Patent Publication Number: US-2005135038-A1

Title: Quick release low-profile AC input filter

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention relates to the field of power filters, and more particularly to methods of providing a quick disconnect, low profile AC power filter and its associated structures.  
     BACK GROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      Alternating current (AC) power filters are commonly used to filter noise, for example, when connected to an AC power source. An AC power filter may receive AC power from a power cord, as is well known in the art, and may then deliver filtered AC power to a system, such as a computing system. One desired feature of an AC power filter is that it should be capable of quickly disconnecting power to the system as needed, for example, in order to prevent damage to the system. Another desired feature of an AC power filter is that it should posses a low profile within the housing or chassis, within which it resides, in order to conserve space within the system. The present invention provides such a low profile, quick disconnect AC power filter. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      While the specification concludes with claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming that which is regarded as the present invention, the advantages of this invention can be more readily ascertained from the following description of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:  
       FIGS. 1   a - 1   e  represent structures according to an embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIGS. 2   a - 2   h  represent structures according to an embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIG. 3  represents a flowchart of a method according to an embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIG. 4  represents a flowchart of a method according to an embodiment of the present invention.  
       FIG. 5  represents a system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION  
      In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that show, by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. It is to be understood that the various embodiments of the invention, although different, are not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described herein, in connection with one embodiment, may be implemented within other embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. In addition, it is to be understood that the location or arrangement of individual elements within each disclosed embodiment may be modified without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined only by the appended claims, appropriately interpreted, along with the full range of equivalents to which the claims are entitled. In the drawings, like numerals refer to the same or similar functionality throughout the several views.  
      Methods and associated apparatus of a quick disconnect low profile AC filter are described. Those methods comprise providing an AC filter that is attached within a housing at a first position, and then pivoting the AC filter to a second position by applying a first force to a power cable connected to the AC filter in a direction that is away from the housing. The AC power filter may then be quickly disconnected by applying a second force to the input power cable in a direction away from the housing.  
       FIGS. 1   a - 1   d  illustrate an embodiment of a method and associated structures of quickly disconnecting a low profile AC filter from a power source according to the present invention.  FIG. 1   a  illustrates a portion of a power subassembly  100  that may comprise an AC filter  102 , as is well known in the art, which may be attached within a recess  104  of a housing  106 , although it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the AC filter  102  may reside in other locations within the housing  106 , depending upon the particular application. The housing  106  may comprise a front surface  106   a,  and a side surface  106   b.    
      The power subassembly  100  may reside within a chassis, as is well known in the art, (not shown) which in turn may comprise various other components, such as at least one computing device (not shown). The AC  102  filter may reside in a first position  110  within the recess  104  of the housing  106 . The first position  110  of the AC filter  102  may comprise an angle  112  that may comprise about zero degrees, that is, the AC filter  102  may be substantially parallel in relation to the first surface  106   a  of the housing  106 .  
      The AC filter  102  may comprise a power cord  114 , which may supply AC power from a power source (not shown), such as an electrical outlet, as is well known in the art. The AC filter  102  may be attached to the housing  106  with a pivoting mechanism  116 , which may be any type of device that allows for the pivoting of the AC filter  102  outwards in a direction away from the housing  106 . It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the particular configuration of the AC filter  102  and the pivoting mechanism  116  within the housing  106  may vary depending upon the particular design application.  
       FIG. 1   b  shows a portion of the AC filter  102  that depicts the dimensions of the AC filter  102  of the present invention. The AC filter  102  may preferably be a low profile AC filter  102 , that is, the ratio of the width  105  to the length  103  of the AC filter  102  may preferably be greater than about 1:1, and is more preferably greater than about 2:1.  
      Referring back to  FIG. 1   a,  a first force  118 , which may be a force that is preferably in a substantially perpendicular direction to the housing  106 , may be applied to the power cord  114 . A sufficient amount of the first force  118  may be applied to the power cord  114  such that the AC filter  102  may pivot in a direction away from the housing  106 . It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the amount and direction of the first force  118  that is sufficient to enable the pivoting of the AC filter  102  may vary depending upon the particular application.  
       FIG. 1   c  depicts the AC filter  102  after a sufficient amount of the first force  118  has been applied to the power cord  114  (in a direction away from the housing  106 ) to cause the AC filter  102  to pivot from the first position  110  to a second position  120 . The second position  120  may comprise an angle  122  that may be between about 20 degrees and about 120 degrees, but is preferably about 90 degrees i.e. the second position  120  of the AC filter  102  may be preferably be substantially perpendicular to the housing  106 .  
      A second force  124  may then further be applied to the power cord  114  in a direction away from the housing which may cause the power cord  114  to be removed, or disconnected, from the AC filter  102 , as shown in  FIG. 1   d.  The amount of the second force  124  is preferably such that the power cord  114  is capable of quickly disconnecting from the AC filter  102 . The ability of the AC filter  102  of the present invention to quickly disconnect form a power cord is advantageous in cases where quick disconnection is required in order to avoid electrical damage to a system, for example. It will be understood that the second force  124  and the first force  118  may comprise one single force, i.e. the force to necessary to pivot the AC filter  102  from the first position  110  to the second position  120  may comprise a single continuous force.  
      Thus, the present invention enables the disconnection of a power cord, such as the power cord  114 , from an AC filter (such as the AC filter  102 ), in a quick and efficient manner, through the application of a sufficient amount of the second force  124  on the power cord  114  attached to the AC filter  102 . The AC filter design of the present invention also enables the use of a low profile AC filter that fits inside the housing of a power subassembly to optimize space utilization within a system, such as a networking and/or telecom networking server system.  
      As shown in  FIG. 1   e,  sufficient amount of third force  126  may be applied to the AC filter  102  in a direction towards the housing to return the AC filter to the first position  110  (see  FIG. 1   e ). It will be appreciated that the first force  118 , the second force  124  and the third force  126  may be applied by a human operator, or may be supplied by other means, such as electrical or mechanical means as are well known in the art.  
       FIGS. 2   a - 2   h  depict another embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 2   a  illustrates a portion of a power subassembly  200 , (similar to the power subassembly  100  of  FIG. 1   a ) that may comprise an AC filter  202 , which may be attached within a housing  206 . The housing  206  may comprise a front surface  206   a,  and a side surface  206   b.  The power subassembly  200  may reside within a chassis (not shown), as is well known in the art.  
      The AC filter  202  may reside in a first position  210  within the recess  204  of the housing  206 , although it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the AC filter  202  may reside in other locations within the housing  106 , depending upon the particular application. The first position  210  of the AC filter  202  may comprise an angle  212  that may comprise about zero degrees, that is, the AC filter  202  may be substantially parallel in relation to the first surface  206   a  of the housing  206 .  
      The AC filter  202  may comprise a power cord  214 , similar to the power cord  114  of  FIG. 1   a.  The AC filter  202  may be attached to the housing  206  with a pivoting mechanism  216 , such as a pivot screw, as is known in the art, which may function to pivot the AC filter  202  so that the AC filter  202  is capable of pivoting away from the housing  206  (see  FIG. 2   b ). The pivoting mechanism  216  may comprise a returning mechanism  207 , which may comprise a torsion spring, as is known in the art.  
      It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the particular configuration of the AC filter  202  and the pivoting mechanism  216  within the housing  206  may vary depending upon the particular design application, but in the current embodiment, the pivoting mechanism  216  is located near the center  208  of the width  205  of the AC filter  202 . For example, the pivoting mechanism may be located closer to a front side  202   a  of the AC filter  202 , or it may be located closer to a backside  202   b  (see  FIG. 2   c ) of the AC filter  202 , depending upon the application.  
       FIG. 2   c  depicts a back side  206   c  of the housing  206 . The returning mechanism  207  may be attached to the AC filter  202  and to the housing  206 . In the current embodiment, the returning mechanism  207  may comprise a torsion spring, for example, which may elongate, or be stretched to create a tension  211  in the torsion spring (see  FIG. 2   e ) upon pivoting the AC filter  202  from the first position  210  to a second position  220  (as shown in  FIG. 2   c ) in a manner well known in the art. However, the returning mechanism  207  may include any such mechanism that functions to return the AC filter  202  from the second position  220  (as shown in  FIG. 2   c ) to the first position  210  ( FIG. 2   a ). It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the particular configuration of the AC filter  202  and the returning mechanism  207  within the housing  206  may vary depending upon the particular design application.  
      Referring back to  FIG. 2   a,  a first force  218 , similar to the first force  118 , may be applied to the power cord  214 . A sufficient amount of the first force  218  may be applied to the power cord  214  in a direction away from the housing  206  such that the AC filter  202  may pivot in a direction away from the housing  206  (see  FIG. 2   d ) to a second position  220 . When the AC filter  202  is pivoted to the second position  220  upon the application of the first force  218  to the power cord  214 , the tension  211  may be induced in the returning mechanism  207  ( FIG. 2   e ).  
      Referring back to  FIG. 2   d,  a second force  224  may then further be applied in a direction away from the housing to the power cord  214  which may cause the power cord  214  to be removed, or disconnected, from the AC filter  202  (see  FIG. 2   f ). The amount of the second force  224  may be such that the power cord  214  may be quickly removed from the AC filter  202 .  
      After the power cord  214  is caused to be disconnected from the AC filter  202  by the application of the second force  224 , the tension  211  on the returning mechanism  207  may then be removed, as is known in the art. As the tension  211  is removed from the returning mechanism  207 , the returning mechanism  207  may then induce the AC filter  202  to return to the first position  210  ( FIGS. 2   g  and  2   h ).  
      Thus, the current embodiment of the present invention enables the quick disconnection of an AC filter from a power source. In addition, because the AC filter comprises a low profile, space utilization within the system, may be greatly enhanced.  
       FIG. 3  depicts a flow chart of a method according to an embodiment of the present invention. At step  300 , an AC filter is provided that is attached within a housing at a first position. At step  302 , the AC filter is pivoted to a second position by applying a first force to a power cable connected to the AC filter in a direction that is away from the housing. At step  304 , the power cable is removed from the AC filter by applying a sufficient amount of a second force to the power cable in a direction that is approximately perpendicular and away from the housing. At step  306 , the AC filter is returned to the first position by applying a third force to the AC filter in a direction towards the housing.  
       FIG. 4  depicts a flow chart of a method according to another embodiment of the present invention. At step  400 , an AC filter is provided that is attached within a housing at a first position, wherein a returning mechanism is attached to the AC filter and to the housing. At step  402 , the AC filter is pivoted to a second position by applying a first force to a power cable connected to the AC filter in a direction away from the housing, wherein a tension is induced in the returning mechanism. At step  404 , a second force is applied to the power cable in a direction away from the housing to remove the power cable, wherein the tension is removed from the returning mechanism and the AC filter is returned to the first position.  
       FIG. 5  depicts a system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The system  500  may include a computing system  501  that may include a computing device  502 , such as a microprocessor, that may be attached within a chassis  503 . The computing system  502  may comprise various other components, such as a cache memory  504  a processor bus  505 , a first I/O bus  508  and second I/O bus  518 , a host bridge  506 , a main memory  512  a display memory  514  and a display screen  516 , as well as a mass storage  520 , and keyboard and pointing devices  522 . The computing system  501  may be coupled, or attached to the chassis  503  in a manner well known in the art.  
      The system  500  may also comprise a power subassembly  507 , such as the power subassemblies  100  and  200 , coupled to the computing system  501  and attached to the chassis  503 . The system  500  may comprise but is not limited to a computer networking system, a server system, a work-station or a desktop.  
      As described above, the present invention provides methods and associated apparatus of providing a low profile, quickly releasing AC filter within a system, such as a computing system. The methods and structures of the present invention enable the quick, safe disconnection of the AC filter from such systems as a computer networking system, a server system, a work station or a desktop computer. The low profile AC filter optimizes the usage of space within such a system.  
      Although the foregoing description has specified certain steps and materials that may be used in the method of the present invention, those skilled in the art will appreciate that many modifications and substitutions may be made. Accordingly, it is intended that all such modifications, alterations, substitutions and additions be considered to fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. In addition, it is appreciated that a power subassembly, such as may be found in a computing system, is well known in the art. Therefore, it is appreciated that the Figures provided herein illustrate only portions of an exemplary power subassembly that pertains to the practice of the present invention. Thus the present invention is not limited to the structures described herein.