Dell USA L.p.

Other

Mark B Penniman

John P Busch

Carmen M Schlesener

Orin Michael Ozias

Pearce R Jones

Thomas J Kocis

Michael D Durkin

Dan E Swindler

Thomas Shu

Jim J Kizer

Peter Nils Skillman

Dennis Joseph Boyle

Bryan Franklin Howell

Todd W Steigerwald

Russell Conley Smith

Tony Joseph Lillios

Bill Inkman

Derek Westmoreland

Gary Podwalny

A cooling system for a computer includes a chassis having a sidewall with an opening formed therein. A heat spreader plate is mounted in the chassis including a heat sink attached thereto adjacent the sidewall. The heat sink has a side mounted base and a plurality of fins extending laterally from the base toward the sidewall. One of the fins is attached to the heat spreader plate. A heat pipe is connected to the heat spreader plate and extends into engagement with the heat sink. Each of the fins has a terminal edge and opposed ends. The fins at one of the opposed ends are uniformly sloped at an angle toward the base and are exposed to the opening in the sidewall, thus providing the appearance of an inlet grill.

Hybrid cooling heat exchanger fin geometry and orientation

A computer system includes a motherboard mounted in a chassis. An EMI shield member is mounted on the motherboard. A processor module is connected to the motherboard and has peripheral edge contact with the EMI shield member. A cap member is mounted on the processor module and is engaged with the EMI shield member. A heat sink is connected to the cap member. A heat pipe has a first end attached to the cap member and a second end attached to the heat sink. A fan is mounted in the chassis adjacent the heat sink for drawing cooling air across the heat sink.

Integrated hybrid cooling with EMI shielding for a portable computer

A docking station structure is used to operatively connect a notebook computer to desktop computer peripheral devices. The docking station has an internal receiving chamber into which the portable computer may be manually inserted, an electrical connector positioned within the receiving chamber, a travel plate movably carried within the receiving chamber, a motorized drive system operative to drive the travel plate toward and away from the electrical connector, and a latch structure carried by the travel plate for movement therewith. With the travel plate in a wait position thereof, the portable computer is rearwardly inserted into the receiving chamber. In response to such insertion, the latch structure automatically locks the computer to the travel plate, and the drive system rearwardly moves the travel plate to mate the electrical connector with a corresponding connector on the computer, thereby operatively linking the computer to the peripheral devices. To remove the computer, the drive system is operated to forwardly move the drive plate and the computer to an ejection position in which the computer and docking station electrical connector structures are disconnected from one another, and the computer is unlocked from the travel plate. Upon insertion of the computer into the docking station opposite side portions of the computer are slidingly received in docking station track indentations operative to maintain the computer in a precisely aligned relationship with the docking station electrical connector during driven movement of the computer.

Motorized portable computer/expansion chassis docking system

A thermal transfer circuit is provided for dissipating thermal energy within a personal computer. The thermal transfer circuit is formed during assembly of the personal computer. Specifically, the thermal transfer circuit is formed when a computer keyboard is fixed upon a portable computer base. The computer keyboard serves as a heat sink and a coupling mechanism is provided between the heat source (CPU) and the heat sink keyboard. The coupling mechanism includes flat side portions which are in lateral registry with each other and which abut together during assembly of the keyboard upon the computer base. Abutment of the side portions effectuates completion of the keyboard assembly to the computer base as well as completion of a thermal transfer circuit extending from the CPU to the computer keyboard.

Computer having a heat transfer system operably connected during

A combined removable hard disk drive and removable memory card mechanical lock which provides a portable computer user with an easy and cost effective arrangement to lock inside the computer expensive modular components such as a hard disk drive and memory cards. When installed on a portable computer, the combined lock will prevent the removable hard disk drive and removable memory cards from being removed from the portable computer.

Mechanical lock for a removable hard disk drive and a removable memory

A thermal transfer circuit is provided for dissipating thermal energy within a portable minicomputer. The thermal transfer circuit is formed during assembly of the personal computer. Specifically, the thermal transfer circuit embodies dual cooling paths for extracting thermal energy from opposing surfaces of an encapsulated integrated circuit. The dual path thermal transfer circuit is formed by drawing the integrated circuit between an upper path heatsink assembly and a lower path heatsink assembly. Thermal connection of heatsink assemblies to corresponding integrated circuit surfaces, either directly or indirectly, allows enhanced dissipation of power-consumptive integrated circuits, such as modern day CPUs. Clamping of the upper and lower heatsink assemblies occurs in equal and opposite force directions normal to opposed integrated circuit surfaces. The normal clamping forces eliminate application of shear force components upon integrated circuit surfaces and the deleterious effects of surface mount lead dislodgment.

Integrated circuit dual cooling paths and method for constructing same

A heat transfer system is provided for dissipating thermal energy within the personal computer. The transfer system is designed to move heat from a heat source, such as a central processing unit (CPU), to a heatsink arranged upon the portable computer keyboard. The heat transfer mechanism includes a heat slug thermally coupled to the CPU heat source and a heat pipe thermally coupled to a backside surface of a computer keyboard. The heat pipe is designed having minimal thermal gradient, and includes an evaporation/condensation cycle associated with its operation. The heat pipe is preferably orthogonally shaped having at least one flat surface arranged near the intersection of the orthogonal members. The flat section is in registry with a heat source. Movement of the flat section relative to the heat source effectuates abutment and thermal contact therebetween. The present thermal energy transfer system is designed for enhanced heat transfer within a portable computer system without undergoing the disadvantages of bulky finned heatsinks and/or fans.

Heat pipe device and method for attaching same to a computer keyboard

A docking station structure is used to operatively connect a notebook computer to desktop computer peripheral devices. In response to manual insertion of the computer into the interior of the docking station a motorized travel structure drives the computer further into the docking station and forcibly interconnects pin type connectors carried by the computer and the docking station. The docking station connector is supported for translational movement by a specially designed floating connector interface structure which permits the docking station connector to translationally shift, in response to forcible engagement by the computer connector portion when there is a misalignment between the computer and docking station connectors, in order to precisely align the two connectors before they are telescopingly mated with one another. The connector interface structure is spring biased toward a ready-for-docking position thereof, and incorporates therein an anti-rotation structure that prevents the docking structure connector from being rotated into an undesirable pivotally buckled relationship with the incoming computer connector portion.

Notebook computer docking station having floating connector interface

An apparatus for docking a data processing unit in which a guide plate extends over a portion of the floor of a housing for receiving the bottom of the unit. Two guide members are disposed at the respective ends of the guide plate for receiving corresponding surfaces formed on said unit. Each of the guide members defines a guide surface that increases in size in a direction toward the rear wall for engagement by the corresponding surfaces of the unit to gradually center and lock the unit in the housing as the unit is inserted into the housing.

Growing community of inventors

Austin, TX, United States of America

Mark B Penniman