Heat dissipation assembly with pivotable deflecting plate

This application is related to co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/479,959, filed on Jun. 8, 2009, entitled “HEAT DISSIPATION APPARATUS”.

1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a heat dissipation assembly.

2. Description of Related Art

Electronic devices in computers, such as central processing units (CPUs), generate heat during normal operation, which can deteriorate their operational stability, and damage associated electronic devices. Thus, the heat must be removed quickly to ensure normal operation of the CPU. A typical heat dissipation assembly includes a heat sink mounted on a CPU to remove heat, and a fan fixed on the heat sink to generate airflow through the heat dissipation assembly. However, the typical heat dissipation assembly can only dissipate heat for a single heat source, and has a low efficiency.

Many aspects of the embodiments can be better understood with references to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the embodiments. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a motherboard with heat sources thereon.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of an embodiment of a heat dissipation assembly.

FIG. 3 is an assembled view of the heat dissipation assembly of FIG. 1 .

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of an embodiment of a heat dissipation assembly. The heat dissipation assembly includes a heat sink 10 , a fan 20 , a fan bracket 30 , a supporting member 40 , and a deflecting plate 60 .

The heat sink 10 includes a base 12 , a plurality of first heat dissipation fins 14 connected to the base 12 , a plurality of second heat dissipation fins 16 connected to the first heat dissipation fins 14 , and a plurality of heat dissipating pipes 18 attached to the base 12 below the first heat dissipation fins 14 and extending through the second heat dissipation fins 16 . The first heat dissipation fins 14 are perpendicular to the base 12 , and the second heat dissipation fins 16 are parallel to the base 12 . A bottom surface of the base 15 is configured to contact a first heat source 102 , such as a central processing unit (CPU) on a motherboard 100 (See FIG. 1 ). The heat generated by the first heat source 102 can be transmitted from the base 12 to the second heat dissipation fins 16 via the heat dissipating pipes 18 .

The fan 20 is adapted to be attached to the heat sink 10 via the fan bracket 30 . The fan 20 can define four through holes 22 at four corners thereof. The fan bracket 30 includes a mounting panel 32 and a pair of L-shaped side flanges 36 perpendicularly extending from two side edges of the mounting panel 32 . An airflow opening 38 is defined in the mounting panel 32 . Four mounting holes 34 corresponding to the through holes 22 of the fan 20 are defined in the mounting panels 32 for receiving fasteners 24 therein.

The supporting member 40 includes a slim pivotable rod 42 , a pair of mounting pieces 46 , and a cylinder 44 extending from each of the mounting pieces 46 . Each end of the pivotable rod 42 is pivotably engaged in a pivot hole (not shown) of the cylinder 44 . A screw hole 461 is defined in each of the mounting pieces 46 and communicates with the pivot hole of the cylinder 44 . A pair of securing protrusions 463 is formed on an inner surface of each of the mounting pieces 46 . The deflecting plate 60 includes a tilted flange 62 , configured to be secured to the pivotable rod 42 of the supporting member 40 by welding, soldering or the like, thereby pivotable together with the pivotable rod 42 .

Referring to FIG. 3 , in assembly, the side flanges 36 of the fan bracket 30 tightly clamp the second heat dissipation fins 16 of the heat sink 10 to secure the fan bracket 30 to the second heat dissipation fins 16 . The fasteners 24 extend through the through holes 22 of the fan 20 and the mounting holes 34 of the fan bracket 30 to secure the fan 22 at one side of the second heat dissipation fins 16 of the heat sink 10 . The tilted flange 62 of the deflecting plate 60 is attached to the pivotable rod 42 of the supporting member 40 . The mounting pieces 46 of the supporting member 40 are resisting against opposite sides of the second heat dissipation fins 16 of the heat sink 10 and secured to the second heat dissipation fins 16 by adhesive or a fastener, and the securing protrusions 463 of the mounting pieces 46 engage in a gap between two adjacent second heat dissipation fins 16 , thereby securing the supporting member 40 at another side of the second heat dissipation fins 16 of the heat sink 10 . Then, the fan 20 and the deflecting plate 60 are positioned at opposite sides of the second heat dissipation fins 16 of the heat sink 10 . When the deflecting plate 60 rotates to an appropriate angle, a pair of screws 50 can be extended into the screw holes 461 of the mounting pieces 46 of the supporting member 40 and press the ends of the pivotable rod 42 , thereby fixing the deflecting plate 60 at the appropriate angle using friction between the screws 50 and the ends of the pivotable rod 42 .

In another embodiment, the deflecting plate 60 is fixed at the appropriate angle using friction between the pivotable rod 42 and the cylinder 44 .

When the fan 20 rotates, the heat accumulated around the heat sink 10 will be absorbed by airflow from the fan 20 . Some of the airflow produced by the fan 20 will pass through the second heat dissipation fins 16 and be deflected by the deflecting plate 60 towards the second heat sources 104 on the motherboard 100 (See FIG. 1 ) and the first heat dissipation fins 14 , thereby dissipating the heat from the second heat sources 104 and accelerating dissipating the heat of the first heat source 102 . The efficiency of heat dissipation for the entire motherboard 100 is improved. The deflecting plate 60 is adjustable to a desired angle according to the position of the other heat sources.

It is to be understood, however, that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the embodiments have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the embodiments, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.