Electronic assembly

Abstract

An electronic assembly configured to be electrically connected to a power supply, comprising: a circuit board configured to be electrically connected to the power supply; a sensor assembly disposed on and electrically connected to the circuit board; and at least one expansion card assembly comprising: an assembly container comprising a container body and a hand body, the hand body having a first side member and a second side member opposite each other, and the first side member being pivotally connected to a side of the container body so that the hand body can assume a closed position and an open position; and an expansion card disposed in the mounting container and electrically connected to the circuit board; wherein, when the hand body is in the closed position, the second side member is engaged with the container body and the circuit board is configured to provide power supplied by the power supply to the expansion card based on detection of the sensor assembly; when the hand body is in the open position, the second side member is separated from the container body and the circuit board is configured to interrupt the provision of power supplied by the power supply to the expansion card based on detection of the sensor assembly.

Description

Technical field

[0001] The disclosure relates to an electronic assembly, in particular to an electronic assembly with at least one expansion card. background

[0002] Recently, due to the increasing demand for high data transfer speeds, hard disk drives (HDDs) are gradually being replaced by solid-state drives (SSDs), which offer the advantage of high transfer speeds. Furthermore, to realize the miniaturization of electronic devices, the M.2 specification was developed. Currently, most SSDs are developed based on the M.2 specification.

[0003] However, conventional SSDs that comply with the M.2 specification do not support hot-swapping. Therefore, during SSD replacement or maintenance, the electronic device containing the SSDs should be turned off and its case opened before removing the SSD, which makes SSD replacement or maintenance difficult. SUMMARY

[0004] The disclosure relates to an electronic assembly whose circuit board controls the power supply based on the detection of the sensor assembly, thereby supporting hot-swapping of the expansion card assembly.

[0005] One embodiment of this disclosure provides an electronic assembly configured to be electrically connected to a power supply and comprising a circuit board, a sensor assembly, and at least one expansion card assembly. The circuit board is configured to be electrically connected to the power supply. The sensor assembly is disposed on and electrically connected to the circuit board. The at least one expansion card assembly comprises a mounting container and an expansion card. The mounting container comprises a container body and a hand body. The hand body has a first side member and a second side member opposed to each other. The first side member is pivotally connected to a side of the container body such that the hand body can assume a closed position and an open position.The expansion card is disposed within the mounting container and electrically connected to the circuit board. When the hand body is in the closed position, the second side member engages the container body, and the circuit board is configured to provide power supplied by the power supply to the expansion card based on detection of the sensor assembly. When the hand body is in the open position, the second side member is separated from the container body, and the circuit board is configured to discontinue providing power supplied by the power supply to the expansion card based on detection of the sensor assembly.

[0006] According to the electronic assembly disclosed in the above embodiments, when the hand body is in the closed position, the circuit board supplies the power supplied from the power supply to the expansion card based on the detection of the sensor assembly. Furthermore, when the hand body is in the open position, the circuit board stops supplying the power supplied from the power supply to the expansion card based on the detection of the sensor assembly. That is, with the sensor assembly, the circuit board supplies power to the expansion card when the installation of the expansion card is completed and turns off the expansion card when the expansion card needs to be replaced or maintained. Accordingly, hot swapping of the expansion card is supported, facilitating the replacement and maintenance of the expansion card. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] This disclosure will become more fully understood from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, which are given for illustrative purposes only and thus are not intended to be limiting of the present disclosure. In which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an electronic assembly according to an embodiment of the disclosure; Fig. 2 is an exploded view of the electronic assembly in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an exploded view of an expansion card assembly of the electronic assembly in Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a partially enlarged plan view showing that a hand body of the expansion card assembly of the electronic assembly is in Fig. 1 is in a closed position; and Fig. 5 is a partially enlarged plan view showing that the hand body of the expansion card assembly of the electronic assembly is in Fig. 1 is in an open position. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0008] In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosed embodiments. However, it will be apparent that one or more embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown schematically to simplify the drawing.

[0009] It will be on the Fig. 1 to 4. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an electronic assembly 10 according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Fig. 2 is an exploded view of the electronic assembly 10 in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an exploded view of an expansion card assembly 300 of the electronic assembly 10 in Fig. 2. Fig. Fig. 4 is a partially enlarged plan view showing that a hand body 312 of the expansion card assembly 300 of the electronic assembly 10 is in Fig. 1 is in a closed position.

[0010] In this embodiment, the electronic assembly 10 is configured to be electrically connected to a power supply (not shown). The electronic assembly 10 includes, for example, a circuit board 100, two slide rail assemblies 150, two connectors 160, two sensor assemblies 200, two expansion card assemblies 300, a fan 400, and a heat sink 450.

[0011] The circuit board 100 is configured to be electrically connected to the power supply and has a through-hole 101. An I / O shield 102 can be attached to one side of the circuit board 100. To clearly illustrate the technical features of the disclosure, the I / O shield 102 is shown in Fig. 2 is omitted. Since the two slide rail assemblies 150, the two connectors 160, the two sensor assemblies 200, and the two expansion card assemblies 300 have a similar structure, a slide rail assembly 150, a connector 160, a sensor assembly 200, and an expansion card assembly 300 that correspond to each other will be described in detail below by way of example. In this embodiment, the slide rail assembly 150 includes two slide rails 151 mounted on the circuit board 100. The connector 160 is arranged on the circuit board 100 and electrically connected thereto. Furthermore, one of the two slide rails 151 has a first engagement structure 152. Furthermore, the connector 160 complies with the M.2 specification, for example. The two slide rail assemblies 150 may be connected by a washer 155.

[0012] The sensor assembly 200 is arranged on the circuit board 100 and electrically connected thereto. In detail, the sensor assembly 200 in this embodiment includes a Hall sensor 210 and a plurality of optical sensors 221, 222, and 223. The Hall sensor 210 and the optical sensors 221, 222, and 223 are arranged on the circuit board 100 and electrically connected thereto.

[0013] In this embodiment, the expansion card assembly 300 includes a mounting container 310 and an expansion card 320. The mounting container 310 includes, for example, a container body 311, a hand body 312, a magnet 313, and a positioning component 314. The container body 311 includes, for example, a base 3110 and a cover 3111. The cover 3111 is disposed on one side of the base 3110. The hand body 312 includes a first side member 315 and a second side member 316 that oppose each other. The first side member 315 is pivotally connected to one side of the base 3110 and includes a second engagement structure 317. The first engagement structure 315 and the second engagement structure 317 are a recess and a projection that form a snap connection by operatively engaging with each other. The second side member 316 is configured to be in releasable engagement with the base 3110.The magnet 313 is arranged on the hand body 312 and is located next to the Hall sensor 210. The positioning component 314 is arranged in the container body 311. In detail, the positioning component 314 is arranged in a limiting recess 3113 of the cover 3111 and has a positioning protrusion 3140. A magnet 3141 can be accommodated in the positioning component 314. The magnet 3141 is configured to attract a plurality of magnets 3116 arranged on the cover 3111 to position the positioning component 314 on the cover 3111. The magnets 3116 are arranged, for example, in pairs on the cover 3111 to position the positioning component 314 in different positions on the cover 3111, whereby the positioning component 314 can position expansion cards 320 of different lengths.Each pair of magnets 3116 may include two magnets 3116 spaced apart from each other.

[0014] The container body 311 is slidably mounted on two slide rails 151. Two of the optical sensors 221 and 222 are located adjacent to the first side member 315 and the second side member 316, respectively; the other optical sensor 223 is located adjacent to the first engagement structure 152 and the second engagement structure 317.

[0015] The expansion card 320 is arranged in the container body 311 of the mounting container 310. Specifically, the expansion card 320 is arranged in the restriction recess 3113 of the cover 3111. Furthermore, one side of the expansion card 320 is electrically connected to the connector 160, so that it is electrically connected to the circuit board 100 via the connector 160. Furthermore, a side of the expansion card 320 remote from the connector 160 is positioned by the positioning protrusion 3140 of the positioning component 314. Furthermore, a restriction disk 3115 can be attached to one side of the cover 3111. The expansion card 320 is clamped between the positioning component 314 and the restriction disk 3115.

[0016] The fan 400 covers the through-hole 101 and is electrically connected to the circuit board 100. The heat sink 450 is located on one side of the fan 400 and is in thermal contact with the container body 311. In this embodiment, the heat sink 450 includes a plurality of fins 451 arranged along an arrangement direction A and has a plurality of grooves 452. The grooves 452 are located on the fins 451, and an extension direction E of the grooves 452 is parallel to the arrangement direction A. That is, the heat sink 450 of this embodiment is constructed to include multiple sections. In this embodiment, the fan 400 serves as a cover for the through-hole 101, so that the cold air blown out from the fan 400 can flow to the heat sink 450 in a concentrated manner.

[0017] It will be on the Fig. 2, Fig. 4 and Fig. 5. Fig. Fig. 5 is a partially enlarged plan view showing that the hand body 312 of the expansion card assembly 300 of the electronic assembly 10 is in Fig. 1 is in an open position. In this embodiment, the first side member 315 is pivotally connected to one side of the container body 311 so that the hand body 312 can maintain the closed position (as in Fig. 4) and the open position (as shown in Fig. 5 shown).

[0018] As in the Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, the second side member 316 engages the container body 311 when the hand body 312 is in the closed position, and the circuit board 100 is configured to provide the power supplied by the power supply based on the detection of the sensor assembly 200 of the expansion card 320. Furthermore, the first engagement structure 152 and the second engagement structure 317 are operatively connected to each other to achieve a poka-yoke or error prevention effect.

[0019] As in the Fig. 2 and Fig.5, when the hand body 312 is moved along a pivoting direction P from the closed position to the open position, the second side member 316 is separated from the container body 311, and the circuit board 100 is configured to stop supplying the power supplied from the power supply to the expansion board 320 based on the detection of the sensor assembly 200.

[0020] For example, this embodiment determines the position of the hand body 312 based on two mechanisms (magnetic field detection and optical detection). Since the Hall sensor 210 is located next to the magnet 313 on the hand body 312, the Hall sensor 210 can determine the position of the hand body 312 by detecting the magnetic field generated by the magnet 313 on the hand body 312. For the optical detection mechanism, two of the optical sensors 221 and 222 are arranged next to the first side member 315 and the second side member 316, respectively, and the other optical sensor 223 is arranged next to the first engagement structure 152 and the second engagement structure 317. Thus, the optical sensors 221, 222, and 223 can determine the position of the hand body 312 by receiving the light reflected or refracted by the hand body 312.

[0021] In this embodiment, the position of the hand body 312 is determined by three optical sensors 221, 222, and 223 to increase the accuracy of detection. However, in other embodiments, the position of the hand body may be determined by one optical sensor, in particular the optical sensor 221.

[0022] Note that in other embodiments, the position of the hand body may be determined by a mechanism (magnetic field detection or optical detection). That is, in other embodiments, the sensor assembly may not include the optical sensors or the Hall sensor. In embodiments where the sensor assembly does not include the Hall sensor, the mounting container may not include the magnet. In still other embodiments, the sensor assembly may not include the optical sensors and the Hall sensor, and the position of the hand body may be determined by a touch switch connected to the hand body.

[0023] According to the electronic assembly disclosed in the above embodiments, the circuit board supplies the power supplied from the power supply to the expansion card based on the detection of the sensor assembly when the hand body is in the closed position. Furthermore, when the hand body is in the open position, the circuit board stops supplying the power supplied from the power supply to the expansion card based on the detection of the sensor assembly. That is, with the sensor assembly, the circuit board turns on the expansion card when the installation of the expansion card is completed and turns off the expansion card when the expansion card needs to be replaced or maintained. Accordingly, hot swapping of the expansion card is supported, facilitating the replacement and maintenance of the expansion card.

[0024] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes may be made to the disclosed embodiments. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope of the disclosure being indicated by the following claims and their equivalents.

Claims

[1] Electronic assembly configured to be electrically connected to a power supply, comprising: a circuit board configured to be electrically connected to the power supply; a sensor assembly disposed on and electrically connected to the circuit board; and at least one expansion card assembly comprising: an assembly container comprising a container body and a hand body, wherein the hand body has a first side member and a second side member opposite each other, and the first side member is pivotally connected to a side of the container body so that the hand body can assume a closed position and an open position; and an expansion card disposed in the mounting container and electrically connected to the circuit board; wherein, when the hand body is in the closed position, the second side member is engaged with the container body and the circuit board is configured to provide power supplied by the power supply to the expansion card based on detection of the sensor assembly; when the hand body is in the open position, the second side member is separated from the container body and the circuit board is configured to interrupt the provision of power supplied by the power supply to the expansion card based on detection of the sensor assembly. [2] The electronic assembly of claim 1, wherein the sensor assembly comprises a Hall sensor, the Hall sensor is disposed on the circuit board and electrically connected thereto, the mounting container further comprises a magnet, and the magnet is disposed on the hand body and positioned adjacent to the Hall sensor. [3] The electronic assembly of claim 1, wherein the sensor assembly comprises at least one optical sensor, the at least one optical sensor being arranged on the circuit board and electrically connected thereto, and the at least one optical sensor being arranged adjacent to the second side component of the hand body. [4] The electronic assembly of claim 3, wherein the at least one optical sensor comprises a plurality of optical sensors each located adjacent to the first side member and the second side member. [5] The electronic assembly of claim 1, further comprising at least one slide rail assembly, wherein the at least one slide rail assembly comprises two slide rails mounted on the circuit board, and the container body is slidably disposed on the two slide rails. [6] The electronic assembly according to claim 5, wherein one of the two slide rails has a first engagement structure, the first side member has a second engagement structure, the first engagement structure and the second engagement structure are a recess and a projection that form a snap connection when the hand body is in the closed position, the first engagement structure and the second engagement structure are operatively connected to each other, and when the hand body is in the open position, the first engagement structure and the second engagement structure are separated from each other. [7] The electronic assembly of claim 6, wherein the sensor assembly comprises at least one optical sensor disposed on and electrically connected to the circuit board, and the at least one optical sensor is disposed adjacent to the first engagement structure and the second engagement structure. [8] The electronic assembly of claim 1, further comprising at least one connector disposed on and electrically connected to the circuit board, wherein one side of the expansion card is electrically connected to the at least one connector, the mounting container further comprises a positioning component, and the positioning component is disposed in the container body and positions one side of the expansion card remote from the at least one connector. [9] The electronic assembly of claim 1, further comprising a fan and a heat sink, wherein the circuit board has a through-hole, the fan covers the through-hole and is electrically connected to the circuit board, and the heat sink is disposed on a side of the fan and in thermal contact with the container body. [10] The electronic assembly according to claim 9, wherein the heat sink comprises a plurality of fins arranged along an arrangement direction and a plurality of grooves, the plurality of grooves being arranged on the plurality of fins and an extending direction of the plurality of grooves being parallel to the arrangement direction.

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