Hot Plug Motherboard Midplane Design for Signal Wire Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Server systems with multiple storage devices and motherboards face messy signal wires, making it inconvenient to unplug them during hot swapping due to the PCIe slot connection to hard disk modules.
Innovation Solution
A server system design featuring a hot plug motherboard with a midplane board that includes PCIe slots, allowing for hot plugging of motherboards and hard disk modules via signal wires, eliminating the need to disconnect wires during motherboard exchanges.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the PCIe slot of the motherboard is connected to the hard disk module through the signal wire, then the data transmission function is achieved, but it is inconvenient to unplug the signal wires before exchanging the motherboard by hot plugging
Solution Approach 1:
The system is divided into modular components: motherboards can be independently replaced, and hard disk modules can be independently replaced. The midplane board acts as a separate intermediary that remains fixed while connecting both modules, allowing each component to be segmented and replaced without affecting the others.
Solution Approach 2:
The midplane board serves as an intermediary component between the motherboards and hard disk modules. It provides fixed connection points (hot plug connectors) that eliminate the need to disconnect signal wires during motherboard replacement, as the midplane board itself remains in place and mediates the connections.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple storage devices and motherboards are included in the server system, then the processing and storing function is enhanced, but the signal wires inside the server system become messy
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple connection functions are merged into the midplane board, which consolidates the connection points for multiple motherboards and hard disk modules into a single structured component. This merging approach organizes the signal wire connections through standardized hot plug connectors rather than having separate wire management for each connection.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection architecture transitions from a planar motherboard design to a three-dimensional modular structure where the midplane board is positioned vertically or at an angle, creating spatial separation between signal wire connection points and reducing wire entanglement by utilizing the vertical dimension.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a server system having a hot plug motherboard. The server system includes a motherboard module, at least one midplane board and at least one hard disk module. The motherboard module includes a plurality of motherboards. The midplane board is coupled by means of hot plugging to each of the motherboards. The midplane board includes at least one Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) slot, and the PCIe slot is configured to be plugged with a PCIe card. The hard disk module includes a plurality of hard disks being coupled to the PCIe card through a signal wire.