Thermoelectric assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional thermoelectric assemblies (TEAs) require space on both sides of a vertical surface for mounting, limiting their spatial efficiency and flexibility in applications where compact designs are necessary.
Innovation Solution
The thermoelectric assembly design features sloped heat sinks and fan sinks with parallel air intake directions, allowing the assembly to be mounted on one side of a surface, optimizing spatial usage and air flow for efficient heat transfer.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional thermoelectric assemblies are designed with fan sinks facing outwardly in opposite directions, then heat transfer efficiency is improved, but space requirements increase and mounting flexibility decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent reorients the fan sinks from a configuration requiring space on both sides of a surface to a configuration where both fans intake air from the same side. The fan sinks are arranged with parallel air intake directions, allowing the entire assembly to be mounted on one side of a surface while maintaining effective heat transfer through the thermoelectric modules.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs asymmetric positioning of the fan sinks and heat sinks, with sloped configurations that allow air intake from the same direction. This asymmetric arrangement enables compact mounting on a single surface while preserving the counter-flow heat exchange mechanism between hot and cold sides.
2Area of stationary object
If thermoelectric assemblies are mounted on one side of a surface, then spatial efficiency is improved, but air flow configuration becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses asymmetric sloped configurations for both the heat sinks and fan sinks, where the sloped surfaces are oriented to naturally guide air flow from the same direction into both fans. This asymmetric design simplifies the air flow configuration compared to conventional symmetric opposite-facing arrangements while enabling single-side mounting.
Solution Approach 2:
The sloped heat sink and fan sink configurations create equipotential air flow paths, where air can be drawn from the same direction into both fans through gravity-assisted flow and uniform pressure distribution across the sloped surfaces, simplifying the overall air flow management.
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 configuration enables efficient cooling while minimizing space requirements, suitable for applications where spatial constraints are a concern, such as server racks or rooftop electrical service rooms, maintaining comparable performance to conventional TEAs under moderate cooling demands.
Implementation Method 1
The Peltier effect is an effect in which a heat flux is created between the junction of two different types of materials. Thermoelectric modules (TEMs) are semiconductor devices which use the Peltier effect to transfer heat from one side of the TEM (the 'cold side') to the other side of the TEM (the 'hot side').
Implementation Method 2
Both the hot side and the cold side each comprise a single fan sink, where a fan sink is a heat sink and a fan... each heat sink comprising a fin set, where a fin set is a series of parallel protrusions on a heat sink base
Data Source
AI summary
A thermoelectric assembly is disclosed, the assembly having a cold side and a hot side, where each of the hot side and cold side comprises a fan sink. Thermoelectric modules may be between the hot side and cold side and arranged in one circuit or multiple parallel circuits, and in direct thermal contact with both the hot side and the cold side. Each of the hot side and cold side has an air intake direction and an exhaust direction.