Head Assembly Thermal Management via Vertical Power Source Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
In head assemblies with multiple power sources mounted on a substrate, variations in service life occur due to differences in heating values and environmental temperatures, with heat from one power source potentially affecting others, leading to uneven performance and reduced reliability.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a controller that strategically connects individual electrodes to power sources, positioning the power source with the greatest heating value at the top and using a cooler to effectively manage heat, thereby minimizing heat transfer to other power sources and maintaining optimal temperatures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple power sources are mounted on a substrate with different heating values, then the service life varies among power sources due to heat accumulation, but adding cooling mechanisms increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by positioning power sources with different heating values at different vertical locations on the substrate. Specifically, power sources with higher heating values are placed at upper locations while those with lower heating values are placed at lower locations. This spatial arrangement creates a gradient distribution that optimizes heat management for each power source based on its specific heating characteristics, thereby improving service life consistency without requiring additional cooling mechanisms for each individual power source.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the vertical dimension (up-down direction) on the substrate to arrange power sources according to their heating values. By transitioning from a two-dimensional planar arrangement to a three-dimensional vertical arrangement, the system can effectively manage heat distribution across different heights, allowing natural convection and radiation patterns to work more efficiently and reducing the need for complex active cooling systems.
2Reliability
If power sources are arranged without considering heat distribution, then heat from one power source affects others causing uneven performance, but implementing heat management strategies increases manufacturing complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-determining the optimal vertical positions for each power source based on its heating value before assembly. The controller stores connection destination information that maps each power source to its designated vertical location on the substrate. This pre-planned arrangement ensures that heat management is optimized from the outset, eliminating the need for complex real-time heat management adjustments during operation and simplifying the manufacturing and assembly process.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs self-service by utilizing the natural physical properties of heat transfer (convection, radiation) to manage thermal distribution. By strategically positioning power sources according to their heating characteristics, the system allows heat to naturally dissipate in optimized patterns without requiring active cooling mechanisms or complex thermal management hardware, thereby reducing manufacturing complexity while maintaining performance uniformity.
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 configuration suppresses variations in service life among power sources by isolating and efficiently cooling the power source with the highest heating value, reducing degradation and ensuring consistent performance across the assembly.
Implementation Method 1
a cooler configured to cool an uppermost power source which is included in the plurality of power sources and which is positioned at an uppermost location among the plurality of power sources
Implementation Method 2
the convected heat is oriented upward, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of such a situation that the convected heat generated from the power source of which heating value becomes to be greatest affects another power source(s)
Data Source
AI summary
A method executable by a controller electrically connected to a head assembly including: a head including pressure generators each having one of a plurality of individual electrodes, a substrate having power sources, and a cooler configured to cool an uppermost power source, a connection destination of each of the plurality of individual electrodes included in one of the pressure generators being one of the power sources, the method including causing a memory provided on the head assembly or a controller electrically connected to the head assembly to store the connection destination of each of the plurality of individual electrodes. In a case that the plurality of individual electrodes is divided into groups each corresponding to the connection destination thereof, making the connection destination corresponding to a group, of the groups, having individual electrodes, of which number is greatest among the plurality of individual electrodes, to be the uppermost power source.