LED Heat Sink Securement Structure for Thermal Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
LED light fixtures face challenges in heat dissipation and protection from water, especially in outdoor applications, requiring improved solutions for maintaining high luminance and longevity while being adaptable to various mountings and cost-effective to manufacture.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a circuit board with a thermal-engagement surface secured to a heat sink using a rigid peripheral structure for enhanced thermal contact and an optical member with a lens region and peripheral region for uniform pressure and moisture sealing, facilitating efficient heat transfer and protection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If rigid peripheral structure is used to increase thermal contact between circuit board and heat sink, then heat transfer from LEDs is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase due to need for uniform pressure distribution
Solution Approach 1:
The rigid peripheral structure changes the pressure distribution parameter from non-uniform to uniform across the thermal engagement surface, ensuring optimal thermal contact between the circuit board and heat sink while maintaining manufacturability through controlled parameter specification
Solution Approach 2:
The rigid peripheral structure is pre-configured with pressing portions that apply force along the circuit-board peripheral area before final assembly, ensuring uniform thermal contact is achieved without requiring post-assembly adjustments or complex manufacturing tolerances
2Temperature
If thermal engagement surface area is increased to improve heat dissipation, then heat transfer from LEDs is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional structural components
Solution Approach 1:
The rigid peripheral structure merges multiple functions into a single component: it provides structural support, ensures uniform pressure distribution, and maximizes thermal contact area between the circuit board and heat sink, thereby improving heat dissipation without proportionally increasing device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The rigid peripheral structure serves multiple purposes simultaneously: it acts as a mounting structure, a pressure distribution mechanism, and a thermal conduction pathway, reducing the need for separate components and simplifying the overall device design
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 solution significantly increases heat transfer from LEDs, allowing for higher power levels and light output without increasing the number of LEDs, while ensuring reliable protection against moisture ingress, thus improving the performance and durability of LED light fixtures.
Implementation Method 1
Securement structure includes rigid peripheral structure applying force along the circuit-board peripheral area toward the heat sink to increase thermal contact across the facing area of the thermal-engagement surface of the circuit board and the surface of the heat sink
Implementation Method 2
This arrangement facilitates removal of heat from the light sources during operation by increasing surface-to-surface contact between the thermal-engagement surface of the circuit board and the surface of the heat sink
Implementation Method 3
a heat sink having a surface for receiving the circuit board
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
LED lighting apparatus (10) including (a) a circuit board (20) which has a plurality of light sources (11) spaced thereon, (b) a heat sink (50) to which the circuit board is thermally coupled, and (c) a securement structure (40) which includes a rigid peripheral structure (41) applying force along a peripheral area of the circuit board toward the heat sink to increase the thermal coupling therebetween to facilitate heat transfer from the light sources during operation. The lighting apparatus may also include an optical member (30) with a plurality of lens portions (33) over corresponding light sources and a peripheral region, the securement structure engaging the peripheral region which sandwiches a gasket (12) against the heat sink. The apparatus may use manipulation involving surface convexity, such as bowing, thereby allowing the securement structure to further facilitate surface-to-surface thermal coupling between the circuit board and the heat sink.