Vehicle Electronic Housing With Coplanar PCBs and Lateral Spacers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Housings for electronic devices in vehicles face challenges in minimizing space requirements, managing heat dissipation, and providing effective shielding while maintaining robustness against temperature fluctuations and vibrations, especially when using multiple printed circuit boards.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves arranging printed circuit boards plane-parallel with spacers fastened laterally, allowing for compact design, efficient heat dissipation, and simplified shielding, with spacers being easily attachable and detachable for rapid assembly and secure fixation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If multiple printed circuit boards are arranged perpendicular to a motherboard with elongate connectors, then space requirement is reduced, but height becomes large and installation space is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a vertical stacking arrangement (perpendicular boards increasing height) to a horizontal planar arrangement (parallel boards spaced apart). This dimensional change allows multiple circuit boards to be accommodated within the same footprint area while maintaining a compact height profile suitable for vehicle installations.
2Area of stationary object
If multiple printed circuit boards are arranged perpendicular to a motherboard, then space requirement is reduced, but shielding measures become complex and cooling becomes problematic
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces partition walls that divide the housing into separate compartments, each containing a printed circuit board. This segmentation provides natural shielding between adjacent boards without requiring complex external shielding structures. The partition walls also facilitate independent cooling channels for each board, simplifying thermal management.
3Reliability
If printed circuit boards are secured with screws on housing parts, then robustness for vehicle use is achieved, but assembly becomes time-consuming and complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces spacers as intermediary elements between the printed circuit boards and the housing. These spacers provide both mechanical support and vibration damping, ensuring reliable fixation without requiring direct screw connections to the housing. The spacers can be quickly inserted and secured with simple fasteners, significantly reducing assembly time and complexity while maintaining robustness for vehicle applications.
Data Source
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AI summary
The housing has two printed circuit boards (1, 2) with components for execution of a function of an electronic device e.g. antenna amplifier. The boards are coplanar and are arranged in a spaced manner in the housing. A spacer (3) is fixable lateral to an edge of the boards. The spacer at its both ends comprises clamping regions (4, 5) for accommodating lateral edges of the boards. A set of locking hooks are provided at a set of plates.