from the heat source to the heat sink. Furthermore, the heat sink is located on the same side of the first and second circuit boards. Therefore, it is not necessary to add another heat sink to the second circuit board, nor is it necessary to dissipate heat through the casing, nor is it necessary to provide openings or reserve assembly space on the first circuit board for the heat sink to pass through the openings to dissipate heat from the heat source on the second circuit board. This improves the utilization rate of the circuit configuration on the first circuit board. In this way, heat dissipation can still be achieved in the small space inside the casing for the heat source on both the first and second circuit boards without affecting the circuit configuration and structural strength of the first circuit board.

[0008] The above description of the content of the present invention and the following description of the embodiments are used to demonstrate and explain the principles of the present invention, and to provide a further explanation of the scope of the patent application of the present invention.

Implementation Method

[0010] Please refer to Figures 1 to 3. Figure 1 is a perspective view of the electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is an exploded view of a partially enlarged portion of the electronic device of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the electronic device of Figure 1.

[0011] The electronic device 10 in this embodiment is, for example, the host of an in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) system, but is not limited thereto. The electronic device 10 includes a housing 11, a heat dissipation assembly 12, a plurality of first thermal pads 13, and a plurality of second thermal pads 14. The heat dissipation assembly 12 includes a first circuit board 121, a second circuit board 122, a plurality of heat sources 123, and a heat sink 124. The first circuit board 121 and the second circuit board 122 are arranged in layers within the housing 11. For example, the first circuit board 121 is, for example, the upper circuit board, and the second circuit board 122 is, for example, the lower circuit board. That is, the first circuit board 121 and the second circuit board 122 are, for example, vertically stacked. In addition, the first circuit board 121 is stacked with the second circuit board 122, for example, through a support post or an electrical connector. The size of the first circuit board 121 is, for example, larger than the size of the second circuit board 122. These heat sources 123 are, for example, chips such as CPUs, and are disposed on the second circuit board 122, and these heat sources 123 are located between the second circuit board 122 and the first circuit board 121.

[0012] The heat sink 124 is disposed inside the casing 11 and includes a heat-conducting base 1241, a fin portion 1242, and a plurality of heat-conducting pillars 1243. The fin portion 1242 is connected to one side of the heat-conducting base 1241. The heat-conducting pillars 1243 are connected to the side of the heat-conducting base 1241 away from the fin portion 1242.

[0013] The first circuit board 121 has a plurality of heat-conducting portions 1211. These heat-conducting portions 1211 are, for example, bare copper. Specifically, the first circuit board 121 is formed, for example, by alternating stacking of a plurality of copper foils and a plurality of fiberglass boards, with a solder resist layer formed on the surface of the outermost copper foil. Here, these heat-conducting portions 1211 refer to the areas on the surface of the outermost copper foil where no solder resist layer is provided; that is, these heat-conducting portions 1211 are the parts of the copper foil exposed to the outside. Furthermore, the first circuit board 121 has a plurality of vias. These vias penetrate the copper foils and the fiberglass boards, and the copper foils are connected through these vias.

[0014] The opposite sides of the first thermal pads 13 are thermally coupled to the heat sources 123 and the thermally conductive parts 1211, respectively. The opposite sides of the second thermal pads 14 are thermally coupled to the thermally conductive parts 1211 and the thermally conductive pillars 1243, respectively. In this way, the heat generated by the heat sources 123 is transferred through the first thermal pads 13 to the bottom copper foil of the thermally conductive parts 1211, and then through the through holes to transfer the heat from the bottom copper foil of the thermally conductive parts 1211 to the top copper foil of the thermally conductive parts 1211, and then through the second thermal pads 14 to the heat sink 124 for heat dissipation.

[0015] In this embodiment, since the first circuit board 121 is provided with a heat-conducting part 1211, such as bare copper, and the heat generated by the heat source 123 is transferred from the second circuit board 122 to the heat sink 124 through the heat-conducting part 1211 of the first circuit board 121 via the first heat-conducting pad 13 and the second heat-conducting pad 14, the heat dissipation component 12 is transferred from the heat source 123 to the heat sink 124 through the copper foil of the first circuit board 121 itself. The heat sink 124 is on the same side of the first circuit board 121 and the second circuit board 122. Therefore, it is not necessary to install another heat sink on the second circuit board 122, nor is it necessary to dissipate heat from the heat source 123 through the housing 11. Furthermore, it is not necessary to set openings and reserve assembly space on the first circuit board 121 for the heat sink 124 to pass through the openings to dissipate heat from the heat source 123 on the second circuit board 122. This can improve the utilization rate of the circuit configuration on the first circuit board 121. In this way, the heat source 123 located on the first circuit board 121 and the second circuit board 122 can still be dissipated in the small space inside the casing 11, without affecting the circuit configuration and structural strength of the first circuit board 121.

[0016] In this embodiment, the first circuit board 121 and the second circuit board 122 are stacked vertically, but this is not a limitation. In other embodiments, the first circuit board and the second circuit board may also be stacked horizontally.

[0017] In this embodiment, the number of heat sources 123, the number of heat-conducting parts 1211, the number of heat-conducting pillars 1243, the number of first heat-conducting pads 13, and the number of second heat-conducting pads 14 are each multiple, but are not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the number of heat sources, the number of heat-conducting parts, the number of heat-conducting pillars, the number of first heat-conducting pads, and the number of second heat-conducting pads may each be only a single one.

[0018] In this embodiment, the heat sink 124 is provided with a plurality of heat-conducting pillars 1243, and these heat-conducting pillars 1243 are respectively thermally coupled to these heat-conducting parts 1211, but this is not a limitation. In other embodiments, the heat sink may not be provided with a plurality of heat-conducting pillars, but may be directly thermally coupled to these heat-conducting parts through the heat-conducting base of the heat sink 124.

[0019] In this embodiment, the electronic device 10 is provided with a plurality of first thermal pads 13 and a plurality of second thermal pads 14, and the opposite sides of the first thermal pads 13 are thermally coupled to the heat sources 123 and the heat-conducting parts 1211, respectively, and the opposite sides of the second thermal pads 14 are thermally coupled to the heat-conducting parts 1211 and the heat-conducting pillars 1243, respectively, but this is not a limitation. In other embodiments, the electronic device may not be provided with a plurality of first thermal pads and a plurality of second thermal pads, but the heat generated by these heat sources may be transferred to the heat sink through other means.

[0020] According to the electronic device and heat dissipation assembly of the above embodiments, since the first circuit board is provided with a thermally conductive part, such as bare copper, and the heat generated by the heat source is transferred from the second circuit board to the heat sink through the thermally conductive part of the first circuit board via the first thermal pad and the second thermal pad, the heat dissipation assembly uses the copper foil of the first circuit board itself to transfer heat from the heat source to the heat sink. Furthermore, the heat sink is disposed on the same side of the first and second circuit boards. Therefore, it is not necessary to add another heat sink to the second circuit board, nor is it necessary to dissipate heat through the casing, nor is it necessary to provide openings or reserve assembly space on the first circuit board for the heat sink to pass through the openings to dissipate heat from the heat source disposed on the second circuit board. This improves the utilization rate of the circuit configuration on the first circuit board. In this way, heat dissipation can still be achieved in the small space inside the casing for the heat source disposed on the first and second circuit boards without affecting the circuit configuration and structural strength of the first circuit board.

[0021] In one embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device of the present invention can be applied to in-vehicle devices, such as in-vehicle computers or servers of in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) systems, etc.; it can also be applied to 5G servers, cloud servers or vehicle networking servers.

[0022] Although the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to the foregoing embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person skilled in the art may make some modifications and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of patent protection of the present invention shall be determined by the scope of the patent application attached to this specification. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0009] Figure 1 is a perspective view of the electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is an exploded view of a partially enlarged portion of the electronic device of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the electronic device of Figure 1.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising: a housing; a heat dissipation assembly, comprising: a first circuit board, a second circuit board, and at least one heat source, the first circuit board and the second circuit board being disposed in layers within the housing, the first circuit board having at least one thermally conductive portion, the at least one heat source being disposed on the second circuit board and located between the second circuit board and the first circuit board; and a heat sink, disposed within the housing, comprising a thermally conductive pillar, a thermally conductive base, and a fin portion, the fin portion being connected to one side of the thermally conductive base, and the thermally conductive base and the at least one heat source being thermally coupled to opposite sides of the at least one thermally conductive portion, the at least one thermally conductive pillar being connected to one side of the thermally conductive base away from the fin portion and thermally coupled to one side of the at least one thermally conductive portion away from the at least one heat source; and at least one first thermally conductive pad, the opposite sides of the at least one first thermally conductive pad being thermally coupled to the at least one heat source and the at least one thermally conductive portion, and one side of the at least one first thermally conductive pad contacting the at least one heat source.

2. The electronic device as claimed in claim 1 further includes at least one second thermal pad, the opposite sides of which are thermally coupled to the at least one thermally conductive portion and the at least one thermally conductive pillar, respectively.

3. The electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one heat-conducting part is bare copper.

4. A heat dissipation assembly for mounting in a housing, the heat dissipation assembly comprising: The system comprises: a first circuit board, a second circuit board, and at least one heat source, the first circuit board and the second circuit board being disposed in layers within the housing; the first circuit board having at least one heat-conducting portion; the at least one heat source being disposed on the second circuit board and located between the second circuit board and the first circuit board; a heat sink being disposed within the housing and comprising a heat-conducting pillar, a heat-conducting base, and a fin portion; the fin portion being connected to one side of the heat-conducting base, and the heat-conducting base and the at least one heat source being thermally coupled to opposite sides of the at least one heat-conducting portion; the at least one heat-conducting pillar being connected to the side of the heat-conducting base away from the fin portion and thermally coupled to the side of the at least one heat-conducting portion away from the at least one heat source; and at least one first thermal pad, the opposite sides of the at least one first thermal pad being thermally coupled to the at least one heat source and the at least one heat-conducting portion, and one side of the at least one first thermal pad contacting the at least one heat source.

5. The heat dissipation assembly as described in claim 4 further includes at least one second thermal pad, the opposite sides of which are thermally coupled to the at least one thermally conductive portion and the at least one thermally conductive pillar, respectively.

6. The heat dissipation assembly as described in claim 4, wherein the at least one heat-conducting part is bare copper.

Images