Systems and methods for detecting impeded cooling air flow for information handling system chassis enclosures
AssigneeDell Products L.P.
InventorsTravis C. North, Karunakar P. Reddy
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Systems and methods are provided that that may be implemented to detect impeded flow of cooling air within a chassis enclosure of an information handling system based on sensed air pressure and/or air pressure changes occurring within the cooling air flow while the system is actively running. The systems and methods may be further implemented to take one or more thermal management actions based on sensed air pressure within the chassis enclosure together with other optional sensed parameters (e.g., such as sensed temperatures and/or sensed user operating mode based on accelerometer and/or gyroscope sensor input).
Claims24
An information handling system, comprising:
- a chassis enclosure having at least one inlet defined in the chassis enclosure and at least one outlet defined in the chassis enclosure;
- at least one heat-generating component disposed within the chassis enclosure;
- at least one cooling fan disposed within the chassis enclosure, the cooling fan configured to move air in a first direction through a first air flow path within the chassis enclosure to cool the at least one heat-generating component;
- at least two pressure sensors disposed at different respective locations within the first air flow path within the chassis enclosure;
- at least one processing device coupled to the pressure sensors to monitor a real time air pressure at the different respective locations within the first air flow path and coupled to control an operation of one or more components of the information handling system to take one or more thermal management actions based on the monitored air pressure at the different respective locations within the first air flow path;
- and
- where the processing device is programmed to compare an absolute value of the difference between the real time monitored air pressure at the two different pressure sensors to a predefined absolute pressure difference threshold value while the cooling fan is moving air in the first direction;
- and to take the one or more thermal management actions based on the monitored air pressure within the first air flow path only if the absolute value of the difference in real time monitored air pressure meets or exceeds the predefined absolute pressure difference threshold value.
A method, comprising:
- controlling at least one cooling fan disposed within a chassis enclosure of an information handling system to draw in air from outside the chassis enclosure through at least one inlet defined in the chassis enclosure into the interior of the chassis enclosure to move the air in a first direction through a first air flow path within the chassis enclosure to cool at least one heat-generating component within the chassis enclosure and to expel the air from the interior of the chassis enclosure through at least one outlet defined in the chassis enclosure;
- monitoring real time air pressure at at least two different respective locations within the first air flow path while the cooling fan is moving the air in the first direction through the first air flow path within the chassis enclosure;
- comparing an absolute value of the difference between the real time monitored air pressure at the two different respective locations to a predefined absolute pressure difference threshold value while the cooling fan is moving air in the first direction;
- and
- controlling the operation of one or more components of the information handling system to take the one or more thermal management actions based on the monitored air pressure within the first air flow path only if the absolute value of the difference in real time monitored air pressure meets or exceeds the predefined absolute pressure difference threshold value.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.