Monolithic Housing Integrating Cooling Channels and Component Mounting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for packaging and cooling power and control electronics in large off-highway vehicles are costly, complex, and prone to tolerance stack-up issues, requiring separate external heatsinks that complicate assembly and maintenance.
Innovation Solution
A monolithic metal housing with integrated cooling fins and heat dissipation channels that serves as both a mounting surface and heat sink, allowing for efficient heat transfer from electronic components to air or liquid cooling fluids, thereby simplifying assembly and reducing component count.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If separate external heatsinks are used for cooling electronic components, then cooling effectiveness is achieved, but device complexity and assembly cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The housing body is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it serves as the structural housing for electronic components, provides mounting surfaces for components, and acts as an integrated heatsink with internal cooling channels. This merging of housing and cooling functions eliminates the need for separate external heatsinks, reducing assembly complexity while maintaining cooling effectiveness
Solution Approach 2:
The housing body is designed as a multi-functional component that combines structural support, component mounting, and thermal management functions. The housing includes internal cooling channels and mounting surfaces, allowing it to serve as both the enclosure and the cooling system, thereby reducing the overall number of components and simplifying assembly
2Reliability
If multiple separate components (housing, heatsink, mounting brackets) are used, then functional requirements are met, but manufacturing cost and assembly time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The housing body integrates multiple functions into a single component: it provides structural enclosure, contains internal cooling channels for thermal management, and includes built-in mounting surfaces for electronic components. This integration eliminates the need for separate mounting brackets and heatsinks, reducing the number of assembly steps and improving productivity while maintaining functional performance
Solution Approach 2:
The housing body is designed with integrated cooling channels segmented into multiple pathways that distribute coolant efficiently across different mounting surfaces. This segmentation allows the single housing component to handle thermal management for multiple electronic components simultaneously, maintaining functional performance while simplifying assembly
3Ease of manufacture
If plastic housing assemblies are used for packaging electronics, then cost is reduced, but cooling effectiveness and structural strength deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The housing body is made of metal material that provides both structural strength and superior thermal conductivity for effective cooling. The metal construction allows the housing to serve as an efficient heatsink while maintaining durability, overcoming the limitations of plastic housings that lack both cooling effectiveness and structural strength
4Temperature
If external heatsinks are installed separately, then cooling function is added, but tolerance stack-up issues and assembly difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling channels are integrated directly into the housing body structure, eliminating the need for separate heatsink assemblies. This integration removes the interfaces between multiple components that would otherwise create tolerance stack-up issues, ensuring precise thermal management while simplifying manufacturing and assembly
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
The solution provides a cost-effective, efficient, and reliable cooling system that reduces packaging costs, improves airflow sealing, and simplifies manufacturing by integrating heat dissipation and mounting functions, while minimizing weight and tolerance issues.
Implementation Method 1
The housing body is configured to conduct heat from the electronic components to the cooling fins for transfer of the heat from the cooling fins to a cooling fluid
Implementation Method 2
transfer of the heat from the cooling fins to a cooling fluid that passes through the heat dissipation channel
Data Source
AI summary
An integrated mounting and cooling apparatus includes a housing body having a first mounting surface configured to receive electronic components to be cooled and a heat dissipation channel extending through the housing body under the first mounting surface. An array of cooling fins is disposed in the heat dissipation channel. The apparatus is configured to serve as a mounting surface for the electronic components, as a housing for the electronic components, and a heat-sink to cool the electronic components.