Lamp Housing Integrating Printed Circuit Board as Outer Wall
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lamps with electronic circuits on printed circuit boards face challenges in heat dissipation and require significant manufacturing and assembly efforts due to thermal resistance between the circuit board and the lamp housing, necessitating complex thermal coupling solutions.
Innovation Solution
Designing the printed circuit board to form an outer wall of the lamp housing, allowing direct contact with ambient air for efficient heat dissipation, and using a metal-core circuit board with a screw connection or latching mechanism for simplified assembly, potentially eliminating the need for a separate cover and reducing assembly complexity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the printed circuit board is enclosed inside the housing with a separate cover, then the housing structure is complete and protected, but thermal resistance increases and heat dissipation efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the printed circuit board with the housing structure by designing the PCB to form an outer wall area of the housing. This integration eliminates the need for a separate cover and creates direct thermal coupling between the electronics and ambient air, resolving the contradiction between structural completeness and heat dissipation efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The printed circuit board serves dual functions: it provides electrical connectivity for the LED circuit and simultaneously forms part of the housing structure as an outer wall. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate structural components while maintaining protective enclosure, addressing both structural and thermal requirements.
2Reliability
If a separate cover is used to close the housing after mounting the circuit board, then the housing is fully enclosed and protected, but assembly complexity and manufacturing costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The housing enclosure and circuit board are merged into a single integrated structure where the PCB forms an outer wall. This eliminates the separate cover component and simplifies assembly to a single mounting operation, while maintaining enclosure integrity through the integrated design.
Solution Approach 2:
The printed circuit board performs multiple functions simultaneously: it provides electrical circuit functionality, structural support as a housing wall, and thermal management through direct air exposure. This multi-functionality reduces the total component count and assembly complexity while maintaining enclosure reliability.
3Temperature
If thermal coupling measures are implemented between the circuit board and housing, then heat dissipation improves, but material investment and assembly complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The circuit board and housing are merged into an integrated structure where the PCB forms part of the housing wall. This eliminates the need for separate thermal coupling materials and components, achieving efficient heat dissipation through direct thermal conduction paths while reducing material investment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the need for separate thermal coupling materials by integrating the circuit board directly into the housing structure. The PCB itself becomes the thermal pathway, eliminating the requirement for additional thermal interface materials or heat sinks while maintaining effective heat dissipation.
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 approach enables efficient heat dissipation and reduces manufacturing and assembly costs by eliminating the need for a separate cover and simplifying the assembly process, while maintaining a sealed connection through encapsulation and a sealing element.
Implementation Method 1
This allows the circuit board to be in direct contact with the ambient air of the luminaire. This enables efficient and virtually direct dissipation of the heat generated by the electronic circuitry during operation.
Implementation Method 2
A particularly tight luminaire housing can be achieved if a sealing element is arranged between the circuit board and the rest of the luminaire housing.
Data Source
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AI summary
The lamp has a lamp housing (1) and an electronic circuit which is arranged on a printed circuit board (2) e.g. metal core circuit board. The printed circuit board is designed and arranged such that outer wall region (4) of the lamp housing is formed by the surface (22) of circuit board. A sealing element is formed between circuit board and lamp housing.