Auxiliary module for supporting printed circuit assembly of electronic device

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an auxiliary module for supporting a printed circuit assembly of an electronic device. The auxiliary module includes an attachment element, a cooling component, and an auxiliary PCA having a circuit board, an electrical connector, and an electronic component. The attachment element is configured to attach the auxiliary module to a support arm protruding from the PCA such that the electrical connector is coupled to a complementary electrical connector of the PCA, and the attachment element extends through a hole in the support arm. The cooling component is attached to the auxiliary PCA and includes a first portion thermally coupled to the cooling conduit in a mounted state of the auxiliary module and a second portion thermally coupled to the electronic component in an attached state in which the cooling component is attached to the auxiliary PCA. The auxiliary module is movable in a plurality of directions relative to the support arm in an attached state in which the auxiliary module is attached to the support arm and a coupled state in which the electrical connector is coupled with a complementary electrical connector.

Description

Background Art

[0001] Electronic devices such as computing devices, network devices, etc. may include one or more printed circuit assemblies (PCAs) that include electronic components. The electronic components may include primary electronic components such as processing resources (e.g., central processing unit (CPU), graphics processing unit (GPU), system on chip (Soc), application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.), and secondary or auxiliary electronic components (e.g., voltage regulator, network interface, etc.) that support the operation of the primary electronic components and / or provide supplementary or auxiliary functions for the electronic device. In many electronic devices, one or more primary electronic components and one or more auxiliary electronic components may be part of the same PCA and mounted to the same circuit board of the PCA. For example, this is often the case for auxiliary electronic components such as voltage regulators or other power conversion components that supply electronic power to processing resources. For example, typically, an electronic device may include a main PCA (e.g., a motherboard or main PCA) having a circuit board, one or more processors (primary electronic components), and one or more voltage regulators (auxiliary electronic components) for supplying electronic power to the processor, wherein the processor and the voltage regulator are disposed on the circuit board.

[0002] During operation of an electronic device, each auxiliary electronic component may generate heat. If this heat is not dissipated, the temperature of the auxiliary electronic component may exceed its thermal specifications, resulting in a decrease in the performance, reliability, and life expectancy of the individual electronic components and / or the electronic device as a whole. In order to minimize such adverse effects of heat, the electronic device may include a thermal management device to remove the heat. In some electronic devices, liquid cooling is used, in which case the thermal management device may include a cooling device (e.g., a cold plate) that is arranged to be in thermal contact with the electronic component to remove heat from such electronic component. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0003] Various examples will be described below with reference to the following drawings.

[0004] Figure 1A A block diagram of an electronic device having auxiliary modules, a printed circuit assembly (PCA), a main PCA, a support structure, and cooling ducts according to an example of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0005] Figure 1B A block diagram of a portion of an electronic device having an auxiliary module attached to a PCA according to an example of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0006] Figure 2 A block diagram of an auxiliary module attached to a PCA according to another example of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0007] Figure 3A block diagram of an auxiliary module attached to a PCA according to yet another example of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0008] Figure 4A The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 1A to Figure 1B A top perspective view of the cooling components of the auxiliary module.

[0009] Figure 4B The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 4A A bottom perspective view of a cooling component.

[0010] Figure 4C The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 4A A top view of the cooling components.

[0011] Figure 5 The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 1A to Figure 1B A stereogram of the auxiliary PCA of the auxiliary module.

[0012] Figure 6 The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 1A to Figure 1B A stereoscopic view of the attachment elements of the auxiliary module.

[0013] Figure 7 The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 1A to Figure 1B A perspective view of the fasteners of the auxiliary module.

[0014] Figure 8 The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 1A to Figure 1B A perspective view of the biasing element of the auxiliary module.

[0015] Fig. 9 The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 1A to Figure 1B Stereograph of a portion of the PCA.

[0016] Fig. 10A The example according to the present disclosure is shown Figure 1A to Figure 1B An exploded perspective view of a portion of an electronic device.

[0017] Fig. 10B The example according to the present disclosure is shown Fig. 10A An assembled perspective view of a portion of an electronic device.

[0018] Fig.11 is a flow chart depicting a method of assembling an auxiliary module to a PCA of an electronic device according to one example of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. For the purpose of explanation, reference is made to Figures 1 to Fig.11The components illustrated in the drawings describe certain examples. However, the functions of the illustrated components may overlap and may be present in a smaller or larger number of elements and components. In addition, the disclosed examples can be implemented in various environments and are not limited to the illustrated examples. Whenever possible, the same reference numerals are used in the drawings and the following description to refer to the same or similar components. However, it should be clearly understood that these drawings are for illustration and description purposes only. Although several examples are described in this document, modifications, adaptations and other implementations are possible. Therefore, the following detailed description does not limit the disclosed examples. On the contrary, the appropriate scope of the disclosed examples may be defined by the appended claims.

[0020] As described above, in many electronic devices, one or more main electronic components (e.g., processing resources) and one or more auxiliary electronic components (e.g., voltage regulators) are directly embedded in the same circuit board of the main PCA (e.g., motherboard or main PCA) of the electronic device. One potential disadvantage of this embodiment is that if one of the electronic components of the main PCA fails, it may be difficult to repair or replace the failed electronic component without the risk of collateral damage to the main PCA. Due to the risk of collateral damage, special tools and procedures may be required, and great care may be required during repair / replacement, and this may increase the cost of repair / replacement. In addition, even with careful attention, such collateral damage may sometimes still occur, which may require the replacement of the entire main PCA (which may be very expensive). Therefore, the repair or replacement of the failed electronic component may be very difficult and expensive, even if the electronic component being repaired / replaced is relatively cheap itself. Such expensive repairs and / or main PCA replacements usually occur mainly due to the failure of auxiliary electronic components (such as voltage regulators), because these auxiliary electronic components may be more prone to failure than other electronic components of the main PCA.

[0021] Another potential disadvantage of the above-described embodiments where the primary electronic components (e.g., processing resources) and the auxiliary electronic components (e.g., voltage regulators) are co-located on the same circuit board is that, in some cases, the signal routing used to transmit signals to and from the processing resources and the power routing used to provide power to the processing resources from the voltage regulators may compete for the same limited space within the available layers of the circuit board, and sometimes there may not be enough space for both. This difficulty becomes more prevalent as electronic components become more complex and consume more power. In addition, it may not always be feasible to provide more layers in the circuit board to accommodate all signaling and power requirements, as this may increase the thickness of the circuit board, increase cost, and / or reduce signal integrity.

[0022] Therefore, one way to solve the above-mentioned problems is to provide some auxiliary electronic components as part of a separate, replaceable PCA, rather than embedding them in a main PCA with main electronic components. In particular, a replaceable power conversion module having a separate circuit board and auxiliary electronic components (e.g., power conversion components) embedded in such circuit board can be used, rather than embedding the power conversion components directly into the main PCA. Because the auxiliary electronic components (such as power conversion components) are provided as part of a separate replaceable power conversion module, if these components fail, they can be replaced relatively easily by replacing the replaceable power conversion module as a unit without the risk of damaging other parts of the main PCA and without the need to replace the entire main PCA, thereby alleviating the difficulties associated with the replacement and maintenance costs and maintainability issues of traditional implementations mentioned above.

[0023] However, due to the space limitations and various geometries of auxiliary modules, designing and manufacturing electronic devices in which auxiliary electronic components such as power conversion components (which are provided as part of a separate replaceable power conversion module (or auxiliary module)) are present can sometimes be a challenge. Specifically, in previous approaches in which some auxiliary electronic components such as power conversion components (e.g., voltage regulators) are disposed adjacent to processing resources on the same circuit board, the auxiliary electronic components can be cooled by the same cooling component (e.g., cold plate) as the processing resources (e.g., by extending the cold plate slightly beyond the processing resources to also cover the voltage regulator), but if the auxiliary electronic components are provided as part of a separate auxiliary module, it may not be feasible to use the same cooling component to cool the auxiliary electronic components and the main electronic components. However, providing a separate cooling component to cool an auxiliary module (e.g., a replaceable power conversion module) may also be difficult because, given that the auxiliary module is separated from the main PCA, it may not be feasible to control the position and orientation of the auxiliary module relative to other parts of the electronic device with the accuracy required for good cooling performance. In particular, manufacturing tolerances of cooling components, auxiliary modules, connections between auxiliary modules and other PCAs, and cooling circuit structures used to provide cooling to the auxiliary modules can all be combined (accumulated) in such a way that the cooling components and cooling circuit structures may sometimes be slightly misaligned with each other, resulting in no contact or intermittent contact between them and, therefore, poor thermal performance. One way to mitigate this problem would be to reduce the tolerances sufficiently to ensure adequate contact between the cooling components and the cooling circuit structures, but doing so may significantly increase manufacturing costs and therefore may not be feasible in some cases. Therefore, the challenge of using a separate auxiliary module (e.g., a replaceable power conversion module) will be to provide a cooling component for economically and effectively cooling the auxiliary module taking into account variations in the location, geometry, and cooling circuit structure tolerances of the auxiliary module.

[0024] A technical solution to the above-mentioned problem includes providing an auxiliary module (e.g., an auxiliary power conversion module) including a cooling component and an auxiliary PCA, which is separate from another PCA (e.g., a processor PCA) carrying processing resources, wherein the auxiliary module is configured to be electrically connected and mechanically attached to the processor PCA in a manner that the auxiliary module can move relative to the processor PCA. Specifically, in some examples, the cooling component and the auxiliary PCA are configured to be coupled together and attached to a support arm protruding laterally from the processor PCA, and the electrical connector of the auxiliary PCA is configured to be electrically connected to a complementary electrical connector of the processor PCA, wherein these mechanical and electrical connections are such that they allow the auxiliary PCA and the cooling component to move together as a unit along multiple directions. This ability to move the auxiliary module when the auxiliary module (i.e., the auxiliary PCA and the cooling component) is electrically and mechanically connected to the processor PCA can allow the position and orientation of the cooling component to be adjusted as needed to align and mount to the cooling conduit (or cooling loop structure) of the electronic device with good thermal contact between them, thereby overcoming the problems associated with the tolerance accumulation of traditional implementations. In some examples, the cooling component can include engagement features for docking with the cooling conduit, which can allow self-alignment of the cooling component with the cooling conduit. For example, the engagement feature of the cooling component can have a semi-circular channel and a thin gap pad that matches the outer diameter of the cooling conduit to allow self-alignment of the cooling component with the cooling conduit.

[0025] In some examples, the auxiliary PCA and the processor PCA can be electrically connected via electrical connectors that provide a so-called floating connection that allows some relative movement between these electrical connectors while the electrical connection therebetween (such as an electrical connector including power pins and a complementary electrical connector including a socket / sleeve with floating capability to receive the power pins) remains intact. In some examples, the electrical connector allows radial movement of up to + / -1 mm of the power pins relative to the socket. This relative movement between the electrical connectors (e.g., power pins and sockets) can allow relative movement between the auxiliary PCA and the processor PCA while maintaining the electrical connection therebetween. In addition, in some examples, the cooling component is fixedly coupled to the auxiliary PCA, and both are mechanically attached to the processor PCA by attaching to a support arm extending from the processor PCA. In some examples, the mechanical attachment includes a plurality of fasteners that extend through holes (slots) in the support arm and can move in the holes in one or more directions (e.g., due to oversizing of the holes), thereby allowing some movement of the auxiliary module while still mechanically attaching the auxiliary module to the processor PCA. Thus, both the electrical connection and the mechanical attachment allow the auxiliary module to move relative to the processor PCA, which can allow the cooling component to move into an aligned position with the cooling conduit even if they are initially misaligned. In contrast, if the auxiliary PCA and the cooling component were rigidly fixed to the processor PCA, this could create mating issues (i.e., the cooling component could be misaligned with the cooling conduit) due to tolerance constraints on the location of the cooling conduit.

[0026] In one or more examples, the cooling component can be fixedly coupled to the auxiliary PCA, and the auxiliary module (i.e., the cooling component and the auxiliary PCA) can be attached to the processor PCA by a plurality of fasteners extending through a plurality of openings of the cooling component and a plurality of attachment elements (e.g., a plurality of pillars) disposed on a circuit board of the auxiliary PCA and protruding through corresponding slots (or holes) formed on a support arm of the processor PCA. In some examples, a first opening of the plurality of openings can be a control position feature that allows the auxiliary module to be aligned in the XY direction on the cooling conduit. Similarly, a second opening of the plurality of openings (e.g., an elongated slot) can be a mounting feature that allows the auxiliary module to rotate with a tight tolerance. In addition, a pair of third openings of the plurality of openings can provide thermal pad compression in the Z direction.

[0027] During the assembly of the auxiliary module to the processor PCA, the cooling component of the auxiliary module can be first positioned on the cooling conduit, and the biasing element of the cooling component can be partially tightened on the cooling conduit of the electronic device to partially install the cooling component on the cooling conduit. In addition, the auxiliary PCA of the auxiliary module can be mounted to the support arm of the processor PCA so that each pillar (e.g., threaded pillar) of the auxiliary module disposed on the circuit board of the auxiliary PCA protrudes through the corresponding hole of the support arm, and the power pin of the circuit board protrudes through the socket of the processor PCA. Afterwards, a first fastener (e.g., a threaded screw) of a plurality of fasteners can extend through the first opening (slot) of the cooling component and the corresponding pillar, and be tightened to fix the cooling component to the auxiliary PCA, and provide precise XY tolerance control to connect the two parts together. This positioning feature begins to align the floating auxiliary PCA in place. In addition, a second fastener (e.g., a threaded screw) of a plurality of fasteners can extend through the second opening (elongated slot) of the cooling component and the corresponding pillar, and be tightened to inhibit the rotation of the auxiliary module around the Z direction, thereby completing the alignment of the auxiliary module. Thereafter, a third pair of fasteners (e.g., a pair of threaded screws) of the plurality of fasteners can extend through the pair of third openings and corresponding struts and be used to form a secure connection between the cooling component and the auxiliary PCA. Finally, the biasing element can be further tightened to push the semicircular channel of the cooling component onto the cooling conduit, thereby fully mounting the cooling component on the cooling conduit.

[0028] In some examples, the processor PCA may include a secondary electrical connector that can be electrically connected to a tertiary electrical connector of a main PCA (e.g., a motherboard or a main PCA) of the electronic device. In some examples, the cooling component may be a passive heat sink. As used herein, a "passive heat sink" is a heat sink that does not contain or directly contact a liquid coolant (e.g., the heat sink does not have any coolant channels through which the liquid coolant flows), but is thermally coupled to a separate device that carries the liquid coolant (e.g., a liquid coolant conduit, a cold plate, etc.). Thus, a passive heat sink can be used as a thermal bridge between a component to be cooled and a thermal component that carries the coolant. For example, a passive heat sink may include a thermally conductive body having a portion configured to be thermally coupled to (e.g., placed in contact with) a component to be cooled and another portion configured to be thermally coupled to (e.g., placed in contact with) a separate thermal component that carries the coolant (e.g., a coolant conduit). For example, a passive heat sink may include a block of thermally conductive material (eg, copper, aluminum, thermally conductive plastic, etc.) shaped to interface with the component to be cooled and the thermal component that carries the coolant.

[0029] Compared to existing approaches of embedding power conversion components, the use of auxiliary modules of the present disclosure can provide benefits, such as: a) cooling components acting as passive heat sinks do not increase the risk of leakage, but provide high thermal performance results through cooling conduit contact; b) auxiliary modules with (relatively) poor reliability parts can be exchanged without discarding extremely expensive processor PCAs or main PCAs; c) replaceable auxiliary modules will reduce maintenance time / costs and prevent accidental damage to other internal components of the electronic device; d) the self-alignment capability of the cooling component on the cooling conduit can allow a thin gap pad to be set between the cooling component and the cooling conduit, which saves money and obtains optimal thermal performance; and e) not integrating the power supply on the processor PCA or main PCA can prevent issues with critical signal routing and integrity performance.

[0030] With reference to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1A A block diagram of an electronic device 100 is depicted. Figure 1B A block diagram of a portion of an electronic device 100 having an auxiliary module 102 attached to a printed circuit assembly (PCA) 104 is depicted. In the following description, for ease of explanation, the auxiliary module 102 is not referred to herein. Figure 1A to Figure 1B It should be understood that Figure 1A and Figure 1B The specific shapes, sizes, or other structural details are not intended to be accurate or to scale, and implementations of the electronic device 100 may have different numbers and arrangements of the components illustrated, and may also include other components not illustrated. In some examples, the electronic device 100 may be a computer (e.g., a server, a storage device), a networking device (e.g., a switch), etc. Figure 1A In some examples, the electronic device 100 is a server. In some examples, the electronic device 100 includes an auxiliary module 102, a PCA 104, a main PCA 108, a support structure 106, and a cooling conduit 110.

[0031] The auxiliary module 102 includes a circuit board 124, one or more electronic components 128 mounted on the circuit board 124, and an electrical connector 126 mounted on the circuit board 124. The one or more electronic components 128 are configured to provide auxiliary or support functionality to the main components of the PCA 104, and the electrical connector 126 is configured to electrically couple the electronic components 128 to the PCA 104 to facilitate providing the auxiliary / support functionality. In one example described in more detail below, the electronic components 128 include power conversion components (e.g., voltage regulators), and the electrical connector 126 is configured to supply electrical power from the electronic components 128 to the PCA 104, and thus in this example, the auxiliary module 102 can be referred to as a power conversion module. However, in other examples, the electronic components 128 can be networking / communication components, hardware accelerators, or any other auxiliary components, and the electrical connector 126 can be configured to transmit data signals instead of (or in addition to) electrical power. For ease of understanding, the following description will mainly focus on an example in which the auxiliary module 102 is a power conversion module, but the principles described below will apply mutatis mutandis to the other examples mentioned above in which other types of auxiliary modules 102 are used.

[0032] The electronic device 100 can be electrically connected to the main power conversion module 112 via the first set of wires 114. In particular, the auxiliary module 102 of the electronic device 100 can be electrically connected to the main power conversion module 112, which in turn can be connected to a power source (not shown) of a rack (not shown) via the second set of wires 116. In some examples, the main power conversion module 112 can include one or more electronic components (not shown) that can step down a high voltage DC current (e.g., about 380V) into a relatively low voltage DC current (e.g., about 48V) and supply this low voltage DC current to the auxiliary module 102.

[0033] The auxiliary module 102 (e.g., an auxiliary power conversion module) is connected to the main power conversion module 112 via a first set of wires 114 and to the PCA 104 via electrical connectors 126, 134. In one or more examples, the auxiliary module 102 is configured to provide support, such as electrical support, to the PCA 104. In particular, the auxiliary module 102 can further step down the relatively low voltage DC current received from the main power conversion module 112 into a low voltage DC current (e.g., about 12V to about 3.3V) and supply the low voltage DC current (electronic power) to the PCA 104 via the electrical connectors 126, 134. In one or more examples, the auxiliary module 102 includes an auxiliary PCA 118, a plurality of attachment elements 120 (see Figure 1B), a plurality of fasteners 158 and a cooling member 122. It can be noted herein that for ease of illustration only, the plurality of attachment elements 120 are Figure 1A They are not shown in Figure 1B . The auxiliary PCA 118 includes a circuit board 124, an electrical connector 126, and one or more electronic components 128. In some examples, the electrical connector 126 and the one or more electronic components 128 can be mounted on and coupled to the circuit board 124. The circuit board 124 can mechanically support the electrical connector 126 and the one or more electronic components 128, and electrically connect the one or more electronic components 128 to the electrical connector 126 using conductive pathways or signal traces, etc. (not shown) disposed in the circuit board 124. One or more electronic components 128 (e.g., a voltage regulator) can be used to step down a relatively low voltage DC current into a low voltage DC current. In some examples, the electrical connector 126 can be power pins that can be configured to transmit electronic power from the auxiliary PCA 118 to the PCA 104. A plurality of attachment elements 120 can be mounted on and coupled to one of the circuit board 124 or the cooling component 122 of the auxiliary PCA 118 so that a plurality of fasteners 158 (see Figure 1B ) can couple the auxiliary module 102 to the PCA 104. Figure 1B , the attachment element 120 is shown as being coupled to the circuit board 124, but the attachment element 120 may alternatively be coupled to the cooling component 122. The attachment element 120 may be coupled to the circuit board or cooling component via holes formed in the circuit board 124 or the cooling component 122, threads, nuts, welding, brazing, adhesives, friction fits, and / or any other fastening methods. In some examples, the fastener 158 includes a threaded screw / bolt, and the attachment element 120 includes a post (e.g., a threaded hollow post) for receiving the fastener 158 or a threaded nut for receiving the fastener 158. In some cases, in addition to the threaded member, non-threaded members such as hollow posts, washers, etc. may also be used as part of the attachment element 120. In some examples, the attachment element 120 may additionally enable the auxiliary PCA 118 to be coupled to the cooling component 122. It may be noted that the process of attaching the auxiliary module 102 to the PCA 104 and / or coupling the cooling component 122 to the auxiliary PCA 118 is discussed in more detail below.

[0034] The cooling component 122 is a passive heat sink made of a thermally conductive material such as copper, aluminum, etc. The cooling component 122 includes a first portion 122A and a second portion 122B, the first portion having a mating feature 123 complementary to a complementary mating feature 111 (e.g., an outer diameter) of the cooling conduit 110, such as a semicircular structure, and the second portion having another mating feature 125 (e.g., a substantially planar structure) complementary to another complementary mating feature 113 (e.g., an outer surface) of one or more electronic components 128. The first portion 122A is disposed on the cooling conduit 110, and the second portion 122B is disposed on one or more electronic components 128 of the auxiliary PCA 118. In some examples, the auxiliary module 102 may further include a first thermal interface material (TIM) 130 coupled to the first portion 122A of the cooling component 122 and one or more second TIMs 132 coupled to the second portion 122B of the cooling component 122. In such an example, when the cooling component 122 is mounted on the auxiliary PCA 118 and the cooling conduit 110, the first portion 122A can be thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components 128 via the first TIM 130, and the second portion 122B can be thermally coupled to the outer diameter of the cooling conduit 110 via one or more second TIMs 132. In such an example, the auxiliary module 102 can further include a biasing element (e.g., a captive screw assembly 184, such as Figure 8 , Fig. 10A and Fig. 10B ), the biasing element is mounted on the cooling member 122 and is configured to push the first portion 122A having a semicircular structure onto the outer diameter of the cooling conduit 110 to thermally couple the cooling member 122 to the cooling conduit 110. It can be noted that in some other examples, the biasing element can be a snap-fit ​​assembly, a spring assembly, etc. without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some examples, the electrical connector 126 of the auxiliary PCA 118 can be coupled with the complementary electrical connector 134 of the PCA 104 to electrically connect the auxiliary PCA 118 to the PCA 104.

[0035] The PCA 104 may be a separate integrated circuit package having a processor circuit board 136, a processing resource 138, a cold plate 140, a complementary electrical connector 134, and a secondary electrical connector 142. In some examples, the processor circuit board 136 may be configured to mechanically support the processing resource 138, the complementary electrical connector 134, and the secondary electrical connector 142, and to electrically connect the complementary electrical connector 134 to the processing resource 138 and the secondary electrical connector 142 using conductive pathways or signal traces, etc. (not shown) disposed in the processor circuit board 136. The processing resource 138 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a system on a chip (Soc), or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.) may be used to process data or information related to the electronic device 100. The complementary electrical connector 134 may be a socket or a sleeve configured to receive the electrical connector 126 of the auxiliary PCA 118, thereby establishing an electrical connection by coupling the electrical connector 126 with the complementary electrical connector 134. In addition, the complementary electrical connector 134 can transmit electronic power received via the electrical connector 126 to the processing resources 138 of the PCA 104 and the secondary electrical connector 142 of the primary PCA 108. In some examples, the secondary electrical connector 142 can transmit the electronic power to one or more electronic components (not shown) of the primary PCA 108. The cold plate 140 is thermally coupled to the processing resources 138 and is configured to remove heat from the processing resources 138. In particular, the cold plate 140 includes a fluid inlet 140A that is coupled to the cooling conduit 110 to receive a cooling fluid 148 and circulate the cooling fluid 148 within an interior volume (not labeled) of the cold plate 140 to remove heat transferred from the processing resources 138 to the cold plate 140, thereby generating a hot fluid 150. For example, the cold plate 140 can further include a fluid outlet 140B that is connected to the interior volume of the cold plate 140 and is configured to discharge the hot fluid 150 to a thermal management system (not shown) of the rack.

[0036] The support structure 106 is a mechanical component configured to provide mechanical support to the PCA 104 and the circuit board 124 of the auxiliary module 102. In some examples, the support structure 106 includes a base 144 and a plurality of support arms 146 protruding from the base 144 to support the PCA 104. In particular, the base 144 can support the processor circuit board 136, and the plurality of support arms 146 can support the circuit board 124. In one or more examples, each of the plurality of support arms 146 protruding from the base 144 can be disposed between the circuit board 124 of the auxiliary module 102 and the cooling component 122. The support structure 106 is discussed in more detail below.

[0037] The primary PCA 108 may be a main board of the electronic device 100 that may be configured to support the PCA 104 and to support the secondary PCA 118 via the PCA 104. The primary PCA 108 includes a primary circuit board 154, one or more electronic components (not shown), and a tertiary electrical connector 152. The one or more electronic components and the tertiary electrical connector 152 are mounted on and coupled to the primary circuit board 154. In some examples, the tertiary electrical connector 152 may receive the secondary electrical connector 142 of the primary PCA 108 to electrically connect the processor circuit board 136 to the one or more electronic components of the primary PCA 108.

[0038] The cooling conduit 110 is configured to receive cooling fluid 148 from a thermal management system and supply the cooling fluid 148 to the cold plate 140 of the PCA 104. In some examples, the cooling conduit 110 has a circular structure that complements the semi-circular structure of the first portion 122A of the cooling member 122.

[0039] refer to Figure 1B , in particular, each of the plurality of support arms 146 includes a hole 190 (e.g., a slot), and the cooling member 122 includes a plurality of openings 170. In one example, the plurality of attachment elements 120 are disposed on and coupled to the circuit board 124. In this example, when the circuit board 124 having the plurality of attachment elements 120 is mounted to the plurality of support arms 146, each of the plurality of attachment elements 120 protrudes through a corresponding hole 190 in the support arm 146. In addition, when the second portion 122B of the cooling member 122 is disposed on the circuit board 124 and the plurality of support arms 146, each of the plurality of openings 170 in the cooling member 122 is aligned with a corresponding attachment element (e.g., a post or a threaded hollow post) in the plurality of attachment elements 120. In this example, each of the plurality of support arms 146 is disposed between the cooling member 122 and the circuit board 124. Then, the plurality of fasteners 158 may be inserted through the plurality of openings 170 and into the plurality of attachment elements 120 to attach the cooling component 122 to the circuit board 124 of the auxiliary PCA 118 and to the plurality of support arms 146. Figure 1B In the example of FIG. 1 , the support arm 146 is sandwiched between the cooling component 122 and the circuit board 124, wherein the attachment element 120 holds the support arm 146 in this position. In particular, when the auxiliary module 102 is installed in the electronic device 100, the electrical connector 126 (see Figure 1A ) can be coupled to a complementary electrical connector 134 (see Figure 1A) to establish an electrical connection between the auxiliary module 102 and the PCA 104, and the plurality of fasteners 158 can be engaged with the plurality of attachment elements 120 to attach the auxiliary module 102 to the plurality of support arms 146, and to attach the auxiliary PCA 118 to the cooling component 122. Therefore, in this example, in an installed state in which the auxiliary module 102 is installed in the electronic device 100, the first portion 122A of the cooling component 122 is thermally coupled to the cooling conduit 110. Similarly, in an attached state in which the cooling component 122 is attached to the auxiliary PCA 118, the second portion 122B of the cooling component 122 is thermally coupled to one or more electronic components 128.

[0040] In addition, in the attached state of the auxiliary module 102 attached to the plurality of support arms 146 and the coupled state of the electrical connector 126 coupled to the complementary electrical connector 134, the auxiliary module 102 can move relative to the plurality of support arms 146 with one or more degrees of freedom of motion to overcome problems associated with tolerance accumulation in the cooling conduit 110. For example, in some embodiments, the auxiliary module 102 can translate relative to the support arm 146 (within defined limits) along one or more directions (e.g., the longitudinal direction 10, the lateral direction 20, and / or the vertical direction 30). In addition, in some examples, the auxiliary module 102 can not only translate, but also rotate around one or more rotation axes (such as around an axis parallel to the lateral direction 20, an axis parallel to the vertical direction 30, and / or an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction 10, etc.) (within defined limits). In some examples, the auxiliary module 102 can rotate around an axis 121 parallel to the vertical direction 30, and such rotation may also be referred to herein as movement or rotation in a radial direction.

[0041] Translational and / or rotational movement of the auxiliary module 102 relative to the support arm can be facilitated in part by the configuration of the electrical interface (e.g., the electrical connector 134 is configured to allow movement of the electrical connector 126 when connected) and in part by oversizing the aperture 158 and / or opening 170 in at least one dimension thereof to allow movement of the attachment member 120 relative to the support arm and / or to allow movement of the fastener 158 relative to the cooling member 122. Additionally, in some examples, the spacing between the cooling member 122 and the circuit board 124 can exceed the thickness of the support arm 146, which can facilitate movement along the vertical direction 30 and / or rotation about an axis parallel to the longitudinal dimension 10 and / or the lateral dimension 20. The spacing between the cooling member 122 and the circuit board 124 can be controlled by the attachment member 120 and the fastener.

[0042] Although the auxiliary module 102 as a whole is movable relative to the support arm 146, in some examples, once assembled, the circuit board 124 can be fixed relative to the cooling component 122. However, during various stages of assembly, the circuit board 124 and the cooling component 122 can be moved relative to each other to facilitate assembly. For example, the above-described oversizing of the opening 170 and / or the hole 190 can facilitate such movement of the circuit board 124 relative to the cooling component 122 during assembly.

[0043] exist Figure 1B In the example of FIG. 1 , the circuit board 124 and the cooling component 122 are both directly coupled to the support arm 146 and are coupled to each other via a single set of fasteners 158 and the attachment member 120. However, in other examples, the connections between the components of the auxiliary module 102 may be different. For example, Figure 2 (described below) illustrates an example in which a circuit board is directly coupled to a support arm and a cooling component using two different sets of fasteners and attachment members, while the cooling component is not directly connected to the support arm (but rather the cooling component is indirectly connected to the support arm via the circuit board). As another example, Figure 3 (described below) illustrates an example in which a cooling component is directly coupled to a support arm and a circuit board using two different sets of fasteners and attachment members, while the circuit board is not directly connected to the support arm (but rather the circuit board is indirectly connected to the support arm via the cooling component).

[0044] Figure 2A block diagram of an auxiliary module 202 attached to a PCA 204 of an electronic device 200 is depicted. In one or more examples, each of a plurality of support arms 246 of a support structure 206 protruding from the PCA 204 includes a hole 290, and a cooling member 222 includes a plurality of openings 270. In some examples, a plurality of attachment elements 220 having a first set of attachment elements 220A and a second set of attachment elements 220B are disposed on and coupled to a circuit board 224. In such an example, when the circuit board 224 having the plurality of attachment elements 220 is mounted to the plurality of support arms 246, the first set of attachment elements 220A protrude through corresponding holes 290. In addition, when a second portion 222B of the cooling member 222 is disposed on the circuit board 224, each of the plurality of openings 270 in the cooling member 222 is aligned with the second set of attachment elements 220B. In one or more examples, the auxiliary module 202 may further include a plurality of fasteners 258 having a first set of fasteners 258A and a second set of fasteners 258B. Each fastener in the first set of fasteners 258A can extend into the first set of attachment elements 220A to attach the auxiliary module 202 to the PCA 204 (or specifically, to attach the auxiliary PCA 218 to the plurality of support arms 246). In this example, the auxiliary module 202 can be movable relative to the plurality of support arms 246 in one or more directions to overcome issues associated with tolerance buildup in a cooling circuit (not shown). More specifically, the circuit board 224 can be movable relative to the support arms 246. Similarly, each fastener in the second set of fasteners 258B can extend through the plurality of openings 270 in the cooling member 222 to attach the cooling member 222 to the circuit board 228 of the auxiliary PCA 218. Figure 2 In the example of FIG. 2 , the cooling component 222 is fixed relative to the circuit board 224 once assembled. However, during various stages of assembly, the circuit board 224 and the cooling component 222 may be moved relative to each other to facilitate assembly.

[0045] Figure 3A block diagram of an auxiliary module 302 attached to a PCA 304 of an electronic device 300 is depicted. In one or more examples, each of a plurality of support arms 346 of a support structure 306 that protrude from the PCA 304 includes a hole 390, and a cooling component 322 includes a plurality of openings 370, the plurality of openings including a first group of openings 370A and a second group of openings 370B. In some examples, a plurality of attachment elements 320 include a first group of attachment elements 320A and a second group of attachment elements 320B. The first group of attachment elements 320A is disposed on and coupled to the cooling component 322, and the second group of attachment elements 320B is disposed on and coupled to the circuit board 324. In such an example, when the cooling component 322 having the first group of attachment elements 320A is mounted to the plurality of support arms 346, the first group of attachment elements 320A protrudes through the corresponding holes 390. In addition, when the second portion 322B of the cooling component 322 is disposed on the circuit board 324, the first set of openings 370A is aligned with the first set of attachment elements 320A, and the second set of attachment elements 320B protrude through the corresponding openings in the second set of openings 370B. In one or more examples, the auxiliary module 302 may further include a plurality of fasteners 358 having a first set of fasteners 358A and a second set of fasteners 358B. Each fastener in the first set of fasteners 358A may extend through the first set of openings 370A and into the first set of attachment elements 320A to attach the auxiliary module 302 to the PCA 304 (or in particular, to attach the auxiliary PCA 318 to the plurality of support arms 346). In such an example, the auxiliary module 302 may be movable relative to the plurality of support arms 346 in one or more directions to overcome problems associated with tolerance accumulation in the cooling circuit (not shown). More specifically, the cooling component 322 may be movable relative to the support arms 346. Similarly, each of the second set of fasteners 358B can extend through the second set of openings 370B in the cooling member 322 to attach the cooling member 322 to the circuit board 228 of the auxiliary PCA 218. Figure 3 In the example of FIG. 3 , the cooling component 322 is fixed relative to the circuit board 324 once assembled. However, during various stages of assembly, the circuit board 324 and the cooling component 322 may be moved relative to each other to facilitate assembly.

[0046] Figure 4A A top perspective view of the cooling component 122 of the auxiliary module 102 is depicted. Figure 1A to Figure 1B An exemplary configuration of a cooling component. Figure 4B Depicted Figure 4A A bottom perspective view of the cooling component 122.

[0047] Figure 4C Depicted Figure 4AIn the following description, for the convenience of explanation, the cooling member 122 is viewed from below. FIG. 4A to FIG. 4C Described.

[0048] The cooling member 122 includes a first portion 122A and a second portion 122B extending from the first portion 122A. In addition, the cooling member includes a first flange 160 and a second flange 162 extending from opposite ends of the second portion 122B. The first portion 122A has an engagement feature 123 that mates with a complementary engagement feature 111 of the cooling conduit 110 (see Figure 1A In some examples, the engagement feature 123 forms a track or groove having a similar cross-sectional profile to the cooling conduit 110, and the cooling conduit 110 can be disposed in the track or groove so that the engagement feature 123 (see Figure 1A ) at least partially surrounds the cooling conduit 110 in cross section (e.g., the engagement feature 123 can surround the upper half, upper third, upper quarter, or some other portion of the cooling conduit 110). In particular, in some examples, the cooling conduit 110 is cylindrical, and the complementary engagement feature 111 of the cooling conduit can be a portion of the outer diameter of the cooling conduit 110 along a particular length of the cooling conduit (e.g., the upper half), and in these examples, the engagement feature 123 can include a curved engagement surface having an arcuate or semi-circular cross-section to receive and engage with the outer diameter of the cooling conduit 110 (either direction, or via the TIM 130). The first portion 122A further includes a biasing element (e.g., a captive screw assembly 184). In particular, the first portion 122A includes a captive screw hole 164 to allow the captive screw assembly 184 to be mounted to the cooling component 122. The auxiliary module 102 includes a first TIM 130 coupled to the first portion 122A. In particular, the first TIM 130 is coupled to a portion of the inner surface of the first portion 122A of the cooling component 122, which can be thermally coupled to the circular cooling conduit 110. In particular, the first portion 122A is configured to be thermally coupled to the cooling conduit 110 via the first TIM 130. The second portion 122B has a substantially planar shape complementary to the outer surface of the one or more electronic components 128 (see Figure 1A ). The auxiliary module 102 may further include one or more second thermal interface materials (TIM) 132 coupled to the second portion 122B. In particular, the one or more second TIMs 132 are coupled to another portion of the inner surface of the second portion 122B, which may be thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components 128. In particular, the second portion 122B is configured to be thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components 128 directly or via the one or more second TIMs 132.

[0049] The cooling member 122 further includes a plurality of openings 170. In particular, the plurality of openings 170 include a first opening 170A, a second opening 170B, and a pair of third openings 170C. In some examples, one of the first opening 170A and the pair of third openings 170C is formed in the first flange 160. Similarly, the second opening 170B and the other of the pair of third openings 170C are formed in the second flange 162. In some examples, the first opening 170A and the second opening 170B are formed on diagonally opposite sides of the first flange 160 and the second flange 162. Similarly, a pair of third openings 170C are formed on other diagonally opposite sides of the first flange 160 and the second flange 162. In addition, in some examples, the second opening 170B may be an elongated slot having long edges 170B1 and 170B2, extending parallel to an axis "A" extending between the center "C" of the first opening 170A and the second opening 170B. In addition, the first opening 170A and one of the pair of third openings 170C, and the second opening 170B and the other of the pair of third openings 170C are respectively spaced apart from each other by a distance "D". The diameter of the first opening 170A is smaller than the diameter of the second opening 170B and each of the third pair of openings 170C. The diameter of the pair of third openings 170C is smaller than the diameter of the second opening 170B. In some examples, the second portion 122B further includes a protrusion 172. In particular, the first protrusion 172A is located between the first opening 170A and one of the pair of third openings 170C, and is coupled to the first flange 160. Similarly, the second protrusion 172B is located between the second opening 170B and the other of the pair of third openings 170C, and is coupled to the second flange 162. Each of the protrusions 172 is configured to be received via a recess (such as Fig. 9 ) extends and contacts the circuit board 124 to limit over-constraint of each of the plurality of fasteners 158 when coupling the cooling component 122 and the auxiliary PCA 118 to each other.

[0050] Figure 5 Depicted Figure 1A to Figure 1B1 is a perspective view of an auxiliary PCA 118 of an auxiliary module 102. In some examples, the auxiliary PCA 118 includes a circuit board 124, an electrical connector 126, one or more electronic components 128, one or more electronic elements 166, and one or more holes 168. The circuit board 124 can be configured to mechanically support the electrical connector 126, the one or more electronic components 128, and the one or more electronic elements 166. In particular, each of the electrical connector 126, the one or more electronic components 128, and the one or more electronic elements 166 is disposed on the circuit board 124 and coupled to the circuit board. In some examples, one of the electronic elements 166 can be electrically connected to the first pair of wires 114 (see FIG. 1 ) via one of the conductive paths or signal traces (not shown) disposed in the circuit board 124. Figure 1A ) and one or more electronic components 128. The one or more electronic components 128 can be further electrically connected to the electrical connector 126. In some examples, the electrical connector 126 can be a power pin, and each electronic component 128 can be a voltage regulator. In some examples, the one or more electronic components 128 can step down a relatively low voltage DC current into a low voltage DC current and transmit the low voltage DC current to the electrical connector 126. During such operation, the one or more electronic components 128 may generate heat, which needs to be transferred away from the auxiliary PCA 118 to prevent component failure due to overheating conditions and to obtain optimal performance from the one or more electronic components 128. The one or more electronic components 128 and the one or more electronic elements 166 can be housed within the second portion 122B of the cooling component 122. In such an example, the second portion 122B can be thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components 128 via one or more second TIMs 132. The one or more holes 168 may be configured to receive a corresponding one of the plurality of attachment elements 120 and couple the received attachment element 120 to the circuit board 124 of the auxiliary PCA 118. For example, the hole 168 may include threads that engage threads of the attachment element 120 to secure the attachment element 120 to the circuit board 124. As another example, the attachment element 120 may be inserted into the hole 168 and coupled to the hole via a friction fit, adhesive, welding, or any other attachment method.

[0051] Figure 6 Depicted Figure 1A to Figure 1B1 is a perspective view of one of the plurality of attachment elements 120 of the auxiliary module 102 of FIG. 1. In some examples, the attachment element 120 can be a post having a cylindrical portion 174, a coupler portion 178, and a hole 176, the hole having threads (not shown) defined therein through the cylindrical portion 174 and the coupler portion 178, for receiving a corresponding fastener having reverse threads (not shown) in the plurality of fasteners 158. The coupler portion 178 is configured to protrude into a corresponding hole in the plurality of holes 168 in the circuit board 124 to couple the attachment element 120 to the auxiliary PCA 118.

[0052] Figure 7 Depicted Figure 1A to Figure 1B 102 of the auxiliary module 102. The fastener 158 may include a head portion 180 and a body portion 182 having a reverse thread (not shown). In one or more examples, the fastener 158 may extend in one of the corresponding openings 170 of the cooling component 122 or the attachment element 120 to attach the auxiliary module 102 to the support arm 146 and the auxiliary PCA 118 to the cooling component 122.

[0053] Figure 8 A stereoscopic view of a biasing element (e.g., a captive screw assembly 184) of a cooling component 122 is depicted. It may be noted that the cooling component 122 may include other types of biasing elements such as snap-fit ​​assemblies, spring assemblies, etc. without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The captive screw assembly 184 is a special type of screw assembly that can be freely retained inside an opening of an object without being lost from the object, and at the same time it can be selectively tightened or loosened to lock to or unlock from another object. In some examples, the captive screw assembly 184 includes a captive screw 186 and a coupler object 188. The coupler object 188 may be disposed on a captive screw hole 164 formed in the first portion 122A of the cooling component 122. Thus, the captive screw 186 can be freely retained within the opening (not marked) of the coupler object 188 without being lost from the coupler object 188 and can be tightened to push the first portion 122A on the cooling conduit 110, thereby thermally coupling the first portion 122A to the cooling conduit 110.

[0054] Fig. 9 Depicted Figure 1A to Figure 1B 1 and a portion of the support structure 106. In some examples, the PCA 104 includes a processor circuit board 136 and a complementary electrical connector 134. It can be noted that the processing resource 138, the cold plate 140, and the secondary electrical connector 142 are located in the Fig. 9 are not visible in the view shown in the figure and these parts are Figure 1A In some examples, complementary electrical connectors 134 (e.g., sockets or sleeves) are mounted on and coupled to a processor circuit board 136. In addition, the processor circuit board 136 may include one of conductive pathways or signal traces, etc. (not shown) for connecting each of the complementary electrical connectors 134 to the processing resource 138 and the secondary electrical connector 142.

[0055] In some examples, the support structure 106 is a mechanical component having a base 144 and a plurality of support arms 146, the plurality of support arms including a first support arm 146A and a second support arm 146B, each of which protrudes from the base 144. In some examples, the base 144 supports the processor circuit board 136, and the plurality of support arms 146 support the circuit board 124 of the auxiliary PCA 118. In some examples, each of the plurality of support arms 146 includes a hole 190 (e.g., the hole 190 includes a first hole 190A, a second hole 190B, and a pair of third holes 190C), and a notch 192 (e.g., a first notch 192A and a second notch 192B). In some examples, the first support arm 146A includes the first hole 190A and one of the pair of third holes 190C. Similarly, the second support arm 146B includes the second hole 190B and the other of the pair of third holes 190C. The first hole 190A and the second hole 190B are formed on diagonally opposite sides of the first support arm 146A and the second support arm 146B. Similarly, a pair of third holes 190C are formed on other diagonally opposite sides of the first support arm 146A and the second support arm 146B. In one or more examples, each of the first hole 190A, the second hole 190B, and the pair of third holes 190C can be a slot (an oversized slot) and have a width greater than the diameter of a corresponding attachment element in the plurality of attachment elements 120 to allow the cooling component 122 and the auxiliary PCA 118 (e.g., the auxiliary module 102) to move as a unit relative to the plurality of support arms 146 along one or more directions to align the first portion 122A of the cooling component 122 on the cooling conduit 110, and thermally couple the first portion 122A to the cooling conduit 110 and thermally couple the second portion 122B to the one or more electronic components 128. A first notch 192A is formed in the first support arm 146A between the first hole 190A and one of the pair of third holes 190C. Similarly, a second notch 192B is formed in the second support arm 146B between the other of the pair of third holes 190C and the second hole 190B.

[0056] Fig. 10A An exploded perspective view of the electronic device 100 is depicted. Fig. 10B The electronic device 100 is depicted in an assembled perspective view. FIG. 10A to FIG. 10B Described.

[0057] Fig. 10A The electronic device 100 shown in the example of includes an auxiliary module 102, a PCA 104, and a support structure 106. The auxiliary module 102 includes an auxiliary PCA 118, a plurality of attachment elements 120, a cooling component 122, a plurality of fasteners 158, and a captive screw assembly 184. The auxiliary PCA 118 includes a circuit board 124, an electrical connector 126 (e.g., a power pin), and one or more electronic components 128. The electrical connector 126 and the one or more electronic components are coupled to the circuit board 124. In some examples, each of the plurality of attachment elements is a pillar, which includes a recess or hole therein and a thread defined therein through the hole. In addition, the plurality of attachment elements 120 are also coupled to the circuit board 124. The cooling component 122 includes a first portion 122A and a second portion 122B. The captive screw assembly 184 is coupled to the first portion 122A. The second portion 122B includes a plurality of openings 170, for example, a first opening 170A, a second opening 170B, and a pair of third openings 170C. In some examples, the second portion 122B further includes a protrusion 172. The plurality of fasteners 158 include a first fastener 158A, a second fastener 158B, and a pair of third fasteners 158C. Figure 1A In the example of the present invention, the PCA 104 includes a processor circuit board 136 and a complementary electrical connector 134, for example, a socket coupled to the processor circuit board 136. The support structure 106 includes a base 144 and a plurality of support arms 146, for example, a first support arm 146A and a second support arm 146B. In one or more examples, each of the plurality of support arms 146 protrudes from the base 144. The base 144 supports the processor circuit board 136. Each of the plurality of support arms 146 includes a hole 190, for example, a first hole 190A, a second hole 190B, and a pair of third holes 190C.

[0058] The process of assembling the auxiliary module 102 and coupling the auxiliary module to the support arm 146 and the cooling duct 110 will now be described. The process begins by positioning the auxiliary PCA 118 below the PCA 104 and the support structure 106 such that the electrical connector 126 is aligned with the complementary electrical connector 134, the first attachment element 120A is aligned with the first hole 190A, the second attachment element 120B is aligned with the second hole 190B, and the pair of third attachment elements 120C is aligned with the pair of third holes 190C. The auxiliary PCA 118 is then electrically coupled to the PCA 104 by mating the electrical connector 126 with the complementary electrical connector 134. As part of moving the PCA 118 to establish the electrical coupling, the attachment element 120 may also be extended through the hole 190 in the support arm 146.

[0059] Next, the cooling component 122 is positioned above the auxiliary PCA 118 and the cooling conduit 110 so that the first portion 122A is disposed on the cooling conduit 110 and the second portion 122B is disposed on one or more electronic components 128. In this state, the plurality of support arms 146 are located between the auxiliary PCA 119 and the cooling component 122, and the openings 170 can be substantially aligned with the corresponding holes 190 and the attachment elements 120 disposed therein (e.g., the first opening 170A is aligned with the first hole 190A, the second opening 170B is aligned with the second hole 190B, and the pair of third openings 170C is aligned with the pair of third holes 190C). In addition, in this state, in one or more examples, each protrusion 172 in the cooling component 122 extends through the notch 192 in the corresponding support arm 146 and contacts the circuit board 124.

[0060] The cooling component 122 can then be engaged and coupled with the cooling conduit 110, which fixes the position of the cooling component 122. At this point, the cooling component 122 may not be fully aligned with the circuit board 124 because the position and orientation of the cooling conduit 110 relative to the PCA 104 may vary slightly from the nominal design position due to tolerance accumulation. However, the circuit board 124 can be moved relative to the support arm 124 to align it with the cooling component 120 because the hole 190 is oversized relative to the attachment member. The fastener 158 can be inserted through the opening 170 into the attachment member 120 and tightened, which holds the circuit board 124 in the aligned position. In some examples, the order in which the fasteners 158 are tightened can have an impact on how the auxiliary module 102 moves, and a specific order can be beneficial in some situations. In particular, in some examples, the fastening of the plurality of attachment elements 120 may be performed as follows: i) the circuit board 124 is moved along the XY direction (the longitudinal direction 10 and the lateral direction 20) until the first opening 170A is aligned with the first attachment element 120A, and then the first fastener 158A may be engaged with and fastened to the first attachment element 120A, which limits the XY position of the circuit board 124 relative to the cooling component 122; ii) the circuit board 122 may be rotated about a vertical axis (e.g., pivoted about the first fastener 158A) until the second opening 170B is aligned with the second attachment element 120A. 0B alignment, then the second fastener 158B can be inserted through the second opening 170B into the second attachment element 120 and tightened, which limits the orientation of the circuit board relative to the cooling member 122; and iii) then a pair of third fasteners 158C are inserted into the pair of third openings 170C and the pair of third attachment elements 120C and tightened to pull the circuit board 124 and the cooling member 122 closer together along the vertical direction 30, thereby thermally coupling the second portion 122B with one or more electronic components 128 (e.g., compressing the TIM disposed therebetween). In one or more examples, the protrusion 172 contacting the circuit board 124 can limit the over-constraint of each of the plurality of fasteners 158 when coupling the cooling member 122 and the auxiliary PCA 118 to each other. In some examples, the captive screw assembly 184 is further tightened to push the semicircular structure formed in the first portion 122A onto the outer diameter of the cooling conduit 110, thereby thermally coupling the cooling member 122 to the cooling conduit 110. In some examples, the first portion 122A is thermally coupled to the cooling conduit 110 via a first TIM 130 coupled to the first portion 122 A. Similarly, the second portion 122B is thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components 128 via a second TIM 132 coupled to the second portion 122B.

[0061] Fig.11A flow chart depicting a method 1100 of assembling an auxiliary module to a PCA of an electronic device is depicted. It may be noted herein that, for example, in conjunction with Figure 1A to Figure 1B , FIG. 4A to FIG. 4C , Figures 5 to 9 ,as well as FIG. 10A to FIG. 10B Method 1100 is described. Method 1100 starts at block 1102 and continues to block 1004.

[0062] At block 1104, method 1100 includes mounting a circuit board of the auxiliary module to a plurality of support arms protruding from a support structure of a printed circuit assembly (PCA) of the electronic device such that an electrical connector coupled to the circuit board is electrically connected to a complementary electrical connector coupled to the PCA and a plurality of attachment elements of the auxiliary module extend through holes (slots) in the plurality of support arms. Method 1100 continues to block 1106.

[0063] The method 1100 continues to block 1106. The method 1100 includes positioning a cooling component of the auxiliary module on a cooling conduit of an auxiliary PCA and an electronic device of the auxiliary module such that a first portion of the cooling component is disposed on the cooling conduit and a second portion of the cooling component is disposed on one or more electronic components coupled to the circuit board. The method 1100 continues to block 1108.

[0064] At box 1108, method 1100 includes: attaching the cooling component to multiple attachment elements of the auxiliary module so that the auxiliary module can be moved in one or more directions relative to the multiple support arms to align the first portion of the cooling component on the cooling conduit, and thermally couple the first portion to the cooling conduit and thermally couple the second portion to one or more electronic components. In some examples, a biasing element (e.g., a captive screw assembly) disposed on the first portion is first tightened to partially mount the cooling component on the cooling conduit. In addition, a first fastener of the plurality of fasteners can extend through a first opening of the cooling component and a corresponding attachment element, and be tightened to secure the cooling component to the auxiliary PCA, and provide precise XY tolerance control to couple the two parts together. This locating feature begins to align the floating auxiliary PCA in place. In addition, a second fastener of the plurality of fasteners can extend through a second opening (e.g., an elongated slot) of the cooling component and a corresponding support, and be tightened to inhibit rotation of the auxiliary module around the Z direction, thereby completing the alignment of the auxiliary module. Thereafter, a third pair of fasteners from the plurality of fasteners can extend through a pair of third openings and be used to form a secure connection between the cooling component and the auxiliary PCA. Finally, the captive fastener assembly can be further tightened to push the semicircular channel of the cooling component onto the cooling conduit, thereby fully mounting the cooling component on the cooling conduit. In one or more examples, a first portion of the cooling component is thermally coupled to the cooling conduit via a first thermal interface material coupled to the first portion of the cooling component. Similarly, a second portion of the cooling component is thermally coupled to one or more electronic components via one or more second thermal interface materials coupled to the second portion of the cooling component. Method 1100 ends at box 1110.

[0065] Compared to existing approaches of embedding power conversion components, the use of auxiliary modules of the present disclosure can provide benefits, such as: a) cooling components acting as passive heat sinks do not increase the risk of leakage, but provide high thermal performance results through cooling conduit contact; b) auxiliary modules with (relatively) poor reliability parts can be exchanged without discarding extremely expensive processor PCAs or main PCAs; c) replaceable auxiliary modules will reduce maintenance time / costs and prevent accidental damage to other internal components of the electronic device; d) the self-alignment capability of the cooling component on the cooling conduit can allow a thin gap pad to be set between the cooling component and the cooling conduit, which saves money and obtains optimal thermal performance; and e) not integrating the power supply on the processor PCA or main PCA can prevent issues with critical signal routing and integrity performance.

[0066] In the foregoing description, many details are set forth to provide an understanding of the subject matter disclosed herein. However, embodiments may be practiced without some or all of these details. Other embodiments may include modifications, combinations, and variations of the details discussed above. The appended claims are intended to cover such modifications and variations.

Claims

1. An auxiliary module for supporting a printed circuit assembly (PCA), the printed circuit assembly including processing resources of an electronic device, the auxiliary module comprising: Auxiliary PCA, the auxiliary PCA comprising: Circuit boards; an electrical connector coupled to the circuit board; and one or more electronic components coupled to the circuit board, a plurality of attachment elements configured to attach the auxiliary module to a plurality of support arms protruding from the PCA such that the electrical connector electrically connects with a complementary electrical connector of the PCA and the plurality of attachment elements extend through holes in the plurality of support arms; and a cooling component configured to be attached to the auxiliary PCA and comprising: a first portion configured to be thermally coupled to a cooling conduit of the electronic device in an installed state in which the auxiliary module is installed in the electronic device; and a second portion configured to be thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components in an attached state where the cooling component is attached to the auxiliary PCA, Wherein, in an attached state where the auxiliary module is attached to the plurality of support arms and in a coupled state where the electrical connector is coupled to the complementary electrical connector, the auxiliary module is movable in one or more directions relative to the plurality of support arms.

2. The auxiliary module according to claim 1, wherein: The first portion of the cooling component includes an engagement feature configured to interface with a complementary engagement feature of the cooling conduit and a biasing element configured to push the engagement feature onto the complementary engagement feature to thermally couple the cooling component to the cooling conduit.

3. The auxiliary module according to claim 2, wherein: The biasing element is one of a captive fastener assembly, a snap-fit ​​assembly, or a spring assembly.

4. The auxiliary module according to claim 1, in, The plurality of attachment elements comprises a plurality of struts, wherein the holes of the plurality of support arms comprise a plurality of slots, and when the auxiliary module is attached to the support arm, each of the plurality of struts extends through a corresponding slot of the plurality of slots, wherein a width of each of the plurality of slots is greater than a diameter of each of the plurality of struts to allow the auxiliary module to move relative to the plurality of support arms.

5. The auxiliary module according to claim 4, further comprising: Multiple fasteners, Wherein, the second portion of the cooling component further comprises a plurality of openings, and Wherein, in an attached state where the auxiliary module is attached to the plurality of support arms and where the cooling component is attached to the auxiliary PCA, the support arm is located between the auxiliary PCA and the cooling component, each of the plurality of openings is aligned with a corresponding pillar among the plurality of pillars, and the cooling component is attached to the auxiliary PCA and the plurality of support arms via the plurality of fasteners extending through the plurality of openings and into the plurality of pillars.

6. The auxiliary module according to claim 5, in, Each support arm of the plurality of support arms further includes a notch; and Wherein, the second portion of the cooling component further comprises protrusions, wherein each protrusion is configured to extend through the recess and contact the circuit board to limit over-constraint of each of the plurality of fasteners when coupling the cooling component and the auxiliary PCA to each other.

7. The auxiliary module according to claim 5, wherein: The plurality of openings include a first opening, a second opening, and a pair of third openings, wherein the first opening and the second opening are formed on diagonally opposite sides of the second portion of the cooling component, and the pair of third openings are formed on another diagonally opposite side of the second portion of the cooling component, and wherein the second opening is an elongated slot having long edges, the elongated slot extending parallel to an axis extending between a center of the first opening and a center of the second opening.

8. The auxiliary module of claim 1, further comprising a first thermal interface material coupled to a first portion of the cooling component and one or more second thermal interface materials coupled to a second portion of the cooling component, wherein: The first portion of the cooling component is configured to be thermally coupled to the cooling conduit via the first thermal interface material, and wherein the second portion of the cooling component is configured to be thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components via the one or more second thermal interface materials.

9. An electronic device, comprising: a support structure having a base and a plurality of support arms protruding from the base; A printed circuit assembly (PCA), the PCA comprising: a processor circuit board disposed on the base; and a complementary electrical connector coupled to the processor circuit board; and An auxiliary module, the auxiliary module is used to support the PCA and includes: Auxiliary PCA, the auxiliary PCA comprising: a circuit board mounted to the plurality of support arms; an electrical connector coupled to the circuit board; and one or more electronic components coupled to the circuit board, a plurality of attachment elements that attach the auxiliary module to the plurality of support arms protruding from the PCA such that the electrical connector is electrically connected to the complementary electrical connector and that extend through holes in the plurality of support arms; and a cooling component attached to the auxiliary PCA and comprising: a first portion that is thermally coupled to a cooling conduit of the electronic device in a mounted state in which the auxiliary module is mounted in the electronic device; and a second portion thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components in an attached state where the cooling component is attached to the auxiliary PCA, Wherein, in an attached state where the auxiliary module is attached to the plurality of support arms and in a coupled state where the electrical connector is coupled to the complementary electrical connector, the auxiliary module is movable in one or more directions relative to the plurality of support arms.

10. The electronic device according to claim 9, wherein: The first portion of the cooling component includes an engagement feature configured to interface with a complementary engagement feature of the cooling conduit and a biasing element configured to push the engagement feature onto the complementary engagement feature to thermally couple the cooling component to the cooling conduit.

11. The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein: The biasing element is one of a captive fastener assembly, a snap-fit ​​assembly, or a spring assembly.

12. The electronic device according to claim 10, in, The plurality of attachment elements comprises a plurality of struts, wherein the holes of the plurality of support arms comprise a plurality of slots, and when the auxiliary module is attached to the support arm, each of the plurality of struts extends through a corresponding slot of the plurality of slots, wherein a width of each of the plurality of slots is greater than a diameter of each of the plurality of struts to allow the auxiliary module to move relative to the plurality of support arms.

13. The electronic device according to claim 12, further comprising: Multiple fasteners, Wherein, the second portion of the cooling component further comprises a plurality of openings, and Wherein, in an attached state where the auxiliary module is attached to the plurality of support arms and where the cooling component is attached to the auxiliary PCA, the support arm is located between the auxiliary PCA and the cooling component, each of the plurality of openings is aligned with a corresponding pillar among the plurality of pillars, and the cooling component is attached to the auxiliary PCA and to the plurality of support arms via the plurality of fasteners extending through the plurality of openings and into the plurality of pillars.

14. The electronic device according to claim 13, in, Each support arm of the plurality of support arms further includes a notch; and Wherein, the second portion of the cooling component further comprises protrusions, wherein each protrusion is configured to extend through the recess and contact the circuit board to limit over-constraint of each of the plurality of fasteners when coupling the cooling component and the auxiliary PCA to each other.

15. The electronic device according to claim 13, wherein: The plurality of openings include a first opening, a second opening, and a pair of third openings, wherein the first opening and the second opening are formed on diagonally opposite sides of the second portion of the cooling component, and the pair of third openings are formed on another diagonally opposite side of the second portion of the cooling component, and wherein the second opening is an elongated slot having long edges, the elongated slot extending parallel to an axis extending between a center of the first opening and a center of the second opening.

16. The electronic device of claim 9, further comprising a first thermal interface material coupled to the first portion of the cooling component and one or more second thermal interface materials coupled to the second portion of the cooling component, wherein: The first portion of the cooling component is configured to be thermally coupled to the cooling conduit via the first thermal interface material, and wherein the second portion of the cooling component is configured to be thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components via the one or more second thermal interface materials.

17. The electronic device of claim 9, further comprising a main PCA configured to support the PCA and to support the auxiliary PCA via the PCA, wherein The primary PCA includes a primary circuit board having a secondary electrical connector, and wherein the PCA includes a tertiary electrical connector electrically connected to the secondary electrical connector.

18. A method comprising: mounting a circuit board of an auxiliary module to a plurality of support arms protruding from a support structure of a printed circuit assembly (PCA) of an electronic device such that an electrical connector coupled to the circuit board is electrically connected to a complementary electrical connector coupled to the PCA and a plurality of attachment elements of the auxiliary module extend through holes in the plurality of support arms; Positioning a cooling component of the auxiliary module on an auxiliary PCA of the auxiliary module and a cooling conduit of the electronic device such that a first portion of the cooling component is disposed on the cooling conduit and a second portion of the cooling component is disposed on one or more electronic components coupled to the circuit board; as well as The cooling component is attached to a plurality of attachment elements of the auxiliary module so that the auxiliary module can be moved in one or more directions relative to the plurality of support arms to align a first portion of the cooling component on the cooling conduit and thermally couple the first portion to the cooling conduit and thermally couple the second portion to the one or more electronic components.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein: The plurality of attachment elements attaching the cooling component to the auxiliary module include: extending a first fastener along a first opening formed on the cooling component and a first attachment element coupled to the circuit board to displace the auxiliary module along at least one of a longitudinal direction or a lateral direction to align a first portion of the cooling component on the cooling conduit; extending a second fastener along a second opening formed on the cooling member and a second attachment element coupled to the circuit board to rotate the auxiliary module in a radial direction for mounting the first portion of the cooling member on the cooling conduit; and A pair of third fasteners are extended along a pair of third openings formed on the cooling component and a pair of third attachment elements coupled to the circuit board to push the auxiliary module along the radial direction for thermally coupling the first portion with the cooling conduit and thermally coupling the second portion with one or more electronic components of the circuit board.

20. The method according to claim 18, wherein: Thermally coupling the cooling component to the cooling conduit and the circuit board includes: thermally coupling a first portion of the cooling component to the cooling conduit via a first thermal interface material coupled to a first portion of the cooling component; and The second portion of the cooling component is thermally coupled to the one or more electronic components via one or more second thermal interface materials coupled to the second portion of the cooling component.

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