JPH11282577A - Information processor and extended device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To attain efficient heat radiation without using a fan for an information processing main body. SOLUTION: Heat from a heating part such as a CPU 4 inside a pen pad PC(personal computer) is transferred through a heat diffusing board 5 and plural heat junctions 6 to a main body case body 1a on the bottom face part of the pen pad PC. Also, a case body temperature sensor 7 is provided in the neighborhood of the heat junction 6 between the main body case body 1a of the pen pad PC 1 and the heat diffusing board 5, and the temperature is monitored and controlled. At the time of connecting the pen PC 1 with an extended device 2, a heat contact terminal 9 is inserted through the gap of a protecting frame 8, and the heat of the main body of the pen PC is efficiently absorbed. The heat from the heat contact terminal 9 is transferred and diffused through a metallic case body 2a of the extended device 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a portable type such as a personal computer which operates on a battery when an expansion device for I / O expansion is not connected and operates on an AC adapter when an expansion device is connected. Related to an information processing apparatus and an expansion apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, the amount of heat generated by portable information processing devices called notebook PCs and pen PCs has increased due to improvements in the processing speed of CPUs. For this reason, recently, a device equipped with a forced air cooling device such as a fan for heat radiation has come out. However, the increase in battery capacity
The reality is that it has not kept up with the increase in power consumption of the main body. For this reason, it is necessary to change the processing speed and the power consumption to operate the information processing device when the battery is operating and when the AC adapter is operating.

Therefore, even when the battery operation is mainly performed, it is necessary to take measures against heat with a fan or the like in the main body of the information processing apparatus in consideration of the use of the AC adapter.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional information processing apparatus, all measures against heat during the operation of the AC adapter are performed by the information processing apparatus itself. For this purpose, it is necessary to use a fan, which causes extra weight and an increase in the area of parts, and also causes problems such as noise during operation of the fan. In addition, the fan itself is not suitable for notebook PCs and pen PCs that are vulnerable to impact and are assumed to be carried around. In recent years, there has been a strong demand for miniaturization and thinning. For the above reasons, it is required to dissipate heat without using a fan.
If heat is dissipated directly to dissipate heat throughout the main body housing of the information processing apparatus without using a fan, the temperature of the housing becomes too high and there is a risk of low-temperature burns.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an efficient heat radiation measure without using a fan or the like in an information processing apparatus main body.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an information processing apparatus and an extension apparatus according to the present invention are characterized in that heat can be radiated from the extension apparatus when an AC adapter is operating.

[0007] With this configuration, it is possible to separate the measures for heat dissipation when using the AC adapter and the measures for heat dissipation when operating the battery, and it is possible to easily and efficiently take measures for heat dissipation.

Further, by monitoring the housing temperature, it is possible to prevent the temperature from rising too high.

[0009]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The invention according to claim 1 of the present invention is a method for dissipating heat of a heat-generating component inside an information processing apparatus main body to an expansion device for I / O expansion connected to the main body. An information processing apparatus having a heating unit, which has an effect of efficiently releasing heat from heat-generating components inside the information processing apparatus main body when the expansion apparatus is connected to the information processing apparatus main body.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the heat transfer portion is formed of a heat conductive material such as heat radiation rubber or a heat diffusion plate such as a metal plate. Information that is configured to transmit heat from parts to the bottom of the heat-transferring information processing device main unit housing, and that cannot actively dissipate heat inside the main unit to the top surface of the main unit such as a pen PC. In the processing device, the heat radiation in the docking state with the expansion device can be greatly improved.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the heat transfer portion is made of a heat conductive material such as heat radiation rubber or a heat diffusion plate such as a metal plate. The heat from the parts is configured to be transmitted to the metal shell of the connector for connection to the extension device, and the heat radiation efficiency of the main body when connected to the extension device can be increased, and the connector is used. Accordingly, the heat radiation countermeasure can be easily implemented.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a heat conducting portion connected to an information processing device main body for conducting heat from the information processing device main body, and a heat radiating portion for dissipating the conducted heat. This is an expansion device provided with a function, and has an effect that heat dissipation of the information processing device main body can be significantly improved by combining with the information processing device main body according to the first aspect.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the expansion device according to the fourth aspect, the heat conducting portion is made of a heat conductive material such as heat radiation rubber or a heat diffusion plate such as a metal plate. The heat from the housing is configured to be transmitted to the surface of the heat-conducting expansion device housing, and the heat radiating portion is the expansion device housing or a radiation fin attached to the expansion device housing. By connecting the information processing device to the information processing device, the heat radiation characteristics of the information processing device can be significantly improved.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the expansion device according to the fourth aspect, the heat conducting portion of the expansion device transfers heat from the metal shell of the connector for the information processing device to the expansion device housing. It is configured to transmit to the provided metal part, and by connecting to the information processing device main body according to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to greatly improve the heat radiation characteristic of the information processing device main body. Have.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the temperature of the main body of the information processing apparatus is monitored and the temperature management is performed when the expansion apparatus is in the undocked state. Information processing device provided with a temperature sensor for preventing the temperature of the housing of the main body from rising excessively in the undocked state.

The invention according to claim 8 of the present invention is characterized in that the operation control of the CPU and the like according to the respective heat radiation levels when the built-in AC adapter of the extension device is used and when the battery is used when the extension device is not connected. An information processing apparatus characterized by performing the above-described control, and by performing the above-described control, measures for radiating heat during operation of a battery that generates less heat and an AC that generates more heat.
This has the function of separating heat radiation measures when using the adapter.

Hereinafter, an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a state in which a pen PC which is an information processing apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention and an extension device are connected, and FIG. 2 is a pen PC and an extension device. FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a heat dissipation structure of FIG. In FIG. 1, 1 is a pen PC, 2 is an expansion device for I / O expansion, and FIG.
In the figure, 1a is a main body housing at the bottom of the pen PC, 3 is C
An electric circuit board on which a heat-generating component such as PU4 is mounted, and 5 is made of an aluminum plate, a copper plate, a graphite sheet, a silicon rubber, or the like to avoid further concentration of heat through a heat conductive material such as a silicon rubber. Heat diffusion plate,
Reference numeral 6 denotes a thermal junction point where the heat diffusion plate 5 and the main housing 1a are in contact with each other. A housing temperature sensor 7 is provided in the vicinity of the heat diffusion plate 5 to perform temperature monitoring and management. 8 is the body 1
A protective frame made of resin provided so as not to contact with a.

Next, the expansion device 2 includes a metal housing 2a made of magnesium or the like, and a thermal contact terminal 9 made of a spring or a graphite sheet made of silicon rubber or copper or aluminum on the surface of the metal housing 2a. Have. Although not shown, an AC adapter for a pen PC is also built in, and the pen PC 1 can be used with an AC adapter power supply by connecting the pen PC 1 to the extension device 2.

The heat radiation operation of the pen PC and the extension device configured as described above will be described below.

First, heat generated from a heat-generating component such as the CPU 4 passes through the heat diffusion plate 5 and the main body casing 1 on the bottom of the pen PC1.
The heat is transferred to a through a plurality of thermal junctions 6. In addition, pen P
A housing temperature sensor 7 is provided near the thermal junction 6 between the main body housing 1a of C1 and the heat diffusion plate 5 to monitor and manage the temperature.

In order to efficiently transmit heat when the pen PC1 and the expansion device 2 are connected, it is necessary to lower the thermal resistance from the heat-generating components and transmit the heat to the expansion device. However, when the thermal resistance is lowered, the temperature of the bottom surface of the main body casing 1a becomes too high, and there is a danger of burns if the user touches it by hand when carrying. Therefore, as shown in the figure, a protective frame 8 made of resin is provided so as not to directly touch the portion where the temperature is highest, and when the pen PC is connected to the extension device, the thermal contact terminal 9 is inserted through the gap of the protective frame 8. Insert and efficiently absorb the heat of the pen PC body. The heat from the thermal contact terminals 9 is transmitted and diffused through the metal housing 2 a of the expansion device 2. Although not shown, heat is also dissipated by heat dissipating fins provided in the housing of the expansion device 2.

Next, the temperature management of the pen PC main body housing 1a will be described with reference to the block diagram of the pen PC shown in FIG. In the pen PC of this configuration, the heat radiation performance of the pen PC main body when the extension device is connected and disconnected is greatly changed.
In addition to the CPU temperature sensor 11 for monitoring the temperature of U4, a case temperature sensor 7 for managing the temperature of the inner surface of the case is used.

Pen PC 1 with docking connector 10
When the D / S controller 13 is connected to the expansion device 2, the power management control microcomputer 14 detects that the D / S controller 13 has been connected, and notifies the BIOS or OS via the system control unit 15. At the time of connection, pen PC main body housing 1a
The heat radiation characteristics of the pen PC1 are improved, and the user does not directly touch the main body housing 1a on the bottom of the pen PC1, so that the heat radiation of the main body does not need to be considered even if the CPU 4 operates at full speed by using the AC adapter. The power management control microcomputer 14 monitors only the temperature of the CPU 4 with the CPU temperature sensor 11, and if there is an abnormality, notifies the BIOS or OS to control the processing speed of the CPU 4.

When disconnected (during battery operation), there is a high possibility that the user will touch the main body casing 1a on the bottom of the pen PC. Is detected, and if the temperature is too high, the BIOS
Alternatively, by notifying the OS of the temperature abnormality, the processing speed of the CPU 4 is reduced, and in some cases, the clock generator 16 that supplies a clock to the entire system is stopped,
Prevents the temperature at the bottom of the main unit housing from rising too high.

According to this configuration, heat can be efficiently dissipated when the pen PC is connected to the extension device, and the temperature at the bottom of the housing can be safely used without excessively increasing the temperature during operation of the battery (when not connected).

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 4 is an external perspective view showing a state in which a notebook PC, which is an information processing apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, and an extension device are connected, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a heat dissipation structure of FIG. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 21 denotes a notebook PC, and reference numeral 22 denotes an expansion device for I / O expansion. In FIG. 5, reference numeral 21a denotes a main body housing at the rear of the notebook PC; 23, an electric circuit board on which heat-generating components such as a CPU 24 are mounted; 25, a heat conductive material such as silicon rubber or silicon grease; Alternatively, a heat conducting portion 27 made of a material having high thermal conductivity such as a graphite sheet, and a notebook PC side connector 27 for electrical connection between the notebook PC and the extension device. In the extension device 22, reference numeral 22a denotes a metal housing made of magnesium or the like; 28, an electric circuit board of the extension device 22;
Is an expansion device side connector connected to the notebook PC side connector 27 mounted on the electric circuit board 28. Also, 2
7a and 29a are metal shells of the respective connectors. Although not shown, an AC adapter for a notebook PC is also built in, and when the notebook PC 21 is connected to the extension device 22, the notebook PC 21 can be used with an AC adapter power supply.

The heat radiating operation of the notebook PC and the extension device configured as described above will be described below.

Heat generated from a heat-generating component such as the CPU 24 in the main body of the notebook PC 21 is transmitted through the heat conductive portion 26 via the heat conductive material 25, and efficiently transfers the heat to the metal shell 27a of the connector 27 on the notebook PC side. Then, through the metal shell 29a of the connected expansion device side connector 29,
The heat is transmitted to the expansion device 22 and is radiated from the metal housing 22a.

Further, a housing temperature sensor 30 is attached to the metal housing 22a of the expansion device 22. As in the first embodiment, the temperature of the housing is monitored and the temperature is monitored so that no one can touch it. The processing speed of the CPU or the like is controlled so as not to increase.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention,
When using a battery that does not use an expansion device, such as when carrying, the case temperature sensor monitors the temperature of the case,
Controls the processing speed of the CPU. When the extension device is connected, the processing speed of the CPU can be maximized by using the AC adapter built in the extension device, and the heat of the pen PC and the notebook PC can be released from the extension device.

Therefore, the heat radiation of the pen PC or notebook PC main body only needs to be considered when the battery is used, so that there is no need to provide a fan or the like in the housing, and the size and thickness can be reduced.

[0033]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, A
It is easy to separate the heat dissipation measures when the C adapter is operating and the heat dissipation measures when the battery is operating. As a result, the information processing apparatus can be made fanless, thinner, and lighter.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a state in which a pen PC and an extension device according to a first embodiment of the present invention are connected.

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view showing a heat radiation structure of the pen PC and the extension device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a pen PC according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an external perspective view showing a state in which a notebook PC and an extension device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention are connected.

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a heat radiation structure of the notebook PC and the extension device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pen PC 1a Main body housing 2 Expansion device 2a Metal housing 4 CPU 5 Heat diffusion plate 6 Thermal junction 7 Housing temperature sensor 8 Protection frame

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] March 23, 1999

[Procedure amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] Claims

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

[Claims]

[Procedure amendment 2]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0009

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

[0009]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The invention according to claim 1 of the present invention is a method for dissipating heat of a heat-generating component inside an information processing apparatus main body to an expansion device for I / O expansion connected to the main body. The temperature of the heating part and the body housing is monitored, and the expansion device is
Temperature sensor for temperature control in the locked state
An information processing apparatus, comprising:
The temperature of the main body case rises due to heat radiation from the heat transfer section of the device.
The effect of preventing low-temperature burns due to overheating
Having.

[Procedure amendment 3]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0010

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

[0010] The invention described in claim 2 of the present invention is defined by the claims.
1. In the information processing apparatus according to 1, the heat transfer portion is a heat radiating rubber.
From a heat conductive material such as
To transfer heat from the heat-generating components to the bottom of
The bottom of the housing is heat conductive.
Is particularly likely to cause low-temperature burns,
The effect that the effect of monitoring the temperature is large is obtained.

[Procedure amendment 4]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0011

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

[0011] The invention described in claim 3 of the present invention is the invention claimed in claim 3.
1. The information processing device according to 1, wherein the extension device is a non-docking device.
Control of the CPU etc. according to the temperature of the main body casing in the
Control of the CPU, etc.
By performing operation control such as reducing the speed,
The effect that the temperature rise of the housing can be prevented is obtained.
You.

[Procedure amendment 5]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0012

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[Procedure amendment 9]

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[Correction method] Deleted

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An information processing apparatus comprising: a heat transfer unit for radiating heat of a heat-generating component inside an information processing apparatus main body to an expansion device for I / O expansion connected to the main body. 2. The heat transfer section is made of a heat conductive substance such as a heat radiating rubber or a heat diffusion plate such as a metal plate, and is configured to transmit heat from a heat generating component to a bottom surface of a heat conductive main body casing. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The heat transfer portion is made of a heat conductive material such as heat radiation rubber or a heat diffusion plate such as a metal plate, and transfers heat from a heat generating component to a metal shell of a connection connector for connecting to an expansion device. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus is configured as described above. 4. An extension connected to the information processing apparatus main body and provided with a heat conducting section for conducting heat from the information processing apparatus main body, and a heat radiating section for radiating the conducted heat. apparatus. 5. The heat conducting portion is made of a heat conductive material such as heat radiation rubber or a heat diffusion plate such as a metal plate, and transfers heat from the information processing device main body housing to the surface of the heat conductive expansion device housing. 5. The expansion device according to claim 4, wherein the heat radiation unit is the expansion device housing or a heat radiation fin attached to the expansion device housing. 6. 6. The expansion device according to claim 4, wherein the heat conducting portion is configured to transmit heat from the metal shell of the connector for the information processing device to the metal portion provided on the expansion device housing. apparatus. 7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a temperature sensor for monitoring the temperature of the information processing apparatus main body housing and performing temperature management when the expansion apparatus is in an undocked state. . 8. When the built-in AC adapter of the expansion device is used,
An information processing device for controlling operation of a CPU or the like in accordance with each heat radiation level when a battery is used when an extension device is not connected.