Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
' 81781448
HEAT SINK SOCKET
[01] Cross Reference to Related Applications
[02] This application is related to and claims priority to earlier filed
U.S. provisional patent
application 61/716047, filed October 19, 2012.
[03] Background and Summary of the Invention
[04] The instant invention relates to cooling of electronic devices.
[01] A heat sink is a passive component that draws heat from a device and
dissipates the
heat into the surrounding atmosphere. High power lasers, optoelectronic
devices,
semiconductor devices and light emitting diodes (LED) are all examples of
electronic devices
that require some form of cooling.
[02] The basic principle of heat transfer is to transfer thermal energy
from a higher
temperature device to a lower temperature environment. This is done by
conduction and other
means. To minimize overheating of a device, an efficient heat transfer path
must be routed from
the component to the heat sink to the printed circuit board (PCB) and the
environment.
Typically a heat sink component is placed into physical contact with the
electronic device to
draw heat by conduction from the outer surface of the device to the heat sink.
To improve the
thermal performance of heat sinks, a thermal adhesive is applied to the heat
sink to fill any air
gap between the facing surfaces heat sink and device.
[05] Heat is carried away from the heat sink by convection and air flow
moving over or under
the surface of the heat sink. The greater the surface area of the heat sink
over which air can
flow, the greater the results.
[06] The instant invention provides a heat sink socket having a heat
conducting body that
helps cool electronic devices and provides insulated electrical terminals for
the electronic
devices.
[07] The invention addresses the increasing need for cooling electronic
devices that cannot
be cooled with conventional heat sinks mounted on top of the electronic
devices. Electronic
devices (such as image sensors, optoelectronics, some power devices, pin grid
arrays, ball grid
arrays, and dual inline sockets) that have an opening at their top cannot have
a heat sink
mounted on the top of the device. This invention has addressed the problem of
removing heat
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in open top devices or any heat providing device with or without a top
opening, to prevent
failures.
[08] The heat sink socket has a heat conducting body that dissipates heat
from an electronic
component. The heat sink socket is configured so that it may be mounted on or
above a printed
circuit board. To allow electronic components to be connected to the printed
circuit board, the
heat sink socket has electrical terminals that pass through the heat sink
socket.
[09] The heat conducting body has an upper surface on which an electrical
component may
rest. The upper surface may be substantially flat or otherwise configured to
support the
electrical component. The lower surface of the heat conducting body is
configured to engage a
circuit board or another supporting surface. The lower surface may directly
contact the circuit
board, or it may be supported so that there is a gap between the circuit board
and the heat
conducting body, as discussed below.
[10] The heat conducting body is configured so that the electrical
component may be in
electrical communication with the printed circuit board. For this purpose,
there is at least one
insulated terminal formed in the heat conducting body. The insulated terminal
has an electrical
insulating body inserted into a first aperture in the heat conducting body,
and extending
through the heat conducting body from the upper surface to the lower surface.
The outer wall
of the insulating terminal frictionally engages the inner wall of the first
aperture.
[11] A first electrical terminal, or insulated electrical terminal, is
supported within the
insulating aperture of the electrical insulating body. The first electrical
terminal has an outer
wall that engages the inner insulating aperture wall to frictionally secure
the first electrical
terminal within the insulating aperture. The first electrical terminal, or
insulated electrical
terminal, enables an electrical component above the heat conducting body to
electrically
communicate with a circuit board below the heat conducting body. For this
purpose, the
electrical terminal has an upper terminal end and a lower terminal end. A
socket is located at
the upper terminal end, and does not extend above the upper surface of the
heat conducting
body. The socket is configured to receive an electrical contact of an
electrical component. An
electrical connector is located at the lower terminal end, which extends
beyond the lower
surface of the heat conducting body for electrical engagement with the circuit
board.
[12] To allow the heat sink socket to provide power to more than one
component, the heat
sink socket may include more than one of the insulated electrical terminals.
Additionally, in
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some embodiments, there may be more than one insulated electrical terminal
inserted into a
single electrical insulating body.
[13] In some embodiments, the heat sink socket includes a ground plane,
which includes a
second terminal, or grounded terminal. This grounded terminal is in direct
electrical
communication with a ground plane on the heat sink body, so that electrical
components may
connect to the ground plane.
[14] The second electrical terminal is inserted into a second aperture in
the heat conducting
body. The second aperture extends through the heat conducting body from the
upper surface to
the lower surface.
[15] The second electrical terminal has an outer wall that frictionally and
electrically engages
the inner wall of the second aperture to secure the second electrical terminal
within the second
aperture and to provide an electrical connection to the ground plane. The
second electrical
terminal has an upper terminal end and a lower terminal end. A socket is
located at the upper
terminal end, and does not extend above the upper surface of the heat
conducting body. The
socket is configured to receive a ground contact of an electrical component.
An electrical
connector is located at the lower terminal end, and extends beyond the lower
surface of the
heat conducting body for electrically engaging the circuit board.
[16] The heat sink may be provided with multiple insulated terminals. Where
there are a
multiple terminals, they may be organized in an array. For example, the
terminals may be
arranged in a planar array that is in the shape of a square, a rectangle, a
line, a circle, or another
geometric shape.
[17] To improve the heat dissipating performance of the heat sink, the heat
sink may be
configured with one or more heat dissipating fins formed on a peripheral edge
of the heat
conducting body.
[18] When mounted on a circuit board, the heat sink socket may be in direct
contact with the
circuit board. It may contact a conductive material such as copper. This
conductive material can
be connected to the ground plane, and it may conduct heat away from the heat
sink socket.
[19] In another configuration, the heat sink socket may be mounted so that
there is a gap
between the heat sink socket and the circuit board. In this configuration,
heat is transferred
from the heat sink socket by convective currents at the lower surface and
sides of the heat sink
socket.
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[19a] In some embodiments, there is provided a heat sink socket comprising:
a heat
conducting body having an upper surface and a lower surface, the upper surface
being configured to receive an electrical component, and the lower surface
being
configured to engage a supporting circuit board; an insulated terminal
comprising:
an electrical insulating body inserted into a first aperture in the heat
conducting
body, the first aperture extending through the heat conducting body from the
upper
surface to the lower surface, the first aperture having an inner aperture
wall, the
electrical insulating body having an outer wall that frictionally engages the
inner
aperture wall to secure the electrical insulating body within the first
aperture, the
electrical insulating body having an insulating aperture having an inner
insulating
aperture wall; and a first electrical terminal inserted into the insulating
aperture of
the electrical insulating body, the first electrical terminal having an outer
wall that
engages the inner insulating aperture wall to frictionally secure the first
electrical
terminal within the insulating aperture, the electrical terminal having an
upper
terminal end and a lower terminal end, a socket located at the upper terminal
end
which does not extend above the upper surface of the heat conducting body, the
socket being configured to receive a contact of an electrical component, and
an
electrical connector located at the lower terminal end which extends beyond
the
lower surface of the heat conducting body for electrical engagement with said
circuit
board.
[19b] In some embodiments, there is provided a heat sink socket comprising:
a heat
conducting body having an upper surface and a lower surface, the upper surface
being configured to receive an electrical component, and the lower surface
being
configured to engage one of: a supporting circuit board and a supporting
surface;
an insulated terminal comprising: an electrical insulating body inserted into
a first
aperture in the heat conducting body, the first aperture extending through the
heat
conducting body from the upper surface to the lower surface, the first
aperture
having an inner aperture wall and a countersunk surface adjacent the upper
surface
of the heat conducting body, the electrical insulating body having an outer
wall that
frictionally engages the inner aperture wall to secure the electrical
insulating body
within the first aperture, the electrical insulating body having a stepped
shoulder
seated on the countersunk surface of the first aperture, the electrical
insulating body
having a plurality of insulating apertures, each insulating aperture having an
inner
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insulating aperture wall and an insulating countersunk surface; and a
plurality of first
electrical terminals, each of the first electrical terminals inserted into one
of the
plurality of insulating apertures of the electrical insulating body, each
first electrical
terminal having an outer wall that engages the respective inner insulating
aperture
wall to frictionally secure each first electrical terminal within the
respective insulating
aperture, each first electrical terminal having a stepped shoulder seated on
the
respective insulating countersunk surface, each electrical terminal having an
upper
terminal end and a lower terminal end, a socket located at the upper terminal
end
which does not extend above the upper surface of the heat conducting body, the
socket being configured to receive a contact of an electrical component, and
an
electrical connector located at the lower terminal end which extends beyond
the
lower surface of the heat conducting body for electrical engagement with said
circuit
board.
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[20] Accordingly, among the objects of the instant invention are: the
provision of a heat sink
socket for cooling electronic devices that cannot be cooled with conventional
heat sinks
mounted on top of the electronic devices. Another object of the instant
invention is the
provision of a heat sink having a ground plane which can be electrically
connected to an
electrical contact on an electrical component.
[21] Other objects, features and advantages of the invention shall become
apparent as the
description thereof proceeds when considered in connection with the
accompanying illustrative
drawings.
[22] Description of the Drawings
[23] In the drawings which illustrate the best mode presently contemplated
of carrying out
the present invention:
[24] Fig. 1 is a cross sectional view of a first embodiment of the heat
sink socket of the
present invention;
[25] Fig. 1A is a cross sectional view of a second embodiment of the heat
sink socket of the
present invention without stepped shoulder and countersink structures;
[26] Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view of a third embodiment of the heat
sink socket of the
present invention;
[27] Fig. 3A is a cross sectional view of a heat socket with an electrical
component and a
circuit board in a first configuration;
[28] Fig. 38 is another view thereof in a second configuration;
[29] Fig. 3C is another view thereof in a third configuration;
[30] Fig. 3D is another view thereof in a fourth configuration, in which
the terminal is
configured as a surface mount;
[31] Fig. 4 is a top view of one embodiment of a heat sink socket having
multiple electrical
terminals, which may or may not contain a ground terminal;
[32] Fig. 5 is a top view of another embodiment thereof, which may or may
not contain a
ground terminal;
[33] Fig. 6 is a top view of another embodiment thereof, which may or may
not contain a
ground terminal;
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[34] Fig. 7 is a top view of a heat sink socket having multiple terminals
in an electrical
insulating body, which may or may not contain a ground terminal;
[35] Fig. 8 is a top view of a heat sink socket having a single row of
terminals, which may or
may not contain a ground terminal;
[36] Fig. 9 is a top view of a heat sink socket having multiple terminals
in an electrical
insulating body, and fins along a peripheral edge of the heat sink socket,
which may or may not
contain a ground terminal;
[37] Fig. 10 is a top view of a heat sink socket having a single row of
terminals and fins along
a peripheral edge, which may or may not contain a ground terminal;
[38] Fig. 11 is a top view of another embodiment of the heat sink socket of
the present
invention;
[39] Fig. 12 is another embodiment therof; and
[40] Fig. 13 is another embodiment thereof.
[41] Description of the Preferred Embodiment
[42] Referring now to the drawings, the heat sink socket of the instant
invention is illustrated
and generally indicated at 10 in Figures 1-13. As will hereinafter be more
fully described, the
instant heat sink socket provides a heat sink that dissipates heat from an
electronic component.
[43] The heat sink socket of the present invention may have one or more
insulated terminals
for providing an electrical connection between an electrical component and a
circuit board. It
may also include one or more non-insulated terminals for connecting electrical
components to a
ground plane on the heat sink socket.
[44] Figure 1 shows a cross section of one embodiment of the heat sink
socket 10 of the
present invention. The heat sink socket 10 has a heat conducting body 1 having
an upper surface
14 for supporting an electrical component, and a lower surface 16 that is
configured to engage a
supporting circuit board. Thus, as explained in more detail below, the
electrical device can be
supported on the heat conducting body, and the heat conducting body is
supported on or above
the copper layer of the circuit board, with a first electrical terminal 3 that
is insulated from the
heat conducting body 1 and extends through the heat conducting body 1 for
connecting the
electrical component to the circuit board.
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[45] Figure 2 shows a cross section of a second embodiment of the heat sink
socket, in which
the heat sink socket has a first electrical terminal 3 and a second electrical
terminal 4. The
second electrical terminal, or grounded terminal, 4 is electrically coupled to
a ground plane 20
on the heat conducting body 1.
[46] In both embodiments of Figures 1 and 2, an insulated terminal 22 has
an electrical
insulating body 2 that separates a first electrical terminal 3 from the heat
conducting body 1.
The first electrical terminal 3 has a lower terminal end 24 that extends
beyond the lower surface
16 of the heat conducting body. The lower terminal end 24 is in the form of a
pin or another
electrical connector, such as surface mount (SMD), for engaging a circuit
board. The first
electrical terminal has an upper terminal end 26 that has a socket 28. The
socket 28 is
configured to receive a contact, such as a pin connector, of an electrical
component. Because
the socket 28 and the upper terminal end 26 do not extend above the upper
surface 14 of the
heat conducting body 1, the electrical connector for the component can be
received in the
socket and a lower surface of the electrical component can be in direct facing
engagement with
the upper surface 14 of the heat conducting body 1, to improve heat transfer
between the
electrical component 11 and the heat conducting body 1.
[47] The structure of the heat conducting body 1 and the electrical
insulating body 2 ensure
that they are firmly engaged when the electrical insulating body 2 is inserted
into a first
aperture 30 in the heat conducting body 1. The first aperture 30 and the
electrical insulating
body 2 are configured in a complementary manner so that the electrical
insulating body 2 fits
snugly within the first aperture 30. The first aperture 30 forms a continuous
channel extending
from the upper surface 14 of the heat conducting body to the lower surface 16
of the heat
conducting body. The first aperture 30 has an inner aperture wall 32 and a
countersunk surface
34 adjacent the upper surface 14 of the heat conducting body. The electrical
insulating body 2
has an outer wall 36 that frictionally engages the inner aperture wall 32 of
the first aperture so
that the electrical insulating body is secured within the first aperture. The
electrical insulating
body has a stepped shoulder 38 that is seated on the countersunk surface of
the first aperture.
The stepped shoulder 38 of the insulating body 2 and the countersunk surface
34 of the first
aperture facilitate assembly of the heat sink socket. The insulating body is
simply pushed,
installed, or molded into the first aperture until the stepped shoulder
engages the countersunk
surface.
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[48] Similarly, the electrical insulating body 2 has an insulating aperture
40 having an inner
insulating aperture wall 42 and an insulating countersunk surface 44. Some
embodiments may
not include the countersunk surface. A first electrical terminal is inserted
into the insulating
aperture 40 of the electrical insulating body. The first electrical terminal 3
has an outer wall 46
that engages the inner insulating aperture wall 42 to frictionally secure the
first electrical
terminal within the insulating aperture 40. The first electrical terminal has
a stepped shoulder
48 seated on the insulating countersunk surface 44 when the heat sink socket
is fully assembled.
[49] Some embodiments may not include the countersunk surface. Figure 1A
shows an
embodiment that does not include the countersunk surfaces on the first
aperture 30 and the
electric insulating body 2.
[50] In some embodiments, the heat sink socket includes a ground plane 20,
which can serve
as an electrical ground for electrical components. The ground plane includes a
second electrical
terminal directly engaging a second electrical aperture on the heat conducting
body.
[51] As shown in Figure 2, the structure of the second electrical terminal
4 and the second
electrical aperture 50 are configured to provide a sturdy connection between
the two. The
second electrical aperture 50 extends through the heat conducting body 1 from
the upper
surface 14 to the lower surface 16. The second electrical aperture 50 has an
inner aperture wall
52 and a countersunk surface 54 adjacent to the upper surface of the heat
conducting body, as
shown in Figure 2.
[52] The second electrical terminal 4 directly contacts the second
electrical aperture 50 so an
electrical signal can be conducted from one to the other. The second
electrical terminal 4 has an
outer wall 56 that frictionally engages the inner wall 52 of the second
aperture to secure the
second electrical terminal within the second aperture. The second electrical
terminal has a
stepped shoulder 58 seated on the countersunk surface 54 of the second
aperture.
[53] The second electrical terminal has an upper terminal end 60 for
engaging an electrical
component, and a lower terminal end 62 for engaging a circuit board. The lower
terminal end 62
is in the form of a pin or other electrical connector, and extends beyond the
lower surface 16 of
the heat conducting body so it can electrically engage a circuit board. The
upper terminal end
60 has a socket 64, and does not extend above the upper surface 14 of the heat
conducting
body 1. The socket 64 can receive a ground contact of an electrical component,
and a surface of
the component can be in direct contact with the upper surface 14 of the heat
conducting body
1.
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[54] Similarly to the first electrical terminal shown in Figure 1A, the
second electrical
terminal may be configured without a countersunk surface on the aperture 50.
[55] The heat sink socket may employ additional conductive or convective
cooling features.
Figures 3A-3D show how an electrical component 11, the heat sink socket 1, and
a circuit board
13 may be arranged. In each configuration, the electrical component 11 has an
electrical contact
68 received in the socket 28, and the lower terminal end 24 of the first
electrical terminal is
received in an electrical socket 70 on the circuit board.
[56] In one configuration, shown in Fig. 3A, the heat sink socket may be
separated from the
circuit board by a gap. In this configuration, there is convective heat
transfer around the lower
surface of the heat conducting body. In another configuration, shown in Fig.
3B, the heat sink
socket may be in direct contact with a conductive material 72, such as copper,
on the circuit
board. In this configuration, there is conductive heat transfer between the
heat conducting body
and the copper on the circuit board.
[57] Where the lower surface of the heat sink socket is in direct contact
with the circuit
board, and heat conduction to the circuit board is undesirable, the heat sink
socket may contact
solder resist 74 on the circuit board, as shown in Fig. 3C.
[58] In Fig. 3D, the electrical terminal is configured with a surface
mount. Here, the lower
surface 25 of the electrical terminal is substantially horizontal and is
configured to be in direct
contact on the upper surface of the socket 70 of the circuit board 13. The
lower surface 25 of
the electrical terminal may be soldered to the upper surface of the socket 70
or the upper
surface of another electrical contact 71.
[59] Although Figures 3A-3D only show an insulated terminal, alternate
configurations could
include a ground plane with a second electrical terminal.
[60] To support multiple electrical components, the heat sink socket may
include more than
one first electrical terminal. The electrical terminals may be arranged in the
form of an array, for
convenient attachment to electrical components. The array may be rectangular,
square, linear,
circular, or another geometric shape. Figures 4-6 show various arrangements of
electrical
terminals on a heat sink socket. Other arrangements are possible without
departing from the
scope of the present invention.
[61] For ease of manufacture, the heat conducting body may be configured to
include an
electrical insulating body 2 having multiple first apertures for supporting
multiple first electrical
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terminals. Figures 7 and 8 show two possible embodiments of a heat sink socket
with multiple
first apertures in an electrical insulating body.
[62] To provide additional cooling to the heat sink socket, the heat
conducting body may
have one or more fins formed on an outer peripheral edge of the heat
conducting body, as
shown in Figures 9 and 10. These fins draw heat away from the center of the
heat conducting
body. Fins may be formed around the entire peripheral edge, or on multiple
portions of the
edge, or on a single portion of the edge.
[63] The arrangement of the features of the heat sink socket of the present
invention can be
easily adjusted to accommodate electrical components having different
footprints and different
electrical connector arrangements. Figures 11-13 show additional embodiments
of the present
invention.
[64] The electrical terminals described above may be made of any conductive
material, such
as copper or aluminum. The electrical insulating body may be made of an
insulating material
such as plastic or ceramic. The heat conducting body 12 may be made of a
molded conductive
plastic or a conductive metal, or another heat conducting material.
[65] Although the electrical terminals, insulating bodies, and heat
conducting body are
generally frictionally secured to one another when the heat sink socket is
fully assembled, other
methods of securing the elements may be used without departing from the scope
of the present
invention.
[66] It can therefore be seen the heat sink socket of the present invention
cools electronic
devices that cannot be cooled with conventional heat sinks mounted on top of
the electronic
devices. The heat sink socket also provides a ground plane to serve as an
electrical ground for
the components supported on the heat sink socket. For these reasons, the
instant invention is
believed to represent a significant advancement in the art which has
substantial commercial
merit.
[67] While there is shown and described herein certain specific structure
embodying the
invention, it will be manifest to those skilled in the art that various
modifications and
rearrangements of the parts may be made without departing from the spirit and
scope of the
underlying inventive concept and that the same is not limited to the
particular forms herein
shown and described except insofar as indicated by the scope of the appended
claims.
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