Storage Midplane and Adapter Design for Compact Drive Mounting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Storage apparatuses face challenges in increasing the number of drives without wasting space and minimizing signal quality degradation due to the vertical connection of drives, which limits high-speed transmission and requires a taller housing unit.
Innovation Solution
A storage apparatus design featuring a midplane with parallel connectors and adapters that allow drives to be mounted and removed in the depth direction, reducing the housing height to 2 U while maintaining high-speed signal transmission by using connectors and cables to connect drives efficiently.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If drives are connected vertically to the depth direction of the storage housing, then the number of drives can be increased, but the housing height increases to 2.5 U causing space waste in the rack
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the drive connection direction from vertical (depth direction) to horizontal (front-rear direction). The midplane is provided horizontally instead of vertically, and drives connect to the midplane through adapters in the front-rear direction rather than vertically. This dimensional change allows the housing height to be reduced to 2 U while maintaining the capacity to mount multiple drives, eliminating space waste in the rack.
2Quantity of substance
If the number of connectors is increased to connect more drives, then more drives can be mounted, but signal quality degrades due to reflection, crosstalk, and transmission line losses
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the connection system into multiple independent adapter units, each with its own connectors to the midplane. Instead of one long transmission line serving all drives, each drive connects through its own adapter with dedicated transmission lines to the midplane. This segmentation reduces signal degradation by limiting the length of each transmission line and reducing cumulative effects of reflection and crosstalk, while still allowing multiple drives to be mounted.
3Ease of repair
If drives are mounted and removed individually from the storage housing, then failed drives can be replaced, but the process is time-consuming and reduces productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the drive assembly into modular adapters, where each adapter can hold multiple drives and be connected to the midplane as a unit. This allows for efficient drive replacement where entire adapter modules can be quickly swapped out or individual drives can be accessed without disturbing other components, improving both ease of repair and productivity compared to individual drive replacement from a fixed housing.
Data Source
AI summary
The storage apparatus includes a midplane provided vertically to an installation surface of the storage apparatus and provided with a plurality of connectors arranged in parallel in an X-axis direction parallel to the installation surface of the storage apparatus; and a plurality of adapters on each of which two drive apparatuses are mounted and which are arranged in parallel in the X-axis direction and connected to the midplane through the plurality of respective connectors in a Y-axis direction parallel to the installation surface and vertical to the X-axis direction. Each of the adapters includes a board including a plurality of connectors connected to respective connectors of the two drive apparatuses which are arranged in parallel in the Y-axis direction, in the Y-axis direction, and a frame for mounting the two drive apparatuses arranged in parallel in the Y-axis direction and the board to each of the adapters.