CN109843017B

CN109843017B - Server rack door access

Info

Publication number: CN109843017B
Application number: CN201711223411.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 赵平平; 符振德; 金丽英; 唐德华
Original assignee: Lenovo Enterprise Solutions Singapore Pte Ltd
Current assignee: Lenovo Global Technologies International Ltd
Priority date: 2017-11-29
Filing date: 2017-11-29
Publication date: 2020-10-02
Anticipated expiration: 2037-11-29
Also published as: CN109843017A

Abstract

The present disclosure relates generally to a server rack and a method of accessing a server rack. The method comprises the following steps: receiving a user input requesting access to a rack unit; upon authenticating the user input, shifting the first access panel and the second access panel toward a rack position of the server rack corresponding to the rack unit while the first access panel and the second access panel of the rack door of the server rack remain in the closed arrangement; and at the rack position, shifting the first access panel and the second access panel from a closed arrangement to an open arrangement to enable access to the rack unit.

Description

Server rack door access

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to door access for server racks. More specifically, the present disclosure describes various embodiments of a server rack having rack doors for controlling access to the server rack and a method of accessing the server rack by controlling the rack doors.

Background

FIG. 1A illustrates a conventional server rack 20, such as a 19-inch rack, having a chassis 22 for storing a plurality of rack units 24. The chassis 22 is a standardized frame or cabinet for mounting electronic equipment or computing devices 26, such as computing devices, computing servers, and data storage servers. Enterprises sometimes run their own servers or lease servers from a data center so that they can store online files and make them globally accessible. The data center includes a number of data storage servers mounted to several server racks 20 that provide online storage of cloud or files accessible from the internet.

A large corporation may own or lease an entire server rack 20 in a data center. These server racks 20 are often located in a more secure section of the data center where access is limited to authorized personnel of these companies. Clients, such as smaller companies or individuals, may share a single server rack 20. More specifically, the rack unit 24 is shared among these customers. For example, each customer leases a computing device 26 mounted to a rack unit 24 of the shared server rack 20. When a customer is to perform maintenance on their computing device 26, other computing devices 26 (belonging to other customers) in the same server rack 20 may become accessible to the customer. The computing devices 26 are therefore vulnerable to unauthorized access and this vulnerability constitutes a security risk to customers using the shared server racks 20 as well as to the data centers running the server racks 20. To reduce these risks, a separate party (e.g., an employee of the data center) may accompany the customer at the server rack 20. However, this increases labor costs and may cause privacy concerns for the customer.

For some customers, they may add a security or locking bezel 28 mounted to the rack unit 24 for restricting access to their computing devices 26. FIG. 1B illustrates an example of a secure bezel 28 for protecting computing devices 26 mounted in rack units 24. The secure bezel 28 prevents other customers from tampering with the protected computing device 26 while they are working on their own computing device 26 in other rack units 24. However, the secure bezel 28 requires a physical key to unlock and sometimes customers may forget to carry the key when they go to the data center for maintenance on their computing device 26.

In addition, when a data center wants to perform comprehensive maintenance on a shared server rack 20, the data center may require the presence of all customers using the server rack 20 to monitor the maintenance, especially for data centers with higher levels of security. This is to ensure that their own computing devices 26 are not compromised during maintenance. However, this is cumbersome for customers, as they need to send representatives to the data center, thereby incurring unnecessary labor costs.

Accordingly, to address or mitigate at least one of the above-mentioned problems, the present disclosure discloses a server rack and a method for accessing a server rack.

Disclosure of Invention

According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is a method of accessing a server rack having a plurality of rack units. The method comprises the following steps: receiving a user input requesting access to a rack unit; upon authenticating a user input, shifting a first access panel and a second access panel of a rack door of a server rack toward a rack position of the server rack corresponding to the rack unit while the first access panel and the second access panel remain in a closed arrangement; and at the rack position, shifting the first access panel and the second access panel from a closed arrangement to an open arrangement to enable access to the rack unit.

According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is a server rack comprising: a processor; a user input device coupled to the processor and configured to receive a user input requesting access to a rack unit; a chassis for storing a plurality of rack units; and a rack door coupled to the processor and movably mounted to the chassis for controlling access to the rack unit, the rack door including an upper access panel and a lower access panel movably mounted to the rack door. The processor is configured to: receiving a user input to perform authentication; upon the authentication of the user input, shifting the upper and lower access panels toward rack positions corresponding to the rack units while the upper and lower access panels remain in the closed arrangement; and at the rack location, shifting an upper access panel and a lower access panel from a closed arrangement to an open arrangement to enable access to the rack unit.

An advantage is that users are only authorized to access their own rack units and the computing devices installed therein, especially if the server rack is shared by multiple users. The security level is higher and users will be assured that their rack units and computing devices cannot be accessed without authorization. For example, the user need not be followed by an employee of the data center running the server rack. It is not necessary for users to mount the safety frame to their rack unit, thereby reducing the cost of using the rack unit.

Accordingly, a server rack and a method for accessing a server rack according to the present disclosure are disclosed herein. Various features of the disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments of the disclosure and the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of non-limiting example only.

Drawings

Fig. 1A and 1B are illustrations of a conventional server rack and a conventional locking bezel for the server rack.

Fig. 2A-2C are illustrations of a server rack according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3 is an illustration of a system block diagram of a server rack according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart illustration of a method of accessing a server rack in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure.

Fig. 5A-5D are illustrations of a server rack during installation of a computing device according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 6A-6D are illustrations of a server rack during removal of a computing device, according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 7 is another illustration of a server rack according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Fig. 8A-8D are illustrations of clearance barriers for a server rack according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 9A and 9B are illustrations of various types of shifting mechanisms of a server rack according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 10A-10C are illustrations of a shifting mechanism implemented on a server rack, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Fig. 11 is an illustration of a rack door of a server rack according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Fig. 12A through 12F are illustrations of screen shots of an electronic device and applications that may be run on the electronic device, according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

In a representative or exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, an improved server rack 100 is provided as illustrated in fig. 2A. The server rack 100 includes a chassis 102 for storing a plurality of rack units 104. The chassis 102 is a standardized frame or cabinet for mounting electronic equipment or computing devices 106, such as computing devices, computing servers, and data storage servers. The chassis 102 may include two vertical columns 108 or four vertical columns 108. The four-column chassis 102 allows computing equipment 106 to be mounted via the front and back of the server rack 100, while the two-column chassis 102 only allows mounting via the front. FIG. 2B illustrates an example of a vertical post 108 having a plurality of holes 110 for mounting computing devices 106. The hole 110 may be round and the computing device 106 may be mounted via bolt-and-nut fasteners. Alternatively, the holes 110 may be square to allow for boltless installation.

For example, in a standard 19 inch server rack 100 with a two-post chassis 102, the server rack 100 is a 19 inch wide and 36 inch type.

As shown in fig. 2A and 2C, the server rack 100 includes rack doors 112 movably mounted to the chassis 102 for controlling access to the rack units 104. In particular, the rack doors 112 are configured to disable and enable access to the rack units 104, thereby controlling access to the computing devices 106 mounted in the rack units 104. The rack door 112 includes a door frame 114 movably mounted to the chassis 102 for opening and closing the rack door 112. The rack door 112 includes a first access panel 116 and a second access panel 118 movably mounted to the rack door 112 or, more specifically, to the door frame 114. The first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 may also be referred to as door curtains movably mounted to the door frame 114. In some embodiments, the first access panel 116 is positioned above the second access panel 118, i.e., the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 refer to an upper access panel and a lower access panel, respectively. In some other embodiments, the first access panel 116 is positioned below the second access panel 118, i.e., the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 refer to a lower access panel and an upper access panel, respectively.

Fig. 3 illustrates a system block diagram 200 of the server rack 100. The server rack 100 includes a processor 202, such as a Baseboard Management Controller (BMC), for operating the rack door 112 to control access to the rack unit 104. The server rack 100 includes one or more user input devices 204 configured to receive user input requesting access to the rack unit 104. The processor 202 is coupled or communicatively linked to the user input device 204 and the rack door 112.

In various embodiments with reference to fig. 4, there is a method 300 of accessing a server rack 100. In particular, the method 300 may be implemented or performed by the processor 202. The method 300 includes a step 302 of receiving a user input requesting access to a rack unit 104. User input is provided via user input device 204 by a customer or user requesting access to their rack unit 104. Initially, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 of the server rack 10 are in a closed configuration prior to providing user input by a user. Specifically, as shown in fig. 2A, in the closed arrangement, the first front edge 120 of the first access panel 116 is substantially proximate to the second front edge 122 of the second access panel 118 to prevent or disable access to all of the rack units 104.

In step 302, the user input includes identification data of the user and may be provided in one or more forms. Some examples of user identification data include, but are not limited to, user login details, user identifiers, passwords, PINs, voice commands, QR codes, biometric data, USB dongle keys, RFID data, NFC data, SIM cards, and other known types of login/authentication data. The method 300 includes a step 304 of authenticating the user identification data in response to receiving the user input. In particular, the processor 202 authenticates the user identification data against reference data stored on the database 206 and generates an output. If the authentication fails, step 304 proceeds to step 306 where the access request is denied. Conversely, if the user identification data is successfully authenticated, step 304 proceeds to step 308. It will be appreciated that the database 206 may reside locally on the computing devices 106 in the server rack 100, or alternatively on a remote server or computer communicatively linked to the processor 202.

In step 308, upon authenticating the user identification data, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted toward the rack location of the server rack 100 corresponding to the rack unit 104 the user requested access to while the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 remain in the closed arrangement. In step 310, once the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are at the rack position, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted from the closed arrangement to the open arrangement. In particular, as shown in fig. 2C, in the open arrangement, the first leading edge 120 is separated from the second leading edge 122 such that there is a height separation 124 that enables access to the rack unit 104.

After the user has completed work on the rack units 104, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are accessed to disable access to all of the rack units 104 of the server rack 100. Specifically, in step 312, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement at the rack location corresponding to the rack unit 104. In one embodiment, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are displaced from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement in response to another user input via the user input device 204. In another embodiment, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are automatically shifted from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement after a predefined duration has elapsed since the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 were in the open arrangement. An alert device may be activated during the predefined duration to alert the user. Step 312 may return to step 308 to shift the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 to another rack location of the server rack 100 corresponding to another rack unit 104 when used subsequently when the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are in the closed arrangement.

As shown in fig. 2A and 2C, the server rack 100 includes a first scroll mechanism 208 and a second scroll mechanism 210 coupled to the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118, respectively, for controlling access to the rack unit 104. In some embodiments, the first and

second rolling mechanisms

208, 210 are positioned at upper and lower portions of the door frame 114, respectively, i.e., the first and

second rolling mechanisms

208, 210 refer to upper and lower rolling mechanisms, respectively. In some other embodiments, the first and

second rolling mechanisms

208, 210 are positioned at the lower and upper portions of the door frame 114, respectively, i.e., the first and

second rolling mechanisms

208, 210 refer to lower and upper rolling mechanisms, respectively. It will be appreciated that the orientation of the first scroll mechanism 208 and the second scroll mechanism 210 corresponds to the orientation of the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118.

The server rack 100 includes a first displacement mechanism 212 and a second displacement mechanism 214 coupled to the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118, respectively, for controlling access to the rack units 104. In particular, the first and

second displacement mechanisms

212, 214 cooperate with the first and

second scroll mechanisms

208, 210 to control the roll-out and roll-back (rewind) of the first and

second access panels

116, 118, thereby controlling the displacement of the first and

second access panels

116, 118. For example, when the first displacement mechanism 212 displaces the first access panel 116 upward, the first scroll mechanism 208 cooperates by rolling back the first access panel 116.

In some embodiments, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are displaceable by cooperation of the first scroll mechanism 208 and the first displacement mechanism 212, and cooperation of the second scroll mechanism 210 and the second displacement mechanism 214, respectively. In other embodiments, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are individually displaceable by the first displacement mechanism 212 and the second displacement mechanism 214, respectively. In still other embodiments, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are individually displaceable by the first scroll mechanism 208 and the second scroll mechanism 210, respectively.

As shown in fig. 3, the processor 202 is configured to control and operate the first and

second rolling mechanisms

208, 210 and the first and

second shifting mechanisms

212, 214. In addition, the processor 202 is configured to control and operate a first actuation mechanism 216 and a second actuation mechanism 218 coupled to the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118, respectively, as will be described in greater detail below.

The first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are displaced by operation of the first and

second scroll mechanisms

208 and 210 and the first and

second displacement mechanisms

212 and 214. For example, referring to fig. 2C, to displace the first access panel 116 downward, the first scroll mechanism 208 and the first displacement mechanism 212 are operated to deploy or scroll the first access panel 116 more downward. To displace the upper access panel 118 downward, the second scrolling mechanism 210 and the second displacement mechanism 214 are operated to rewind the second access panel 118 a little bit. The shifting of the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 will be described in more detail below. The first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 may be made of a material that is flexible for rolling or rolling back, such as a metal sheet or a wire mesh. In addition, the material should have good structural integrity to prevent forced entry into the server rack 100.

In some embodiments, a user is requesting access to a rack unit 104 to install and install a new computing device 106 therein. Initially, as shown in fig. 5A, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 of the rack door 112 are in a closed arrangement. In step 302, the user provides user input via the user input device 204, and in step 304, the processor 202 authenticates the user identification data. In step 308, as shown in fig. 5A, upon authenticating the user identification data, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted toward the rack location 126 corresponding to the rack unit 104 while the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 remain in the closed arrangement. In step 310, as shown in fig. 5B, at the rack location 126, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted from the closed arrangement to the open arrangement to enable access to the rack unit 104. As shown in fig. 5C, the user then proceeds to install and position the computing device 106 in the rack unit 104. After the computing device 106 is installed and positioned, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are displaced from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement in step 312. As shown in fig. 5D, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are subsequently shifted to another rack location of the server rack 100 while the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 remain in the closed arrangement.

In some other embodiments, a user is requesting access to the rack unit 104 to remove and detach the computing device 106 installed therein. Initially, as shown in fig. 6A, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 of the rack door 112 are in a closed arrangement. In step 302, the user provides user input via the user input device 204, and in step 304, the processor 202 authenticates the user identification data. In step 308, as shown in fig. 6B, upon authenticating the user identification data, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted toward the rack location 126 corresponding to the rack unit 104 while the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 remain in the closed arrangement. In step 310, at the rack location 126, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted from the closed arrangement to the open arrangement to enable access to the rack unit 104. As shown in fig. 6C, the user then proceeds to detach and remove the computing device 106 from the rack unit 104. After the computing device 106 is removed and removed, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement in step 312. As shown in fig. 6D, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are subsequently shifted to another rack location of the server rack 100 while the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 remain in the closed arrangement.

Referring to fig. 7, the door frame 114 of the rack door 112 is movably mounted to the chassis 102 via a hinge mechanism 128 for controlling concurrent access to all of the rack units 104 of the server rack 100. The door frame 114 is locked to the chassis 102 with a primary lock and can be unlocked when necessary to access all of the rack units 104 of the server rack 100. For example, the rack doors 112 may be rotated open via the hinge mechanism 128 for comprehensive maintenance of all of the rack units 104 of the server rack 100. In another example, a user owns or leases all rack units 104. Opening the rack door 112 via the hinge mechanism 128 as a whole to enable access to all of the rack units 104 would be more convenient than accessing the rack units 104 individually using the method 300, which may be time consuming.

Fig. 7 illustrates a plurality of

rack units

104a, 104b, 104c, 104d, 104e, 104f, and 104g of the server rack 100. In one embodiment, all of the plurality of rack units 104a-g are owned or leased by a user. The rack units 104a-g of the users are thus arranged in the server rack 100 either consecutively or in succession. In step 308, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted to rack positions corresponding to the plurality of rack units 104a-g while the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 remain in the closed arrangement. For example, the rack location 126d corresponding to the center rack unit 104d may correspond to multiple rack units 104a-g as if they were positioned around their center. In step 310, at the rack position 126d, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted from the closed arrangement to the open arrangement. In the open arrangement, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are further separated to enable access to all of the plurality of rack units 104 a-g. Notably, if the height of each of the rack units 104a-g is 2U, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are separated by a height separation 124 of 14U.

In another embodiment, the user only owns or leases the

rack units

104b, 104d and 104 f. The plurality of

rack units

104b, 104d, 104f of users are thus arranged in the server rack 100 either continuously or separately. In step 302, the user input includes a request to access a plurality of

rack units

104b, 104d, 104f corresponding to a plurality of

rack locations

126b, 126d, and 126 f. The user input includes an access sequence for sequentially accessing the plurality of

rack units

104b, 104d, 104 f. The first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are displaceable according to an access sequence to enable sequential access to the plurality of

rack units

104b, 104d, 104 f.

In step 308, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted to one of the rack positions 126b, 126d, 126f corresponding to one of the plurality of

rack units

104b, 104d, 104f while the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 remain in the closed arrangement. For example, the first rack location 126b corresponds to the first rack unit 104 b. In step 310, at the first rack location 126b, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted from the closed arrangement to the open arrangement to enable access to the first rack unit 104 b. After the work on the first rack unit 104b is completed, the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are shifted from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement at the first rack location 126b in step 312. The first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are displaced to subsequent ones of the rack positions 126b, 126d, 126f corresponding to subsequent ones of the plurality of

rack units

104b, 104d, 104f while the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 remain in the closed arrangement. For example, the second rack location 126d corresponds to the second rack unit 104 d. It will be appreciated that these steps are repeated for the third rack position 126f and the third rack unit 104 f. Thus, all of the

rack units

104b, 104d, 104f are sequentially accessible by the user according to an access sequence defined and entered by the user.

The advantage of the server rack 100 and the method 300 of accessing the server rack 100 is that users are only authorized to access their own rack units 104 and the computing devices 106 installed therein, especially if the server rack 100 is shared by multiple users. The server rack 100 may be equipped with a camera device coupled to the processor 202 for monitoring user operations at the server rack 100. The operations at the server rack 100, including access times and durations, may be monitored and tracked, and the data stored on the database 206. The server rack 100 and method 300 thus provide a higher level of security and will ensure users that their rack units 104 and computing devices 106 cannot be accessed without authorization. Because each user has their own user identification data to access their rack unit 104, they need not be accompanied by a separate party (e.g., an employee of the data center running the server rack 100). This reduces labor costs and ensures privacy for the user. It is also not necessary for users to mount a security or locking bezel to their rack unit 104, reducing the cost of using the rack unit 104. The data centers can better manage the use of their server racks 100 and rack units 104 and enable users to more easily access the rack units 104.

In some embodiments, the first access panel 116 includes a first clearance barrier 130 and the second access panel 118 includes a second clearance barrier 132. Each of the first and

second clearance obstacles

130, 132 is an extendable structure, such as in the form of a scissor structure, that is positioned at or coupled to the first and second

leading edges

120, 122, respectively. The first and

second clearance barriers

130, 132 are coupled to the first and second actuation mechanisms 216, 218, respectively, for extension thereof. Fig. 8A and 8B illustrate the first and

second gap obstacles

130, 132 in a default collapsed arrangement. Although the illustration in fig. 8B is focused on the second clearance barrier 132, it will be appreciated that the illustration applies similarly to the first clearance barrier 130.

Prior to the step 310 of shifting the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 from the closed arrangement to the open arrangement, there may be the additional steps of: at the same rack position as step 310, the first and

second clearance barriers

130, 132 are displaced towards the rack unit 104 corresponding to the rack position, i.e. from a retracted arrangement to a displaced or extended arrangement. In particular, the first linear actuation mechanism 216 and the second linear actuation mechanism 218 are controlled by the processor 202 to extend the first clearance barrier 130 and the second clearance barrier 132, respectively. Each of the first and

second clearance obstacles

130, 132 includes a depth proximity sensor 134 for limiting maximum extension. This prevents the first and

second clearance barriers

130, 132 from extending too far toward the rack unit 104, potentially damaging the rack unit 104 and/or any computing devices 106 mounted therein. The depth proximity sensor 134 may include or rely on one or more of ultrasonic, infrared, and hall effect sensor modules to detect depth. It will be appreciated that there may be multiple depth proximity sensors 134 for redundancy and improved reliability.

Fig. 8C and 8D illustrate the first and

second clearance barriers

130, 132 in a displaced or extended arrangement. Although the illustration in fig. 8D focuses on the second clearance barrier 132, it will be appreciated that the illustration applies similarly to the first clearance barrier 130. In the extended arrangement, the first and

second gap barriers

130, 132 disable access to other rack units 104 even when the first and

second access panels

116, 118 are in the open arrangement. In particular, the first clearance barrier 130 prevents access to the rack unit 104 positioned above it, while the second clearance barrier 132 prevents access to the rack unit 104 positioned below it. This prevents unauthorized access to other computing devices 106 mounted in other rack units 104. Thus, in the extended arrangement, only the rack units 104 positioned between the first and

second clearance barriers

130, 132 are accessible.

After the user has completed work on the rack unit 104 and before the step 312 of shifting the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement, there may be the additional steps of: at the same rack position, the first and

second clearance barriers

130, 132 are displaced away from the rack unit 104. In one embodiment, the first and

second gap obstacles

130, 132 are displaced from the extended arrangement to the retracted arrangement in response to another user input via the user input device 204. In another embodiment, the first and

second clearance obstacles

130, 132 are automatically displaced from the extended arrangement to the retracted arrangement after a predefined duration has elapsed since the first and

second clearance obstacles

130, 132 were in the extended arrangement. An alert device may be activated during the predefined duration to alert the user.

In one embodiment, as shown in fig. 8B and 8D with respect to the second actuation mechanism 218, the second actuation mechanism 218 includes a set of gears 136 and a set of conveyors 138 that may cooperate to retract and extend the scissor structure of the second clearance barrier 132. The gear 136 and the conveyor 138 are coupled via a coupling 140 to an actuating device, e.g. a motor, for controlling the retraction and extension of the second clearance barrier 132. It will be appreciated that the first actuation mechanism 216 may operate in a similar or analogous manner.

As mentioned above, the first and

second displacement mechanisms

212, 214 and the first and

second scroll mechanisms

208, 210 may cooperate to control the roll-out and roll-back (rewind) of the first and

second access panels

116, 118, thereby controlling the displacement of the first and

second access panels

116, 118. As is readily known to the skilled person, various types of displacement mechanisms may be implemented for the first displacement mechanism 212 and the second displacement mechanism 214.

Fig. 9A illustrates an example of a first type of displacement mechanism 220. In particular, fig. 9A illustrates the displacement mechanism 220 implemented for the left side of the second access panel 118. The displacement mechanism 220 includes a motor 222, a threaded pillow block 224, a set of gears 226, and a screw shaft 228. The motor 222 is coupled to the threaded pillow block 224 via a gear 226 for actuating the threaded pillow block 224 or rotating the threaded pillow block 224. A screw axis 228 is inserted through the threaded pillow block 224, both of which are threaded, such that rotation of the threaded pillow block 224 displaces the threaded pillow block 224 along the screw axis 228. The threaded pillow block 224 includes anti-friction bearings for facilitating displacement along a helical axis 228, the helical axis 228 being adjacent to the column 108 and parallel to the column 108. The displacement mechanism 220 includes a housing 230 for holding a motor 222, a threaded pillow block 224, and a gear 226. The housing 230 is coupled to the front edge 122 of the second access panel 118. The screw axis 228 is inserted through the housing 230 such that displacement of the screw boss 224 along the screw axis 228 displaces the housing 230 and the second access panel 118 along the screw axis 228. It will be appreciated that each side of the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 is displaceable along the same screw axis 228.

The displacement mechanism 220 comprises an electromagnetic lock 232 for locking the second access panel 118 at a desired position. In particular, the electromagnetic lock 232 is configured to end the displacement of the second access panel 118 when the second access panel 118 reaches the desired rack position, in the closed arrangement (step 308), and when the second access panel 118 reaches the desired separation with respect to the first access panel 116, in the open arrangement (step 310). The displacement mechanism 220 includes a height proximity sensor 234 for determining the height separation 124 relative to the first access panel 116. The height proximity sensor 234 may include or rely on one or more of ultrasonic, infrared, and hall effect sensor modules to detect the height separation 124. It will be appreciated that there may be multiple height proximity sensors 234 for redundancy and improved reliability.

Fig. 9B illustrates an example of a second type of displacement mechanism 240. In particular, fig. 9B illustrates the displacement mechanism 240 implemented for the left side of the second access panel 118. The shifting mechanism 240 includes a motor 222, an unthreaded shaft block 242, a set of gears 226, a linear shaft 244, an idler 246, and a timing belt or an axle belt 248. The shifting mechanism 240 includes a housing 230 for holding the motor 222, the unthreaded boss 242, the gear 226, and the idler gear 246. The motor 222 is coupled to an idler 246 via a gear 226 to actuate the idler 246 or rotate the idler 246, the idler 246 in turn engaging an axle belt 248. A linear shaft 244 is inserted through the unthreaded pillow block 242. Both the linear shaft 244 and the axle belt 248 are adjacent to the column 108 and parallel to the column 108. The housing 230 is coupled to the front edge 122 of the second access panel 118. The screw axis 228 is inserted through the housing 230 such that displacement of the screw boss 224 along the screw axis 228 displaces the housing 230 and the second access panel 118 along the screw axis 228. It will be appreciated that each side of the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 can be displaced along the same screw axis 228. As the idler wheel 246 is rotated by the motor 222, the idler wheel 246 is displaced along the axle belt 248 and the unthreaded shaft block 242 is displaced along the linear shaft 244. The unthreaded boss 242 includes anti-friction bearings that facilitate displacement along the linear axis 244. The housing 230 is coupled to the front edge 122 of the second access panel 118 such that displacement of the idler 246 along the axle belt 248 displaces the housing 230 and the second access panel 118 along the linear axis 244. It will be appreciated that each side of the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118 are displaceable along the same linear axis 244.

The displacement mechanism 240 includes an electromagnetic lock 232 and a height proximity sensor 234. It will be appreciated that the electromagnetic lock 232 and the height proximity sensor 234 operate similarly to the electromagnetic lock 232 and the height proximity sensor 234 as shown for the displacement mechanism 220 in fig. 9A.

In one embodiment with reference to fig. 10A, the first displacement mechanism 212 for displacing the first access panel 116 includes a first left displacement mechanism 212L and a first right displacement mechanism 212R. Similarly, the second displacement mechanism 214 for displacing the second access panel 118 includes a second left displacement mechanism 214L and a second right displacement mechanism 214R. Each of the

displacement mechanisms

212L, 212R, 214L, and 214R is based on a first type of displacement mechanism 220 as shown in fig. 9A. It will be appreciated that one or more of the

displacement mechanisms

212L, 212R, 214L, and 214R may be based on other types of displacement mechanisms, such as the second type of displacement mechanism 240 as shown in fig. 9B.

Each of the

displacement mechanisms

212L, 212R, 214L, and 214R includes a motor 222, a screw boss 224, and a screw shaft 228. The

displacement mechanisms

212L, 212R, 214L, and 214R are operable in synchronization with each other to displace the first access panel 116 and the second access panel 118. Each motor 222 of the

displacement mechanisms

212L, 212R, 214L, and 214R may operate on its own motor driver. Alternatively, the motors 222 of the first displacement mechanisms 212 may share a common motor drive, and similarly, the motors 222 of the second displacement mechanisms 214 may share a common motor drive.

In another embodiment with reference to fig. 10B, the left shifting

mechanisms

212L and 214L are based on a first type of shifting mechanism 220. Each of the

right shifting mechanisms

212R and 214R includes a threaded pillow block 224 for shifting along a helical axis 228. In addition, each of the first and

second displacement mechanisms

212, 214 includes a conveyor belt 250 for coupling the left displacement mechanism 212L/214L to the right displacement mechanism 212R/214R. Therefore, the

right shift mechanisms

212R and 214R are driven by the

left shift mechanisms

212L and 214L.

In another embodiment with reference to fig. 10C, the left shifting

mechanisms

212L and 214L are based on a first type of shifting mechanism 220. However, unlike the embodiment as shown in fig. 10B, the conveyor belt 250 is omitted. Instead, the threaded pillow blocks 224 of the

right shifting mechanisms

212R and 214R are coupled to the

leading edges

120 and 122, respectively. The threaded pillow blocks 224 of the

right shifting mechanisms

212R and 214R are passively displaceable in response to active displacement of the threaded pillow blocks 226 of the left shifting

mechanisms

212L and 214L. Therefore, the

right shift mechanisms

212R and 214R are driven by the

left shift mechanisms

212L and 214L.

In some other embodiments, the left and/or

right displacement mechanisms

212L and 214R and 212R may be based on the second type of displacement mechanism 240. For example, the

right shifting mechanisms

212R and 214R are based in part on the second type of shifting mechanism 240. In particular, each of the

right displacement mechanisms

212R and 214R includes an unthreaded pillow block 242 for displacement along a linear axis 244. Similar to the embodiment as shown in fig. 10C, an unthreaded pillow block 242 may be coupled to leading

edges

120 and 122, respectively. The unthreaded pillow blocks 242 of the

right shift mechanisms

212R and 214R are passively displaceable in response to active displacement of the threaded pillow blocks 226 of the

left shift mechanisms

212L and 214L. Therefore, the

right shift mechanisms

212R and 214R are driven by the

left shift mechanisms

212L and 214L.

In some embodiments with reference to fig. 11, the rack door 112 includes an address identifier 142, such as a QR code or URL address, displayed thereon. The address identifier 142 is unique to the server rack 100 and may be displayed on its first access panel 116 or second access panel 118. The address identifier 142 links to the provider of the purchase, e.g., the data center, for the rack unit 104 of the server rack 100. For example, the address identifier 142 links to a vendor interface, such as a website, of a data center running many server racks 100. The rack units 104 of the server rack 100 identified by the address identifier 142 can be purchased, leased, reserved, or leased from the data center via the provider interface.

The user may access the vendor interface via an application executable on the electronic device 400 as shown in fig. 12A. The electronic device 400 may be a mobile device, such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a tablet, a laptop, or a computer. In one embodiment, the user needs to physically present at the data center in order to procure the rack unit 104. The data center may permit a user to enter the location of the server rack 100 with available rack units 104. The user then uses the electronic device 400 to read the address identifier 142 displayed on the rack door 112 of the server rack 100. For example, the camera device of the electronic device 400 scans the address identifier 142(QR code), as shown in the application screenshot 402 of fig. 12B, allowing the application to access the vendor interface for procurement of the rack units 104 of the server rack 100.

In another embodiment, the user may remotely procure rack units 104 from a data center. As illustrated in the application screenshot 404 in FIG. 12C, applications that may be running on the electronic device 400 show geographic areas with various locations 30 identified. Each location 30 represents a data center running a number of server rack units 100. The user then selects one of the locations 30 that indicates that he/she wants to procure the data center of the rack unit 104 at that location. The application then shows the server rack 100 with the available rack units 104, as illustrated in the application screenshot 406 in fig. 12D. The user then selects his/her preferred server rack 100.

In both embodiments, after identifying the server rack 100 having available rack units 104 for the purchase, the application then shows a schematic of all of the rack units 104 of the server rack 100. As illustrated in the application screen shot 408 in fig. 12E, the server rack 100 has a total of 19 rack units 104. Only the upper 11 rack units 104 are available for procurement. The user then selects one or more rack units from the 11 rack units 104. As illustrated in the application screenshot 410 in fig. 12F, the user has selected the 9 th to 11 th rack unit 104 from the data center to make the purchase. Notably, each of the rack units 104 has a height of 2U.

In the foregoing detailed description, embodiments of the present disclosure are described with reference to the provided figures in relation to a server rack and a method for accessing a server rack. The description of various embodiments herein is not intended to be exhaustive or to be limited to the precise or specific representations of the disclosure, but is merely illustrative of non-limiting examples of the disclosure. Although only a few embodiments of the present disclosure are disclosed herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of this disclosure that various changes and/or modifications can be made to the disclosed embodiments without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the scope of the disclosure and the scope of the appended claims are not limited to the embodiments described herein.

Claims

1. A method of accessing a server rack having a plurality of rack units, the method comprising:

receiving a user input requesting access to a rack unit;

upon authenticating the user input, shifting a first access panel and a second access panel of a rack door of the server rack toward a rack position of the server rack corresponding to the rack unit while the first access panel and the second access panel remain in a closed arrangement; and

at the rack location, shifting the first access panel and the second access panel from the closed arrangement to an open arrangement to enable access to the rack unit.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first access panel and the second access panel are movably mounted to the rack door, the first access panel and the second access panel configured to control access to the rack units of the server rack.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the rack door further comprises a first displacement mechanism and a second displacement mechanism coupled to the first access panel and the second access panel, respectively.

4. The method of any of claims 1-3, wherein the user input includes user identification data, and further comprising authenticating the user identification data in response to receiving the user input.

5. The method of any of claims 1-3, wherein the rack locations correspond to a plurality of rack units arranged in series in the server rack such that the first access panel and the second access panel in the open arrangement enable access to the plurality of rack units.

6. The method of any of claims 1-3, wherein the user input comprises a request to access a plurality of rack units discontinuously disposed in the server rack, the plurality of rack units corresponding to a plurality of rack locations.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the user input comprises an access sequence for sequentially accessing the plurality of rack units.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first access panel and the second access panel are displaceable according to the access sequence to enable sequential access to the plurality of rack units.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

at one of the plurality of rack positions, displacing the first access panel and the second access panel from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement; and

shifting the first access panel and the second access panel toward a subsequent rack position of the plurality of rack positions.

10. The method of any of claims 1-3, wherein each of the first and second access panels includes a gap barrier that disables access to other rack units when the first and second access panels are in the open arrangement.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

at the rack position, displacing the gap obstructor towards the rack unit prior to displacing the first and second access panels from the closed arrangement to the open arrangement.

12. The method of any of claims 1 to 3, further comprising, at the rack location, automatically displacing the first and second access panels from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement after a predefined duration has elapsed since the first and second access panels were in the open arrangement.

13. The method of any of claims 1-3, further comprising, at the rack location, automatically shifting the first access panel and the second access panel from the open arrangement to the closed arrangement in response to another user input.

14. A server rack, comprising:

a processor;

a user input device coupled to the processor and configured to receive a user input requesting access to a rack unit;

a chassis for storing a plurality of rack units; and

a rack door coupled to the processor and movably mounted to the chassis for controlling access to the rack unit, the rack door including an upper access panel and a lower access panel movably mounted to the rack door,

wherein the processor is configured to:

receiving the user input to perform authentication;

upon the authentication of the user input, shifting the upper access panel and the lower access panel toward a rack position corresponding to the rack unit while the upper access panel and the lower access panel remain in a closed arrangement; and

at the rack position, shifting the upper and lower access panels from the closed arrangement to an open arrangement to enable access to the rack unit.

15. The server rack of claim 14, the rack door further comprising an upper and lower shifting mechanism coupled to the upper and lower access panels, respectively, for controlling access to the rack units.

16. The server rack of claim 14 or 15, the rack door further comprising a door frame movably mounted to the chassis for controlling concurrent access to all of the rack units.

17. The server rack of claim 14 or 15, wherein in the closed arrangement, a leading edge of the upper access panel is proximate a leading edge of the lower access panel to disable access to the rack unit.

18. The server rack of claim 14 or 15, wherein each access door panel of the upper and lower access panels comprises a clearance barrier for disabling access to other rack units when the upper and lower access panels are in the open arrangement.

19. The server rack of claim 18, wherein the processor is further configured to:

at the rack position, displacing the gap obstructor towards the rack unit before displacing the upper and lower access panels from the closed arrangement to the open arrangement.

20. The server rack of claim 14 or 15, the rack door further comprising an address identifier displayed on the rack door, the address identifier linked to a supplier for procurement of rack units.