PCMCIA card heat removal apparatus and methods

Abstract

Operating heat generated by a PCMCIA card inserted into the base housing portion of a computer, representatively a notebook computer, is dissipated by a heat sink system disposed within the base housing. In response to insertion of the card into its associated support structure within the base housing, a metal heat sink plate member is resiliently pressed into firm engagement with a side of the inserted card by a spring member interconnected between the plate member and the card support structure. Card operating heat is efficiently transferred to the metal plate member by conduction. To dissipate the heat received by the plate member, a heat removing fluid is flowed against the plate member and caused to receive heat therefrom. Heat received by the fluid is then transferred to ambient air external to the computer to substantially lower the operating temperature of the inserted PCMCIA card. In one embodiment of the heat sink system the fluid is air flowed externally across the plate member, by a small fan disposed within the base housing, and then discharged outwardly through the base housing. In another embodiment of the heat sink system the fluid is a liquid sequentially pumped through a flow passage within the plate member, flowed through a radiator structure externally mounted on the computer, and then returned to the internal plate member flow passage.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.