Electronic Component Cooling Clearance Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional electronic components with heat-generating elements face challenges in efficient heat dissipation, particularly in restricted spaces, as they require bulky and costly metal heat sinks that increase weight and installation time, with the solid-air interface being the least efficient barrier for heat transfer.
Innovation Solution
An electronic component design featuring a housing made from thermally conductive, electrically insulating material with a cooling chimney or clearance that separates the circuit carrier unit into a power and signal side, enhancing thermal contact with a cooling medium while maintaining compact dimensions and user safety through ventilation and surface area optimization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a metal heat sink is used to dissipate heat from electronic elements, then heat dissipation efficiency is improved, but device weight increases substantially
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from metal to plastic, and changes the thermal conduction mode from direct contact to fluid-mediated convection. The housing is designed with cooling channels that allow cooling fluid to flow through, carrying heat away from electronic elements. This parameter change resolves the contradiction by achieving heat dissipation without the weight penalty of metal heat sinks.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a cooling fluid (liquid or gas) to transport heat away from electronic elements. The housing contains cooling channels through which the fluid flows, absorbing heat from the electronic components. This pneumatic/hydraulic approach replaces the solid metal heat sink with a fluid-based thermal management system, reducing weight while maintaining effective heat dissipation.
2Temperature
If a metal heat sink is assembled close to heat generating electronic elements, then heat transfer efficiency is improved, but assembly time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the housing structure with the heat dissipation function. The housing is designed with integrated cooling channels that directly contact or closely approach the electronic elements, eliminating the need for separate metal heat sink components. This integration reduces the number of parts and assembly steps, thereby reducing assembly time and cost while maintaining effective heat transfer through the cooling fluid.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses plastic material with embedded cooling channels, creating a composite structure that combines structural housing functions with thermal management functions. This composite approach integrates multiple functions into a single component, reducing assembly complexity and time compared to separate metal heat sink assemblies.
3Temperature
If a metal heat sink is used for heat dissipation, then device temperature control is improved, but installation space required increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent nests the cooling channels within the housing structure itself, and positions electronic elements within the housing to utilize the cooling fluid flow paths. The cooling channels are embedded in the housing walls, and electronic elements are arranged to be in close proximity to these channels. This nesting approach allows heat dissipation functionality to be integrated within the existing housing volume, avoiding additional external space requirements for separate heat sinks.
4Temperature
If the solid-air interface is used for heat dissipation, then heat transfer barrier is created, but increasing surface area contact with coolant is required to overcome this barrier
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the inefficient solid-air interface with a solid-liquid or solid-gas interface where cooling fluid flows through channels in close contact with electronic elements. The cooling fluid continuously moves through the channels, maintaining a thin boundary layer and enhancing convective heat transfer. This approach overcomes the thermal barrier of the solid-air interface by using fluid convection, which provides more effective heat transfer without requiring large surface areas.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design enables efficient heat management in constricted spaces without increasing the component's outer dimensions, ensuring reliable performance and protection from thermal exposure while reducing assembly complexity and weight.
Implementation Method 1
A heat sink is a passive heat exchanger that transfers the heat generated by an electronic or a mechanical device to a fluid medium, often air or a liquid coolant, where it is dissipated away from the device
Implementation Method 2
a housing made from thermally conductive, electrically insulating material
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic component includes a circuit carrier unit and a housing at least partly encompassing the circuit carrier unit. The circuit carrier unit has an electronic element assembled on the circuit carrier unit. The circuit carrier unit has a first section and a second section arranged at a distance from the first section and opposing the first section. The housing has a first receiving portion receiving the first section and a second receiving portion receiving the second section. The first receiving portion and the second receiving portion are separated from each other by a cooling clearance.