Thermal control system for rack mounting

#1. Technical Field

#The present invention relates to thermal control systems, and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to low profile, rack mounted thermal control systems for cooling or heating equipment disposed in or in the vicinity of an equipment rack.

#2. Background of Related Art

#A more complete understanding of the method and apparatus of the present invention may be obtained by reference to the following Detailed Description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying Drawings wherein:

#FIG. 1 is a top view of a temperature control system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

#FIG. 2 is a front view of a temperature control system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

#Referring now to FIG. 1, a top view of a temperature control system 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. The temperature control system 100 utilizes a heat transfer fluid that is circulated in a closed loop to cool or heat components within a conventional rack. The heat transfer fluid may be, for example, a water/glycol mixture, although other heat transfer fluids may be utilized. In one embodiment, the temperature control system 100 is contained in a chassis 110 having an available internal space 111, a front face 201 and, a rear face 301. In one embodiment, three HTA modules 102 are utilized to effect cooling and/or heating in the temperature control system 100, however embodiments of the present invention may include more or fewer HTA modules as desired. As clearly illustrated in FIG. 1, the HTA modules 102 are secured in a chassis 110 in a continuous heat transfer chassis region 103. Spaces 106 are disposed between adjacent HTA modules 102. The HTA modules 102 are oriented parallel to each other and perpendicular to a depth 107 of the chassis 110. The continuous heat transfer chassis region 103 occupies over half of the available internal space 111 of the chassis 110. The temperature control system 100 may also include up to six internal fan assemblies (not shown) and an addition three internal fans with an external fan tray. The fans may be oriented in a push/pull fan arrangement or other arrangement as desired. In alternate embodiments, fans on the heat transfer side are not included. Instead, the temperature control system 100 may utilize micro extrusions to transfer power from the Thermoelectric Cooling Module (“TEC”) via water. The power supplies that drive the TEC's may have variable output (5-135 Vdc) which can be varied by the controller using, for example, a Pulse Width Modulation (“PWM”) signal. This variable output design of the power supply can modulate the power to the TEC's to achieve precise temperature control. This variable output also allows the chiller to only use the minimum required input power to provide the optimal control. This lowers the overall input power required by lowering the drive voltage to the TEC's in applications that have low heat loads. A preferred embodiment of the present inventions has thermal performance capabilities of 725 Watts at 0° C. delta T supply minus ambient air. An alternative embodiment of the present inventions utilizing a plant water supply has capabilities in excess of 1,100 Watts at 0° C. delta T supply minus service water.

#The fan assembly 206 maximizes efficiency of the temperature control system 100 by maximizing the airflow (denoted by arrow 231) to the HTA modules 102. In one embodiment, shown in FIG. 7, the HTA modules 102 of the present invention are formed of low profile extrusions 220 having a plurality of micro channels 223. Each micro channel 223 has a micro channel inlet and a micro channel outlet. The low profile extrusions 220 preferably formed with heat sinks 231 and external fins 230 to maximize heat transfer, if space allows. The fins 230 are constructed having spaces 233 disposed there between. In a typical embodiment, the HTA modules are arranged so that the spaces 233 are parallel to a depth 107 of the chassis 110. The micro channel inlets are in fluid communication with each other, and to an inlet channel, by an inlet end cap. Similarly, micro channel outlets are in fluid communication with each other, and to the outlet channel, by an outlet end cap. The heat transfer fluid (denoted by arrow 232) is circulated through the inlet channel, the low profile extrusion 220, the outlet channel, and tubing via the pump 104. As shown in FIG. 1, in a typical embodiment, the heat transfer fluid 232 flows through the low profile extrusion 220 in a direction perpendicular to the depth 107 of the chassis 110. The pump 104 is disposed within the chassis 110 in a continuous pump region 101. The continuous pump region 101 occupies less than half of the available internal space 111 of the chassis 110 and is disposed adjacent to the continuous heat transfer chassis region 103. The continuous pump region 101 and the continuous heat transfer region 103 are separated by a boundary 105. The boundary 105 is disposed parallel to the depth 107 of the chassis 110 and runs between an interior aspect 108 of the front face 201 to an interior aspect 109 of the rear face 301. Alternatively, the temperature control system 100 may be evacuated and charged with fluid which is then circulated via the pump 104. Further details regarding low profile extrusions 220 and the heat transfer fluid flow system and method herein referenced are set forth and shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/328,183, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,935,409, referenced above and incorporated herein by reference.

#The temperature control system 100 utilizes a pump 104, such as a positive displacement, centrifugal, or turbine style magnetically coupled pump. The pump 104 is of such a size as to fit in the 3U configuration and may have a variety of gear sizes, port sizes, etc. as needed. The customized selection of the pump and other components may also be provided in the 3U system as described below. A preferred embodiment of the present invention has flow rate capabilities on the order of one gallon per minute or four Liters per minute.