JP2002118984A - Uninterruptible power supply - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a fire from spreading to the outside by checking the fire caused by a failure to a minimum level and the like inside an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). SOLUTION: This UPS comprises a UPS circuit 5 for stably supplying electric power to the outside not only in a steady state but also on a power failure, except when an explosion-proof valve 4 for releasing abnormal high pressure inside is opened and an abnormal air pressure detecting circuit 3 for detecting abnormal pressure inside the box 1 inside a box 1 of substantially an enclosed structure. Also, a heat exchanging mechanism part 2 is provided, that passes through the wall of the box 1 for discharging heat inside the enclosed box 1 to the outside.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an uninterruptible power supply, which is used for stable supply of AC power to an information processing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an uninterruptible power supply (hereinafter referred to as "UPS") has been widely used as a power supply for securing a stable power supply to instrumentation equipment and computers of a plant. Since the UPS is installed to protect these load devices such as computers from a commercial power supply abnormality including a power failure, the UPS is often used for applications that cannot be stopped even for a moment. Since such a UPS handles high power to supply AC power, it generates a large amount of heat from an internal circuit, and discharges this heat to the outside.
The casing of S is provided with a cooling vent or a cooling fan. In addition, a temperature sensor is installed at parts or places where there is a risk of abnormal heat generation or ignition due to a failure of the UPS device, and the internal temperature is monitored. A circuit for stopping the operation is incorporated.

[0003]

However, as described above, the detection of abnormal heat generation by the temperature sensor can instantaneously or in a short time detect the heat generation in the component where the temperature sensor is installed and in the vicinity thereof. If abnormal heat generation occurs in parts or places where no sensor is installed or abnormal heat generation is not expected, it takes time to transmit the temperature to the temperature sensor, so when the temperature sensor detects abnormal heat generation, There was a fear that smoke had already been ignited. In order to eliminate such a time delay, it is conceivable to add a temperature sensor, but this increases the cost.

Further, since the inside of the UPS communicates with the outside by providing a cooling ventilation port or a cooling fan in the housing of the UPS, when the inside of the UPS ignites, the outside of the UPS is supplied with oxygen. Promotes combustion, and
There is a risk of causing fire to spread to the outside.
(Product Liability: Product Liability)
There was a risk of a problematic obstacle.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an uninterruptible power supply that minimizes a fire generated inside a UPS and does not cause a fire to spread to the outside.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, an uninterruptible power supply according to the present invention has a UPS circuit inside a housing for continuously supplying power to the outside during a steady state and during a power failure. In the uninterruptible power supply, the case for substantially sealing the inside, at least one pressure detecting unit for detecting the internal pressure of the case, and for releasing heat inside the case to the outside And a heat radiating portion provided through the wall surface of the housing.

As described above, the uninterruptible power supply of the present invention
Since the housing has a substantially sealed interior, abnormal pressure or heat generated elsewhere in the housing must be detected by the pressure detection unit by detecting the increased pressure caused by the expansion of the gas inside the housing. Can be. Further, with this sealed structure, the supply of oxygen from outside, which promotes internal combustion, can be cut off. Furthermore, in the uninterruptible power supply of the present invention, since the heat radiating portion is provided through the wall surface of the housing, the heat generated from the UPS circuit or the like generated in a normal use condition is maintained while keeping the inside of the housing sealed. Can be released to the outside.

Further, the uninterruptible power supply of the present invention has an explosion-proof valve that opens based on a signal output from the pressure detection unit when the pressure detection unit detects an internal pressure exceeding a predetermined threshold. There may be. In this case, by opening the explosion-proof valve, abnormal heat generation or abnormal pressure increase in the housing due to ignition can be avoided, and there is no danger of damage to the housing or explosion.

The heat radiating section may be a metal radiating fin.

The heat radiating section may have a pipe line in which the refrigerant is sealed, and may have a circulation mechanism for forcibly circulating the refrigerant.

[0011] The wall constituting the housing may have a heat-insulating structure or a heat-resistant structure.

Furthermore, a gas other than oxygen may be sealed inside the housing. In this case, since the inside of the housing is in an oxygen-free state, there is no risk of ignition inside.

[0013]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. (First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration diagram of an uninterruptible power supply according to the present embodiment.

The uninterruptible power supply according to the present embodiment is provided in the enclosure 1 having a substantially sealed structure, not only at the time of power failure but also at the time of power failure, except when the explosion-proof valve 4 for abnormally high pressure inside is opened. A UPS circuit unit 5 for stably supplying power to the outside,
An abnormal pressure detection circuit unit 3 for detecting an abnormal pressure inside the housing 1, and provided through a wall surface of the housing 1.
Heat exchange mechanism 2 for releasing heat inside sealed housing 1 to the outside, AC input unit 6 for externally inputting AC to UPS circuit 5, and UPS circuit 5 via UPS circuit 5. An AC output unit 7 for externally outputting AC.

The wall constituting the housing 1 may have a heat insulating structure and a heat resistant structure. Also, housing 1
The mounting portion of the explosion-proof valve 4, the heat exchange mechanism 2, the AC input 6, and the AC output 7 may be sealed by a known method. By making the inside of the housing 1 almost completely closed using a sealing, the pressure in the housing 1 does not leak to the outside, so that the pressure change in the housing 1 due to the abnormal air pressure detection circuit unit 3 can be more accurate. Not only oxygen but also the interior of the housing 1 can be filled with an inert gas or the like other than oxygen.
The inside of the housing 1 can be made anoxic.

The heat exchange mechanism 2 is a radiating fin made of a material having a high thermal conductivity such as a metal, and efficiently removes heat from a heat generating unit such as the UPS circuit 5 provided in the housing 1 to the outside. Can be released.

The abnormal atmospheric pressure detecting circuit section 3 includes a UPS circuit section 5
The enclosure 1 which is substantially closed due to abnormal heat generation or ignition occurring somewhere in the enclosure 1 due to a failure of the enclosure 1 or a failure of a circuit (not shown) provided in the enclosure 1. When the internal gas expands to a high pressure exceeding a predetermined threshold, the abnormal pressure is detected by a pressure sensor, and a signal for opening the explosion-proof valve 4 is sent to the explosion-proof valve 4.
Further, a signal from the abnormal atmospheric pressure detection circuit section 3 may be output to the outside in order to make the user recognize that abnormal heat generation or ignition has occurred.

The explosion-proof valve 4 communicates the inside of the housing 1 with the outside air in order to release a high pressure exceeding a predetermined threshold value inside the housing 1. Open only when received, always closed otherwise. When the explosion-proof valve 4 is opened, since the pressure inside the housing 1 is always higher than the outside air, the gas inside the housing 1 is discharged from the inside of the housing 1 toward the outside air. Oxygen does not substantially flow into the housing 1.

According to the uninterruptible power supply of this embodiment having the above-described configuration, even if the UPS circuit unit 5 or any other part of the housing 1 is ignited, the housing 1
Since the inside is substantially sealed, oxygen for promoting ignition is not supplied into the housing 1 from the outside.
The fire will be automatically extinguished when the oxygen inside is exhausted.

The abnormal air pressure detecting circuit section 3 does not directly measure the temperature such as abnormal heat generation but measures the pressure in the substantially closed housing 1. These abnormalities can be detected regardless of abnormal heat generation or ignition. Further, the time until the abnormality is detected does not depend on the distance between the heat source and the sensor.
In addition, the uninterruptible power supply of the present embodiment can detect abnormal heat generation in the entire area of the housing 1 if at least one pressure sensor is provided.

Further, since the housing 1 has a closed structure, it does not spread to the outside, and since the housing 1 has a heat insulating structure, heat is not transmitted to the outside through the housing 1. Further, since an abnormal pressure rise in the casing 1 due to the ignition is avoided by opening the explosion-proof valve 4, there is no danger that the casing 1 will explode. (Second Embodiment) Next, FIG. 2 shows a schematic configuration diagram of an uninterruptible power supply according to this embodiment.

The heat exchange mechanism 22 has a circulation mechanism 27 for forcibly circulating the liquid 20, which is a refrigerant, having low conductivity and filling the inside of the pipe 26. The heat exchange mechanism section 22 does not have a circulation mechanism 27 such as a heat pipe, but has a structure in which heat in the housing 21 is released to the outside via a refrigerant circulating in the pipe 26. It may be. The uninterruptible power supply according to the present embodiment includes a heat exchange mechanism 22.
The configuration is basically the same as that of the uninterruptible power supply shown in the first embodiment, except that the configuration is different from that of the heat exchange mechanism unit 2 of the first embodiment.

According to the uninterruptible power supply of the present embodiment having the above-described configuration, like the first embodiment, the UP
Even if the ignition occurs in the S circuit section 25 or other places, since the inside of the housing 21 is substantially sealed, oxygen for promoting ignition is not supplied into the housing 21 from the outside. When the oxygen in the housing 21 is exhausted, the fire is automatically extinguished.

The abnormal air pressure detecting circuit 23 measures the pressure in the casing 21 which is substantially closed instead of directly measuring the temperature such as abnormal heat generation. These abnormalities can be detected regardless of abnormal heat generation or ignition. Further, the time until the abnormality is detected does not depend on the distance between the heat source and the sensor. In addition, the uninterruptible power supply of the present embodiment can detect abnormal heat generation in the entire area of the housing 1 if at least one pressure sensor is provided.

Further, since the housing 21 has a sealed structure, it does not spread to the outside, and since the housing 21 has a heat insulating structure, heat is not transmitted to the outside through the housing 21. Further, an abnormal pressure rise in the casing 21 due to the ignition is detected by the abnormal atmospheric pressure detection circuit 23, and the explosion-proof valve 24 is detected.
Is opened, and there is no danger that the housing 21 explodes.

[0026]

As described above, according to the uninterruptible power supply of the present invention, since the housing substantially seals the inside, abnormal heat generation or ignition at any place in the housing is achieved. Can be detected by the pressure detection unit as a change in pressure that has increased due to expansion of the gas inside the housing.
For this reason, by providing at least one pressure detection unit, abnormal heat generation or ignition at all points in the housing can be detected, and the time until the abnormality detection depends on the distance between the heat source and the sensor. Nor. Furthermore, even if a fire occurs inside the housing, the sealed structure blocks the supply of oxygen to the inside of the housing, minimizing fires and preventing the spread of fire to the outside. be able to.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an uninterruptible power supply according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of an uninterruptible power supply according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 21 Housing 2, 22 Heat exchange mechanism part 3 Abnormal pressure detection circuit part 4, 24 Explosion-proof valve 5, 25 UPS circuit part 6 AC input part 7 AC output part 20 Liquid 26 Pipe line 27 Circulation mechanism

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An uninterruptible power supply having a UPS circuit for continuously supplying electric power to the outside during a steady state and during a power outage, wherein the case substantially seals the inside; At least one pressure detecting unit that detects an internal pressure of the housing, and a heat radiating unit that penetrates a wall surface of the housing to release heat inside the housing to the outside. Uninterruptible power supply. 2. The uninterruptible power supply according to claim 1, further comprising an explosion-proof valve that opens based on a signal output from the pressure detection unit when the pressure detection unit detects the internal pressure exceeding a predetermined threshold. Power supply. 3. The uninterruptible power supply according to claim 1, wherein the radiator is a radiator fin made of metal. 4. The uninterruptible power supply according to claim 1, wherein the heat radiating section is a pipeline in which a refrigerant is sealed. 5. The uninterruptible power supply according to claim 4, further comprising a circulation mechanism for forcibly circulating the refrigerant. 6. The uninterruptible power supply according to claim 1, wherein a wall constituting the housing has a heat insulating structure. 7. The uninterruptible power supply according to claim 1, wherein a wall constituting the housing has a heat-resistant structure. 8. The uninterruptible power supply according to claim 1, wherein a gas other than oxygen is sealed in the housing.