Method of detecting recirculation of heated air within a rack enclosure
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsThomas Michael Bradicich, Angela Beth Dalton, Richard Edwin Harper, William Joseph Piazza
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and method of detecting recirculation within a rack server system. A heat transfer model is constructed for a rack server system. A recirculation zone is specified, and hypothetical recirculation temperatures are input at the recirculation zone. The heat transfer model predicts temperatures elsewhere in the rack severe system, and a predicted temperature profile is computed. Actual temperatures in the rack server system are sensed, and an actual temperature profile is also generated. The actual temperature profile is compared with the predicted temperature profile to detect potential recirculation.
Claims19
A method, comprising:
- creating a heat transfer model of an electronic system, the electronic system including an enclosure having one or more heat generating elements;
- specifying a recirculation zone within the heat transfer model through which heated air can re-enter the enclosure;
- selecting one or more hypothetical temperature values for modeling at the recirculation zone;
- computing a first predicted temperature profile within the enclosure of the electronic system using the heat transfer model as a function of the one or more selected hypothetical temperature values at the recirculation zone, the first predicted temperature profile including predicted temperatures downstream of the recirculation zone;
- sensing an actual temperature profile within the enclosure of the electronic system, the actual temperature profile including actual temperatures downstream of the recirculation zone;
- and
- comparing the actual temperature profile with the first predicted temperature profile, to detect potential recirculation.
A method of detecting recirculation within a rack enclosure, comprising:
- providing temperature sensors within the rack enclosure;
- sensing actual temperatures using the temperature sensors;
- defining one or more recirculation zones within the rack enclosure;
- modeling heat transfer within the rack enclosure, including the effects of recirculation at the one or more recirculation zones, to predict temperatures at locations within the rack enclosure downstream of the one or more recirculation zones;
- modeling heat transfer within the rack enclosure, excluding the effects of recirculation at the one or more recirculation zones;
- mapping locations of the predicted temperatures to locations of the temperature sensors positioned within the rack enclosure;
- and
- determining whether the actual temperatures more closely correspond with the temperatures predicted when including the effects of recirculation or with the temperatures predicted when excluding the effects of recirculation.
A computer program product including computer usable program code embodied on a computer usable medium for managing an air-cooled computer system, the computer program product including:
- computer usable program code for creating a heat transfer model of an electronic system, the electronic system including an enclosure having one or more heat generating elements;
- computer usable program code for specifying a recirculation zone within the heat transfer model through which heated air can re-enter the enclosure;
- computer usable program code for selecting one or more hypothetical temperature values for modeling at the recirculation zone;
- computer usable program code for computing a first predicted temperature profile within the enclosure of the electronic system using the heat transfer model as a function of the one or more selected hypothetical temperature values at the recirculation zone, the first predicted temperature profile including predicted temperatures downstream of the recirculation zone;
- computer usable program code for sensing an actual temperature profile within the enclosure of the electronic system, the actual temperature profile including actual temperatures downstream of the recirculation zone;
- and
- computer usable program code for comparing the actual temperature profile with the first predicted temperature profile, to detect potential recirculation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.