Back to results
US 6,293,828 B1Granted
Methods and systems for a power supply housing
AssigneePower-One, Inc.
InventorsFrank W. Colver, Trung M. Duong
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention is directed to methods and systems for a power supply housing system. In one embodiment, the housing assembly has a rear side and at least a first connector accessible from the rear side. The first connector has at least one pin which extends from the rear side by a first amount. A first key assembly extends from the rear side and is configured to permit the power supply to be fully inserted into a rack in a first orientation and to prevent the power supply from being fully inserted into the rack in a second orientation. A standoff assembly extends from the rear side by a second amount greater than the first amount.
Claims23
A hot-swappable power supply that electrically plugs into a rack, the power supply comprising:
- at least one circuit board;
- a housing assembly, said housing assembly having a substantially square rear side thereby allowing at least partial insertion of the power supply into the rack in at least a first, a second, a third, and a fourth orientations;
- at least a first connector accessible from said rear side, said first connector having at least one pin which extends from said rear side by a first amount, said pin in electrical communication with said circuit board, said first connector adapted to couple with a connector in the rack;
- a first key assembly extending from said rear side by a second amount, said first key assembly configured to permit said power supply to be fully inserted into the rack in a first orientation;
- and
- a standoff assembly including at least four standoffs extending from said rear side by a third amount greater than said first amount and greater than said second amount, where the standoff assembly protects the first connector and the first key assembly when rested on the rear side, but allows the first connector and the first key assembly to couple with the connector in the rack when inserted in the first orientation, where the standoff assembly includes:
- a first standoff spaced a first distance from a first side of the housing and a second distance less than the first distance from a second side of the housing, where the second side of the housing is adjacent to the first side of the housing;
- a second standoff spaced at about the second distance from the second side of the housing and at about the second distance from a third side of the housing, where the third side of the housing is opposite to the first side of the housing;
- a third standoff spaced a third distance different than the first distance from the first side of the housing and at about the third distance from a fourth side of the housing, where the fourth side is opposite to the second side of the housing;
- and
- a fourth standoff positioned about the third distance from the third side of the housing and at about third distance from the fourth side of the housing.
8 more elements
A hot-swappable power supply adapted to plug into a rack, comprising:
- a power supply housing assembly having at least a first side having a center and at least a first edge, wherein said first side is substantially square;
- a connector located on said first side, said connector having a first set of pins;
- at least a first key extending from said first side of said power supply housing assembly, wherein said first key is positioned a first distance from said center of said first side and a second distance greater than the first distance from said first edge of said first side such that the first key does not strike a connector when the power supply is inserted into the rack in an incorrect orientation.
A power system comprising:
- a power supply having at least a first set of pins and at least a first key extending from a first side of said power supply, where the first side is substantially square;
- and
- a rack configured to receive at least two of said power supplies substantially side by side, said rack having a first mating area for receiving said first set of pins and a second mating area for receiving said first key, said second mating area positioned so that said power supply can only be fully inserted in a first orientation, and said first mating area positioned so that said first key will not strike said first mating area if said power supply is inserted in an orientation selected from the group consisting of a second orientation, a third orientation, and a fourth orientation, where the first, the second, the third, and the fourth orientations are displaced by approximately 90 degrees.
A method of protecting components in a system in a hot-swappable power supply, the method comprising:
- (a) permitting at least partial insertion of a rear side of the power supply into a rack in a first, a second, a third, and a fourth orientations that vary from each other by about 90 degrees;
- (b) keying the power supply with at least one key to prevent complete insertion of the power supply in an orientation other than the first orientation;
- (c) locating the at least one key such that the key does not strike a connector in the rack when the power supply is inserted in an orientation other than the first orientation;
- (d) gradually inserting the power supply in the first orientation, where the at least one key permits complete insertion in the first orientation;
- (e) connecting to an alternating current (AC) power source by:
- (i) connecting to an AC common through a first pin in a first blind mating connector;
- (ii) connecting to at least one phase of the AC power source through a second pin in the first blind mating connector after the connecting to the AC common, where the second pin pre-charges an EMI filter to limit an inrush current;
- and
- (iii) connecting to the at least one phase of the AC power source through a third pin in the first blind mating connector after connecting with the second pin;
- (f) connecting to a direct current (DC) power bus by:
- (i) connecting to a ground through a first pin in a second blind mating connector;
- and
- (ii) connecting to a voltage line through a second pin in the second blind mating connector.
10 more elements
A hot-swappable power supply comprising:
- means for permitting at least partial insertion of a rear side of the power supply into a rack in a first, a second, a third, and a fourth orientations that vary from each other by about 90 degrees;
- means for keying the power supply with at least one key to prevent complete insertion of the power supply in an orientation other than the first orientation;
- means for locating the at least one key such that the key does not strike a connector in the rack when the power supply is inserted in an orientation other than the first orientation;
- means for gradually inserting the power supply in the first orientation, where the at least one key permits complete insertion in the first orientation;
- means for connecting to an alternating current (AC) power source by:
- means for connecting to an AC common through a first pin in a first blind mating connector;
- means for connecting to at least one phase of the AC power source through a second pin in the first blind mating connector after the connecting to the AC common, where the second pin pre-charges an EMI filter to limit an inrush current;
- and
- means for connecting to the at least one phase of the AC power source through a third pin in the first blind mating connector after connecting with the second pin;
- means for connecting to a direct current (DC) power bus by:
- means for connecting to a ground through a first pin in a second blind mating connector;
- and
- means for connecting to a voltage line through a second pin in the second blind mating connector.
10 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.