TWI723807B - Heat pipe structure - Google Patents

Abstract

A heat pipe structure is used for cooling a heat source. The heat pipe structure includes a sleeve tube and a shaft. The sleeve tube includes an inner wall. A trench on the inner wall is at the outlet end of the sleeve tube. The trench extends in the circumferential direction of the sleeve tube. The shaft connected to the heat source is inserted into the sleeve tube from the outlet end to form a shaft structure. The trench surrounds the shaft.

Description

Heat pipe structure

This disclosure relates to a heat pipe structure.

In the traditional rotating shaft structure, in order to avoid leakage of lubricating fluid, an O-ring (O-ring) is used to seal, and there will be friction between the O-ring and the rotating shaft, and the rigidity of the structure is insufficient, which will easily lead to damage.

The heat pipe is used to conduct heat, so it is usually made of a material with good thermal conductivity and is in contact with the heat source to be dissipated. When the heat pipe is to be fixed in contact with the heat source, the overall structural strength of the heat pipe is limited for the purpose of heat dissipation, and it is not convenient to use an O-ring for sealing.

Therefore, how to propose a solution that can solve the above-mentioned problems is one of the problems that the industry urgently wants to invest in research and development resources to solve.

In view of this, one objective of the present invention is to provide a heat pipe structure that does not damage the heat pipe itself while maintaining contact with the rotating shaft connected to the heat source and keeping the inside of the heat pipe sealed.

An aspect of the present invention discloses a heat pipe structure for dissipating heat sources. The heat pipe structure includes a sleeve and a rotating shaft. The sleeve includes an inner wall. There is a groove on the inner wall at the outlet end of the sleeve. The groove extends in the circumferential direction of the sleeve. The shaft is connected to the heat source. The rotating shaft is inserted into the sleeve from the outlet end to form a rotating shaft structure. The groove surrounds the shaft.

In one or more embodiments of the invention, the sleeve is hollow. The sleeve further includes an outer wall. The inner wall and the outer wall define a cavity. The chamber is used for accommodating heat transfer fluid.

In one or more embodiments of the present invention, the groove is connected to the inner wall by a first peripheral edge and a second peripheral edge that are located on the inner wall and are opposite to each other. The second peripheral edge is adjacent to the outlet end with respect to the first peripheral edge. The first peripheral edge and the second peripheral edge are parallel to each other and extend along the circumferential direction of the sleeve. The groove is recessed from between the first peripheral edge and the second peripheral edge.

In some embodiments, the groove includes a chamfer. The inclined surface extends from one of the first peripheral edge and the second peripheral edge at an angle.

In some embodiments, the trench further includes a vertical surface. The vertical plane is perpendicular to the inner wall. The vertical surface extends from one of the first peripheral edge and the second peripheral edge. The vertical surface and the inclined surface together form a groove.

In some embodiments, there is a lubricating layer between the groove and the rotating shaft. The lubricating layer fills the gap between the rotating shaft and the sleeve to seal the inside of the sleeve.

In some embodiments, a part of the lubricating layer is contained in the groove and contacts the rotating shaft, and another part of the lubricating layer is located between the part outside the groove of the inner wall and the rotating shaft.

In some embodiments, the lubricating layer has a first liquid surface and a second liquid surface that are connected to the rotating shaft by edges. The first liquid level is arranged between the inner wall outside the groove and the rotating shaft. The second liquid level is arranged between the inclined surface and the rotating shaft.

In some embodiments, the inclined surface is arranged to extend from the second peripheral edge toward the first peripheral edge. The first liquid level is arranged to protrude toward the inside of the sleeve. The second liquid level is arranged to protrude toward the outlet end.

In some embodiments, the inclined surface is arranged to extend from the first peripheral edge toward the second peripheral edge, and both the first liquid surface and the second liquid surface are recessed toward the inside of the lubricating layer.

In summary, the inner wall of the sleeve of the heat pipe structure of the present invention has axially extending grooves, and the grooves have inclined surfaces, so that the lubricating layer filled between the grooves on the inner wall and the rotating shaft connected to the heat source is due to capillary It can seal the inside of the sleeve without damaging the heat pipe structure.

The above description is only used to illustrate the problem to be solved by the present invention, the technical means to solve the problem, and the effects produced by it, etc. The specific details of the present invention will be described in detail in the following embodiments and related drawings.

The following examples are listed in conjunction with the accompanying drawings for detailed description, but the provided examples are not used to limit the scope of the present invention, and the description of the structure and operation is not used to limit the order of its execution. Any recombination of components The structure and the devices with equal effects are all within the scope of the present invention. In addition, the drawings are for illustrative purposes only, and are not drawn according to the original dimensions. To facilitate understanding, the same or similar elements in the following description will be described with the same symbols.

In addition, the terms used in the entire specification and the scope of the patent application, unless otherwise specified, usually have the usual meaning of each term used in this field, in the content disclosed here, and in the special content. . Certain terms used to describe the present invention will be discussed below or elsewhere in this specification to provide those skilled in the art with additional guidance on the description of the present invention.

Regarding the "first", "second", etc. used in this article, they do not specifically refer to the order or sequence, nor are they used to limit the present invention. They are only used to distinguish elements or operations described in the same technical terms. That's it.

Secondly, the terms "include", "include", "have", "contain", etc. used in this article are all open terms, meaning including but not limited to.

Furthermore, in this article, unless the article is specifically limited in the context, "一" and "the" can generally refer to one or more. It will be further understood that the terms "include", "include", "have" and similar words used in this article indicate the recorded features, regions, integers, steps, operations, elements and/or components, but do not exclude The described or additional one or more other features, regions, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Please refer to Figure 1. FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a heat pipe structure 100 inserted into a rotating shaft 180 connected to a heat source 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The rotating shaft 180 is inserted from an outlet end of the sleeve 110 of the heat pipe structure 100. For example, the rotating shaft 180 connected to the heat source 200 is, for example, one end of a heat pipe. The heat pipe is, for example, a copper pipe with good thermal conductivity, which can be used to conduct heat generated by a heat source. In this way, the heat pipe structure 100 and the rotating shaft 180 of the heat source 200 form a rotating shaft structure, and the rotating shaft 180 connected to the heat source 200 can rotate along the circumferential direction D. This allows the rotation shaft 180 of the heat source 200 to have a degree of freedom to rotate at the connection with the heat pipe structure 100, and can be combined with other rotation shaft devices of the electronic device.

Please refer to Figure 2. FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the sleeve 110 of the heat pipe structure 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, so as to illustrate the specific structure of the sleeve 110 of the present invention. For the purpose of simple description, the heat source 200 is not shown in FIG. 2.

As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the sleeve 110 includes an inner wall 120 and an outer wall 150, and the inner wall 120 and the outer wall 150 together form a hollow chamber 160. A heat-conducting fluid (not shown in Figure 2) can be provided in the chamber 160. In some embodiments, once the rotating shaft 180 connected to the heat source 200 is set in the sleeve 110, the rotating shaft 180 is close to or even partially in contact with the inner wall 120, so that the heat generated by the heat source 200 can be transferred to the heat transfer fluid in the chamber 160, thereby prompting The heat transfer fluid flows or undergoes a phase change, thereby taking away the heat generated by the heat source 200 to achieve the purpose of heat dissipation. In some embodiments, the sleeve 110 of the heat pipe structure 100 may not be hollow, and the sleeve 110 may be made of other materials that can conduct heat.

As shown in FIG. 2, the inner wall 120 of the sleeve 110 also has a plurality of grooves 130. In FIG. 2, four grooves 130 are shown, but the number of grooves 130 is not limited by this.

1, the sleeve 110 of the heat pipe structure 100 has an outlet, and the rotating shaft 180 connected to the heat source 200 is inserted from the outlet end of the sleeve 110. Returning to FIG. 2, the groove 130 is substantially disposed at the outlet end of the sleeve 110.

As shown in FIG. 2, each groove 130 extends along the circumferential direction D. The circumferential direction D refers to the direction of rotation along the central axis of the sleeve 120, such as a clockwise direction and a counterclockwise direction. In this way, once the rotating shaft 180 connected to the heat source 200 is inserted from the outlet end of the sleeve 110 to form a rotating shaft structure, the groove 130 can surround the rotating shaft 180 along the circumferential direction D. The purpose of the groove 130 surrounding the shaft 180 is to seal the inside of the sleeve 110 to further fix the shaft 180 and the heat pipe structure 100 to form a stable shaft structure. For details, please refer to the subsequent discussion.

In Figure 2, the inner wall 120 of the sleeve 110 has a plurality of grooves 130 extending in the circumferential direction D. As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the extending directions of the trenches 130 are parallel to each other. In some embodiments, the extending directions of the grooves 130 may not be completely parallel, and it is only necessary to keep extending substantially along the circumferential direction D, and the grooves 130 do not intersect with each other.

As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the shape of the groove 130 is a V-shape. For the specific structure of the trench 130, please refer to the following discussion. In addition, the chamber 160 also has a capillary structure, which is not shown in FIG. 2 for the purpose of simple description. For the capillary structure in the chamber 160, please refer to the description in Figure 3 below.

Please refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 at the same time. FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a heat pipe structure 100 inserted into a rotating shaft 180 connected to a heat source 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows an enlarged view of a part of R1 in FIG. 3, in which a lubricating layer 170 is filled between the groove 130 and the heat source 200.

In FIG. 3, the heat source 200 is inserted from the outlet end of the sleeve 110, and the groove 130 is close to and surrounds the heat source 200. In the part R1 shown in FIG. 4, the specific structure of the trench 130 is shown.

In Fig. 3, the inside of the chamber 160 has a capillary structure. When the cavity 160 contains the heat transfer fluid, the heat transfer fluid assists the flow through the capillary structure. Specifically, the capillary structure may be provided on the surfaces of the inner wall 120 and the outer wall 150 inside the chamber 180. In this way, the heat-conducting fluid can flow on the surfaces of the inner wall 120 and the outer wall 150 inside the chamber 180, and the heat-conducting fluid flows in the center of the chamber 160 after a phase change.

As shown in FIG. 4, in this embodiment, the groove 130 is recessed from the inner wall 120, and the groove 130 is connected to the inner wall 120 through the first peripheral edge 140 and the second peripheral edge 145. Compared with the first peripheral edge 140, the second peripheral edge 145 is closer to the outlet end of the sleeve 110. Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4 at the same time, in this embodiment, the first peripheral edge 140 and the second peripheral edge 145 are parallel to each other, and are also along the circumferential direction D of the sleeve 110. In other words, the groove 130 is recessed between the first peripheral edge 140 and the second peripheral edge 145 on the inner wall 120. In this way, the shape of the groove 130 on the inner wall 120 is a strip of equal width.

As mentioned above, the shape of the groove 130 is V-shaped. Returning to FIG. 4, in this embodiment, the groove 130 further includes an inclined surface 133 and a vertical surface 136, and the V-shaped groove 130 is substantially formed by the connecting inclined surface 133 and the vertical surface 136.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, in this embodiment, the gap between the inner wall 120, the groove 130 and the heat source 200 can be filled with the lubricating layer 170, thereby sealing the inside of the sleeve 110 relative to the outlet end. The material of the lubricating layer 170 is, for example, lubricating oil or other lubricating fluids. In this way, when the heat source 200 and the sleeve 110 of the heat pipe structure 100 form a rotating shaft structure, the lubricating layer 170 on the one hand maintains the seal inside the sleeve 110 to fix the sleeve 110 and the heat source 200, and the lubricating layer 170 also helps the heat source 200 Rotation inside the sleeve 110.

In Figure 4, the lubricating layer 170 used is delimited by the first peripheral edge 140, a part of the lubricating layer 170 is located between the groove 130 and the shaft 180 connected to the heat source 200, and another part of the lubricating layer 170 is located inside Between the part of the wall 120 other than the groove 130 and the rotating shaft 180.

Specifically, the lubricating layer 170 includes a first liquid surface 171 and a second liquid surface 172 opposite to each other. Both the first liquid level 171 and the second liquid level 172 are connected with the rotating shaft 180 only by edges. According to the above, as shown in FIG. 4, in this embodiment, the first liquid surface 171 is located between the inner wall 120 and the rotating shaft 180, and the second liquid surface 172 is located between the groove 130 and the rotating shaft 180. This corresponds to that the second liquid surface 172 substantially contacts the inclined surface 133 of the groove 130, and the second liquid surface 172 is located between the inclined surface 133 and the rotating shaft 180.

Further, in the present invention, the setting of the inclined surface 133 is essentially related to the type of the lubricating layer 170.

In this embodiment, the first liquid surface 171 protrudes toward the inside of the sleeve 110, and the second liquid surface 172 is arranged protrudes toward the outlet end of the sleeve 110, which is related to the type of lubricating layer 170 selected. Regarding the case where the first liquid surface 171 and the second liquid surface 172 protrude, in this embodiment, the inclined surface 133 is provided to extend from the second peripheral edge 145 toward the first peripheral edge 140 at an angle β1, so as to be in line with the first peripheral edge 140. The vertical surfaces 136 extending vertically from the rim 140 are connected to form a V-shaped groove 130.

Through the effect of the surface tension between the lubricating layer 170 and the inner wall 120, the lubricating layer 170 can be fixed between the sleeve 110 and the rotating shaft 180. As shown in FIG. 4, the included angle α1 between the first liquid surface 171 and the inner wall 120, and the second liquid surface 172 and the inclined surface 133 have the same included angle α1.

The surface tension is proportional to the circumference of the liquid surface, but since the depth of the groove 130 is much smaller than the width of the sleeve 110, the circumference of the first liquid surface 171 and the second liquid surface 172 in contact with the inner wall 120 or the inclined surface 133 The surface tension F1 corresponding to the first liquid surface 171 and the surface tension F2 of the second liquid surface 172 are approximately the same.

However, the lubricating layer 170 is balanced according to the axial component of the surface tension. The axial component refers to the component of the surface tension in the axial direction in which the sleeve 110 extends. As shown in Figure 4, the angle between the surface tension F1 of the first liquid surface 171 and the axial direction in which the sleeve 110 extends is α1, and the surface tension F2 of the second liquid surface 172 is relative to the axial direction in which the sleeve 110 extends. The included angle is α1+β1. In this way, the magnitude of the axial component T1 of the surface tension F1 is proportional to the cosine function cos(α1), and the magnitude of the axial component T2 of the surface tension F2 is proportional to the cosine function cos(α1+β1). Since the cosine function is basically when the angle is less than 90 degrees, the larger the angle, the smaller the corresponding value. Therefore, in this embodiment, the axial component T1 of the surface tension F1 is greater than the axial component T2 of the surface tension F2. It shows that the lubricating layer 170 in Figure 4 has a tendency to move inside the sleeve 110, and is less likely to flow out to the outlet end of the sleeve 110, so as to fill the gap between the rotating shaft 180 and the inner wall 120 and the groove 130 for fixation. The rotating shaft 180 and the sleeve 110 of the heat pipe structure 100.

In this way, by providing the groove 130 filled with the lubricating layer 170, the sleeve 110 and the rotating shaft 180 of the heat pipe structure 100 will not increase additional friction, thereby avoiding the sleeve 110 from being damaged due to insufficient structural rigidity.

Please refer to Figure 5 and Figure 6. FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a structure of a rotating shaft 180 connected to a heat source 200 inserted into another heat pipe according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 6 shows an enlarged view of a part R2 of Fig. 5, in which a lubricating layer 170' is filled between the groove 130 and the rotating shaft 180.

Similar to FIG. 3, the sleeve 110 of the heat pipe structure 100 in FIG. 5 also has a capillary structure.

Compared with the heat pipe structure 100 of FIGS. 3 and 4, in the heat pipe structure of FIGS. 5 and 6, the slope 133 of the groove 130 is from the first peripheral edge 140 toward the second peripheral edge at an angle β2 145 extends so as to be in contact with a vertical surface 136 extending perpendicularly from the second peripheral edge 145 to form a V-shaped groove. At the same time, the first liquid surface 171' and the second liquid surface 172' of the lubricating layer 170' disposed in the groove 130 are both recessed toward the inside of the lubricating layer 170'.

As a result, as shown in Figure 6, the angle between the surface tension F1' of the first liquid surface 171' and the axial direction in which the sleeve 110 extends is α2, and the surface tension F2' of the second liquid surface 172' corresponds to the sleeve 110. The included angle in the axial direction where the cylinder 110 extends is α2+β2. In this way, the magnitude of the axial component T1' of the surface tension F1' is proportional to the cosine function cos(α2), and the magnitude of the axial component T2' of the surface tension F2' is proportional to the cosine function cos(α2+β2). The lubricating layer 170 ′ in the figure also has a tendency to move inside the sleeve 110.

For example, in some embodiments, the included angle α2 between the first liquid surface 171' and the second liquid surface 172', the inner wall 120 and the inclined surface 133 is 30 degrees, and the included angle between the inclined surface 133 and the axial direction in which the sleeve 110 extends β2 is also 30 degrees. In this way, the axial component T1' of the surface tension F1' is roughly proportional to the cosine function 30 degrees, and the axial component T2' of F2' is roughly proportional to the cosine function 60 degrees, the axial component T1' will be greater than the axial component T2' 1.5 times.

In summary, the heat pipe structure of the present invention includes a sleeve that can be inserted into a rotating shaft connected to a heat source to form a rotating shaft structure. By providing an extended groove on the inner wall of the sleeve, and the groove has an inclined surface, the lubricating layer filled between the groove and the rotating shaft can not leak out from the outlet end of the sleeve due to capillary force, and the lubricating layer As a result, the inside of the sleeve can be sealed. The lubricating layer remaining inside the sleeve can also lubricate the structure of the rotating shaft without damaging the structure of the rotating shaft and the heat pipe.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in the above embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Anyone who is familiar with the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection of the present invention The scope shall be subject to those defined by the attached patent scope.

100: Heat pipe structure

110: sleeve

120: inner wall

130: groove

133: Slope

136: Vertical plane

140: First Perimeter

145: Second Perimeter

150: Outer Wall

160: Chamber

170,170’: Lubricant layer

171,171’: First liquid level

172,172’: Second liquid level

180: shaft

200: heat source

D: circumferential direction

F1, F2, F1’, F2’: surface tension

T1, T2, T1’, T2’: axial component

R1, R2: partial

α1, β1, α2, β2: angle

In order to make the above and other objectives, features, advantages and embodiments of the present invention more comprehensible, the description of the accompanying drawings is as follows: Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a heat pipe structure where a rotating shaft connected to a heat source is inserted into a heat pipe according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view of a sleeve of a heat pipe structure according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view of a heat pipe structure where a rotating shaft connected to a heat source is inserted into a heat pipe according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4 shows a partial enlarged view of Figure 3, in which a lubricating layer is filled between the groove and the rotating shaft connected to the heat source; Fig. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of a structure where a shaft connected to a heat source is inserted into another heat pipe according to an embodiment of the present invention; and Fig. 6 shows a partial enlarged view of Fig. 5, in which a lubricating layer is filled between the groove and the rotating shaft connected to the heat source.

100: Heat pipe structure

110: sleeve

180: shaft

200: heat source

D: circumferential direction

Claims (7)

A heat pipe structure for dissipating a heat source, wherein the heat pipe structure includes: a sleeve, including an inner wall, wherein a groove is provided on the inner wall at an outlet end of the sleeve, and the groove is The central axis of the sleeve rotates and extends in a circumferential direction, wherein the sleeve is hollow, the sleeve further includes an outer wall, the inner wall and the outer wall define a cavity, and the cavity is used for accommodating a heat conduction Fluid, wherein the groove is located on the inner wall and connects the inner wall with a first peripheral edge and a second peripheral edge opposite to the first peripheral edge, the second peripheral edge is adjacent to the outlet end relative to the first peripheral edge, and the first peripheral edge The edge and the second peripheral edge are parallel to each other and extend along the circumferential direction of the sleeve. The groove is recessed from between the first peripheral edge and the second peripheral edge, wherein the groove includes an inclined surface, and the inclined surface extends from One of the first peripheral edge and the second peripheral edge extends; and a rotating shaft connected to the heat source, wherein the rotating shaft is inserted into the sleeve from the outlet end to form a rotating shaft structure, and the groove surrounds the rotating shaft. The heat pipe structure of claim 1, wherein the groove further includes a vertical surface, the vertical surface is perpendicular to the inner wall, and the vertical surface extends from one of the first peripheral edge and the second peripheral edge, The vertical surface and the inclined surface jointly form the groove. The heat pipe structure of claim 1, wherein a lubricating layer is provided between the groove and the rotating shaft, and the lubricating layer fills the gap between the rotating shaft and the sleeve to seal the inside of the sleeve. The heat pipe structure according to claim 3, wherein a part of the lubricating layer is contained in the groove and contacts the rotating shaft, and another part of the lubricating layer is located between the part of the inner wall outside the groove and the rotating shaft. The heat pipe structure according to claim 4, wherein the lubricating layer has a first liquid level and a second liquid level opposite to the rotating shaft connected by edges, and the first liquid level is disposed on the inner wall outside the groove Between the shaft and the rotating shaft, the second liquid level is arranged between the inclined surface and the rotating shaft. The heat pipe structure according to claim 5, wherein the inclined surface is arranged to extend from the second peripheral edge toward the first peripheral edge, the first liquid surface is arranged to protrude toward the inside of the sleeve, and the second liquid surface is arranged to face the The outlet end is protruding. The heat pipe structure according to claim 5, wherein the inclined surface is arranged to extend from the first peripheral edge toward the second peripheral edge, and both the first liquid surface and the second liquid surface are recessed toward the inside of the lubricating layer.

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