Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Mercury Computer Systems, Inc.

A Gregory Rocco, Jr

Jason E Bardo

Mike W Gust

Don W Blanchet

Randall G Banton

Paul N Zuidema

John R Freeburn, Jr

An improved circuit board assembly includes a cover or other member disposed adjacent to the substrate and, for example, spaced therefrom so as to define a plenum. Self-aligning heat sinks (or other heat dissipative elements) are spring-mounted (or otherwise resiliently mounted) to the cover and, thereby, placed in thermal contact with one or more of the circuit components. Flow-diverting elements are provided, e.g., so that the overall impedance of the board substantially matches that of one or more of the other circuit boards in a common chassis. The circuit board cover can be adapted to provide thermal and/or electromagnetic emission control, as well as shock and vibration. A connector arrangement provides electrical, mechanical and/or other operational coupling between the circuit board and a chassis regardless of whether the board is disposed in a slot on a first (e.g., upper) side of a source of cooling air for the chassis or on a second (e.g., lower) opposite side of that source. A circuit board can have one or two portions, each with an air flow inlet edge through which cooling air flow is received and an air flow outlet edge through which the air flow exits. An improved chassis for mounting of such circuit boards can have a center air inlet. It can also have a circuit-board insertion slot with a first air flow aperture disposed adjacent to a first edge of an inserted circuit board and a second apertures disposed adjacent to a second edge of the board. These apertures can be sized so that the impedance to air flow to a circuit board inserted in the slot substantially matches that to one or more other boards in the chassis. Such slots can form part of a card cage that is vacuum or dip brazed, or manufactured by an alternate process welding a cage of desired structural stiffness and air-flow/interference sealing. The circuit boards and chassis can include an air and/or electromagnetic interference (EMI) seal which forms as the circuit board is inserted into the chassis slot.

Circuit board assembly with a combination thermal, shock, vibration, and/or electromagnetic compatibility cover

An improved circuit board assembly includes a cover or other member disposed adjacent to the substrate and, for example, spaced therefrom so as to define a plenum. Self-aligning heat sinks (or other heat dissipative elements) are spring-mounted (or otherwise resiliently mounted) to the cover and, thereby, placed in thermal contact with one or more of the circuit components. Flow-diverting elements are provided, e.g., so that the overall impedance of the board substantially matches that of one or more of the other circuit boards in a common chassis. The circuit board cover can be adapted to provide thermal and/or electromagnetic emission control, as well as shock and vibration. A connector arrangement provides electrical, mechanical and/or other operational coupling between the circuit board and a chassis regardless of whether the board is disposed in a slot on a first (e.g., upper) side of a source of cooling air for the chassis or on a second (e.g., lower) opposite side of that source. A circuit board can have one or two portions, each with an air flow inlet edge through which cooling air flow is received and an air flow outlet edge through which the air flow exits. An improved chassis for mounting of such circuit boards can have a center air inlet. It can also have a circuit-board insertion slot with a first air flow aperture disposed adjacent to a first edge of an inserted circuit board and a second apertures disposed adjacent to a second edge of the board. These apertures can be sized so that the impedance to air flow to a circuit board inserted in the slot substantially matches that to one or more other boards in the chassis. Such slots can form part of a card cage that is vacuum or dip brazed, or manufactured by an alternate process yielding a cage of desired structural stiffness and air-flow/interference sealing. The circuit boards and chassis can include an air and/or electromagnetic interference (EMI) seal which forms as the circuit board is inserted into the chassis slot.

Digital data processor chassis with flow balanced air intake into multiple circuit board assemblies

A data sampling circuit and method is provided for a burst mode communication system. The circuit is an entirely digital circuit for reliably sampling an incoming stream of data for automatically adjusting to variations in data stream clock rates and phase variations in the incoming data. The circuit includes a delay line, with a plurality of serially coupled taps, each tap having a variable delay. A first aspect of the invention includes increasing the delay time until the delay line captures at least one full data cell, but preferably two, of the incoming data stream (i.e., signal levels over at least one full clock period, defined by two transitions of the data stream), thereby aligning the receiving circuit with the frequency of the data stream clock. A second aspect of the invention includes outputting data from a tap that is selected to be midway between two regions of transitions of the incoming data stream, thereby aligning the receiving circuit with the phase of the data stream clock. The invention can, in alternative embodiments, track changes in the input data stream's phase/frequency. This involves updating the amount of delay in each tap of the delay line as well as picking the output of the appropriate tap to be used as the sampled data stream, in response to changes in the input signal as well as changes in propagation delays, of the circuits used to implement the delay line, resulting from temperature and voltage variations.

Data sampling circuit for a burst mode communication system

A subring module for controlling the switching of a subring in and out of the main network of a token passing ring has a data detection circuit for detecting a token on the network. The subring module switches between two switch positions in response to an internal state machine. The first switch position incorporates the subring into the main network, and the second switch position isolates the subring from main network. The subring module has a state machine which responds to the detection of the token on the network to switch the subring out of the network when the network is down, and to switch the subring back into the network when both the subring and the main network are up again. When a number of subrings are present, each subring has its own module and state machine control. When the network goes down, the subrings switch out at different times depending on a hierarchial priority given to the subrings. The switching of the subrings back into the network is also controlled relative to a hierarchical priority. Thus, splitting and recombining of subrings of the the token passing ring can be arranged to proceed in any desired manner. The end result is that a defective subring is automatically isolated.

Growing community of inventors

Carlisle, MA, United States of America

A Gregory Rocco, Jr