Penthouse cooling/return air distribution assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional penthouse cooling systems for server rooms face challenges in controlling airflow temperature and noise levels due to the difficulty in managing the temperature and flow of cooling air, leading to suboptimal server room conditions.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of a controllable return air distribution assembly that mixes fresh cooling air with heated return air using a chamfered or contoured interior air duct assembly with an adjustable airflow damper and perforated deflectors, which reduces noise and allows precise control over airflow temperature and volume.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional penthouse cooling systems use fans to push cooling air through openings in the floor, then the server room receives cooling air, but the temperature and flow of cooling air through the airshafts is difficult to control
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces adjustable dampers that allow operators to change the flow parameters of cooling air through the airshafts. By adjusting the damper positions, the system can control both the temperature and flow rate of air delivered to the server room, directly resolving the difficulty of maintaining desired airflow parameters.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic control mechanisms including adjustable dampers and variable speed fans that allow the cooling system to adapt to changing thermal loads in the server room. This dynamic adjustment capability enables precise control of airflow temperature and volume, transforming a static system into one that can respond to varying operational conditions.
2Productivity
If conventional penthouse cooling systems use fans in the fan wall to push air through the floor openings, then cooling air is delivered to the server room, but elevated noise conditions are created in the server room and outside
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces acoustic treatment materials as intermediaries between the fan wall and the server room environment. These materials absorb and dampen noise generated by the fans while allowing cooling air to pass through, effectively decoupling the noise generation from the cooling function and reducing elevated noise conditions in both the server room and exterior environments.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs porous acoustic absorption materials in the fan wall assembly that allow air flow while blocking noise transmission. These materials provide acoustic attenuation for the fan-generated noise while maintaining the productivity function of delivering cooling air to the server room, thus resolving the contradiction between cooling delivery and noise reduction.
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 effectively controls the temperature of the airflow into server rooms, reducing noise levels and improving the efficiency of the cooling system by allowing for precise adjustment of airflow parameters, thus enhancing server performance and operational conditions.
Implementation Method 1
cool air enters the server room from the overhead penthouse area using the natural tendency for cold air to fall and hot air to rise
Implementation Method 2
The air continues through another filter to absorb the mist, and then through a fan wall that pushes the air through openings in the floor
Data Source
AI summary
A cooling air distribution assembly with a housing having an interior area, and spaced-apart trailing edge portions defining an airflow opening in communication with an interior area. An airflow damper positioned within the housing is moveable relative to the airflow opening to control heated airflow from the interior area. Deflectors on opposing sides of the housing define a mixing area adjacent to the airflow opening. The deflectors have leading ends spaced apart from the housing to define air inlets that receive a cooling airflow into the mixing area. Trailing end portions of the deflectors define a mixed air outlet adjacent to the mixing area. The airflow damper is adjustable relative to the housing to control a temperature of the mixture of the cooling airflow and a portion of the flow of heated air passing through the mixed air outlet.