TWI826860B - Liquid cooling module and electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

A liquid cooling module includes a heat dissipating base, a replaceable fin structure and a cover. The heat dissipating base includes a substrate and the substrate has a fin accommodating region. The replaceable fin structure includes a plurality of fins. The replaceable fin structure is detachably disposed on the fin accommodating region. The cover is disposed on the substrate and covers the replaceable fin structure.

Description

Liquid cooling modules and electronic devices

The present invention relates to a liquid cooling module, and in particular, to a liquid cooling module with a replaceable fin structure and an electronic device equipped with the liquid cooling module.

As the speed and performance of electronic components in servers (such as central processing units) increase, more and more servers use liquid cooling modules to dissipate electronic components to improve heat dissipation efficiency. Please refer to Figure 1 , which is a perspective view of the heat sink 30 of the prior art. As shown in FIG. 1 , the fins 32 are integrally formed on the heat sink 30 . Generally speaking, liquid cooling modules have a heat sink 30 as shown in Figure 1, and the heat sink 30 will be attached to the electronic components. The heat of the electronic components is conducted to the fins 32 of the heat sink 30 , and then the heat is taken away by the cooling liquid flowing through the fins 32 . The heat sink 30 with the fins 32 is made of a material with high thermal conductivity, so the manufacturing and material costs are relatively high. During the development of the server, it is usually necessary to manufacture the heat sink 30 with the fins 32 of different shapes for electronic components of different powers to test the heat dissipation performance. As a result, a large number of heat sinks 30 with fins 32 of different shapes must be produced, which increases the manufacturing cost and lengthens the development cycle.

The present invention provides a liquid cooling module with a replaceable fin structure and an electronic device equipped with the liquid cooling module to solve the above problems.

According to an embodiment, the liquid cooling module of the present invention includes a heat sink, a replaceable fin structure and a cover. The heat sink includes a base plate, and the base plate has a fin accommodating area. The replaceable fin structure contains a plurality of fins. The replaceable fin structure is detachably disposed on the fin receiving area. The cover is disposed on the base plate and covers the replaceable fin structure.

According to another embodiment, an electronic device of the present invention includes a casing, an electronic component and a liquid cooling module. The electronic components are arranged in the casing. The liquid cooling module is arranged in the casing. The liquid cooling module includes a heat sink, a replaceable fin structure and a cover. The heat sink is arranged on the electronic component. The heat sink includes a base plate, and the base plate has a fin accommodating area. The replaceable fin structure contains a plurality of fins. The replaceable fin structure is detachably disposed on the fin receiving area. The cover is disposed on the base plate and covers the replaceable fin structure.

To sum up, the present invention detachably disposes the replaceable fin structure on the fin receiving area of the heat sink. Therefore, the present invention can quickly replace the replaceable fin structure with fins of different shapes for electronic components of different powers to test the heat dissipation performance. In this way, the heat sink does not need to be remade, which can effectively reduce manufacturing costs and shorten the development cycle. In addition, since the replaceable fin structure is an independent component, the overall volume is small and there are few processing restrictions. Therefore, the arrangement and shape of the fins of the replaceable fin structure can be more diverse to meet various heat dissipation needs.

The advantages and spirit of the present invention can be further understood through the following detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings.

Please refer to Figures 2 to 7. Figure 2 is a perspective view of a liquid cooling module 14 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is an electronic device 1 equipped with the liquid cooling module 14 in Figure 2. Figure 4 is an exploded view of the liquid cooling module 14 in Figure 2, Figure 5 is a perspective view of the liquid cooling module 14 in Figure 2 from another perspective, and Figure 6 is an exploded view of the liquid cooling module 14 in Figure 2. The exploded view of the liquid cooling module 14 in FIG. 7 is a perspective view of three replaceable fin structures 142 with fins of different shapes.

As shown in FIG. 3 , the electronic device 1 includes a housing 10 , an electronic component 12 and a liquid cooling module 14 . The electronic device 1 can be a computer, a server or other electronic devices, depending on the actual application. The electronic components 12 and the liquid cooling module 14 are both disposed in the housing 10 . The liquid cooling module 14 is disposed on the electronic component 12 to dissipate heat from the electronic component 12 . The electronic component 12 may be a central processing unit or other electronic components, depending on the actual application. Generally speaking, the electronic device 1 will also be equipped with necessary software and hardware components for operation, such as circuit boards, memories, power supplies, applications, communication modules, etc., depending on the actual application.

As shown in Figures 2 to 6, the liquid cooling module 14 includes a heat sink 140, a replaceable fin structure 142, a cover 144, an elastic member 46, a sealing ring 148 and a plurality of fixing members 150 . The heat sink 140 is disposed on the electronic component 12 . The heat sink 140 includes a substrate 1400, a first fixed fin structure 1402 and a second fixed fin structure 1404. In addition, the substrate 1400 has a fin receiving area 1406. The first fixed fin structure 1402 extends from the base plate 1400 and is adjacent to one side of the fin accommodating area 1406 . The second fixed fin structure 1404 extends from the base plate 1400 and is adjacent to the other side of the fin accommodating area 1406. Therefore, the fin receiving area 1406 is located between the first fixed fin structure 1402 and the second fixed fin structure 1404. In this embodiment, the first fixed fin structure 1402 and the second fixed fin structure 1404 can be integrally formed on the heat sink 140 . It should be noted that in another embodiment, the heat sink 140 may not include the first fixed fin structure 1402 and/or the second fixed fin structure 1404, that is, the first fixed fin structure 1402 and the second fixed fin structure 1404 may not include the first fixed fin structure 1402 and the second fixed fin structure 1404. The fin structure 1404 can be selectively disposed on the heat sink 140 according to actual applications.

The replaceable fin structure 142 is detachably disposed on the fin receiving area 1406 of the heat sink 140 . In this embodiment, the replaceable fin structure 142 includes a plurality of fins 1420, where each fin 1420 can be elongated, square or circular. As shown in FIG. 7 , this embodiment can provide three replaceable fin structures 142 with fins 1420 of different shapes. It should be noted that the number of replaceable fin structures 142 and the arrangement and shape of the fins 1420 can be determined according to actual applications, and are not limited to the embodiment illustrated in the figure.

The elastic member 146 is disposed between the replaceable fin structure 142 and the cover 144 . The cover 144 is disposed on the base plate 1400 of the heat sink 140 and covers the replaceable fin structure 142 and the elastic member 146 . In this embodiment, the elastic member 146 may be made of rubber or other elastic materials. The sealing ring 148 is disposed between the base plate 1400 and the cover 144 of the heat sink 140 . In this embodiment, the sealing ring 148 may be an O-ring. The plurality of fixing members 150 are used to fix the base plate 1400 of the heat sink 140 to the cover 144 . In this embodiment, the fixing member 150 may be a screw.

When assembling the liquid cooling module 14 , the user can first place the replaceable fin structure 142 on the fin receiving area 1406 of the heat sink 140 . Then, the user can dispose the elastic member 146 on the replaceable fin structure 142 and dispose the sealing ring 148 on the base plate 1400 of the heat sink 140 . Then, the user can place the cover 144 on the substrate 1400 of the heat dissipation base 140 . Finally, the user passes the fixing member 150 through the through hole 1408 of the base plate 1400 and locks it in the fixing hole 1440 of the cover 144 . Thereby, the assembly of the liquid cooling module 14 can be completed. After the liquid cooling module 14 is assembled, the cover 144 will press down the elastic member 146 so that the elastic member 146 presses the replaceable fin structure 142 onto the base plate 1400 of the heat sink 140 . In addition, the present invention can also absorb the assembly tolerance between components through the elastic deformation of the elastic member 146, so that the replaceable fin structure 142 is completely fixed on the base plate 1400 of the heat sink 140. The sealing ring 148 is used to seal the gap between the base plate 1400 and the cover 144 of the heat sink 140 .

In addition, the cover 144 includes a liquid inlet 1442 and a liquid outlet 1444. After the liquid cooling module 14 is assembled, the fin receiving area 1406 of the heat sink 140 is located between the liquid inlet 1442 and the liquid outlet 1444 . In other words, the present invention can utilize the space between the liquid inlet 1442 and the liquid outlet 1444 to provide the replaceable fin structure 142 . As shown in Figure 3, the cooling liquid (not shown in the figure) flows into the liquid cooling module 14 from the liquid inlet 1442 of the cover 144, flowing through the first fixed fin structure 1402, the replaceable fin structure 142 and The second fixed fin structure 1404 then flows out of the liquid cooling module 14 from the liquid outlet 1444 of the cover 144 .

When the user wants to replace the replaceable fin structure 142, the user only needs to remove the fixing part 150, the cover 144 and the elastic part 146 in sequence. Thereby, the user can quickly replace the replaceable fin structure 142 with the fins 1420 of different shapes for electronic components 12 of different powers to test the heat dissipation performance.

To sum up, the present invention detachably disposes the replaceable fin structure on the fin receiving area of the heat sink. Therefore, the present invention can quickly replace the replaceable fin structure with fins of different shapes for electronic components of different powers to test the heat dissipation performance. In this way, the heat sink does not need to be remade, which can effectively reduce manufacturing costs and shorten the development cycle. In addition, since the replaceable fin structure is an independent component, the overall volume is small and there are few processing restrictions. Therefore, the arrangement and shape of the fins of the replaceable fin structure can be more diverse to meet various heat dissipation needs.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the liquid cooling module and electronic device of the present invention can be applied to a server. The server can be used for artificial intelligence (English: Artificial Intelligence, AI for short) computing and edge computing (Edge Computing). ), can also be used as a 5G server, cloud server or Internet of Vehicles server. The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention, and all equivalent changes and modifications made in accordance with the patentable scope of the present invention shall fall within the scope of the present invention.

1: Electronic devices 10: Shell 12: Electronic components 14:Liquid cooling module 30,140: Radiator seat 32:Fins 142: Replaceable fin structure 144: Cover 146: Elastic parts 148:Sealing ring 150: Fixtures 1400:Substrate 1402: First fixed fin structure 1404: Second fixed fin structure 1406: Fin accommodation area 1408:Through hole 1420:Fins 1440:Fixing hole 1442:Liquid inlet 1444:Liquid outlet

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a heat sink in the prior art. Figure 2 is a perspective view of a liquid cooling module according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device equipped with the liquid cooling module in Figure 2 . Figure 4 is an exploded view of the liquid cooling module in Figure 2. Figure 5 is a perspective view of the liquid cooling module in Figure 2 from another perspective. Figure 6 is an exploded view of the liquid cooling module in Figure 5. Figure 7 is a perspective view of three replaceable fin structures with fins of different shapes.

14:Liquid cooling module

140: Cooling seat

142: Replaceable fin structure

144: Cover

146: Elastic parts

148:Sealing ring

150: Fixtures

1400:Substrate

1402: First fixed fin structure

1404: Second fixed fin structure

1406: Fin accommodation area

1408:Through hole

1420:Fins

1442:Liquid inlet

1444:Liquid outlet

Claims (10)

A liquid cooling module containing: A heat dissipation base includes a base plate having a fin accommodation area; A replaceable fin structure includes a plurality of fins, the replaceable fin structure is detachably disposed on the fin accommodating area; and A cover is disposed on the substrate and covers the replaceable fin structure. The liquid cooling module of claim 1, wherein the heat dissipation base further includes a first fixed fin structure and a second fixed fin structure, the first fixed fin structure extends from the base plate and is adjacent to the a fin accommodating area, the second fixed fin structure extends from the base plate and is adjacent to the fin accommodating area; the fin accommodating area is located between the first fixed fin structure and the second fixed fin structure between. The liquid cooling module of claim 1 further includes an elastic member disposed between the replaceable fin structure and the cover. The liquid cooling module of claim 1 further includes a sealing ring disposed between the base plate and the cover. The liquid cooling module of claim 1, wherein the cover includes a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, and the fin accommodating area is located between the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet. An electronic device containing: a shell; An electronic component is disposed in the housing; and A liquid cooling module is provided in the housing. The liquid cooling module includes: A heat dissipation base is provided on the electronic component, the heat dissipation base includes a substrate, the substrate has a fin accommodation area; A replaceable fin structure includes a plurality of fins, the replaceable fin structure is detachably disposed on the fin accommodating area; and A cover is disposed on the substrate and covers the replaceable fin structure. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the heat dissipation base further includes a first fixed fin structure and a second fixed fin structure, the first fixed fin structure extends from the substrate and is adjacent to the fin accommodating area, the second fixed fin structure extends from the base plate and is adjacent to the fin accommodating area, the fin accommodating area is located between the first fixed fin structure and the second fixed fin structure . The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the liquid cooling module further includes an elastic member disposed between the replaceable fin structure and the cover. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the liquid cooling module further includes a sealing ring disposed between the substrate and the cover. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the cover includes a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, and the fin accommodating area is located between the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet.

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