Vehicle-mounted device

The in-vehicle device employs a heat conductive member to transport refrigerant liquid via capillary action, addressing weight issues in conventional boiling cooling systems by reducing refrigerant use, thus achieving efficient and lightweight cooling.

WO2026140373A1PCT designated stage Publication Date: 2026-07-02ASTEMO LTD

Patent Information

Authority / Receiving Office
WO · WO
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
ASTEMO LTD
Filing Date
2025-09-04
Publication Date
2026-07-02

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Abstract

The present invention comprises: a substrate on which an electronic component is mounted; a heat conduction member that comes into contact with the electronic component mounted on the substrate; and a housing that accommodates the substrate, the heat conduction member, and a refrigerant liquid in an internal space. The heat conduction member is disposed so as to be at least partially immersed in the refrigerant liquid. The heat conduction member has a transport part that transports the refrigerant liquid by capillary action from a location immersed in the refrigerant liquid to a location not immersed in the refrigerant liquid.
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Description

In-vehicle device

[0001] The present invention relates to an in-vehicle device.

[0002] Generally, in vehicles such as automobiles, a plurality of electronic control units (ECUs) are installed to control various objects including an engine, power steering, brakes, airbags, and the like. The electronic control device mounted on the vehicle (hereinafter referred to as "in-vehicle device") is composed of a substrate on which electronic components are mounted and a housing that houses this substrate.

[0003] In recent years, the demand for advanced driver assistance systems (hereinafter referred to as ADAS) and autonomous driving (hereinafter referred to as AD) systems has been increasing, and the development of autonomous driving technology for automobiles has been accelerating. Along with the high functionality of electronic control devices, the heat generation amount of the mounted electronic components has been increasing. Therefore, conventionally, as a method for cooling the electronic components (heat-generating components) mounted on the substrate, a boiling cooling method has been proposed in which the refrigerant liquid is boiled by the heat of the electronic components to cool the electronic components.

[0004] As this type of conventional in-vehicle device, for example, there is one described in Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 describes a boiling cooling device that has a heat-receiving part to which a cooling object is attached and a heat-radiating part, and the refrigerant liquid in contact with the heat-receiving part boils and evaporates to transport heat to the heat-radiating part.

[0005] International Publication No. 2022 / 244621

[0006] However, in the technology described in Patent Document 1, in order to cool the heat-generating components, the entire heat-generating components were immersed in the refrigerant liquid inside the container in which the refrigerant liquid was enclosed. Therefore, in order to immerse the entire heat-generating components in the refrigerant liquid, it was necessary to fill the entire internal space of the housing with the refrigerant liquid, which had the problem that the amount of the refrigerant liquid increased and the weight of the entire device increased.

[0007] The main object is to provide an in-vehicle device that can achieve weight reduction of the entire device while realizing boiling cooling with high cooling performance in consideration of the above problems.

[0008] To solve the above problems and achieve the objective, an in-vehicle device reflecting one aspect of the present invention comprises a substrate on which electronic components are mounted, a heat conductive member that contacts the electronic components mounted on the substrate, and a housing that houses the substrate, the heat conductive member, and a refrigerant liquid in an internal space. The heat conductive member is arranged so that at least a portion of it is immersed in the refrigerant liquid. The heat conductive member has a transport section that transports the refrigerant liquid from the portion immersed in the refrigerant liquid to the portion that is not immersed in the refrigerant liquid by capillary action.

[0009] The above configuration of the in-vehicle equipment makes it possible to achieve high-performance boiling cooling while reducing the overall weight of the equipment. Other issues, configurations, and effects will be clarified in the following description of the embodiments.

[0010] This is an exploded perspective view showing an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment. This is a perspective view showing an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment. This is a diagram showing an example of mounting an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment. This is a cross-sectional view showing an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment. This is a cross-sectional view showing an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment in a tilted state. This is a cross-sectional view showing an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment in a flat position. This is a cross-sectional view showing an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment in a flat position, with the top and bottom reversed from the state in Figure 6. This is a perspective view showing another example of a heat conductive member for an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment. This is a diagram showing an example of mounting an in-vehicle device according to the second embodiment.

[0011] The embodiments of the in-vehicle equipment will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 9. The embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The following description and drawings are illustrative for explaining the present invention, and have been omitted and simplified as appropriate for clarity of explanation. The present invention can be implemented in various other forms. Unless otherwise specified, each component may be singular or plural. In each figure, common components are denoted by the same reference numeral.

[0012] The positions, sizes, shapes, and ranges of the components shown in the drawings may not represent their actual positions, sizes, shapes, and ranges in order to facilitate understanding of the invention. Therefore, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the positions, sizes, shapes, and ranges disclosed in the drawings.

[0013] 1. First Embodiment Example First, the configuration of the in-vehicle equipment according to the first embodiment example (hereinafter referred to as "this example") will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 7. Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the in-vehicle equipment, and Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the in-vehicle equipment.

[0014] The device shown in Figure 1 is an example of an in-vehicle device installed in an automobile, and is an electronic control unit having an electronic circuit for controlling the automobile. However, the term "in-vehicle device" is not limited to electronic control units; any device containing heat-generating components can be used.

[0015] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the in-vehicle device 1 includes a circuit board 2, electronic components representing heat-generating parts mounted on the circuit board 2, a cover 5 and a case 6 that constitute the housing, a circuit board-side connector 7, a heat conductive member 8, a heat dissipation fin 10, and a case-side connector 12. The circuit board 2 may be a single-layer circuit board or a multi-layer circuit board. Multiple electronic components are mounted on one side of this circuit board 2.

[0016] Examples of electronic components include computing devices such as CPUs (Central Processing Units), GPUs (Graphics Processing Units), SoCs (System on a Chip), and SiPs (System in a Package). Other electronic components include memory devices such as DDR SDRAM, power supply ICs, coils, and capacitors. Here, at least one electronic component that exceeds a predetermined heat generation amount among multiple electronic components is defined as a heat-generating component 3. In this example, the heat-generating component 3 is located in the center of the substrate 2.

[0017] Furthermore, a board-side connector 7 is attached to the edge of the board 2. Wiring patterns are formed on the board 2 to connect multiple electronic components to each other, or to electronic components to the board-side connector 7.

[0018] Furthermore, a heat conduction member 8 is attached to the substrate 2 via a heat-generating component 3. The heat conduction member 8 is positioned opposite the side of the substrate 2 on which the electronic components are mounted. The heat conduction member 8 may be directly bonded to the heat-generating component 3, or it may be attached to the substrate 2 with the heat-generating component 3 in between. Heat from the heat-generating component 3 is then transferred to the heat conduction member 8. The detailed configuration of the heat conduction member 8 will be described later.

[0019] The substrate 2, electronic components, heat conductive member 8, and substrate-side connector 7, having the above-described configuration, are housed in the internal space of the cover 5 and case 6 that constitute the housing. The case 6 is formed in a flat, hollow, substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape with one side open. The case 6 has a housing section 6a that houses the substrate 2, electronic components, heat conductive member 8, and substrate-side connector 7. One side of the housing section 6a is open.

[0020] The cover 5 is formed in a flat plate shape. The cover 5 is attached to the case 6 so as to close the opening formed in the case 6. Together with the cover 5 and the case 6, the housing is formed in a hollow, flat, roughly rectangular parallelepiped shape.

[0021] Furthermore, an O-ring 11 is positioned on the outer edge of the opening of the case 6. The O-ring 11 is interposed between the case 6 and the cover 5. As a result, the internal space between the case 6 and the cover 5 is sealed liquid-tight by the O-ring 11. The internal space formed by the case 6 and the cover 5 is then filled with refrigerant liquid 50 (see Figure 4).

[0022] Furthermore, a case-side connector 12 is located on the side wall 6b of the case 6. The terminals on the case-side connector 12 that connect to the board-side connector 7 are provided on the housing portion 6a side of the case 6. Therefore, the board-side connector 7 and the case-side connector 12 are electrically connected within the internal space enclosed by the case 6 and the cover 5 (see Figure 4). As a result, leakage of the refrigerant liquid 50 from the connection point between the board-side connector 7 and the case-side connector 12 can be prevented, and the refrigerant liquid 50 can be reliably sealed inside the housing.

[0023] The cover 5 and case 6 having the above-described configuration are preferably made of a metal material with excellent thermal conductivity, such as aluminum or copper.

[0024] Furthermore, a plurality of heat dissipation fins 10 are provided on the other side of the case 6 opposite to the side where the opening is formed. The heat dissipation fins 10 are formed, for example, by bending a flat plate-shaped member into a roughly V-shape. However, the heat dissipation fins 10 are not limited to a configuration in which a flat plate-shaped member is bent; flat plate-shaped members protruding from the other side of the case 6 may be arranged in a row, and various other shapes can be applied.

[0025] The heat dissipation fins 10 are formed from a metal material with excellent thermal conductivity, such as aluminum or copper. Air flowing through the heat dissipation fins 10 promotes heat exchange, thereby allowing the entire in-vehicle equipment 1 to be cooled.

[0026] In this example, the heat dissipation fins 10 are described in an example where they are provided on the case 6, but the invention is not limited to this, and the heat dissipation fins 10 may also be provided on the cover 5. Furthermore, the present invention can achieve its objectives even without providing the heat dissipation fins 10.

[0027] Figure 3 shows an example of the implementation of the in-vehicle device 1 having the configuration described above. As shown in Figure 3, the in-vehicle device 1 is positioned with the other side of the case 6 on which the heat dissipation fins 10 are provided facing parallel to the vertical direction. That is, the in-vehicle device 1 is positioned vertically, with the housing consisting of the case 6 and cover 5 in a vertical orientation.

[0028] Furthermore, the automobile is equipped with multiple in-vehicle devices 1. These multiple in-vehicle devices 1 are arranged vertically, with the covers 5 and heat dissipation fins 10 of adjacent in-vehicle devices 1 facing each other. By circulating air between the multiple in-vehicle devices 1, the devices 1 can be cooled.

[0029] Furthermore, the case-side connector 12 of the in-vehicle device 1 is connected to a vehicle-side device (not shown). The case-side connectors 12 of each of the multiple in-vehicle devices 1 can be disconnected from the vehicle-side device. This allows only the faulty in-vehicle device 1 to be replaced if any of the multiple in-vehicle devices 1 fail. In addition, the number of in-vehicle devices 1 installed can be increased or decreased according to the performance requirements of the vehicle, thus increasing the flexibility of the configuration of the in-vehicle devices 1.

[0030] Next, the configuration of the heat conduction member 8 will be described with reference to Figures 4 to 7. Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the in-vehicle equipment 1.

[0031] As shown in Figure 4, the heat conductive member 8 is formed in a substantially flat, approximately circular shape. Furthermore, the heat conductive member 8 is formed to be larger than the outer diameter of the heat-generating component 3 when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 2. Therefore, when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 2, the heat conductive member 8 covers the entire heat-generating component 3.

[0032] Furthermore, the heat conductive member 8 is formed from a porous material or a structure having a fine groove structure. The heat conductive member 8 is composed of, for example, a sintered body of resin or metal fibers or particles. Because the heat conductive member 8 has fine pores or grooves, a capillary action occurs within the heat conductive member 8, causing the liquid to move spontaneously. In other words, the heat conductive member 8 has a transport section that transports the refrigerant liquid 50 from the area immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50 to the area not immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50 by capillary action.

[0033] As described above, in general, the surfaces of the case 6 and cover 5 of the in-vehicle equipment 1 are arranged parallel to the vertical direction, so the substrate 2 housed in the case 6 and cover 5 is also arranged so that its surface is approximately parallel to the vertical direction. Therefore, the coolant liquid 50 filled in the case 6 and cover 5 accumulates on the lower side in the direction of gravity within the internal space of the case 6 and cover 5. At this time, the heat-generating component 3 mounted on the substrate 2 is located above the liquid surface of the coolant liquid 50 in the vertical direction (direction of gravity). Therefore, the heat-generating component 3 is not in contact with the coolant liquid 50.

[0034] In contrast, the lower end of the heat conduction member 8 in the direction of gravity is located below the liquid surface of the refrigerant liquid 50. That is, a portion of the heat conduction member 8 that contacts the heat-generating component 3 is impregnated with the refrigerant liquid 50. The heat conduction member 8 then uses capillary action to draw the refrigerant liquid 50 up from the part impregnated with the refrigerant liquid 50 against the direction of gravity to the part that contacts the heat-generating component 3. This allows the heat-generating component 3 to be cooled by the refrigerant liquid 50. In this way, the heat-generating component 3 can be cooled without filling the refrigerant liquid 50 to the point where it contacts the heat-generating component 3, thus reducing the amount of refrigerant liquid 50 that needs to be filled. As a result, while achieving high-performance boiling cooling, the overall weight of the in-vehicle equipment 1 can be reduced by reducing the amount of refrigerant liquid 50 that needs to be filled.

[0035] Furthermore, the heat generated by the heat-generating component 3 is transferred to the heat-conducting member 8. Then, through the heat conduction of the heat-conducting member 8 itself, the heat is transferred to the point on the heat-conducting member 8 that comes into contact with the coolant liquid 50. As a result, the heat generated by the heat-generating component 3 can be transferred to the coolant liquid 50 by the heat-conducting member 8. The heat-generating component 3 can be cooled even if all or part of it is not immersed in the coolant liquid 50.

[0036] Furthermore, the refrigerant liquid 50 boils due to the heat from the heat-generating component 3 transmitted via the heat-conducting member 8, generating bubbles. The generated bubbles then draw the refrigerant liquid 50 upwards, in the opposite direction to gravity. This allows the refrigerant liquid 50 to be supplied to parts of the heat-conducting member 8 that are not immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50. In this way, the refrigerant liquid 50 can be transported not only by the capillary action of the heat-conducting member 8 but also by the boiling of the refrigerant liquid 50. As a result, the heat-generating component 3 can be cooled even if all or part of it is not immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50. Consequently, while achieving highly efficient boiling cooling, the amount of refrigerant liquid 50 to be sealed can be reduced, thereby reducing the overall weight of the in-vehicle equipment 1.

[0037] Furthermore, the refrigerant liquid 50 that boils in the heat conductive member 8 condenses on the inner walls of the cover 5 and case 6. As the refrigerant liquid 50 condenses, heat is transferred to the cover 5 and case 6. The heat transferred to the cover 5 and case 6 is then dissipated by the heat dissipation fins 10 provided on the case 6. This cools the entire in-vehicle equipment 1.

[0038] Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the in-vehicle device 1 in a tilted state, rotated approximately 45 degrees from the state shown in Figure 4. As shown in Figure 5, the liquid level of the refrigerant liquid 50 contained in the housing changes depending on the rotation of the installation position of the in-vehicle device 1 and the driving conditions of the vehicle, such as when driving uphill or accelerating. However, with the in-vehicle device 1 of this example, as shown in Figure 5, even when the liquid level changes and the heat-generating component 3 is not immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50, a part of the heat-conducting member 8 is immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50. Therefore, as shown in Figure 5, even if the liquid level of the refrigerant liquid 50 changes, the heat-conducting member 8 and the refrigerant liquid 50 can reliably cool the heat-generating component 3.

[0039] In this example, a circular heat conduction member 8 is described, but it is not limited to this. The shape of the heat conduction member 8 can be any shape, such as a polygon (square, hexagon, etc.) or an ellipse, as long as a part of it is immersed in the coolant liquid 50. Alternatively, the heat conduction member 8 can be formed in a circular shape, and the heat-generating component 3 can be placed at the radial center of the heat conduction member 8. As a result, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, the distance from the outer edge to the center of the heat conduction member 8 does not change even when the in-vehicle equipment 1 rotates. The heat conduction member 8 can then transport the coolant liquid 50 to the center through capillary action. Therefore, in order to efficiently reduce the amount of coolant liquid 50, it is preferable to form the heat conduction member 8 in a circular shape and place the heat-generating component 3 at the center of the heat conduction member 8.

[0040] Figures 6 and 7 are cross-sectional views showing the in-vehicle device 1 with the cover 5 and case 6 positioned vertically, i.e., the in-vehicle device 1 lying flat. Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the inverted orientation of the in-vehicle device 1 compared to the state shown in Figure 6.

[0041] In the arrangement example shown in FIG. 6, an example is shown where the case 6 is arranged below the cover 5 in the vertical direction (gravity direction), and the substrate 2 and the heat-generating component 3 are arranged below the heat conduction member 8 in the vertical direction (gravity direction). As shown in FIG. 6, the filling amount of the refrigerant liquid 50 is set such that the liquid level of the refrigerant liquid 50 contacts the surface of the heat conduction member 8 facing the substrate 2, that is, the lower surface in the vertical direction of the heat conduction member 8. Thereby, even when the in-vehicle device 1 is placed flat, the heat conduction member 8 can be immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50, so that the heat-generating component 3 can be cooled by the heat conduction member 8 and the refrigerant liquid 50.

[0042] Further, by arranging the substrate 2 on the case 6 side, the lower surface of the heat conduction member 8 can be positioned below the intermediate position in the vertical direction in the internal space of the case 6 and the cover 5. Thereby, even if the amount of the refrigerant liquid 50 is less than half of the internal space of the case 6 and the cover 5, the refrigerant liquid 50 can be immersed in a part of the heat conduction member 8.

[0043] Also, in the state shown in FIG. 7, the substrate 2 and the heat-generating component 3 are not immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50. However, the surface of the heat conduction member 8 opposite to the surface facing the substrate 2 and the heat-generating component 3 is immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50. Thereby, the heat from the heat-generating component 3 is transmitted to the heat conduction member 8, and the refrigerant liquid 50 can be boiled at the portion of the heat conduction member 8 immersed in the refrigerant liquid 50. As a result, even when the in-vehicle device 1 is arranged in the state shown in FIG. 7, the heat-generating component 3 can be surely cooled.

[0044] Further, as the refrigerant liquid 50 to be used, an insulating inert refrigerant is applied to immerse the substrate 2. By coating the substrate 2, it is also possible to apply a non-insulating refrigerant as the refrigerant liquid 50.

[0045] Furthermore, by making the internal space surrounded by the cover 5 and the case 6 airtight, after evacuating the internal space, the refrigerant liquid 50 may be filled. Thereby, the refrigerant liquid 50 can be boiled at a temperature lower than the boiling point of the refrigerant liquid 50 under atmospheric pressure. Thus, in order to enclose the refrigerant liquid 50 in a vacuum state, it is preferable to provide a pipe for evacuation and a pipe for enclosing the refrigerant liquid 50 in the cover 5 and the case 6.

[0046] 1-2. Modified Example of Heat Conductive Member Next, a modified example of the heat conductive member will be described with reference to FIG. 8. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a modified example of the heat conductive member.

[0047] In the above-described example, an example in which the entire heat conductive member 8 is formed of a porous body or a structure having a fine groove structure has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. As in the heat conductive member 28 shown in FIG. 8, a transport portion for transporting the refrigerant liquid 50 by capillary action may be provided at least partially. The heat conductive member 28 has a contact portion 20 having no cavity and a plurality of grooves 21 formed on one surface of the contact portion 20.

[0048] The other surface of the contact portion 20 opposite to the surface on which the plurality of grooves 21 are formed contacts the heat generating component 3. Thus, by making the portion of the heat conductive member 28 that contacts the heat generating component 3 a solid contact portion 20 filled with the interior, heat from the heat generating component 3 can be efficiently conducted.

[0049] The plurality of fine grooves 21 extend in a predetermined direction on one surface of the contact portion 20. When the heat conductive member 28 is disposed on the substrate 2, a part of the plurality of grooves 21 contacts the refrigerant liquid 50. Further, a plurality of openings 22 are formed on the surface of the groove 21 opposite to the contact portion 20. The plurality of grooves 21 are formed to have a size capable of sucking up the refrigerant liquid 50 by capillary force. The width of the groove 21 is set to a size at which capillary action can occur, and is set to about 200 microns, for example. That is, the groove 21 is a transport portion for transporting the refrigerant liquid 50 by capillary action.

[0050] By sucking up the refrigerant liquid 50 into the plurality of grooves 21, the refrigerant liquid 50 boils in the grooves 21. The gas of the refrigerant liquid 50 that has boiled in the grooves 21 is discharged from the openings 22 formed in the grooves 21. Note that the openings 22 are formed only on a predetermined surface of the grooves 21. Therefore, the gas of the refrigerant liquid 50 that has boiled in the grooves 21 can be discharged in a predetermined direction.

[0051] Furthermore, both a liquid phase region and a gaseous phase region of the refrigerant liquid 50 coexist within the groove 21. The refrigerant liquid 50 moves within the groove 21 due to the flow associated with the generation and discharge of gas. As a result, the heat conductive member 28 can provide the effect of forced-flow boiling with a high heat transfer coefficient. Moreover, within the groove 21, a region where the liquid phase is thinned is created between the liquid phase and the gas phase. In this region where the liquid phase is thinned, a high heat transfer coefficient can be obtained, and the electric heating performance of the heat conductive member 28 can be enhanced.

[0052] In the heat conduction member 28 shown in Figure 8, multiple grooves 21 are used as transport sections, but the invention is not limited to this, and a part of the contact section 20 may be formed of a porous material as the transport section. Furthermore, although an example has been described in which multiple grooves 21 that generate capillary action or porous material are formed on the surface of the contact section 20 opposite to the surface that contacts the heat-generating component 3, the invention is not limited to this. The multiple grooves 21 or porous material may be placed anywhere that comes into contact with the coolant liquid 50, such as on the side surface of the contact section 20.

[0053] 2. Second Embodiment Example Next, an example of the implementation of in-vehicle equipment according to the second embodiment example will be described. Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of the implementation of in-vehicle equipment according to the second embodiment example.

[0054] In the example shown in Figure 9, the water-cooling jacket 102 is in contact with one side of the cover 5 or case 6 of the in-vehicle equipment 101. The in-vehicle equipment 101 is the same as the in-vehicle equipment 1 described above. The water-cooling jacket 102 has an equipment-side connector 103. The equipment-side connector 103 is connected to a vehicle-side connector 104 provided on the vehicle-side electrical circuit board 107. The vehicle-side connector 104 is connected to piping 106 to a radiator or the like (not shown). Coolant is supplied to the equipment-side connector 103 via the vehicle-side connector 104. The supplied coolant passes through piping (not shown) provided inside the water-cooling jacket 102.

[0055] As described above, the refrigerant liquid 50 contained within the housing of the in-vehicle equipment 101 boils in the heat conductive member 8. The boiled refrigerant liquid 50 condenses in the cover 5 and case 6. The heat condensed in the cover 5 and case 6 is cooled by the coolant passing through the water-cooling jacket 102.

[0056] Furthermore, the vehicle-side electrical circuit board 107 has a vehicle-side electrical connector 105 that is electrically connected to a case-side connector 12 provided on the in-vehicle device 101. Through the connection between this case-side connector 12 and the vehicle-side electrical connector 105, the in-vehicle device 101 and the vehicle-side electrical circuit board 107 perform signal transmission and reception and power exchange. As a result, the in-vehicle device 101 can be mounted in a manner that allows it to be detached from the vehicle.

[0057] The other components are the same as those of the in-vehicle device 1 according to the first embodiment described above, so their description will be omitted. In this implementation example of the in-vehicle device 101 according to the second embodiment, the same functions and effects as those of the in-vehicle device 1 according to the first embodiment described above can be obtained.

[0058] It should be noted that the invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown in the drawings, and various modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the invention as described in the claims. Furthermore, it is possible to replace a part of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another embodiment, and it is also possible to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. In addition, it is possible to add, delete, or replace parts of the configuration of other embodiments.

[0059] In addition, while porous materials and multiple grooves 21 were used as transport sections formed in the heat conduction members 8 and 28, the transport section is not limited to these. As long as the transport section can transport the refrigerant liquid 50 by capillary action, various shapes such as multiple fins and protrusions can be applied.

[0060] In this specification, although terms such as "parallel" and "orthogonal" are used, these do not mean only strictly "parallel" and "orthogonal," but may also refer to states that are "approximately parallel" or "approximately orthogonal," which include "parallel" and "orthogonal" and are within a range in which they can perform their functions.

[0061] 1, 101...In-vehicle equipment, 2...Circuit board, 3...Heat-generating component, 5...Cover (housing), 6...Case (housing), 6a...Housing section, 6b...Side wall, 7...Circuit board side connector, 8, 28...Heat conductive material, 10...Heat dissipation fin, 11...O-ring, 12...Case side connector, 20...Contact part, 21...Groove, 22...Opening, 50...Refrigerant liquid, 102...Water cooling jacket, 103...Equipment side connector, 104...Vehicle body side connector, 105...Vehicle body side electrical connector, 106...Piping, 107...Vehicle body side electrical circuit board

Claims

1. An in-vehicle device comprising: a substrate on which electronic components are mounted; a heat conductive member that contacts the electronic components mounted on the substrate; and a housing that houses the substrate, the heat conductive member, and a refrigerant liquid in an internal space, wherein at least a portion of the heat conductive member is immersed in the refrigerant liquid, and the heat conductive member has a transport section that transports the refrigerant liquid by capillary action from the portion immersed in the refrigerant liquid to the portion not immersed in the refrigerant liquid.

2. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1, wherein the transport unit is composed of a porous body formed on at least a part of the heat conductive member.

3. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1, wherein the transport section is composed of a plurality of grooves formed in at least a portion of the heat conductive member.

4. The in-vehicle device according to claim 3, wherein an opening is formed in the groove through which the boiled refrigerant gas is discharged.

5. The in-vehicle device according to claim 1, wherein the heat conductive member has a contact portion that contacts the electronic component, and the contact portion is formed to be solid with a solid interior.

6. The size of the heat conductive member is formed to be larger than the outer diameter of the electronic component, and when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the surface of the substrate, the heat conductive member covers the entire electronic component, as described in claim 1.

7. The in-vehicle device according to claim 6, wherein the heat conductive member is formed in a circular shape, and the electronic component is positioned at the radial center of the heat conductive member.