US20120325438A1

US20120325438A1 - Heat pipe with flexible support structure

Info

Publication number: US20120325438A1
Application number: US13/169,238
Authority: US
Inventors: George Anthony Meyer, IV; Chien-Hung Sun; Chieh-Ping Chen; Te-Hsuan Chin
Original assignee: Celsia Technologies Taiwan Inc
Current assignee: Celsia Technologies Taiwan Inc
Priority date: 2011-06-27
Filing date: 2011-06-27
Publication date: 2012-12-27

Abstract

A heat pipe with a flexible support structure includes a pipe body and a support, and the support is installed in the pipe body and includes a first row of side plates and a second row of side plates extended along the lengthwise direction of the pipe body and a plurality of support elements coupled between the first and second rows of side plates, and each support element abuts the internal side of a capillary tissue of the pipe body. Plate elements of the first and second rows of side plates are arranged with an interval apart from each other and in sections along the lengthwise direction of the pipe body, and the plate elements of the first row of side plates and the plate elements of the second row of side plates are aligned alternately with each other. The support is flexible to facilitate users to bend the heat pipe.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a heat pipe, in particular to a heat pipe with a flexible support structure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As the computing speed of a central processing unit (CPU) of a computer becomes increasingly faster, the heat generated by the CPU becomes increasingly higher, and conventional heat dissipating device comprised of an extruded aluminum heat sink and a fan no longer can meet the requirements of the present CPUs, and thus related manufacturers keep on developing heat pipes or vapor chambers with a higher thermal conductivity and combine the heat pipe or vapor chamber with the heat sink to overcome the heat dissipating problem effectively.
However, the conventional heat pipe usually comes with a support installed in the heat pipe to provide the adhesive strength for a capillary tissue or the supporting force for a pressed pipe body, when factors such as the adhesion of the capillary tissue and the negative pressure produced inside the pressed pipe body are taken into consideration. Most supports are generally formed to fit the length of the pipe body of the heat pipe and do not have the bendable feature, such that after the support is installed in the heat pipe, the bent pipe or the support of the bent pipe may be damaged easily.
In view of the aforementioned shortcomings of the prior art, the inventor of the present invention based on years of experience in the related industry to conduct extensive researches and experiments, and finally provides a feasible solution to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, it is a primary objective of the present invention to provide a heat pipe with a flexible support structure, wherein a flexible support is installed in the heat pipe, such that the heat pipe can be bent and applied in different applications, and the support is provided to assure a sufficient support for the capillary structure or the pressed pipe.
To achieve the foregoing objective, the present invention provides a heat pipe with a flexible support structure, comprising: a pipe body and a support, and the pipe body is hollow and has a capillary tissue installed on an internal wall of the pipe body and an appropriate quantity of working fluid sealed in the pipe body, and the support is installed and contained in the pipe body and includes a first row of side plates and a second row of side plates extended along the lengthwise direction of the pipe body, and a plurality of support elements coupled between the first and second rows of side plates, and each support element abuts the internal side of the capillary tissue of the pipe body, wherein the plate elements of the first and second rows of side plates are arranged with an interval apart from each other and in sections along the lengthwise direction of the pipe body, and the plate elements of the first row of side plates and the plate elements of the second row of side plates are aligned alternately with each other, so as to provide a flexible support to achieve the aforementioned objective.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of Section 3-3 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an application of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The technical characteristics and contents of the present invention will become apparent with the following detailed description and related drawings. The drawings are provided for the purpose of illustrating the present invention only, but not intended for limiting the scope of the invention.
With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 for an exploded view and a cross-sectional view of a heat pipe with a flexible support structure in accordance with the present invention respectively, a flexible support is installed inside the heat pipe, such that the heat pipe can be bent and applied for different applications, and the support assures that the capillary structure or the bent pipe have sufficient support, and the heat pipe is comprised of a pipe body 1 and a support 2.
The pipe body 1 is made of a good thermal conductive material such as copper or aluminum, and the pipe body 1 is hollow. In this preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pipe body 1 is in a flat shape and has a top wall 10 and a corresponding bottom wall 11, and both walls 10, 11 are formed on the pipe body 11. In addition, a capillary tissue 12 is installed around the internal wall of the pipe body 11, and an appropriate quantity of working fluid (not shown in the figure) is sealed in the pipe body 11, and the capillary tissue 12 can be a metal net or a sintered powder.
The support 2 is installed in the pipe body 1 and abuts the internal side of the capillary tissue 12 at the top wall 10 and the bottom wall 11. The support 2 comprises at least one first row of side plates 20 and at least one second row of side plates 21 extended in the lengthwise direction of the pipe body 1 and a plurality of support elements 22 coupled between the first and second rows of side plates 20, 21. The first and second rows of side plates 20, 21 include a plurality of plate elements 200, 210 arranged with an interval “d” apart from each other and in sections (discontinuously) along the lengthwise direction of the pipe body 1, and the plate elements 200 of the first row of side plates 20 and the plate element 210 of the second row of side plates 21 are aligned alternately with each other, such that the support elements 22 are coupled between the plate elements 200 of the first row of side plates 20 and the plate elements 210 of the second row of side plates 21 respectively, and the flexible support 2 facilitates users to bend the heat pipe at any position on lateral sides of the heat pipe (as shown in FIG. 4).
With reference to FIG. 3 for a preferred embodiment of the present invention, each support element 22 is a wavy plate comprising at least one wave-peak section 220 and at least one wave-trough section 221, and the wave-peak section 220 is higher than the top of each plate element 200, 210, and the wave-trough section 221 is lower than the bottom of each plate element 200, 210, such that each support element 22 can abut the internal side of the capillary tissue 12 of the pipe body 1, and the support 2 can provide sufficient support to the pipe body 1 and the capillary tissue 12. More specifically, the wave-peak section 220 abuts the capillary tissue 12 at the top wall 10 of the pipe body 1, and the wave-trough section 221 abuts the capillary tissue 12 at the bottom wall 11 of the pipe body 1. In addition, the support elements 22 are coupled between the first and second rows of side plates 20, 21, and the wave-peak sections 220 and the wave-trough sections 221 are aligned alternately with each other, and an air hole 222 is formed on each wave-peak section 220 or each wave-trough section 221 of the support element 22 to facilitate the working fluid (not shown in the figure) to perform a gas-liquid phase change at the position where the wave-peak section 220 or the wave-trough section 221 abuts the internal side of the capillary tissue 12, and the air holes 222 are interconnected with each other to prevent any possible hindrance caused by the wave-peak sections 220 or the wave-trough sections 221.
With the aforementioned elements, the heat pipe with a flexible support structure in accordance with the present invention is achieved.
In summation of the description above, the present invention improves over the prior art and complies with the patent application requirements, and thus is duly filed for patent application.
While the invention has been described by means of specific embodiments, numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention set forth in the claims.

Claims

1. A heat pipe with a flexible support structure, comprising:

a pipe body, being hollow, and having a capillary tissue disposed on an internal wall of the pipe body, and an appropriate quantity of working fluid sealed in the pipe body; and

a support, installed in the pipe body, and including a first row of side plates and a second row of side plates extended along the lengthwise direction of the pipe body, and a plurality of support elements coupled between the first and second rows of side plates and provided for abutting the internal side of the capillary tissue of the pipe body;

wherein, the plate elements of the first and second rows of side plates are arranged with an interval apart from each other and in sections along the lengthwise direction of the pipe body, and the plate elements of the first row of side plates and the plate elements of the second row of side plates are aligned alternately with each other.

2. The heat pipe with a flexible support structure as recited in claim 1, wherein the pipe body is substantially in a flat shape, and has a top wall and a corresponding bottom wall, and both walls are formed on the pipe body.

3. The heat pipe with a flexible support structure as recited in claim 2, wherein each of the support elements is comprised of a wave-peak section and a wave-trough section, and the wave-peak section abuts the capillary tissue at the top wall, and the wave-trough section abuts the capillary tissue at the bottom wall.

4. The heat pipe with a flexible support structure as recited in claim 1, wherein the capillary tissue of the pipe body is a metal net or a sintered powder.

5. The heat pipe with a flexible support structure as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the support elements is a wavy plate.

6. The heat pipe with a flexible support structure as recited in claim 5, wherein each of the support elements is comprised of a wave-peak section and a wave-trough section.

7. The heat pipe with a flexible support structure as recited in claim 3, wherein the wave-peak sections and the wave-trough sections of the support elements are aligned alternately with each other.

8. The heat pipe with a flexible support structure as recited in claim 7, wherein the wave-peak section and the wave-trough section have a plurality of air holes formed thereon.

9. The heat pipe with a flexible support structure as recited in claim 3, wherein the wave-peak section and the wave-trough section have a plurality of air holes formed thereon.