TWI808788B - Rack liquid cooling system - Google Patents

Abstract

This disclosure provides a rack liquid cooling system including servers, a liquid cooling device, a first manifold, a second manifold, at least one overflow tube and at least one valve. Servers each have a first inlet and first outlet. The first inlet and first outlet are connected to each other. Liquid cooling device has a second inlet and a second outlet. The second inlet and second outlet are connected to each other. Second inlet is connected to first outlet. Second outlet is connected to first inlet. First and second manifolds are connected to each server and liquid cooling device. First inlet and outlet of each server are respectively connected to first and second manifold. Second inlet and outlet of liquid cooling device are respectively connected to second and first manifold. Two opposite ends of overflow tube are respectively disposed on first and second manifold. Servers, liquid cooling device and overflow tube are connected in parallel via first and second manifold. Valve is disposed on overflow tube.

Description

Cabinet liquid cooling system

The present invention relates to a cabinet liquid cooling system, in particular to a cabinet liquid cooling system including multiple servers.

Generally speaking, since multiple servers in a rack generate a lot of heat, liquid cooling technology is usually used to cool these servers in a rack. In such a situation, the coolant flows between the server and a liquid cooling device such as a cooling distribution unit (CDU) to dissipate heat from the server. Moreover, the inlet and outlet of the server are respectively provided with flow pipes through the joints so that the cooling liquid can flow into and out of the server.

However, when one of the servers needs to be repaired and removed from the rack, the remaining servers in the rack will have more coolant flowing in, which puts excessive pressure on the connectors located at the inlets of the remaining servers. As a result, coolant may leak from the joint.

The present invention provides a cabinet liquid cooling system to prevent cooling liquid from leaking from joints provided at the inlets of other servers that continue to operate when some servers are removed for maintenance.

A cabinet liquid cooling system disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of servers, a liquid cooling device, a first branch pipe, a second branch pipe, at least one overflow pipe and at least one control valve. Each server includes a first entrance and a first exit. The first inlet is connected to the first outlet. The liquid cooling device includes a second inlet and a second outlet. The second inlet is connected to the second outlet. The second inlet is connected to the first outlet. The second outlet is connected to the first inlet. The first branch pipe and the second branch pipe communicate with each server and the liquid cooling device. The first inlet and the first outlet of each server are respectively connected to the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe. The second inlet and the second outlet of the liquid cooling device are respectively connected to the second branch pipe and the first branch pipe. The opposite ends of the at least one overflow pipe are respectively arranged on the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe. The server, the liquid cooling device and at least one overflow pipe are connected in parallel through the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe. At least one control valve is arranged in at least one overflow pipe.

According to the cabinet liquid cooling system disclosed in the above embodiments, the server, the liquid cooling device, and the overflow pipe communicate with each other in parallel through the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe, and the control valve is disposed in the overflow pipe. Therefore, when the servers do not need to be maintained, the control valve can be closed to prevent the cooling operation of the servers from being affected by the coolant flowing into the overflow pipe. When part of the servo is removed for maintenance, the control valve is opened to allow coolant to flow into the overflow pipe. In this way, the overflow pipe can share the cooling liquid that originally flowed into the removed server, and reduce the pressure on the joints disposed at the first inlets of other servers that continue to operate, thereby preventing the cooling liquid from leaking from the joints.

The detailed features and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below in the implementation manner, the content is enough to enable any person with ordinary knowledge in the art to understand the technical content of the embodiments of the present invention and implement them accordingly, and according to the content disclosed in this specification, the scope of patent application and the drawings, any person with ordinary knowledge in the art can easily understand the related objectives and advantages of the present invention. The following examples are to further describe the concept of the present invention in detail, but not to limit the scope of the present invention in any way.

Please refer to FIG. 1 . FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a cabinet liquid cooling system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the cabinet liquid cooling system 10 includes a plurality of servers 100 , a liquid cooling device 200 , a first branch pipe 300 , a second branch pipe 400 , a plurality of overflow pipes 500 and a plurality of control valves 600 . The cabinet liquid cooling system 10 is, for example, disposed in a cabinet (not shown).

It should be noted that since these servers 100 include similar detailed structures and connection relationships, the following only illustrates the detailed structure and connection relationship of one server 100 as an example. In this embodiment, the server 100 includes a casing 110 , a motherboard 120 , a heat source 130 and a water cooling head 140 . The casing 110 includes a first inlet 111 , a first outlet 112 and an inner space 113 . The first inlet 111 is connected to the first outlet 112 through the inner space 113 . The motherboard 120 , the heat source 130 and the water cooling head 140 are disposed in the inner space 113 . The heat source 130 is disposed and electrically connected to the motherboard 120 . The heat source 130 is, for example, a central processing unit or a graphics processing unit. The water cooling head 140 is in thermal contact with the heat source 130 .

The liquid cooling device 200 includes a second inlet 210 and a second outlet 220 , and is, for example, a cooling distribution unit (Cooling Distribution Unit, CDU). The second inlet 210 is connected to the second outlet 220 . The second inlet 210 is connected to the first outlet 112 . The second outlet 220 is connected to the first inlet 111 . In detail, in this embodiment, the cabinet liquid cooling system 10 further includes a plurality of first flow pipes 700 , a plurality of first joints 750 , a plurality of second flow pipes 800 and a plurality of second joints 850 . The first branch pipes 300 communicate with the first inlets 111 of the servers 100 through the first flow pipes 700 respectively. The second branch pipes 400 communicate with the first outlets 112 of the servers 100 through the second flow pipes 800 respectively. The first branch pipe 300 and the second branch pipe 400 are disposed on the liquid cooling device 200 and respectively connected to the second outlet 220 and the second inlet 210 of the liquid cooling device 200 . One end of each first flow pipe 700 is respectively connected to the first inlet 111 of each server 100 and installed on the casing 110 of each server 100 through each first connector 750 . The other end of each first flow pipe 700 is connected to the first branch pipe 300 . One end of each second flow pipe 800 is respectively connected to the first outlet 112 of each server 100 and is respectively installed on the casing 110 of each server 100 through each second connector 850 . The other end of each second flow pipe 800 is connected to the second branch pipe 400 .

It should be noted that, for each server 100 , the first flow pipe 700 and the second flow pipe 800 are connected to the water cooling head 140 of the server 100 . That is to say, in this embodiment, being connected to the server 100 refers to being connected to the water cooling head 140 of the server 100 . In addition, it should be noted that, in order to avoid obscuring the key points of the present invention, the specific manner in which the first flow pipe 700 and the second flow pipe 800 communicate with the water cooling head 140 in the internal space 113 of the server 100 is omitted in FIGS. 1 and 2 .

The opposite ends of each overflow pipe 500 are respectively disposed on the first branch pipe 300 and the second branch pipe 400 . The servers 100 , the liquid cooling device 200 and the overflow pipes 500 are connected to each other in parallel through the first branch pipe 300 and the second branch pipe 400 . The control valves 600 are respectively provided in the overflow pipes 500 . The servers 100 , the liquid cooling device 200 , the first branch pipe 300 , the second branch pipe 400 , the overflow pipe 500 , the first flow pipes 700 and the second flow pipes 800 are used for a cooling liquid (not shown) such as water to flow.

In this embodiment, opposite ends of each overflow pipe 500 are respectively fixed to the first branch pipe 300 and the second branch pipe 400 in a non-detachable manner, but the present invention is not limited thereto. In other embodiments, opposite ends of each overflow pipe may also be detachably fixed to the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe respectively.

In this embodiment, the number of the overflow pipes 500 is smaller than the number of the servers 100 to save the overall manufacturing cost of the rack liquid cooling system 10 , but the present invention is not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the number of overflow pipes may also be greater than or equal to the number of servers.

In this embodiment, each overflow pipe 500 includes an inlet end 510 and an outlet end 520 . The inlet end 510 is connected to the first branch pipe 300 . The outlet end 520 is connected to the second branch pipe 400 . Control valves 600 are provided at inlet ends 510 of these overflow pipes 500 , respectively. In other embodiments, the control valves can also be respectively disposed at the outlet ends of the overflow pipes. In this embodiment, each overflow pipe 500 is located between two adjacent servers 100 , but the present invention is not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the overflow pipe can also be located between the server and the liquid cooling device.

In this embodiment, each control valve 600 is, for example, a manual valve and includes a valve body 610 and a handle 620 . The handle 620 is rotatably disposed on the valve body 610 , and the valve body 610 is disposed on the inlet end 510 of the overflow pipe 500 . In other embodiments, the valve body can also be disposed at the outlet end of the overflow pipe.

As shown in FIG. 1 , when the first inlet 111 and the first outlet 112 of each server 100 are respectively connected to the second outlet 220 and the second inlet 210 of the liquid cooling device 200 , the valve body 610 of the control valve 600 is used to block the communication between the overflow pipe 500 and the server 100 and the liquid cooling device 200 . Please refer to FIG. 2 . FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing that some servers in the rack liquid cooling system in FIG. 1 are removed for maintenance. As shown in FIG. 2 , when part of the server 100 is removed so that the first inlet 111 and the first outlet 112 of this part of the server 100 are not connected to the second outlet 220 and the second inlet 210 of the liquid cooling device 200 , the handle 620 of the control valve 600 can be rotated so that the overflow pipe 500 is connected to the rest of the server 100 and the liquid cooling device 200 through the valve body 610 .

Please refer to FIG. 1 again. In this embodiment, the diameter D1 of each overflow pipe 500 is smaller than the diameter D2 of each first flow pipe 700 and the diameter D3 of each second flow pipe 800 . In this way, when part of the server 100 is removed, only a small amount of cooling liquid will flow into the overflow pipe 500 without affecting the cooling operation of the remaining servers 100 that have not been removed. However, in other embodiments, the diameter of each overflow pipe may also be greater than or equal to the diameter of each first flow pipe and the pipe diameter of each second flow pipe.

It should be noted that in other embodiments, the cabinet liquid cooling system may only include one overflow pipe and one control valve.

In this embodiment, the server 100 of the present invention can be used for artificial intelligence (English: Artificial Intelligence, referred to as AI) computing, edge computing (edge computing), and can also be used as a 5G server, cloud server or Internet of Vehicles server.

According to the cabinet liquid cooling system disclosed in the above embodiments, the server, the liquid cooling device, and the overflow pipe communicate with each other in parallel through the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe, and the control valve is disposed in the overflow pipe. Therefore, when the servers do not need to be maintained, the control valve can be closed to prevent the cooling operation of the servers from being affected by the coolant flowing into the overflow pipe. When part of the servo is removed for maintenance, the control valve is opened to allow coolant to flow into the overflow pipe. In this way, the overflow pipe can share the cooling liquid that originally flowed into the removed server, and reduce the pressure on the joints disposed at the first inlets of other servers that continue to operate, thereby preventing the cooling liquid from leaking from the joints.

Although the present invention is disclosed above with the above-mentioned various embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person familiar with similar skills may make some changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of patent protection of the present invention must be defined by the patent scope attached to this specification.

10: Cabinet liquid cooling system 100: server 110: Chassis 111: The first entrance 112: The first exit 113: Internal space 120: Motherboard 130: heat source 140: water block 200: liquid cooling device 210: Second entrance 220: The second exit 300: the first branch pipe 400: Second branch pipe 500: overflow pipe 510: Inlet end 520: Outlet end 600: control valve 610: valve body 620: handle 700: first stream tube 750: first connector 800: second flow pipe 850: Second connector D1, D2, D3: pipe diameter

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a cabinet liquid cooling system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing that some servers in the rack liquid cooling system in FIG. 1 are removed for maintenance.

10: Cabinet liquid cooling system

100: server

110: Chassis

111: The first entrance

112: The first exit

113: Internal space

120: Motherboard

130: heat source

140: water block

200: liquid cooling device

210: Second entrance

220: The second exit

300: the first branch pipe

400: Second branch pipe

500: overflow pipe

510: Inlet end

520: Outlet end

600: control valve

610: valve body

620: handle

700: first stream tube

750: first connector

800: second flow pipe

850: Second connector

D1, D2, D3: pipe diameter

Claims (9)

A cabinet liquid cooling system, comprising: a plurality of servers, each of which includes a first inlet and a first outlet, and the first inlet is connected to the first outlet; a liquid cooling device, including a second inlet and a second outlet, the second inlet is connected to the second outlet, the second inlet is connected to the first outlets, and the second outlet is connected to the first inlets; a first branch pipe and a second branch pipe are connected to each of the servers and the liquid cooling device, and the first inlet and the first outlet of each of the servers are respectively connected to the first branch pipe and the first outlet The second branch pipe, the second inlet and the second outlet of the liquid cooling device are respectively connected to the second branch pipe and the first branch pipe; at least one overflow pipe, the opposite ends of the at least one overflow pipe are respectively arranged on the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe, and the servers, the liquid cooling device and the at least one overflow pipe are connected to each other in parallel through the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe; and at least one control valve is arranged on the at least one overflow pipe; wherein when the first inlet of each of the servers and when the first outlet is respectively connected to the second outlet and the second inlet of the liquid cooling device, the at least one control valve is used to block the communication between the at least one overflow pipe and the servers and the liquid cooling device. When part of the servers are removed, the first inlet and the first outlet of part of the servers are not connected to the second outlet of the liquid cooling device, and the second inlet, the at least one control valve connects the at least one overflow pipe to the remaining servers and the liquid cooling device. The cabinet liquid cooling system as described in Claim 1 further includes a plurality of first flow pipes and a plurality of second flow pipes, one end of each of the first flow pipes is respectively connected to the first inlet of each of the servers, the other end of each of the first flow pipes is connected to the first branch pipe, one end of each of the second flow pipes is respectively connected to the first outlet of each of the servers, the other end of each of the second flow pipes is connected to the second branch pipe, the diameter of the at least one overflow pipe is smaller than the diameter of the first flow pipes and the second flow pipes the pipe diameter. The cabinet liquid cooling system according to claim 1, wherein opposite ends of the at least one overflow pipe are non-detachably fixed to the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe respectively. The cabinet liquid cooling system as described in claim 1 further includes a plurality of overflow pipes and a plurality of control valves, the control valves are respectively arranged in the overflow pipes, and the servers, the liquid cooling device and the overflow pipes are connected to each other in parallel through the first branch pipe and the second branch pipe. The cabinet liquid cooling system according to claim 4, wherein the number of the overflow pipes is smaller than the number of the servers. The cabinet liquid cooling system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one overflow pipe includes an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end is connected to the first branch pipe, and the outlet end is connected to the second branch pipe, and the at least one control valve is disposed on the inlet end of the at least one overflow pipe. The cabinet liquid cooling system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one overflow pipe is located between two adjacent servers. The cabinet liquid cooling system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one control valve includes a valve body and a handle, the handle is rotatably disposed on the valve body, and the valve body is disposed on the at least one overflow pipe. The cabinet liquid cooling system according to claim 1, wherein the liquid cooling device is a cooling distribution unit.

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