Acoustic Flow-Rate Sensor for Liquid Cooling System Health Monitoring

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing liquid cooling systems lack a means to directly measure the flow rate of coolant fluid, which hinders the ability to monitor system health, detect leaks, or balance flow rates within the system.

Innovation Solution

A system comprising a flow-rate sensor coupled to the liquid cooling system, which measures the volume of fluid flow per unit time and communicates signals to a management controller for out-of-band management.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If no flow rate measurement means is implemented, then the liquid cooling system structure remains simple, but the system cannot monitor flow rates for health status, leak detection, or flow balancing

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem health monitoringVSAvoidsystem structure

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces complex mechanical flow measurement systems with an acoustic-based measurement approach. Acoustic sensors detect flow rate through sound wave analysis in the coolant fluid, eliminating the need for mechanical moving parts while achieving reliable flow monitoring for system health and leak detection

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces acoustic sensors as intermediary devices that indirectly measure flow rate by detecting acoustic properties of the coolant fluid. This intermediary approach allows flow monitoring without direct mechanical contact, maintaining system reliability while minimizing structural complexity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Measurement precision

If acoustic sensors are used to measure flow rate, then flow rate can be measured without moving parts, but the sensors may be affected by temperature and other environmental factors

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveflow rate measurementVSAvoidtemperature interference

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements feedback mechanisms where temperature sensors monitor environmental conditions and the system adjusts acoustic measurement parameters accordingly. This feedback loop compensates for temperature-induced variations in acoustic wave propagation, maintaining measurement precision across different operating conditions

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The patent compensates for temperature effects by dynamically adjusting measurement parameters such as acoustic frequency and wavelength references. By changing these parameters based on detected temperature conditions, the system maintains accurate flow rate measurements despite environmental variations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS12203790B2Systems and methods for flow rate detection in a liquid cooling system

Publication Date: 2025.01.21 DELL PROD LP

AI summary

A system may include an information handling resource, a liquid cooling system for providing cooling of the information handling resource, a management controller for providing out-of-band management of the system, and a flow-rate sensor coupled to the liquid cooling system and configured to measure a volume of flow of fluid through a fluidic channel of the liquid cooling system per unit time and communicate one or more signals to the management controller indicative of the volume of the flow of the fluid through the fluidic channel of the liquid cooling system per unit time.