JP2001142575A - Portable information processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a portable information processor suppressing the temperature of a palm rest by emitting heat generated inside from a part to which the user of a cabinet does not touch frequently. SOLUTION: In this portable information processor keeping the temperature of a palm rest 11 from exceeding a prescribed value by restricting the transmission of heat generated at a highly heat generating part 15 housed in a main body cabinet 10 to the palm rest 11 provided on the surface of a cabinet 10u, a heat conductive spacer 16 is provided on the part 15 to transmit heat generated from the part 15 to the other parts, a heat absorbing area 10ah is thermally connected to the part 15 through the spacer 16 to absorb heat, and a heat conductive cross section restricting area 10rb restricts the heat conductive cross section area of a heat conductive path 10rb between the area 10ah and the palm rest 11.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a portable information processing apparatus such as a notebook personal computer, and more particularly, to a portable information processing apparatus using a light-weight, high-conductivity material such as a magnesium alloy for a main body cabinet. .

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, portable information processing apparatuses such as notebook personal computers have been further reduced in thickness and weight as well as in performance. In order to realize higher performance, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) capable of performing higher-speed processing than in the past, and more highly integrated circuit components are mounted on a portable information processing device. In order to reduce the thickness and weight of the information processing apparatus without reducing the strength, the main body cabinet may be made of a light metal material such as a magnesium alloy.

However, high-speed processing of CPUs and high integration of circuits increase the amount of generated heat. There is a demand for efficiently dissipating the increased amount of heat to the outside of the portable information processing device through a main body cabinet made of a light metal material such as a magnesium alloy.

Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, a configuration of a conventional portable information processing apparatus and a heat radiation method will be briefly described. The portable information processing device PIc1 mainly includes a main body cabinet 20, a palm rest 21, a display 22, a keyboard 23, a CPU 25, a cooling fan 27, and a flat pad 29. The main body cabinet 20 is made of metal. In the lower front portion of the main body cabinet 20, there is arranged a palm rest 21 on which a palm can be placed when inputting a keyboard. The display 22 is an information processing device P
It is rotatably attached to the main body of Ic by a hinge. A flat pad 29, which is a pointing device, is disposed substantially at the center of the palm rest 21. A keyboard 23 is arranged above the main body cabinet 20.

[0005] A circuit board 24 is mounted on the opposite side of the main body cabinet 20 across the keyboard 23. On the circuit board 24, a CPU 25 as a heat source is provided. Further, the heat radiating plate 28 is disposed directly above the CPU 25 so as not to contact the main body cabinet 20. A part of the heat sink 28 is brought into contact with the cooling fan 27. The heat radiating plate 28 receives the heat radiated from the CPU 25 and becomes high in temperature.
Is discharged to the outside of the main body cabinet 20. As a result, heat generated by the CPU 25 as a heat source is released to the outside of the main body cabinet 20 and
It is configured to keep the inside temperature constant.

In the portable information processing device PIc1, in order to sufficiently cool the heat source (CPU 25), the heat receiving area and the heat storage capacity of the radiator plate 28 are increased to effectively remove the heat from the heat source. Absorb. Further, it is necessary to increase the air volume of the cooling fan 27 to rapidly release heat from the heat radiating plate 28 to the outside, thereby increasing the heat absorbing efficiency of the heat radiating plate 28. However, if the rotation speed of the motor is increased to increase the air volume of the cooling fan 27, noise and power consumption are increased.

Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, as a solution to the above-mentioned problem caused by the cooling fan 27, portable information that further radiates heat inside the main body cabinet 20 to the outside via the main body cabinet 20 itself. The configuration of the processing apparatus and the heat radiation method will be briefly described. Specifically, the heat sink 28 and the main body cabinet 20 are integrated, and the CP
The heat generated in U25 is absorbed from the inner surface of the main body cabinet 20, and the absorbed heat is released from the outer surface of the main body cabinet 20 to the outside to cool the inside of the portable information processing device PIc2.

However, the heat of the CPU 25 absorbed by the inner surface of the main body cabinet 20 is thermally conducted, and the whole main body cabinet 20 is heated to such a high temperature that the user feels uncomfortable when touched. In particular, palm rest 2
1 is such that the user touches the palm during the keyboard input operation, causing not only discomfort to the user but also a low-temperature burn on the palm. In the portable information processing device PIc2, an example has been described in which the heat sink 28 is configured integrally with the main body cabinet 20. However, similarly to the portable information processing device PIc1, even when the heat radiating plate 28 is provided separately from the main body cabinet 20, the heat of the CPU 25 is conducted to the main body cabinet 20 via the heat radiating plate 28, The temperature of the main body cabinet 20 rises above an allowable limit.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention solves a problem inherent in a high-order conventional portable information processing apparatus.
The body cabinet is made of metal with excellent thermal conductivity, and the heat generated inside the portable information processing device is mainly radiated from the parts of the metal cabinet that are infrequently touched by the user. An object of the present invention is to provide a comfortable operation environment by suppressing the temperature of the part where the operation is performed. Further, the present invention radiates heat from the main body cabinet in addition to forced radiation by the cooling fan,
By increasing the heat dissipation efficiency of the entire portable information processing device,
An object of the present invention is to reduce the number of rotations of a motor of a cooling fan to reduce noise and power consumption.

[0010]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, heat generated by a high heat generating component stored in a main body cabinet is restricted from being conducted to a palm rest provided on a surface of the cabinet. A portable information processing apparatus that keeps a palm rest at a predetermined temperature or lower, a heat conductive spacer provided on a high heat generating component and transmitting heat generated from the high heat generating component to another, and a part of a cabinet. hand,
A heat conduction area that is thermally connected to the high heat-generating component by the heat conduction spacer and absorbs heat, and is provided in a heat conduction path between the heat absorption area and the palm rest to limit a heat conduction cross-sectional area of the heat conduction path. A portable information processing device including a cross-sectional area restriction area.

As described above, in the first aspect, the temperature of the palm rest can be maintained at a predetermined temperature or lower.

A second invention is characterized in that, in the first invention, the main body cabinet is made of a metal material that is lightweight, has excellent heat conduction, and has high strength.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, a cooling fan is provided near the heat absorption area and facing the cabinet outer wall, and radiates heat from the heat absorption area to the outside of the cabinet.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the heat whose conduction to the palm rest is prevented by the heat conduction cross-section limiting area is radiated to the outside from a portion near the heat conduction cross-section limiting area of the cabinet. It is characterized by that.

According to a fifth aspect, in the first aspect, the upper surface of the palm rest is heat-insulated.

As described above, in the fifth aspect, the temperature rise of the palm rest can be further suppressed.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fifth aspect, the heat-insulating treatment is performed by applying a thick film with a paint containing hollow beads.

In a seventh aspect based on the sixth aspect, the heat insulation treatment is characterized in that a resin film is attached.

According to an eighth aspect, in the first aspect, the metal material is selected from a light metal group represented by aluminum and magnesium.

According to a ninth aspect, in the first aspect, the heat conduction cross-sectional area limiting region has one or more through holes provided in the heat conduction path.

As described above, in the ninth aspect, the temperature of the palm rest can be limited without providing any special device.

According to a tenth aspect, in the first aspect, the sectional area of the heat conduction limiting area is smaller than the sectional area of each of the heat absorbing area and the palm rest.

[0023]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First, a basic structure of an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Then, the structure of the main body cabinet used in the information processing device will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. Further, FIG.
A modification of the main body cabinet will be described with reference to FIGS.

Information processing apparatus PI according to the embodiment
Mainly include a main body cabinet 10, a palm rest 11, a display 12, a keyboard 13, a CPU 15, and a cooling fan 1.
7 and a flat bad 19. The main body cabinet 10 includes an upper case 10u and a lower case 10b, each of which is formed in a substantially rectangular shape by a metal material having higher strength and higher heat transfer performance than resin. Display 1
2 is rotatably attached to the upper end of the outer surface of the upper case 10u by a hinge.

In the upper half area inside the lower case 10b, a circuit board 14 on which circuit components 4 (only a part is shown) including a CPU 15 which is a high heat source is accommodated. As clearly shown in FIG. 1, the upper right corner of the circuit board 14 is cut out in a rectangular shape, and a space Sf is formed between the circuit board 14 and the lower case 10b. Various devices 18 such as a disk drive are stored in a lower half area of the lower case 10b.

In the upper half area of the main surface of the upper case 10u, a rectangular recess 1 corresponding to the outer shape of the keyboard 13 is provided.
0r is provided. The keyboard 13 is located in the recess 1
0r. The lower half region of the recess 10r is a heat conduction obstruction region 10rb (FIG. 3) in which one or more through holes 10h are provided and hinders heat conduction. The upper half of the concave portion 10r is not provided with the through hole 10h,
ra (FIG. 3).

When the upper case 10u is assembled to the lower case 10b, the heat conduction region 10ra contacts the CPU 15 mounted on the circuit board 14 via the heat transfer member 16,
The heat radiated from the CPU 15 is absorbed, and the absorbed heat is conducted to the surroundings. From this viewpoint, a region in the heat conduction region 10ra that absorbs heat from the CPU 15 via the heat transfer member 16 is referred to as a heat absorption region 10ah. The heat transfer member 16
A film-like or grease-like material or a combination of these materials may be used as long as it actively transfers heat and electrically insulates it.

Further, a cooling fan 17 is mounted on the lower surface near the heat absorbing area 10ah corresponding to the space Sf of the lower case 10b. When the main body cabinet 10 is assembled, the cooling fan 17 is housed in the space Sf. A palm rest 11 on which a user puts a palm at the time of keyboard input is arranged in a lower half region of the main surface of the upper case 10u, that is, below the concave portion 10r.
A flat pad 19, which is a pointing device, is disposed substantially at the center of the palm rest 11. The palm rest 11 is coated with approximately 200 hollow bead-containing paint.
It is painted with a thick film of μm.

In a state where the main body cabinet 10 is assembled, heat generated by the CPU 15 is transmitted to and absorbed by the heat absorbing region 10ah of the upper case 10u via the heat transfer member 16. A part of the heat absorbed in the heat absorbing region 10ah is forcibly discharged to the outside of the main body cabinet 10 by the cooling fan 17 provided near the heat absorbing region 10ah. The heat that cannot be exhausted outside by the cooling fan 17 is
Conduction from the heat absorption region 10ah to the heat conduction region 10ra acts to warm the entire main body cabinet 10,
The heat is radiated from the exposed portion of the main body cabinet 10 to the surroundings.

However, in the present invention, the heat conduction region 10ra (heat absorption region 10ah) and the palm rest 1
1 are connected by the heat conduction obstacle region 10rb. As described above, the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb is provided with one or more through holes 10h that hold air having high heat insulating properties. The through hole 10h connects the heat conduction region 10ra and the palm rest 11 with less conductive material, so that the total amount of heat conducted from the heat conduction region 10ra to the palm rest 11 is significantly reduced.

The heat conduction region 10ra (heat absorption region 10a)
h) heat is applied to the narrow portion and the concave portion 10r between the through holes 10h.
Only through both ends of the palm rest 11. The air in the through hole 10h is transmitted to the palm rest 11
Is so small as to be negligible in the present invention. In other words, the heat conduction cross-sectional area in the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb is significantly smaller than other portions of the main body cabinet 10, such as the heat conduction region 10ra, and functions as an obstacle to heat conduction.

That is, heat is hardly transmitted from the heat conduction region 10ra to the palm rest 11. As a result, the total heat conduction transmitted from the heat conduction region 10ra to the palm rest 11 is limited,
The temperature of the palm rest 11 can be kept low.
On the other hand, the palm rest 1
The heat whose conduction to 1 is hindered is radiated into the air from the surface of upper case 10u centering on heat conduction region 10ra. As a result, the entire portable information processing device PI can be cooled while the temperature of the palm rest 11 is kept low. As a result, the load on the cooling fan 17 can be reduced.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the above-described heat conduction obstruction region 10rb will be described in detail. FIG.
2 shows a plan view of the lower surface of the upper case 10u when looking up from the lower case 10b side when assembling the main body cabinet 10. FIG. The heat absorption region 10ah of the heat conduction region 10ra that contacts the heat transfer member 16 is heated to a high temperature by the heat generated by the CPU 15. As a result, upper case 10u
In, a temperature gradient occurs between the high-temperature heat absorption region 10ah and other portions. Due to this temperature gradient, heat is radially conducted from the high-temperature heat absorption region 10ah.

Note that heat is also transmitted radially from the upper case 10u side opposite to the concave portion 10r. In particular, heat is released from the upper case 10u of the high temperature contact portion by convection of air, but the description is omitted because it is not directly related to the temperature of the palm rest 11 which is the target of the present invention.

The process in which the heat of the high-temperature heat absorbing region 10ah is conducted to the palm rest 11 will be considered. As described above, the heat of the high-temperature heat absorption region 10ah is
Conducts while diffusing u radially. That is, the longer the heat conduction path, the more the heat diffuses into the upper case 10u, so that the temperature of the portion where the heat is conducted becomes lower. Further, when the heat is diffused, the area in contact with the air, that is, the heat radiation area also becomes large, and the temperature at the diffusion destination becomes even lower due to the increase in the heat radiation area in accordance with the low temperature caused by the heat diffusion.

In view of such a phenomenon, in the present invention, by providing the through hole 10h3 on a straight line extending from the heat absorbing region 10ah to the palm rest 11, the heat conduction cross section from the heat absorbing region 10ah to the palm rest 11 is provided. Restrict. Palm rest 11 from heat absorption area 10ah
The heat that is going to be conducted linearly to the palm rest 11 is prevented from conducting by the through hole 10h3, and is conducted to the palm rest 11 side by a bypass route passing through the conducting portions P30 and P23 on both sides of the through hole 10h3.

As shown in FIG. 4, if there is no through hole 10h3, the heat conduction sectional area of this portion is (w30 + w3 + w2
3) Expressed by xh. However, the heat conduction cross-sectional area after being reduced by the through hole 10h3 is (w30 + w2
3) Expressed by xh. That is, due to the existence of the through hole 10h3, the heat conduction cross-sectional area of this portion is (w30 + w2
3) It is reduced to / (w30 + w3 + w23).

Similarly, for the through holes 10h1, 10h2, and 10h3, the heat conduction cross-sectional area of the entire heat conduction obstruction region 10rb is (w10 + w12 + w23 + w30) /
It is reduced to W.

Unless heat radiation from the surface is taken into account, the total heat conduction is approximately proportional to the heat conduction cross-sectional area ratio. Therefore, in this embodiment, the total heat conduction transmitted from the heat absorbing region 10ah to the palm rest 11 Is the function f ((w10 + w12
+ W23 + w30) / W). That is, the average temperature of the palm rest 11 is equal to the function f ((w1
0 + w12 + w23 + w30) / W).

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, a modified example of the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb will be described. 3 and 4
In the heat conduction obstacle region 10rb shown in FIG.
0h1 to 10h3 are provided. However, in the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb according to the present modification, one through hole 10h1 is provided on a straight line connecting the heat absorption region 10ah and the palm rest 11 at the shortest distance.

This is because, when the temperature of the heat absorbing area 10ah is not so high, the heat conducting path from the heat absorbing area 10ah to the palm rest 11 at the shortest distance is restricted, thereby extending the heat conducting path. This prevents the palm rest 11 from rising in temperature. Heat absorption region 1 in this case
The total amount of heat conducted from 0ah to the palm rest 11 decreases according to the function f ((W-w1) / W). this is,
When the temperature of the heat absorption region 10ah is not so high,
Are suitable.

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, a further modification of the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb will be described. In the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb according to the present modification, like the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb shown in FIGS.
One through hole 10h is provided in substantially the entire region of the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb. In this case, in order for the heat of the heat absorption region 10ah to be directly conducted to the palm rest 11, the heat conduction region must bypass the entire region of the heat conduction obstruction region 10rb and pass through the greatly expanded heat conduction path via the side wall Pf of the concave portion 10r. No. The heat conduction cross section in this case is represented by wF × H. The temperature of the palm rest 11 is calculated by a function f ((wF × H /
W × h + 2wF × H)). In this example,
This is suitable when the temperature of the heat absorption region 10ah is very high.

As described above, the upper case 10u according to the present invention is provided with a through hole 10h in the area between the heat absorbing area 10ah and the palm rest 11, which are thermally coupled to the CPU 15, which is a heat-generating component. By thinning,
The heat conduction obstacle region 10rb is formed. As a result, the palm rest 11 and the flat pad 1 in the front part of the keyboard 13
It becomes difficult for heat to be transferred from the heat absorption region 10ah to the heat absorption region 9 and the temperature of those portions can be kept low.

Further, as a method for lowering the perceived temperature of a portion of the palm rest 11 or the like that the user touches when operating the keyboard, a thick film coating of hollow foam beads is applied to such a portion, or a heat of resin or the like is applied. A method of stretching a sheet made of a material having low conductivity is also effective.

The cooling fan 17 is desirably provided on the lower surface of the upper case 10u, near the position where the CPU 15 as a heat source is mounted, and at a position not blocked by the through hole 10h. In order to further enhance the effect of the cooling fan 17, a copper plate, a heat pipe, or the like may be attached to the position connecting the CPU 15 and the cooling fan 17 inside the upper case 10u.

As described above, according to the present invention, heat can be actively radiated from the rear of the main body cabinet as compared with the conventional information processing apparatus, so that a larger amount of heat can be radiated. On the other hand, the temperature rise of the palm rest 11, which is the part where the palm is put during the keyboard input operation, is because the heat transfer path from the heat-generating component is divided by a plurality of through holes, so the amount of heat transferred to this part is In addition, the thick film coating containing hollow foamed beads makes it possible to reduce the perceived temperature due to the amount of heat transferred to the palm when operating the keyboard, causing long-term keyboard operation to cause low-temperature burns etc. It can be done comfortably without.

Further, since the heat radiating plate for cooling is constituted by the main body cabinet, the weight can be reduced. Further, since the cooling effect by the natural heat radiation from the cabinet is high, the rotation speed of the motor of the cooling fan for forced cooling can be reduced, and a portable information processing device with low power consumption and low noise can be realized.

As described above, in the portable information processing apparatus of the present invention, a main body cabinet made of a metal material having excellent heat conductivity and having a concave rear top surface, and a palm rest portion on the front side of the main body cabinet are provided. A keyboard for input arranged in the above-mentioned concave portion so as to be substantially flush with the circuit board on which a heat-generating component is contacted by a heat conductive spacer having high thermal conductivity at a position near the rear of the concave portion of the main body cabinet. And a plurality of through-holes are formed in a concave portion of the main body cabinet at a position on the near side with respect to a portion where the heat-generating component is brought into contact. The palm rest of the main body cabinet on the front side of the input keyboard is coated with a thick film with a paint containing hollow beads.

As a result, the whole main body cabinet can function as a heat sink, so to speak, and can dissipate a larger amount of heat. On the other hand, the temperature rise in the palm rest part of the main body cabinet in front of the keyboard, where the palm is placed during keyboard input work, is transferred to this part because the heat transfer path from the heat-generating component is divided by multiple through holes. The amount of heat to be heated is suppressed, and the thick film coating containing the hollow foam beads suppresses the speed of heat transfer to the palm from the main body cabinet in this region, lowering the sensible temperature due to the amount of heat transferred to the palm. Can be suppressed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a portable information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II-II of the portable information processing apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a lower surface of an upper case of the portable information processing device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the upper case taken along line IV-IV of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a modification of the upper case 10 shown in FIG.

6 is a cross-sectional view of the upper case shown in FIG. 5, taken along line VII-VII.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a further modification of the upper case 10 shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the upper case shown in FIG. 7 taken along line II-II.

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional portable information processing device.

10 is a sectional view of the portable information processing device taken along the line II-II shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a perspective development view of a further conventional portable information processing apparatus.

FIG. 12 is a diagram of the portable information processing apparatus shown in FIG.
1 is a sectional view.

[Explanation of symbols]

 PI, PIc1, PIc2 Information processing unit 4 Circuit component 10, 20 Main body cabinet 10r Recess 10ah Heat absorption area 10ra Heat conduction area 10rb Heat conduction obstruction area 10u Upper case 10b Lower case 11, 21 Palm rest 12, 22 Display 13, 23 Keyboard 14, 24 Circuit board 15, 25 CPU 16 Heat transfer member 17, 27 Cooling fan 18, 28 Equipment 19, 29 Flat pad

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H05K 7/20 G06F 1/00 360C (72) Inventor Junichi Kubota 1006 Odakadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Matsushita Electric Industrial (72) Inventor Akihiro Kuranaga 1006 Kazuma Kadoma, Kadoma, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A portable type that limits heat generated by a high heat-generating component stored in a main body cabinet to a palm rest provided on a surface of the cabinet and keeps the palm rest at a predetermined temperature or lower. An information processing apparatus, comprising: a heat conductive spacer provided on the heat generating component and transmitting heat generated from the heat generating component to another; and a part of the cabinet, wherein the heat conductive spacer A heat-absorbing region that is thermally connected and absorbs heat; and a heat-conducting cross-section limiting region that is provided in a heat-conducting path between the heat-absorbing region and the palm rest, and restricts a heat-conducting cross-sectional area of the heat-conducting path. A portable information processing device comprising: 2. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the main body cabinet is made of a metal material that is lightweight, has excellent heat conduction, and has high strength. 3. The mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein a cooling fan is provided in the vicinity of the heat absorption area and facing the cabinet outer wall, and radiates heat from the heat absorption area to the outside of the cabinet. Type information processing device. 4. The heat, which is prevented from conducting to the palm rest by the heat conduction cross-section limiting area, is radiated to the outside from the vicinity of the heat conduction cross-section restriction area of the cabinet. The portable information processing device according to claim 1. 5. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the palm rest is subjected to heat insulation processing. 6. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the heat insulation treatment is performed by thick-film coating with a paint containing hollow beads. 7. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the heat insulation process is performed by attaching a resin film. 8. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the metal material is selected from a light metal group represented by aluminum and magnesium. 9. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the heat conduction cross-sectional area limiting region has one or more through holes in the heat conduction path. 10. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a cross-sectional area of the heat conduction cross-section limiting area is smaller than a cross-sectional area of each of the heat absorption area and the palm rest.