Electronic Apparatus Cooling Structure with Integrated Fins
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cooling structures for vehicle navigation apparatuses primarily focus on cooling CPUs, neglecting the temperature management of peripheral circuit elements, which can exceed their guaranteed ambient temperatures due to increased heat generation from sophisticated CPUs, leading to inefficiencies and increased size and cost when attempting to enhance cooling performance.
Innovation Solution
A cooling structure featuring a heat spreader with integrated cooling fins and a fan system that directs airflow through passages between the heat spreader and the circuit board, ensuring efficient heat dissipation for both the CPU and peripheral circuit elements, maintaining temperatures within guaranteed limits without enlarging the cooling system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the size of the heat spreader is increased to improve cooling performance, then the cooling capability is improved, but the size and cost of the cooling structure increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a vertical dimension by extending cooling fins downward from the heat spreader toward the circuit board, creating a three-dimensional cooling structure. This allows heat dissipation to occur not only horizontally through the heat spreader surface but also vertically through the fins, effectively increasing the cooling surface area without proportionally increasing the overall footprint of the cooling structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling fins are nested within the space between the heat spreader and the circuit board, utilizing the existing vertical space rather than adding external components. This nested arrangement allows the cooling structure to efficiently use the available volume, providing enhanced cooling performance without increasing the overall size of the assembly.
2Temperature
If a rid is added to create air passages for cooling, then the cooling performance is improved, but the size and cost of the cooling structure increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the air passage creation function with the cooling fin structure itself. The cooling fins serve dual purposes: they provide heat dissipation surfaces and simultaneously define the air passages through which cooling air flows. This eliminates the need for separate rid or partition structures, simplifying the overall design while maintaining effective cooling performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling fins perform multiple functions: they act as heat dissipation surfaces, serve as structural supports for defining air passages, and guide airflow distribution. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional dedicated components, thereby reducing device complexity and cost while maintaining cooling effectiveness.
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
The proposed cooling structure effectively manages the temperature of both heat-generating CPUs and peripheral circuit elements, maintaining them below guaranteed levels without increasing the size or cost of the cooling system, ensuring efficient heat dissipation and reduced complexity.
Implementation Method 1
The heat spreader is placed above the circuit board and thermally joined to the heat generating element mounted on the circuit board
Implementation Method 2
heat generated by the CPU 2 is dissipated through the cooling fins 6
Implementation Method 3
a fan device 7 is placed at the right corner portion of FIG. 3. As indicated by arrows of FIG. 3, when the fan device 7 is driven, air is withdrawn into the air passages from above, and the air flows through the air passages from left to right in FIG. 3
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic apparatus includes a circuit board, circuit elements mounted on the circuit board, and a cooling structure for cooling the circuit elements. The circuit elements include a heat generating element. The cooling structure includes a heat spreader, cooling fins integrally formed with the heat spreader, an air inlet, an air outlet, and a fan device for generating cooling air flowing from the air inlet to the air outlet. The heat spreader is placed above the circuit board and thermally joined to the heat generating element mounted on the circuit board. The cooling fins extend toward the circuit board to provide a plurality of air passages between the circuit board and the heat spreader. The air inlet and outlet communicate with each other through the air passages.