Electronic apparatus

Abstract

To provide an electronic apparatus capable of improving exhaust efficiency and suppressing a surface temperature of a housing.SOLUTION: An electronic apparatus 10 includes: a housing 12 having a plate-like member 20 forming an upper surface and a standing wall member 22 forming a side surface; fans 30 provided in the housing and each having a discharge port 34a; and a heat sink 29 disposed between the discharge port and the standing wall member in the housing. The standing wall member has: an upper end surface abutting on a lower surface of the plate-like member; a vent hole 41 provided to face the heat sink; and an upper vent hole 40 formed by cutting out the upper end surface in a recessed shape, located between the lower surface of the plate-like member and the vent hole, and partitioned from the vent hole by a partition wall.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electronic device having a vent in its housing. [Background technology]

[0002] Electronic devices such as notebook PCs are equipped with heat generating elements such as CPUs, etc. Such electronic devices are equipped with fans and heat sinks, and are able to dissipate heat generated by the heat generating elements to the outside (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7309842 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] As in the configuration of Patent Document 1, electronic devices such as notebook PCs often have vents on the rear surface of their housings to prevent high-temperature exhaust air that has been expelled from a fan and passed through a heat sink from directly hitting the user's hands, etc. However, the rear surface of the housing is equipped with a lid that mounts a display and hinges, which creates a problem of reducing the efficiency of exhaust from the vents by acting as obstacles.

[0005] Furthermore, the heat sink dissipates heat transported from the heat-generating element. This causes the area around the heat sink to become hotter than other areas. For example, in the configuration of Patent Document 1, the heat sink is located toward the rear of the keyboard device in the front-to-back direction of the housing. This configuration results in the top surface of the housing behind the keyboard device becoming locally hot, not only reducing the user experience but also potentially creating a bottleneck in the thermal design of the entire device.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems of the conventional technology, and has an object to provide an electronic device that can improve exhaust efficiency and suppress the surface temperature of the housing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] An electronic device according to one aspect of the present invention is an electronic device comprising: a housing having a plate-shaped member forming an upper surface and a standing wall member forming a side surface; a fan provided within the housing and having an outlet; and a heat sink arranged within the housing between the outlet and the standing wall member, wherein the standing wall member has an upper end surface abutting the lower surface of the plate-shaped member, a vent provided facing the heat sink, and an upper vent formed by cutting out the upper end surface in a concave shape, positioned between the lower surface of the plate-shaped member and the vent, and separated from the vent by a partition wall. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the above aspect of the present invention, it is possible to improve exhaust efficiency and suppress the surface temperature of the housing. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an electronic device according to an embodiment, viewed from above. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing the internal structure of the housing. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the rear edge of the housing as seen from the bottom side. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged rear view of the housing. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a schematic side cross-sectional view of the rear edge of the housing and its surrounding area. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of an electronic device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an electronic device 10 according to one embodiment, viewed from above. As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic device 10 according to this embodiment is a clamshell notebook PC. The electronic device 10 has a configuration in which a cover 11 and a housing 12 are connected by a hinge 14 so that they can rotate relative to each other. In this embodiment, the electronic device 10 is a notebook PC, but the electronic device may be other than a notebook PC, such as a tablet PC, a smartphone, or a portable game console.

[0012] The cover 11 is a thin, flat, box-shaped housing. The cover 11 is equipped with a display 16. The display 16 is, for example, an organic EL display or a liquid crystal display.

[0013] The housing 12 is a thin, flat box. A keyboard device 18 and a touchpad 19 face the top surface 12a of the housing 12. Hereinafter, the housing 12 and each component mounted thereon will be described based on the posture of an operator operating the keyboard device 18, with the width direction (left and right) of the housing 12 referred to as the X1 and X2 directions, the depth direction (front and back) of the housing 12 referred to as the Y1 and Y2 directions, and the thickness direction (top and bottom) of the housing 12 referred to as the Z1 and Z2 directions. The X1 and X2 directions may be collectively referred to as the X direction, and the Y1, Y2 directions and the Z1, Z2 directions may similarly be referred to as the Y direction and the Z direction. These directions are defined for convenience of explanation and may naturally change depending on the usage state or installation posture of the electronic device 10, etc.

[0014] The housing 12 can be composed of a plate-like member 20 that forms the top surface 12a, a cover member 21 that forms the bottom surface 12b, and standing wall members 22 that form the four peripheral side surfaces 12c. The plate-like member 20 has a large rectangular opening 20a in which the keyboard device 18 is placed. A bezel 20b that surrounds the keyboard device 18 is formed around the opening 20a. The cover member 21 is formed in a plate shape (see FIG. 3). As will be described later, the housing 12 of this embodiment has a protrusion 48 near the Y2 edge of the cover member 21. The standing wall members 22 stand up between the four peripheral edges of the plate-like member 20 and the four peripheral edges of the cover member 21, and form a frame shape as a whole.

[0015] The hinge 14 is installed in a concave hinge placement groove 12d formed in the rear edge of the housing 12, and connects the housing 12 and the cover 11. The hinge 14 has a structure in which, for example, a hinge shaft 14a serving as a rotation axis is supported at both longitudinal ends of a hinge housing 14b (see FIG. 5). The hinge 14 of this embodiment is configured in a so-called one-bar shape, in which the hinge housing 14b extends along the longitudinal direction of the hinge placement groove 12d. The hinge 14 rotates integrally with the cover 11 while descending diagonally rearward (see FIG. 5). The hinge 14 has a structure that increases the rotation angle of the cover 11 in this way, a so-called drop-down structure. The hinge 14 may have a structure other than that described above.

[0016] Fig. 2 is a plan view that schematically shows the internal structure of the housing 12. Fig. 2 is a view of the inside of the housing 12 as seen from above with the plate-shaped member 20 removed.

[0017] 2, the housing 12 accommodates a cooling module 24, a motherboard 25, and a battery device 26. The housing 12 also accommodates various electronic components, mechanical components, and the like.

[0018] The motherboard (substrate) 25 is a circuit board that serves as the main board of the electronic device 10. The motherboard 25 is disposed near the Y2 side of the housing 12 and extends in the X direction. The battery device 26 is a rechargeable battery that serves as the power source for the electronic device 10. The battery device 26 is disposed near the Y1 side of the motherboard 25 and extends in the X direction.

[0019] The motherboard 25 of this embodiment is equipped with a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 25a. In addition to the CPU 25a, the motherboard 25 can also be equipped with various electronic components such as a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), memory, and a communication module.

[0020] The motherboard 25 has, for example, an upper surface (first surface 25A) as a mounting surface for the CPU 25a and the like, and a lower surface (second surface 25B) as an attachment surface for the housing 12.

[0021] Next, an example of the configuration of the cooling module 24 will be described.

[0022] The CPU 25a is a heat generating element that generates the largest amount of heat among the electronic components mounted in the housing 12. The cooling module 24 can absorb and diffuse the heat generated by the CPU 25a and discharge it to the outside of the housing 12. The cooling module 24 may be configured to cool a heat generating element other than the CPU 25a, such as a GPU.

[0023] As shown in FIG. 2, the cooling module 24 of this embodiment includes a metal plate 27, a heat pipe 28, a pair of heat sinks 29, 29, and a pair of fans 30, 30.

[0024] The metal plate 27 is a thin plate made of a metal with high thermal conductivity, such as copper or aluminum. In this embodiment, the metal plate 27 is a copper plate. The metal plate 27 extends in the X direction between the left and right fans 30. The metal plate 27 covers a portion (portion 25C) of the motherboard 25 disposed between the left and right fans 30 and the CPU 25a mounted on portion 25C from the first surface 25A side (Z1 side). The metal plate 27 functions as a heat diffusion member that absorbs and diffuses heat from the CPU 25a and other components. The metal plate 27 is connected to the surface of the CPU 25a. For example, thermally conductive grease and a copper block of approximately the same size as the outer shape of the CPU 25a are interposed between the metal plate 27 and the CPU 25a. Leaf springs 32 are attached to each edge of the metal plate 27 along the X direction. The leaf springs 32 are components that press the metal plate 27 against the CPU 25a.

[0025] The heat pipe 28 is a pipe-type heat transport device. The heat pipe 28 is configured by flattening a metal pipe to form a thin, elliptical cross section, with a working fluid sealed inside the sealed space. Examples of the working fluid include water, alternative chlorofluorocarbons, acetone, and butane. The center of the heat pipe 28 in the longitudinal direction is fixed to the backside of the surface of the metal plate 27 that is connected to the CPU 25a. Both ends of the heat pipe 28 are fixed to the Z1-side surfaces (upper portions 29a) of the left and right heat sinks 29, respectively (see FIG. 5). The center of the longitudinal direction of each heat pipe 28 overlaps with the CPU 25a in the Z direction. This allows the heat pipe 28 to efficiently receive heat from the CPU 25a transferred to the metal plate 27 and transport it to the heat sinks 29 at both ends with high efficiency.

[0026] The heat sink 29 has a structure in which multiple fins made of thin metal plates are arranged at equal intervals in the X direction. Each fin stands in the Z direction on a predetermined base plate and extends in the Y direction. A gap is formed between adjacent fins of the heat sink 29, allowing air sent from the fan 30 to pass through. The heat sink 29 is made of a metal with high thermal conductivity, such as aluminum or copper. The heat sink 29 is disposed opposite the side surface 30a (outlet port 34a) on the Y2 side of the fan 30.

[0027] The pair of fans 30, 30 are arranged side by side in the X direction, straddling the portion 25C of the motherboard 25 and the metal plate 27 between them, and face each other. Each fan 30 has an outlet 34a on its side surface 30a on the Y2 side. The outlet 34a is adjacent to and faces the heat sink 29 behind it. Each fan 30 may also have an outlet 34b on its side surface 30b facing the opposite direction. The outlets 34b of the left and right fans 30 face each other, sandwiching the portion 25C between them. Each fan 30 may have an intake port 35 on the lower surface 30d on the Z2 side of its upper and lower surfaces 30c, 30d facing the Z direction. In this embodiment, the upper surface 30c on the Z1 side of the fan 30 abuts against the lower surface 18a of the keyboard device 18 (see FIG. 5).

[0028] Fan 30 is a centrifugal fan that rotates impeller 30e housed inside a housing using a motor (see FIG. 5), allowing fan 30 to draw in air through intake port 35 and discharge it from outlets 34a and 34b.

[0029] Next, an intake / exhaust structure for introducing air into the housing 12 by the fan 30 and discharging the air discharged from the fan 30 to the outside of the housing 12 will be described.

[0030] Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the rear edge portion of the housing 12 as seen from the bottom surface 12b side. Fig. 4 is an enlarged rear view of a portion of the housing 12. Fig. 5 is a schematic side cross-sectional view of the rear edge portion of the housing 12 and its surrounding area.

[0031] First, before describing the intake and exhaust structure, an example of the configuration of each part of the housing 12 in which the intake and exhaust structure is provided will be described.

[0032] 2 to 5, a hinge arrangement groove 12d recessed toward the Y1 side is provided in the Y2-side edge (rear edge) of the housing 12. The hinge arrangement groove 12d can be configured by a notch 20c formed in the plate-shaped member 20 and a rear wall 22A formed in a part of the standing wall member 22 on the Y2 side.

[0033] The cutout 20c is a recess formed by cutting out the rear edge of the plate-shaped member 20 on the Y1 side. The cutout 20c is formed in most of the bezel 20b on the Y2 side (rear side) of the keyboard device 18 in the longitudinal direction (X direction). Hereinafter, the bezel 20b on the rear side of the keyboard device 18 may also be referred to as the "rear bezel 20b."

[0034] The rear wall 22A is a portion of the Y2-side standing wall member 22 where most of the longitudinal direction (X direction) is recessed toward the Y1 side. The rear wall 22A can be configured as a plate-shaped member standing along the Z direction. An upper end surface 22a of the rear wall 22A abuts against the lower surface 20d of the plate-shaped member 20 (see FIGS. 4 and 5). The heat sink 29 is disposed inside the housing 12 between the rear wall 22A and the discharge port 34a.

[0035] The rear wall 22A can also be formed integrally with the cover member 21. In other words, the standing wall members 22 on all four sides can also be formed integrally with the cover member 21. The rear wall 22A can also be formed separately from the standing wall members 22 on the other three sides (Y1 side, X1 side, and X2 side). In the housing 12 of this embodiment, the rear wall 22A is formed in a structural member (frame member 36) installed inside the housing 12 (see FIG. 5), and is separate from the standing wall members 22 on the other three sides.

[0036] As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the exhaust structure of the electronic device 10 can have an upper vent 40, a vent 41, and a lower vent 42 arranged in a three-story structure in the Z direction.

[0037] 2 and 3, in the electronic device 10 of this embodiment, the ventilation openings 40-42 can be divided into three regions A1-A3 in the X direction. The ventilation openings 40-42 belonging to the left and right end regions A1 and A2 exhaust air that is discharged from the outlet 34a of the fan 30 and has passed through the left and right heat sinks 29 to the outside of the housing 12. The ventilation openings 40-42 belonging to the central region A3 exhaust air that is discharged from the outlet 34b of the fan 30 and has passed through the surface of the central metal plate 27 and the surface of the portion 25C of the motherboard 25 to the outside of the housing 12. If the fan 30 does not have the outlet 34b, the ventilation openings 40-42 belonging to the region A3 may be omitted.

[0038] The upper vent 40 on the upper level is formed by cutting out a recess in the upper end surface 22a of the rear wall 22A. As described above, the upper end surface 22a of the rear wall 22A abuts against the lower surface 20d of the plate-shaped member 20. Therefore, of the periphery of the upper vent 40, the upper edge is formed by the plate-shaped member 20, and the other edge is formed by the rear wall 22A. The height of the upper vent 40 can be, for example, about 0.5 mm.

[0039] The upper ventilation opening 40 is divided into multiple sections 40a in the X direction by multiple support columns (first support columns) 44a aligned along the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the rear wall 22A. The support columns 44a are rods extending along the upright direction (Z direction) of the rear wall 22A. For example, the upper ventilation openings 40 belonging to areas A1 and A2 are divided into five sections 40a, and the upper ventilation openings 40 belonging to area A3 are divided into, for example, four sections 40a (see FIG. 3). Needless to say, the number of sections 40a of the upper ventilation openings 40 is not limited to this. The upper ventilation openings 40 belonging to areas A1 and A2 are located immediately behind the heat sink 29. The upper ventilation openings 40 belonging to area A3 are located diagonally above the Y2-side edge of portion 25C of the motherboard 25. The height of the upper ventilation openings 40 may be, for example, approximately 4 mm.

[0040] The middle ventilation opening 41 penetrates the rear wall 22A in the plate thickness direction (Y direction). The ventilation openings 41 are lined up below the upper ventilation openings 40. The ventilation openings 41 are separated from the upper ventilation openings 40 by a horizontal partition wall 45 extending in the X direction. In other words, the upper ventilation openings 40 are located between the lower surface 20d of the plate-shaped member 20 and the ventilation openings 41, and are separated from the ventilation openings 41 by the partition wall 45.

[0041] The ventilation opening 41 is divided into a plurality of sections 41a in the X direction by a plurality of support columns (second support columns) 44b arranged along the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the rear wall 22A, for example. The support columns 44b are rods extending along the upright direction (Z direction) of the rear wall 22A. The support columns 44b can be located vertically adjacent to the support columns 44a that divide the upper ventilation opening 40. For example, the ventilation openings 41 belonging to the regions A1 and A2 are divided into five sections 41a, and the upper ventilation openings 40 belonging to the region A3 are divided into, for example, four sections 41a (see FIG. 3). Needless to say, the number of sections 41a of the ventilation opening 41 is not limited to this. The ventilation openings 41 belonging to the regions A1 and A2 are arranged immediately behind the heat sink 29 and face the heat sink 29. The ventilation openings 41 belonging to the region A3 are arranged immediately behind the Y2-side edge of the portion 25C of the motherboard 25.

[0042] The lower vent 42 at the lower stage is formed by penetrating a side wall 48 b of a protruding portion 48 that protrudes from the bottom surface 12 b of the housing 12 .

[0043] The protrusion 48 has a rectangular cylindrical shape that is long in the X direction and flattened in the Z direction. The length of the protrusion 48 in the X direction corresponds to substantially the entire width of the housing 12 in the X direction. The protrusion 48 is provided at a position closer to the Y2 side in the front-to-rear direction (Y direction) of the bottom surface 12b. The protrusion 48 has a pair of side walls 48a, 48b extending along its longitudinal direction (X direction). The Y2-side side wall 48b is located immediately in front of the rear wall 22A. The lower portion 29b of the heat sink 29 is inserted into the inner space 48c of the protrusion 48 (see FIG. 5). The rear portion of the heat sink 29 is located above the rear end of the lower portion 29c and faces the inner wall surface of the rear wall 22A and the vent 41 that penetrates the rear wall 22A.

[0044] The lower ventilation opening 42 penetrates the side wall 48b. With respect to the up-down direction of the housing 12 as the reference, the lower ventilation opening 42 is located lower than the ventilation openings 40, 41. With respect to the front-rear direction of the housing 12 as the reference, the lower ventilation opening 42 is located forward of the ventilation openings 40, 41. The lower ventilation opening 42 opens in substantially the same direction (Y2 direction) as the ventilation openings 40, 41. The lower ventilation opening 42 and the ventilation opening 41 are separated by, for example, the cover member 21 or the frame member 36. The height of the lower ventilation opening 42 can be, for example, approximately 0.7 mm.

[0045] The lower vent 42 is divided into a plurality of sections 42a in the X direction by, for example, a plurality of support columns 50 arranged along the longitudinal direction of the side wall 48b. For example, the lower vent 42 belonging to areas A1 and A2 is divided into five sections 42a, and the upper vent 40 belonging to area A3 is divided into, for example, eight sections 42a (see FIG. 3). It goes without saying that the number of sections 42a of the lower vent 42 is not limited to this. The lower vents 42 belonging to areas A1 and A2 are arranged immediately behind the lower portion 29b of the heat sink 29 and face the lower portion 29b of the heat sink 29. The lower vent 42 belonging to area A3 is arranged below portion 25C of the motherboard 25.

[0046] The ventilation openings 40-42 do not have to be divided into the regions A1-A3. In this case, the sections 40a, 41a, 42a of the ventilation openings 40-42 may be arranged continuously at equal intervals in the X direction. The protrusion 48 may be omitted. In this case, the lower ventilation opening 42 may be omitted.

[0047] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the air intake structure of the electronic device 10 may have a bottom vent 52 that opens to the bottom surface 12b of the housing 12.

[0048] The bottom vent 52 is an opening for introducing air outside the housing 12 into the intake port 35 of the fan 30. In the plan view of the housing 12 shown in FIG. 2, the left and right fans 30 are arranged to straddle the side wall 48a in the Y direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the bottom vent 52 is formed in the cover member 21 at a position close to the side wall 48a of the protrusion 48. The bottom vent 52 may extend in the Y direction, for example, and may be configured as a plurality of narrow slit-shaped openings arranged in the X direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the Y2-side end of the bottom vent 52 may extend to a portion of the side wall 48a. In other words, the bottom vent 52 may open from the bottom surface 12b of the housing 12 to the side wall 48a.

[0049] The protrusion 48 may be provided with an input / output port 54 at each of its longitudinal ends (left and right end faces). Examples of the input / output port 54 include a connector conforming to the HDMI (registered trademark) standard and a connector conforming to the USB 3.0 communication standard. This allows the electronic device 10 to accommodate input / output ports 54 that require a certain amount of height while minimizing the thickness of the housing 12. The protrusion 48 also functions as a rear leg that elevates the rear of the housing 12 placed on a surface such as a desk, relative to the front. This allows the keyboard device 18 of the electronic device 10 to assume a tilted position with its front lowered during use, improving operability. Reference numeral 55 in FIGS. 3 and 4 denotes rubber legs that serve as legs when the electronic device 10 is placed on a surface. The rubber legs 55 on the Y2 side are provided on the bottom surface of the protrusion 48. The rubber legs 55 are not shown in FIG. 5.

[0050] Next, a description will be given of the cooling operation performed by the cooling module 24. The dashed dotted arrows shown in Figures 2 and 5 schematically indicate the flow of air.

[0051] In the electronic device 10, heat generated by heat generating elements such as the CPU 25a is transferred to the metal plate 27 and diffused, and is also efficiently transported to the left and right heat sinks 29 by the heat pipes 28. The left and right fans 30 draw outside air (cool air) from the bottom ventilation opening 52 into the intake port 35 and discharge it from the exhaust ports 34a and 34b.

[0052] The air discharged from the outlets 34a of the left and right fans 30 passes through and is cooled by the heat sink 29. The cooled air (warm air) is discharged to the outside of the housing 12 through the vents 40 to 42 belonging to the areas A1 and A2.

[0053] The air discharged from the outlets 34b of the left and right fans 30 flows along the surface of the metal plate 27, cooling the metal plate 27 and the heat pipes 28, while simultaneously directly cooling the portion 25C and the electronic components of the CPU 25a mounted thereon. The cooled air (warm air) is discharged to the outside of the housing 12 through the vents 40-42 in the area A3. Reference numeral 58 in FIG. 2 denotes an airtight wall that forms a duct space within the housing 12 to allow the air discharged from the outlets 34b to smoothly flow to the vents 40-42 in the area A3. The airtight wall 58 is, for example, a member formed into a strip of sponge or rubber. The airtight wall 58 does not need to be able to completely block the passage of air, but it does need to have a certain degree of ventilation resistance to regulate the direction of air flow.

[0054] As described above, electronic device 10 of this embodiment includes housing 12 having plate-like member 20 forming top surface 12a and standing wall member 22 forming side surface 12c. Housing 12 houses fan 30 and heat sink 29 disposed between outlet 34a of fan 30 and standing wall member 22 (rear wall 22A) within housing 12. Rear wall 22A of standing wall member 22 has upper end surface 22a abutting against lower surface 20d of plate-like member 20, vent 41 facing heat sink 29 and penetrating rear wall 22A in the thickness direction, and upper vent 40 separated from vent 41 by partition wall 45. Upper vent 40 is formed by cutting out upper end surface 22a of rear wall 22A in a concave shape and is located between lower surface 20d and vent 41.

[0055] As described above, the upper vent 40 is formed in a concave shape on the upper end surface 22a of the rear wall 22A. Therefore, the upper vent 40 allows the warm air that has passed through the heat sink 29 to be smoothly discharged to the outside of the housing 12 along the underside 20d of the plate-shaped member 20. This prevents the formation of a dead space that is approximately triangular in side view between the upper part of the rear wall 22A and the underside 20d of the plate-shaped member 20 inside the housing 12, thereby preventing hot air from the heat sink 29 from stagnating in this space. As a result, the rear bezel 20b directly above the heat sink 29 in the electronic device 10 is prevented from becoming locally hot. This reduces the surface temperature of the housing 12, improving the user experience and preventing the rear bezel 20b from becoming a bottleneck in the thermal design of the electronic device 10. Furthermore, the upper vent 40 increases the opening area of ​​the exhaust port in the rear wall 22A. This improves the exhaust efficiency of the fan 30, increasing the airflow volume and improving cooling performance of the electronic device 10.

[0056] The rear wall 22A is susceptible to temperature rise due to the warm air passing through the heat sink 29, and is prone to becoming very hot. Therefore, heat is transferred from the rear wall 22A to the plate-shaped member 20 connected to the rear wall 22A, causing a problem of temperature rise in the rear bezel 20b in particular. In this regard, in the rear wall 22A of this embodiment, the contact area between the upper end surface 22a of the rear wall 22A and the lower surface 20d of the plate-shaped member 20 is reduced by the upper ventilation opening 40. In other words, the area of ​​heat transfer from the rear wall 22A, which can become very hot, to the plate-shaped member 20 in the electronic device 10 is reduced, further suppressing a temperature rise in the rear bezel 20b. Furthermore, because the upper ventilation opening 40 is located directly below the rear bezel 20b, the temperature suppression effect of the rear bezel 20b is even greater.

[0057] In particular, electronic device 10 has a configuration in which lid 11 is connected to the rear of housing 12 by hinge 14, and hinge 14 and lid 11 are disposed immediately behind vents 40-42. Conventional electronic devices only have a vent similar to vent 41. As a result, in conventional electronic devices, exhaust gas passing through the vent is obstructed by hinge 14 or the like, increasing resistance to passage and resulting in a decrease in the airflow of the fan. In this regard, electronic device 10 of the present embodiment has upper vent 40 in addition to vent 41. Therefore, even though electronic device 10 has lid 11 and hinge 14 at the rear of housing 12, it can improve cooling performance by increasing airflow and reducing the heat transfer area due to the upper vent 40.

[0058] The rear wall 22A constituting the upright wall member 22 may have struts 44a extending along its upright direction (Y direction) and dividing the upper vent 40 into multiple sections 40a along its longitudinal direction (X direction). The upper ends of the struts 44a abut the underside 20d of the plate-shaped member 20. If the upper vent 40 were configured to be significantly wide along the X direction, the support strength of the plate-shaped member 20 could be reduced. In this case, for example, when the rear bezel 20b is pressed with a fingertip or the like, the rear bezel 20b would deform, causing it to float up and down, degrading product quality. Therefore, when ensuring a relatively large opening width in the X direction, it is preferable to divide the upper vent 40 into multiple sections 40a by the struts 44a. This allows the electronic device 10 to minimize the heat transfer area between the rear wall 22A and the plate-shaped member 20 while ensuring the support strength of the plate-shaped member 20.

[0059] The rear wall 22A may have support columns 44b extending along its upright direction and dividing the vent 41 into multiple sections 41a along its longitudinal direction (X direction). The support columns 44a, 44b may be aligned vertically along the upright direction of the rear wall 22A. This allows the vents 40, 41 of the electronic device 10 to be arranged in a regular mesh pattern overall, improving the appearance quality of the housing 12. Furthermore, the vents 40 of the electronic device 10 can also prevent a decrease in the strength of the rear wall 22A.

[0060] In electronic device 10 of this embodiment, housing 12 may have protrusion 48 that protrudes from bottom surface 12b and extends along the longitudinal direction of rear wall 22A, which is a standing wall member. Protrusion 48 may have sidewall 48b located below heat sink 29 and extending along the longitudinal direction of protrusion 48, and lower vent 42 formed in sidewall 48b and located below vent 41. This further increases the opening area of ​​the exhaust ports (vents 40 to 42) of housing 12. This further increases the airflow of fan 30 in electronic device 10, further improving exhaust efficiency and further suppressing the surface temperature of housing 12.

[0061] The lower portion 29b of the heat sink 29 can be inserted into the inner space 48c of the protrusion 48 and disposed facing the lower ventilation port 42. In this case, the heat sink 29 is interposed in the electronic device 10 in the middle of the air flow path from the outlet 34a of the fan 30 toward the lower ventilation port 42. This further improves the heat dissipation efficiency of the heat sink 29 in the electronic device 10, further improving the cooling performance.

[0062] The upper portion 29a of the heat sink 29 is located above the inner space 48c of the protrusion 48. The electronic device 10 can be provided with a heat pipe 28 connected to this upper portion 29a. In this case, the heat pipe 28 is located in the middle of the air flow path from the outlet 34a of the fan 30 to the upper vent 40 in the electronic device 10. This allows the heat pipe 28 itself to be air-cooled in the electronic device 10, further improving heat dissipation efficiency and cooling performance.

[0063] Here, we will explain the results of a simulation experiment comparing the cooling performance of an electronic device according to a comparative example, which has a similar conventional configuration but only has a middle vent 41 and does not have upper or lower vents 40, 42, with that of an electronic device 10 according to an embodiment, which has vents 40-42. As a result of the experiment, the electronic device 10 of the embodiment had a 7.1% increase in the airflow of the fan 30, a 2.9°C decrease in the temperature of the rear bezel 20b, and a 0.4-1.2°C decrease in the temperature of each location on the top surface 12a of the housing 12, compared to the electronic device of the comparative example. Therefore, the experiment also proved the effectiveness of having the upper vent 40 and the lower vent 42 in addition to the vent 41.

[0064] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be freely modified without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0065] 10 Electronic equipment 11 Lid 12. Case 14 Hinge 16 Display 18 Keyboard Device 20 Plate-shaped member 20b Rear bezel 22 Vertical wall member 22A Back wall 24 Cooling Module 28 Heat Pipe 29 Heatsink 30 fans 34a,34b Discharge port 40 Upper Vent 41 Ventilation 42 Lower vent 44a,44b,50 Post 48 Protrusion 48a,48b side wall

Claims

1. An electronic device, a housing having a plate-like member forming a top surface and a standing wall member forming a side surface; a fan provided in the housing and having an outlet; a heat sink disposed within the housing between the outlet and the standing wall member; Equipped with The standing wall member is an upper end surface abutting against the lower surface of the plate-like member; a vent provided facing the heat sink; an upper vent hole formed by cutting out a recess in the upper end surface, the upper vent hole being located between the lower surface of the plate-shaped member and the vent hole, and separated from the vent hole by a partition wall; have An electronic device characterized by:

2. 10. The electronic device according to claim 1, the standing wall member has a first support extending along the standing direction of the standing wall member and dividing the upper ventilation opening into a plurality of sections along the longitudinal direction of the standing wall member, The upper end of the first support column abuts against the lower surface of the plate-like member. An electronic device characterized by:

3. 3. The electronic device according to claim 2, the standing wall member has a second support extending along the standing direction of the standing wall member and dividing the ventilation opening into a plurality of sections along the longitudinal direction of the standing wall member, The first support column and the second support column are aligned vertically along the standing direction. An electronic device characterized by:

4. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the housing has a protrusion that protrudes from a bottom surface and extends along a longitudinal direction of the standing wall member, The protrusion is a sidewall located below the heat sink and extending along the longitudinal direction of the protrusion; a lower vent formed in the side wall and positioned below the vent; have An electronic device characterized by:

5. 5. The electronic device according to claim 4, The lower portion of the heat sink is inserted into the inner space of the protrusion and is disposed facing the lower vent hole. An electronic device characterized by:

6. 6. The electronic device according to claim 5, an upper portion of the heat sink is located above an inner space of the protrusion, Further, a heat pipe is connected to the top of the heat sink. An electronic device characterized by:

7. 10. The electronic device according to claim 1, a cover connected to the housing so as to be rotatable relative to the housing using a hinge shaft installed behind the standing wall member in the front-rear direction of the housing; a keyboard device facing the top surface of the housing; Equipped with The upper vent is located on the top surface of the housing, directly below the rear bezel of the keyboard device. An electronic device characterized by:

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