CN102385426A - Flow guiding device - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a flow guide device, which is arranged on a fan array of a server, wherein the fan array is provided with at least two fans which are arranged in parallel, and the fan array is used for generating airflow to dissipate heat of at least one heat source in the server; this guiding device includes: a pivot arranged between the two fans; and a flow guiding body connected to the pivot and driven by the airflow generated by the fan array to swing around the pivot as an axis. According to the flow guide device provided by the invention, when one fan in the fan array fails, the flow guide body can fully utilize the driving force generated by the backflow air flow to swing to the failed fan, so that the air flow generated by the fan array is inhibited from flowing back to the failed fan, the normal operation of a server is ensured, and the space and the manufacturing cost of the server are saved.

Description

deflector

technical field

The invention relates to a heat dissipation structure of a server, in particular to a flow guiding device capable of solving the failure problem of a fan in the server.

Background technique

FIG. 1 is a known heat dissipation structure of a server. The server 100 includes a plurality of electronic components, such as a central processing unit, etc., all of which are heat sources 110 for dissipating heat. In order to control the temperature of the server, the server usually has a row of fan arrays 120, and a plurality of fans 121, 122 and 123 therein can be used to generate airflow blown to the heat sources, so as to properly remove the heat emitted by the heat sources.

To illustrate the heat dissipation problem caused by the failure of the fan in the fan array of the server, please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 1 shows the airflow state when the server cooling structure is in normal operation, and FIG. 2 shows the fan array 120 Changes in airflow when one of the fans 122 fails. The server usually has a semi-closed casing, and the air intake side of the fan array often has high flow resistance due to other objects (such as densely arranged hard disks 130 ). When the fan 122 in the fan array 120 fails, the air pressure distribution formed by the normally operating fans 121 and 123 and the high flow resistance object will force the airflow sent by the fans 121 and 123 to continuously flow back to the failed fan 122, as shown in the figure Show. Wherein, the above-mentioned back-and-forth airflow will make the heat generated by the heat source 110 unable to be removed and accumulated in the server 110 .

In actual operation, each fan in the fan array may fail and stop running due to various factors, resulting in problems in heat dissipation of the server, thereby hindering the normal operation of the server. The servers in some computer rooms are required to operate continuously. Once such servers are paralyzed due to fan failure, it will often lead to serious consequences.

In the known technology, two kinds of fan redundant means are adopted to overcome the foregoing problems. One is the "double fan array" design, which means adding a second row of fan arrays for equipment outside the original fan array. The second is the "double motor" design, which means adding a second motor for equipment to each fan in the fan array. Although both methods can solve the aforementioned problem of sudden failure of the fan, both will greatly increase the space occupied by the server and the manufacturing cost.

Therefore, there is a need for a new design that can effectively solve the problem of fan failure in the server and save the space and manufacturing cost of the server.

Contents of the invention

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a flow guiding device to solve the problem of failure of the fan in the server and save the space and manufacturing cost of the server.

For this reason, the present invention provides a kind of air guiding device, is arranged on the fan array of server, and wherein this fan array has at least two fans that are arranged in parallel, and this fan array is used for generating air flow as at least one heat source in this server For heat dissipation, the air guide device includes: a pivot, arranged between the two fans; and a deflector, connected to the pivot, and driven by the airflow generated by the fan array to swing around the pivot is used for swinging towards the failed fan when a fan in the fan array fails, so as to prevent the airflow generated by the fan array from flowing back to the failed fan.

In the air guiding device proposed by the present invention, when a fan in the fan array fails, the guiding body can make full use of the driving force generated by the returning air flow to swing towards the failed fan, preventing the air flow generated by the fan array from flowing back to the fan array. The failed fan easily solves the aforementioned heat dissipation problem, thereby ensuring the normal operation of the server, and saving the space and manufacturing cost of the server.

Description of drawings

The following drawings are only intended to illustrate and explain the present invention schematically, and do not limit the scope of the present invention. in:

FIG. 1 is a known heat dissipation structure of a server.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of changes in air flow when a fan in the fan array fails.

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of a flow guide device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of the air flow when a fan in the above fan array fails.

FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram of a flow guide device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram of air flow when a fan in the fan array fails.

Explanation of main component labels:

100 servers

110 heat source

120 fan array

121, 122, 123 fans

300 servers

310 heat source

320 fan array

321, 322, 323 fans

400 server

410 heat source

420 fan array

421, 422, 423 fans

441, 442 Outer side

Detailed ways

In order to have a clearer understanding of the technical features, purposes and effects of the present invention, the specific implementation manners of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Each embodiment is used to illustrate the principles of the present invention, but not to limit the present invention. The scope of the present invention should be determined by the claims.

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of a flow guide device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Similar to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the air guiding device of the present invention is disposed on a fan array 320 of a server 300 , wherein the fan array 320 may have a plurality of fans 321 - 323 arranged in parallel. It should be noted that the number of fans here is only an example, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Those skilled in the art can understand that the present invention can be implemented with at least two fans. Wherein, the fan array 320 is used to generate airflow to dissipate heat for at least one heat source 310 in the server. For the convenience of description, in the following embodiments, the direction of the fan array 320 close to the heat source is the air outlet side, and the other side is the air inlet side.

Different from the known technology, the present invention does not adopt the design of "dual arrays" or "dual motors", but uses a simpler and more effective guide device. The flow guiding device of the present invention includes a pivot 330 and a guiding body 340 . The pivot 330 is disposed between two fans, such as between the fans 321 and 322 and between the fans 322 and 323 in the figure. In a preferred embodiment, the pivot 330 should be close to the air outlet side of the fan array 320 . The deflector 340 is connected to the pivot 330 and is a light object, so it can be driven by the airflow generated by the fan array 320 to swing around the pivot 330 . Fig. 3A is the top view of the server and the flow guiding device. Since the fan itself has a certain height, although the guiding body 340 is shown as a long strip in this figure, the guiding body 340 is actually a sheet-shaped object, and the top An edge of is connected to the pivot 330 .

Figure 3A shows the situation when the above-mentioned fan array 320 is in normal operation. In this embodiment, the fan array 320 blows the wind to the heat source 310, while the guide body 340 of the present invention naturally swings to the direction parallel to the airflow direction due to the action of the airflow. position, and guide the airflow generated by the fan array 320 to the heat source 310 in front of the fan array 320 .

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of airflow when a fan 322 in the fan array 320 fails, to illustrate another state of the guide body 340 of the present invention when the fan fails. In detail, when a fan 322 in the fan array 320 fails, the non-failed fans 321 and 323 will generate a return airflow sent to the failed fan 322 in the server 300, as shown in FIG. When formed, the driving force of the airflow can make the deflector 340 of the present invention swing towards the failed fan 322 , thereby achieving the effect of preventing the airflow generated by the fan array 320 from flowing back to the failed fan 322 . FIG. 3B shows a preferred embodiment of the present invention, wherein the length of the sheet-shaped guide body 340 is designed to be slightly larger than the width of the fan 322, so that when the two guide bodies 340 fail to function, whether the central fan 322 or the left and right fans 321, 323 fail , can completely cover the failed fan. However, in practice, the space of the server 300 usually does not allow the guide body 340 to have an excessively long size, so the guide body that cannot completely cover the fan must be designed due to space constraints. Even so, the deflector 340 with a limited length can still destroy the formation of the backflow airflow, and achieve the effect of inhibiting the airflow generated by the fan array from flowing back to the failed fan. Therefore, the present invention does not need to limit the length of the deflector 340. Personnel can carry out optimum design according to the spirit of the present invention.

FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram of a flow guide device according to another embodiment of the present invention. As in the foregoing embodiments, the fan array 420 is used as the heat source 410 in the server 400 to dissipate heat, and the air guide device of the present invention is also arranged on the fan array 420, and also has a pivot 430 and a guide body 440. However, this The guide body 440 of this embodiment has a shape different from that of the previous embodiments. FIG. 4A is a top view of the server and the flow guiding device, in which the guiding body 440 is Y-shaped and has two pieces extending outward from the pivot 430 . There is an angle greater than zero between the two pieces of the guide body 440 , as shown in the figure.

Similar to the aforementioned embodiment of FIG. 3A , in this embodiment, the fan array 420 blows the wind toward the heat source 410, while the guide body 440 of the present invention is naturally swung in approximately the same direction as the air flow due to the action of the air flow. The airflow generated by the fan array 420 is directed to the heat source 410 . FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram of air flow when a fan 422 in the fan array 420 fails, to illustrate another state of the guide body 440 of the present invention when the fan fails. Similar to the aforementioned embodiment of FIG. 3B , when the fan 422 fails, one side (in this example, the outer side 441 ) of the two outer surfaces 441 and 442 of the guide body 440 can be used in the fan array 420 When a fan fails, swing toward the failed fan 422 to prevent the airflow generated by the fan array 420 from flowing back to the failed fan 422 .

Compared with the aforementioned embodiment of FIG. 3A , the double-piece design of the guide body 440 in this embodiment enables the other side of the outer surfaces 441 and 442 (in this example, the outer surface 442 ) to have other functions: the outer surface 422 can be When the fan 422 in the fan array 420 fails, the airflow generated by the non-failed fans 421 and 423 is guided to the heat source that was originally located directly in front of the failed fan 422 . For the same reason as in the foregoing embodiments, the present invention does not need to limit the length of the two pieces of the guide body 440, because the guide body with a limited length can still destroy the formation of the backflow airflow, so as to prevent the airflow generated by the fan array from flowing back to the failed fan. Effect. In addition, the present invention does not need to limit the size of the included angle between the two-piece structures of the guide body 440 in this embodiment. Those skilled in the art can optimize the length and included angle of the guide body 440 according to the size and relative positions of the heat source and the fan in the server. It is worth noting that, in an ideal embodiment, the above-mentioned two outer surfaces 441, 442 are streamlined curved surfaces, and in order to make the guiding body 440 more easily driven by the air flow, a double-plate design is adopted to Reduce the mass of the guide body 440 . However, in other embodiments, the present invention does not need to limit its shape (for example, the guide body 440 can even be a triangular prism, a polygonal column and a cylinder), as long as the guide body 440 has two angles that fit together and have the quality that can be blown by fan wind force, just can reach effect of the present invention.

The above descriptions are only illustrative specific implementations of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Any equivalent changes and modifications made by those skilled in the art without departing from the concept and principle of the present invention shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. A flow guiding device, configured on a fan array of a server, wherein the fan array has at least two fans arranged in parallel, and the fan array is used to generate airflow to dissipate heat for at least one heat source in the server, its features That is, the diversion device includes: a pivot disposed between the two fans; and A deflector is connected to the pivot and is driven by the airflow generated by the fan array to swing around the pivot. 2. The air guiding device according to claim 1, wherein when a fan in the fan array fails, the guiding body can swing towards the failed fan, so as to prevent the airflow generated by the fan array from flowing back to the fan array. Failed fan. 3 . The air guide device according to claim 1 , wherein when the fan array operates normally, the guide body can guide the airflow generated by the fan array to the at least one heat source. 4 . 4. The flow guiding device according to claim 1, wherein the guiding body is in the shape of a sheet. 5 . The flow guiding device according to claim 1 , wherein the guiding body has at least two surfaces, and an angle is formed between the two surfaces. 6. The air guide device according to claim 5, wherein when a fan in the fan array fails, one of the two sides can swing towards the failed fan, so as to suppress the backflow of the airflow generated by the fan array to the failed fan. 7. The air guide device according to claim 6, wherein when the fan in the fan array fails, the other side of the two sides can guide the airflow generated by the non-failed fan to the at least one heat source . 8. The air guide device according to claim 1, wherein the pivot is close to the air outlet side of the fan array. 9. A flow guiding device, configured on a fan array of a server, wherein the fan array has at least two fans arranged in parallel, and the fan array is used to generate airflow to dissipate heat from at least one heat source in the server, its features That is, the diversion device includes: a pivot disposed between the two fans; and A deflector connected to the pivot and driven by the airflow generated by the fan array to swing around the pivot, when a fan in the fan array fails, the deflector can swing towards the failed fan , so as to prevent the airflow generated by the fan array from flowing back to the failed fan. 10 . The air guiding device according to claim 9 , wherein when the fan array is operating normally, the guiding body can also guide the airflow generated by the fan array to the at least one heat source. 11 .

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