Patent Publication Number: US-2015070819-A1

Title: Server power supply system

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a power supply system, especially to a server power supply system that has a housing with a multi-dimensional space for disposing terminal holders and heat dissipating structures, and reconciling both wiring and heat dissipating efficiency. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art(s) 
     A rack server is modularly designed in order to be mounted in a cabinet, and is optimized to minimize the use of physical space. The rack server further has multiple power supply systems and multiple server systems with multiple input/output (I/O) cables. The server systems and the power supply systems are mounted in the cabinet. In the modularly designed rack server, the I/O cables extend out from a rear of the cabinet. 
     With further reference to  FIG. 9 , each of the power supply systems has a housing  90 , a power distribution module, a power input panel  91 , multiple terminal holders  93 , and multiple power supplies  92 . The power distribution module is mounted in the housing  90 . The power input panel  91  is substantially flat and is mounted on a front of the housing  90 . The terminal holders  93  are mounted on the power input panel  91  and are electrically connected to the power distribution module. The power supplies  92  are mounted on a rear of the housing  90  and are electrically connected to the power distribution module. Multiple power input cables are respectively connected to the terminal holders  93  to input electric power into the power supply system. The power distribution module distributes the electric power to the power supplies  92  to transform voltage of the electric power. Then the power supplies  92  supply the voltage-transformed electric power to the server systems respectively. 
     Since the rack server and the cabinet have predefined sizes, the power supply system that is mounted in the cabinet also has a predefined size. As a height of the housing  90  of the power supply system has been predefined, the power supplies  92  have to be stacked and arranged side by side in the housing  90  in order to mount as many power supplies  92  as possible on the housing  90 . 
     Under the above-mentioned arrangement, two sides of each power supply  92  are practically enclosed. Heat generated on each power supply  92  can only be dissipated from a front end and a rear end of each power supply  92 . As each power supply  92  further has a fan module  920  and the fan module  920  produces an air current flowing toward the housing  90 , the housing  90  has to have sufficient heat dissipating path so the heat in the housing  90  can be dissipated. However, since the flat power input panel  91  that is mounted on the front of the housing  90  is used for mounting the terminal holders  93 , if multiple heat dissipating holes are formed on the power input panel  91  to dissipate heat in the housing  90 , the number of the terminal holders  93  would be reduced. 
     To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides a server power supply system to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The main objective of the present invention is to provide a server power supply system. The power supply system has a housing and a front panel. The housing has a front, a rear, and multiple power supply slots. The power supply slots are disposed on the rear of the housing for mounting multiple power supplies respectively. The front panel has multiple peak portions and multiple valley portions arranged alternately to form a multi-dimensional space. Each peak portion has a first inclined wall for mounting multiple terminal holders, and has a second inclined wall for forming a heat dissipating structure. 
     Electric power is input into the server power supply system via the terminal holder and is transformed and transmitted to the power supplies. With the terminal holders and the heat dissipating structures disposed on the peak portions of the front panel, space of the front of the housing can be utilized efficiently and heat dissipating efficiency to the server power supply system is also improved. 
     Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a server power supply system in accordance with the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view in partial section of the server power supply system in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is an operational perspective view of the server power supply system in  FIG. 1 , showing multiple power supplies mounted thereon; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional side view of a front panel of the server power supply system in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5  is another exploded perspective view in partial section of the server power supply system in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6  is an enlarged side view in partial section of the server power supply system in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 7  is an enlarged side view of the server power supply system in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 8  is an enlarged front view of the server power supply system in  FIG. 1 ; and 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view of a conventional server power supply system in accordance with the prior art. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     With reference to  FIGS. 1 to 3 , a server power supply system in accordance with the present invention comprises a housing  10 , multiple power supplies  20 , at least one front panel  30 , multiple terminal holders  50 , and a power distribution module  40 . 
     The housing  10  has a front  101 , a rear  102 , multiple power supply slots  103 , and an apertured panel  11 . The power supply slots  103  are disposed on the rear  102  of the housing  10 . Each of the power supply slots  103  has an upper portion  103 A and a lower portion  103 B. The apertured panel  11  is mounted on the front  101  of the housing  10 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , the power supplies  20  are arranged side by side and stacked on the rear  102  of the housing  10 , and are respectively mounted in the upper portions  103 A and the lower portions  103 B of the power supply slots  103 . Each of the power supplies  20  has an outer end, an inner end, and a fan module  21 . The inner end of the power supply  20  is mounted in the power supply slot  103 . The fan module  21  is mounted in the outer end of the power supply  20  and generates an air current flowing toward the front  101  of the housing  10  to dissipate heat. 
     With further reference to  FIG. 4 , the at least one front panel  30  is mounted on the front  101  of the housing  10  and is disposed below the apertured panel  11 . Each of the at least one front panel  30  has multiple peak portions  31  and multiple valley portions  32 . The peak portions  31  and the valley portions  32  are arranged alternately. 
     With further reference to  FIG. 5 , each peak portion  31  protrudes forwardly and has a first inclined wall  311 , a second inclined wall  312 , a first included angle R 1 , a holder mounting structure, and a heat dissipating structure. The first inclined wall  311  has an outer surface and an inner surface corresponding to an interior of the housing  10 . The second inclined wall  312  has an outer surface and an inner surface corresponding to the interior of the housing  10 . The first included angle R 1  is defined between the inner surface of the first inclined wall  311  and the inner surface of the second inclined wall  312  of the peak portion  31 , and is adjustable. 
     With further reference to  FIG. 6 , the holder mounting structure is formed on the first inclined wall  311  and includes at least one opening  3110  and a mounting panel  33 . The at least one opening  3110  is formed through the first inclined wall  311 . The mounting panel  33  is securely mounted on the inner surface of the first inclined wall  311  and corresponds to the at least one opening  3110  in location. The heat dissipating structure is formed on the second inclined wall  312  and includes multiple heat dissipating holes  3120  densely arranged on and formed through the second inclined wall  312 . 
     Each valley portion  32  is formed between the second inclined wall  312  of one of the peak portions  31  and the first inclined wall  311  of the next peak portion  31 , and has a second included angle R 2 . The second included angle R 2  is defined between the outer surface of the second inclined wall  312  of one of the peak portions  31  and the outer surface of the first inclined wall  311  of the next peak portion  31 , and is adjustable. 
     Specifically, each of the first included angles R 1  may be 90 degrees, and each of the second included angles R 2  may be 90 degrees. 
     The terminal holders  50  are mounted on the holder mounting structures of the first inclined walls  311  of the peak portions  31  of the at least one front panel  30 . Each terminal holder  50  has a base  53 , a conducting terminal  51 , and at least one conducting protrusion  52 . The base  53  is securely mounted on the holder mounting structure of the first inclined wall  311 . The conducting terminal  51  is mounted in the base  53  and has a first end and a second end. The first end of the conducting terminal  51  is mounted in the base  53  and is securely attached to the base  53  and the mounting panel  33  via fasteners  61 . The second end of the conducting terminal  51  is bent relative to the first end of the conducting terminal  51 , and protrudes through the base  53  and toward the interior of the housing  10 . The at least one conducting protrusion  52  is formed on and protrudes from the first end of the conducting terminal  51 . 
     Preferably, each of the at least one opening  3110  of the holder mounting structure may be rectangular and the base  53  of each terminal holder  50  may be rectangular. A length of the base  53  corresponds to a width of the opening  3110 , such that the multiple terminal holders  50  are mounted in and are arranged along each of the openings  3110 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the power distribution module  40  is mounted in the housing  10 , is electrically connected to the second ends of the conducting terminals  51  of the terminal holders  50  via fasteners  62 , and has multiple circuit boards  43 , multiple connecting terminal assemblies  41 , and multiple intermediate terminal assemblies  42 . The circuit boards  43  are mounted in the housing  10 . The connecting terminal assemblies  41  are respectively connected electrically to the circuit boards  43 . The intermediate terminal assemblies  42  respectively connect the conducting terminals  51  of the terminal holders  50  to the connecting terminal assemblies  41 . Thus, when electric power is input into the power distribution module  40  via the terminal holders  50 , the electric power is transmitted to the circuit boards  43  through the intermediate terminal assemblies  42  and the connecting terminal assemblies  41 . The circuit boards  43  transform voltage of the electric power and distribute the voltage-transformed electric power to the power supplies  20 . 
     Specifically, each of the connecting terminal assemblies  41  includes multiple connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414 . The connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  are longitudinally arranged. Each of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  extends transversely and has a front end and a rear end. The rear ends of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  are connected to the circuit board  43 . 
     In the preferred embodiment, each of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  further has a connecting portion  411 A,  412 A,  413 A,  414 A protruding up from the front end of the connecting terminal  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414 . The connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  of each connecting terminal assembly  41  are two short connecting terminals  411 ,  413  and two long connecting terminals  412 ,  414 . The short connecting terminals  411 ,  413  and the long connecting terminals  412 ,  414  are arranged alternately. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 7 , since the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  have different lengths and are alternately arranged along a longitudinal direction of the housing  10 , the connecting portions  411 A,  412 A,  413 A,  414 A of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  are alternately arranged in transverse direction of the housing  10 . Thus, when the at least one front panel  30  has been mounted on the front  101  of the housing  10 , the arrangement of the connecting portions  411 A,  412 A,  413 A,  414 A of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  provides convenience of connecting the intermediate terminal assemblies  42  to the connecting portions  411 A,  412 A,  413 A,  414 A of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414 , such that the conducting terminals  51  of the terminal holders  50  can be electrically connected to the connecting terminal  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  of the connecting terminal assemblies  41 . 
     Specifically, each of the intermediate terminal assemblies  42  includes multiple intermediate terminals  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424 . Each of the intermediate terminals  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424  extends longitudinally and has an upper end, a lower end, an upper connecting portion  421 A,  422 A,  423 A,  424 A, and a lower connecting portion  421 B,  422 B,  423 B,  424 B. The upper connecting portion  421 A,  422 A,  423 A,  424 A transversely protrudes forwardly from the upper end of the intermediate terminal  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424 . The upper connecting portions  421 A,  422 A,  423 A,  424 A of the intermediate terminals  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424  respectively connect electrically to the conducting terminals  51  of the terminal holders  50 . The lower connecting portion  421 B,  422 B,  423 B,  424 B transversely protrudes backwardly opposite to the upper connecting portion  421 A,  422 A,  423 A,  424 A from a side edge of the intermediate terminal  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424  and is disposed adjacent to the lower end of the intermediate terminal  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424 . 
     In the preferred embodiment, the intermediate terminals  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424  of each intermediate terminal assembly  42  are two long intermediate terminals  421 ,  422  and two short intermediate terminals  423 ,  424 . The lower connecting portions  421 B,  423 B of one of the long intermediate terminals  421  and one of the short intermediate terminals  423  are long lower connecting portions and are respectively connected electrically to the connecting portions  411 A,  413 A of the short connecting terminals  411 ,  413 . The lower connecting portions  422 B,  424 B of the other long intermediate terminal  422  and the other short intermediate terminal  424  are short lower connecting portions and are respectively connected electrically to the connecting portions  412 A,  414 A of the long connecting terminals  412 ,  414 . 
     It can be seen from the above that the connecting portions  411 A,  412 A,  413 A,  414 A of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  of each connecting terminal assembly  41  of the power distribution module  40  are alternately arranged in transverse and longitudinal directions of the housing  10 . Moreover, since lengths of the intermediate terminals  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424  of each intermediate terminal assembly  42  are different and lengths of the lower connecting portions  421 B,  422 B,  423 B,  424 B are also different, the lower connecting portions  421 B,  422 B,  423 B,  424 B can respectively correspond to and electrically connect to the connecting portions  411 A,  412 A,  413 A,  414 A of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414  for the convenience of connecting the intermediate terminal assemblies  42  to the connecting portions  411 A,  412 A,  413 A,  414 A of the connecting terminals  411 ,  412 ,  413 ,  414 . 
     With further reference to  FIG. 8 , when the at least one front panel  30  has been mounted on the front  101  of the housing  10 , the intermediate terminal assemblies  42  can only be mounted into the housing  10  from two opposite sides of the housing  10 . The above-mentioned connecting terminal assemblies  41  and intermediate terminal assemblies  42  provide convenience of mounting the intermediate terminal assemblies  42  from the two sides of the housing  10 . 
     Specifically, as shown in  FIG. 8 , there are four intermediate terminal assemblies  42 A,  42 B,  42 C,  42 D mounted in the housing  10 . For assembly, a user is able to assemble the intermediate terminal assembly  42 B that is disposed second from the left and then assemble the intermediate terminal assembly  42 A that is disposed first from the left. Then the user assembles the intermediate terminal assembly  42 C that is disposed second from the right and then assembles the intermediate terminal assembly  42 D that is disposed first from the right. Thus, the user conveniently assembles the intermediate terminal assemblies  42 A,  42 B,  42 C,  42 D into the housing  10 . When assembling the intermediate terminal assemblies  42 A,  42 B,  42 C,  42 D into the housing  10 , the intermediate terminals  421 ,  422 ,  423 ,  424  of the intermediate terminal assemblies  42 A,  42 B,  42 C,  42 D respectively connect the connecting terminal assemblies  41  to the conducting terminals  51  of the terminal holders  50 . 
     The server power supply system as described has the following advantages. With the at least one front panel  30  mounted on the front  101  of the housing  10 , the peak portions  31  and the valley portions  32  of the at least one front panel  30  form a multi-dimensional space. Thus, heat generated from the terminal holders  50  that are mounted on the first inclined walls  311  of the peak portions  31  can be dissipated from the heat dissipating holes  3120  of the heat dissipating structures on the second inclined walls  312  of the peak portions  31 . 
     Moreover, with the multi-dimensional space formed in the at least one front panel  30  and the heat dissipating holes  3120  of the heat dissipating structures on the second inclined walls  312  of the peak portions  31 , as the air current generated by the fan modules  21  of the power supplies  20  flows toward the front  101  of the housing  10 , the air current can further flow through the heat dissipating holes  3120  to generate convection and to dissipate the heat in the housing  10 . Accordingly, heat dissipating efficiency to the power supplies  20  and the housing  10  is improved. 
     Furthermore, since the terminal holders  50  are mounted on the first inclined walls  311  of the peak portions  31  of the at least one front panel  30 , the valley portions  32  of the at least one front panel  30  provide wiring spaces for disposing the terminal holders  50 . Thus, each terminal holder  50  owns an exclusive wiring space not interfered with other terminal holders  50 . The at least one front panel  30  not only reconciles both arrangement of the terminal holders and need for dissipating heat, but also provides sufficient wiring spaces to the terminal holders  50 . 
     Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.