A light and small combined tile and brick dual-band array structure

Abstract

This invention discloses a miniaturized dual-band antenna array structure combining brick and tile elements. The structure includes a cooling layer housed within a frame, with inlet and outlet liquid connectors symmetrically fixed to both sides of the frame. An antenna radome and a rear cover plate are respectively fixed to the front and rear ends of the frame, which serves as a load-bearing component. The cooling layer comprises a first cooling layer integrating a dual-band metal antenna array with tile-like and brick-like arrangements, along with supporting components, a liquid-cooled mounting box, and blind-plug fluid connectors to achieve efficient heat dissipation and flow channel shunting. The second and third cooling layers are used for mounting and cooling electronic components. This invention features a compact structure, high modularity, lightweight design, and dual-band operation capability, making it suitable for phased array radar systems.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of array structure design technology, and in particular relates to a lightweight and miniaturized dual-band array structure that combines brick and tile. Background Technology

[0002] Domestic and international demands for electronic devices often require them to respond quickly in complex electromagnetic environments with multiple targets and tasks. However, traditional single-band electronic systems are limited by factors such as insufficient spectrum coverage, low system integration, limited platform space, and poor resource coordination capabilities, making it difficult to meet such severe challenges. Therefore, in order to solve the above problems and adapt to the development trend of miniaturization and integrated design of equipment, a solution is proposed to integrate the antenna functions of two frequency bands into a single physical array.

[0003] However, for helicopter mounting platforms, on the one hand, the platform space is limited, and the size design of the array is usually very restricted, making installation and maintenance difficult. Moreover, the weight of the array will directly affect the aircraft's flight performance. On the other hand, two sets of T / R components are integrated in the limited array space, and the power density is increased dramatically, especially in the low frequency band. How to effectively manage the heat in a compact space will directly affect the safe and effective operation of the array.

[0004] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a solution for helicopter platforms that addresses the limitations of array size and weight, as well as the high requirements for heat dissipation. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a lightweight and miniaturized dual-band array structure that combines brick and tile, which effectively solves the high-efficiency heat dissipation requirements of helicopter external equipment after integrated design under space and weight constraints.

[0006] To achieve the objective of this invention, this invention provides a lightweight and miniaturized dual-band array structure combining brick and tile, including an array frame, a cooling layer, a liquid inlet connector, a liquid return connector, an antenna cover, and a rear cover plate.

[0007] The cooling layer is disposed inside the array frame; the liquid inlet connector and the liquid return connector are symmetrically fixed on both sides of the array frame; the radome is fixedly connected to the front end of the array frame; the rear cover plate is fixedly connected to the rear end of the array frame; the array frame is used as a load-bearing component of the array.

[0008] The cooling layer includes a first cooling layer, a second cooling layer, and a third cooling layer; the three cooling layers can be stacked together as a whole, or inserted separately into the array frame.

[0009] The first cooling layer includes a first cold plate, a first-band metal antenna array, a second-band metal antenna array, a first component, a second component, a liquid-cooled socket, and a blind-fit fluid connector;

[0010] The first frequency band metal antenna array adopts a tile-type array, and the second frequency band metal antenna array adopts a brick-type array. The first component and the second component correspond to the first frequency band metal antenna array and the second frequency band metal antenna array, respectively. The first frequency band metal antenna array and the second frequency band metal antenna array are installed in front of the first cold plate in order from bottom to top. The second component is installed in the liquid-cooled plug box, and the first component and the liquid-cooled plug box are installed behind the first cold plate in order from bottom to top. The inner surface of the first cold plate is provided with heat exchange channels. The upper rear side is provided with the first blind-plug fluid connector for blind-plug connection and diversion of the flow channels of the liquid-cooled plug box.

[0011] Behind the first cold plate are several columns, including a stepped first column, a second column, a third column, and a fourth column;

[0012] The second, third, and fourth columns are equipped with a first blind-plug fluid connector at the top, which is divided into two groups of branch flow channel interfaces for blind-plug connection and flow diversion of the flow channels of the second and third cooling layers; the second and third columns are respectively equipped with liquid inlet and liquid return connector interfaces on their sides, and flow channels are provided in the front and rear directions near the interfaces inside, which are respectively used for the total diversion and total convergence of the cooling medium.

[0013] The liquid-cooled housing is assembled from metal plates and includes an upper slot, a lower slot, a left side plate, a right side plate, a positioning pin, and a fourth blind-mating fluid connector. The inlet and outlet ports are located on the left side plate, and the fourth blind-mating fluid connector is installed on the inlet and outlet ports. The positioning pin is used for positioning the liquid-cooled housing and is installed on the upper slot and the lower slot, respectively.

[0014] The second cooling layer includes a second cold plate, a positioning pin, a second blind-mating fluid connector, and a first electronic component; the positioning pin and the second blind-mating fluid connector are arranged diagonally at the four corners of the second cold plate, and the first electronic component is mounted on the front and back sides of the second cold plate.

[0015] The third cooling layer includes a third cold plate, a positioning pin, a third blind-mating fluid connector, and a second electronic component; the positioning pin and the third blind-mating fluid connector are respectively arranged at the bottom corners of the third cold plate, the second electronic component is attached to the front and back sides of the third cold plate, and the third cold plate has a wire through hole in the middle.

[0016] The inlet and outlet connectors include two sealing layers; the first sealing layer: the bottom of the connectors is sealed to the first cooling layer with an O-ring end face; the second sealing layer: the flange of the connectors is sealed to the array frame with a sponge rubber plate end face.

[0017] The radome and the rear cover plate are sealed to the array frame using sealing ropes.

[0018] The significant advancement of this invention compared to existing technologies lies in:

[0019] (1) The array of the present invention is made of brick and tile combination inside the array, and adopts a stacked installation structure, which is compact, highly integrated, and the array is lightweight and small.

[0020] (2) The cold plate layer of the present invention can be installed in batches or as a whole, and the installation method is flexible and changeable, which facilitates the wiring of the array and improves the maintainability of the array.

[0021] (3) The present invention uses a micro pump for liquid cooling, avoiding air cooling, saving space, and improving heat dissipation capacity and efficiency;

[0022] (4) The external liquid supply of the array surface of the present invention directly supplies the cooling layer, and the array surface frame only serves as the main load-bearing structure. Therefore, the array surface frame structure is simple, reducing the processing difficulty and cost.

[0023] (5) The cold plate of the present invention is designed with a series-parallel hybrid micro-channel, which enables the cold plate to have the dual functions of heat dissipation and fluid distribution. There is no need to design a separate fluid distribution device, which simplifies the structure, reduces weight, saves space, and effectively solves the high-efficiency heat dissipation requirements of helicopter cabin external equipment after integrated design under the conditions of limited space and weight.

[0024] To more clearly illustrate the functional characteristics and structural parameters of the present invention, further explanation is provided below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. Attached Figure Description

[0025] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and form part of this application, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the invention and, together with their description, serve to explain the invention and do not constitute an undue limitation thereof. In the drawings:

[0026] Figure 1 This is a structural cross-sectional view of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 2 This is an isometric view of the stacked installation of the cooling layer of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 3 This is a front axonometric view of the first cooling layer of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 4 This is a rear axonometric view of the first cooling layer of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 5 This is an isometric view of the first cold plate of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the fluid distribution principle of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 7 This is an isometric view of the liquid-cooled socket of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 8 This is an isometric view of the second cooling layer of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 9 This is an isometric view of the third cooling layer of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 10 This is a cross-sectional view of the return fluid connector seal of the present invention.

[0036] The attached figures are labeled as follows: 1-Array frame; 2-First cooling layer; 21-First cold plate; 211-First column; 212-Second column; 213-Third column; 214-Fourth column; 22-First band metal antenna array; 23-Second band metal antenna array; 24-First component; 25-Second component; 26-Liquid-cooled insertion box; 261-Upper slot; 262-Lower slot; 263-Left side plate; 264-Right side plate; 265-Fixed Positioning pin; 266-Fourth blind-mating fluid connector; 27-First blind-mating fluid connector; 3-Second cooling layer; 31-Second cold plate; 32-Positioning pin; 33-Second blind-mating fluid connector; 4-Third cooling layer; 41-Third cold plate; 42-Positioning pin; 43-Third blind-mating fluid connector; 5-Inlet connector; 6-Return connector; 61-O-ring seal; 62-Sponge rubber sheet; 7-Angle cover; 71-Sealing rope; 8-Rear cover. Detailed Implementation

[0037] The technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0038] This embodiment features a 322mm×298mm×132mm (width×height×depth, excluding the radome) dual-band array structure outside the helicopter cabin, combined with... Figures 1-10 It includes array frame 1, cooling layer, liquid inlet connector 5, liquid return connector 6, antenna cover 7, and rear cover plate 8;

[0039] The cooling layer is disposed inside the array frame 1; the liquid inlet connector 5 and the liquid return connector 6 are respectively symmetrically fixed on both sides of the array frame 1; the antenna cover 7 is fixedly connected to the front end of the array frame 1; the rear cover plate 8 is fixedly connected to the rear end of the array frame 1; the array frame 1 is used as the load-bearing component of the array and is formed by welding aluminum plates.

[0040] The cooling layer adopts liquid cooling heat dissipation and includes a first cooling layer 2, a second cooling layer 3, and a third cooling layer 4; the above three cooling layers can be stacked as a whole or inserted separately into the array frame.

[0041] like Figure 1 As shown, during installation, the first cooling layer 2 can be fixed to the front end of the array frame 1, while the second cooling layer 3 and the third cooling layer 4 are sequentially blind-inserted and stacked onto the first cooling layer 2 from the rear of the array frame 1; as shown... Figure 2 As shown, the three cooling layers can also be stacked and installed as a whole into the array frame 1.

[0042] like Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the first cooling layer 2 includes a first cold plate 21, a first frequency band metal antenna array 22, a second frequency band metal antenna array 23, a first component 24, a second component 25, a liquid-cooled socket 26, and a blind-fit fluid connector.

[0043] The first frequency band metal antenna array 22 adopts a tile-type array, and the second frequency band metal antenna array 23 adopts a brick-type array. The first component 24 and the second component 25 correspond to the first frequency band metal antenna array 22 and the second frequency band metal antenna array 23, respectively. The first frequency band metal antenna array 22 and the second frequency band metal antenna array 23 are installed in front of the first cold plate in order from bottom to top. The second component 25 is installed in the liquid-cooled plug box 26. The first component 24 and the liquid-cooled plug box 26 are installed behind the first cold plate in order from bottom to top. The inner surface of the first cold plate 21 is provided with heat exchange channels. A pair of first blind-plug fluid connectors 27 are provided on the upper rear side for blind-plug connection and diversion of the flow channels of the liquid-cooled plug box 26.

[0044] like Figure 5 As shown, several columns are also provided around the back of the first cold plate, with two columns on each side having a stepped design, namely the first column 211, the second column 212, the third column 213, and the fourth column 214.

[0045] The top of the second column 212, the third column 213, and the fourth column 214 is provided with a first blind-plug fluid connector 27, which is divided into two groups of branch flow channel interfaces for blind-plug connection and flow diversion of the flow channels of the second cooling layer 3 and the third cooling layer 4; the sides of the second column 212 and the third column 213 are respectively provided with liquid inlet connector 5 and liquid return connector 6 interfaces, and the interior near the interface is provided with flow channels from front to back, which are respectively used for the total diversion and total convergence of the cooling medium.

[0046] like Figure 7 As shown, the liquid-cooled socket 26 is assembled from four aluminum plates, including an upper slot 261, a lower slot 262, a left side plate 263, a right side plate 264, a positioning pin 265, and a fourth blind-mating fluid connector 266; it adopts a side-wall cooling design, and all four aluminum plates are liquid-cooled plates; the liquid inlet and return ports are located on the left side plate 263, and the fourth blind-mating fluid connector 266 is installed on the liquid inlet and return ports; the positioning pin 265 is used for positioning the liquid-cooled socket 26 and is installed on the upper slot 261 and the lower slot 262 respectively.

[0047] like Figure 8 As shown, the second cooling layer 3 includes a second cold plate 31, a positioning pin 32, a second blind-mating fluid connector 33, and a first electronic component; the positioning pin 32 and the second blind-mating fluid connector 33 are arranged diagonally at the four corners of the second cold plate 31, and the first electronic component is mounted on the front and back sides of the second cold plate 31.

[0048] like Figure 9 As shown, the third cooling layer 4 includes a third cold plate 41, a positioning pin 42, a third blind-mating fluid connector 43, and a second electronic component; the positioning pin 42 and the third blind-mating fluid connector 43 are respectively arranged at the bottom corners of the third cold plate 41, the second electronic component is attached to the front and back sides of the third cold plate 41, and the third cold plate 41 has a wire hole in the middle.

[0049] After the cooling medium enters the array, it is equipped with two-stage series-parallel mixing channels, the principle of which is as follows: Figure 6 As shown, specifically: the first cold plate 21 splits the cooling medium into two paths near the liquid inlet connector 5, one path being reserved for the first cold plate 21 itself, and the other path being supplied to the third cold plate 41; the cooling medium of the first cold plate 21 branch is then split into two paths again, one path being supplied to the first cold plate 21 and the liquid cooling box 26 in series branch, and the other path being supplied to the second cold plate 31; after heat exchange, the cooling medium of the first cold plate 21 and the liquid cooling box 26 in series branch first merges with the second cold plate 31 branch, and finally merges with the third cold plate 41 branch near the liquid return connector 6, and flows out of the array.

[0050] The inlet connector 5 and the return connector 6 have identical structures, such as Figure 10 As shown, it includes two sealing layers; the first sealing layer: the bottom of the joint between the two is sealed with the end face of the first cooling layer 2 by an O-ring 61 to prevent leakage of the cooling medium; the second sealing layer: the flange of the joint between the two is sealed with the end face of the array frame 1 by a sponge rubber plate 62 with a large compression to ensure the external sealing of the array structure.

[0051] like Figure 1 As shown, the radome 7 and the rear cover plate 8 are sealed with the array frame 1 using a sealing rope 71 to ensure the array structure is sealed to the outside.

[0052] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

[0053] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A lightweight, miniaturized dual-band array structure combining brick and tile, characterized in that, Includes array frame (1), cooling layer, liquid inlet connector (5), liquid return connector (6), antenna cover (7), and rear cover plate (8); The cooling layer is disposed inside the array frame (1); the liquid inlet connector (5) and the liquid return connector (6) are symmetrically fixed on both sides of the array frame (1); the radome (7) is fixedly connected to the front end of the array frame (1); the rear cover plate (8) is fixedly connected to the rear end of the array frame (1); the array frame (1) is used as a load-bearing component of the array.

2. The miniaturized dual-band array structure combining brick and tile as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The cooling layer includes a first cooling layer (2), a second cooling layer (3), and a third cooling layer (4); the three cooling layers can be stacked together as one unit or inserted separately into the array frame.

3. The miniaturized dual-band array structure combining brick and tile as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The first cooling layer (2) includes a first cold plate (21), a first band metal antenna array (22), a second band metal antenna array (23), a first component (24), a second component (25), a liquid-cooled socket (26), and a blind-fit fluid connector; The first band metal antenna array (22) adopts a tile-type array, and the second band metal antenna array (23) adopts a brick-type array. The first component (24) and the second component (25) correspond to the first band metal antenna array (22) and the second band metal antenna array (23) respectively. The first band metal antenna array (22) and the second band metal antenna array (23) are installed in front of the first cold plate in order from bottom to top. The second component (25) is installed in the liquid-cooled plug box (26). The first component (24) and the liquid-cooled plug box (26) are installed behind the first cold plate in order from bottom to top. The inner surface of the first cold plate (21) is provided with a heat exchange channel. The upper rear side is provided with the first blind-plug fluid connector (27) for blind-plug connection and diversion of the flow channel of the liquid-cooled plug box (26).

4. The tile-integrated light-weight dual-band array structure of claim 3, wherein, Several columns are also provided behind the first cold plate, including a stepped first column (211), a second column (212), a third column (213), and a fourth column (214). The second column (212), the third column (213), and the fourth column (214) are provided with a first blind-plug fluid connector (27) at the top, which is divided into two groups of branch flow channel interfaces for blind-plug connection and diversion of the flow channels of the second cooling layer (3) and the third cooling layer (4); the second column (212) and the third column (213) are respectively provided with liquid inlet connector (5) and liquid return connector (6) interfaces on their sides, and flow channels are provided in the front and rear directions near the interfaces, which are respectively used for the total diversion and total convergence of the cooling medium.

5. The tile-integrated light-weight dual-band array structure of claim 3, wherein, The liquid-cooled socket (26) is assembled from metal plates and includes an upper slot (261), a lower slot (262), a left side plate (263), a right side plate (264), a positioning pin (265), and a fourth blind-mating fluid connector (266). The inlet and outlet ports are located on the left side plate (263), and the fourth blind-mating fluid connector (266) is installed on the inlet and outlet ports. The positioning pin (265) is used for positioning the liquid-cooled socket (26) and is installed on the upper slot (261) and the lower slot (262), respectively.

6. The tile-integrated light-weight dual-band array structure of claim 2, wherein, The second cooling layer (3) includes a second cold plate (31), a positioning pin (32), a second blind-mating fluid connector (33), and a first electronic component; the positioning pin (32) and the second blind-mating fluid connector (33) are arranged diagonally at the four corners of the second cold plate (31), and the first electronic component is mounted on the front and back sides of the second cold plate (31).

7. The tileable, compact dual-band array structure of claim 2, wherein, The third cooling layer (4) includes a third cold plate (41), a positioning pin (42), a third blind-mating fluid connector (43), and a second electronic component; the positioning pin (42) and the third blind-mating fluid connector (43) are respectively arranged at the bottom corners of the third cold plate (41), and the second electronic component is attached to the front and back sides of the third cold plate (41). The third cold plate (41) has a wire hole in the middle.

8. The tileable, compact dual-band array structure of claim 2, wherein, The inlet connector (5) and the return connector (6) include two sealing layers; the first sealing layer: the bottom of the connector of the two is sealed with the end face of the first cooling layer (2) by an O-ring (61); the second sealing layer: the flange of the connector of the two is sealed with the end face of the sponge rubber plate (62) of the array frame (1).

9. The tileable, compact dual-band array structure of claim 1, wherein, The radome (7) and the rear cover plate (8) are sealed to the array frame (1) by a sealing rope (71).

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