Midplane Airflow for Chassis Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current cooling designs for telecommunications equipment, such as those in the Advanced Telecommunications Computing Architecture (ATCA), are inadequate in efficiently dissipating heat from horizontally mounted PCB assemblies and do not effectively balance airflow to maintain operation in case of fan failure.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a midplane between vertically and horizontally oriented planar channels, allowing air to flow between them through openings, with fans adjusting air pressure to enhance cooling, and includes an intake and exhaust plenum to balance airflow and ensure continuous operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If air is pulled into the chassis through bottom and top plenums and directed through planar channels between front boards and rear transition modules, then cooling is provided to electronic components, but the design does not efficiently dissipate heat from horizontally mounted PCB assemblies
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is segmented into two distinct groups of planar channels: vertically-oriented channels for cooling front boards and horizontally-oriented channels for cooling rear boards. This segmentation allows each channel group to be optimized for its specific board orientation, resolving the contradiction between efficient heat dissipation and adaptability to different board configurations.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces horizontal channels as a new dimension to the traditional vertical cooling architecture. By adding channels oriented in a different spatial dimension (horizontal vs. vertical), the system can simultaneously cool boards mounted in different orientations, thereby improving both heat dissipation efficiency and adaptability without compromising either.
2Reliability
If fans are located adjacent to the rear side of the chassis to pull air through planar channels, then air flow is established for cooling, but the system does not maintain operation in case of fan failure
Solution Approach 1:
The intake plenum and exhaust plenum are merged into a unified airflow balancing system that serves both cooling functions and reliability functions. This combined plenum structure automatically balances airflow between vertical and horizontal channels, providing continuous operation capability without requiring complex additional control mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The plenum system provides self-service airflow balancing through its inherent pressure equalization characteristics. When one fan fails, the plenum automatically redistributes airflow to maintain cooling through remaining functional channels without requiring external control systems or complex intervention mechanisms.
3Ease of operation
If the midplane contains orthogonal connectors for electrical connections between circuit boards, then electrical connectivity is provided between boards on opposite sides, but the midplane structure may obstruct air flow between channels
Solution Approach 1:
The midplane is designed with localized openings at specific intersections where vertical and horizontal channels meet. These localized openings provide air flow pathways precisely where needed without compromising the electrical connector functionality in other areas of the midplane, thus resolving the contradiction between electrical connectivity and air flow passage.
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 design significantly increases the number of electrical connections, efficiently dissipates heat from high-power components, and maintains operation even if one fan fails by balancing airflow through the chassis.
Implementation Method 1
fans adjusting air pressure to enhance cooling
Implementation Method 2
moving air through a midplane between two sets of channels oriented laterally relative to one another
Implementation Method 3
heat dissipating electronic components and circuitry in a communication chassis are cooled by moving air at least through a wall
Data Source
AI summary
Heat dissipating electronic components and circuitry in a communication chassis are cooled by moving air at least through a midplane, between two groups of channels that are perpendicularly oriented relative to one another. In an illustrative embodiment, channels of one group are oriented vertically while channels of another group are oriented horizontally. Each channel, regardless of whether it is vertical or horizontal, is defined by space in the chassis between adjacent circuit boards. Circuit boards on one side of the midplane are electrically connected to circuit boards on the other side of the midplane by orthogonal connectors on the midplane. The midplane additionally has openings that enable movement of air between vertically-oriented channels and horizontally-oriented channels. Circuit boards of the two orientations are cooled by increasing air pressure in vertically-oriented channels or by decreasing air pressure in horizontally-oriented channels or both, depending on the embodiment.