US20110100608A1

US20110100608A1 - Flat heat pipe with hook capillary tissue

Info

Publication number: US20110100608A1
Application number: US12/637,931
Authority: US
Inventors: Yu-Po HUANG; Tung-Jung Kuo
Original assignee: KUNSHAN JUE-CHUNG ELECTRONICS Co Ltd
Current assignee: KUNSHAN JUE-CHUNG ELECTRONICS Co Ltd
Priority date: 2009-10-30
Filing date: 2009-12-15
Publication date: 2011-05-05
Also published as: CN201532142U

Abstract

A flat heat pipe with hook capillary tissue includes a metal pipe, a capillary tissue and working fluid. The metal pipe is in a flat shape and formed by enclosing two opposite panels and two opposite sidewalls, and a hollow chamber is formed in the metal pipe. The capillary tissue is in the shape of a long strip, and includes having a hook formed at an end of the capillary tissue, and the capillary tissue is contained in the hollow chamber and attached onto one of the sidewalls and abutted between two sidewalls, and a working fluid is filled into the hollow chamber and adhered to the capillary tissue, so that the stability of fixing the capillary tissue into the metal pipe can be improved, and the retention quantity of the working fluid at an end of the pipe can be maintained.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a heat pipe, and more particularly to a flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue.
2. Description of Prior Art
As a central processing unit (CPU) of a computer comes with an increasingly higher speed, and electronic products tends to have a light, thin, short and compact design, a conventional heat dissipation device composed of an aluminum extrusion heat sink and a fan can no longer meet the user requirements anymore, and thus manufacturers keep developing new heat pipes with a higher thermal conduction efficiency and combining heat pipes with the heat sink to overcome present existing heat dissipation problems. However, the structural design of the interior of the heat pipe relates to flows of gas and liquid in the heat pipe and an available using space, and thus the inventor of the present invention focused on the aforementioned problem to design and develop a heat pipe to overcome the problem.
A conventional heat pipe as disclosed in R.O.C. Pat. No. M366036 comprises a flat pipe, formed by two opposite bottom walls and two opposite sidewalls, and a one-way mesh capillary tissue sintered into one of the bottom walls. Although such heat pipe can perform a gas-liquid phase change with the heat produced by a heat source, yet the amount of capillary tissue installed onto a surface at the bottom wall of the pipe is reduced significantly due to the small gas passage in the pipe with an increasingly smaller size, and the internal surface of the capillary tissue is a rough surface which further constitutes an obstacle for the flow of the internal gas, and results in a poor efficiency of the thermal conduction of the heat pipe.
Related manufacturers also designed another type of heat pipe as disclosed in R.O.C. Pat. No. I263765, and the heat pipe comprises a casing, and the casing includes an evaporation section, a condensation section and a cavity, and a capillary tissue made of a metal foam is installed in the cavity, and the capillary tissue is extended from the evaporation section to the condensation section, and the capillary tissue has a hole diameter that increases from the condensation section to the evaporation section. However, the capillary tissue is clamped between upper and lower internal walls of the casing, and has a small effective contact area with the internal wall, so that the capillary tissue and the casing may be shifted and deviated with respect to each other during a transportation process. Furthermore, the capillary tissue is installed in the axial direction of the casing, and the capillary tissue at the evaporation section is restricted, and thus the supply of the working fluid is often insufficient and the conventional heat pipe requires further improvements.
In view of the shortcomings of the prior art, the inventor of the present invention based on years of experience in the related field to conduct extensive researches and experiments, and finally developed a heat pipe in accordance with the present invention 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 flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue, wherein a hook is provided for abutting the interior of the metal pipe to improve the stability of fixing the capillary tissue into the metal pipe.
To achieve the foregoing objective, the present invention provides a flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue, comprising a metal pipe, a capillary tissue and a working fluid, wherein the metal pipe is in a flat shape, and the metal pipe is formed by enclosing two opposite panels and two sidewalls extended from the two panels respectively, and a hollow chamber is formed in the metal pipe, and the capillary tissue is in a shape of a long strip and includes a hook formed at an end of the capillary tissue, and the capillary tissue is contained in the hollow chamber and attached onto one of the sidewalls, and the hook is abutted between the two sidewalls, and the working fluid is filled into the hollow chamber and adhered onto the capillary tissue.
To achieve the foregoing objective, the present invention provides another flat heat pipe with hook capillary tissue, comprising a metal pipe, a capillary tissue and a working fluid, wherein the metal pipe is in a flat shape, and the metal pipe is formed by enclosing two opposite panels and two sidewalls extended from the two panels respectively, and a hollow chamber is formed in the metal pipe, and the capillary tissue is contained in the hollow chamber, and the capillary tissue includes a linear section and a hook formed by bending an end of the linear section, and the linear section is attached onto one of the sidewalls, and the hook is abutted between the two sidewalls, and the working fluid is filled into the hollow chamber and adhered onto the capillary tissue.
The present invention has the effect of storing sufficient working fluid at the evaporation section of the heat pipe by means of the hook having the capillary tissue at the evaporation section, and overcomes the problem of having insufficient working fluid effectively.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

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

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a heat pipe of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a transverse cross-sectional view of a heat pipe of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a heat pipe of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of an application of a heat generating device having a heat pipe combined with fins in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a transverse cross-sectional view of a heat pipe of another preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of another way of combining a metal pipe and a capillary tissue in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 8 is a transverse cross-sectional view of a metal pipe and a capillary tissue in accordance with another preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The technical characteristics, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawings are provided for reference and illustration only, but not intended for limiting the present invention.
With reference to FIGS. 1 to 4 for a flat heat pipe with hook capillary tissue in accordance with the present invention, the heat pipe 1 comprises a metal pipe 10, a capillary tissue 20 and a working fluid 30.
The metal pipe 10 is made of a material having a high thermal conductivity such as copper, and manufactured into a flat shape, and the flat shape metal pipe 10 is formed by enclosing an upper panel 11, a lower panel 12, a left sidewall 13 and a right sidewall 14, and a hollow chamber 15 is formed in the metal pipe 10, and both left and right sidewall 13, 14 are in a semicircular shape. In addition, an end of the metal pipe 10 is soldered and sealed to form a rear closed end 16, and another end of the metal pipe 10 is a front closed end 17 available to be sealed (as shown in FIG. 2), and an internal arc wall 161 is formed inside the rear closed end 16.
The capillary tissue 20 is a circular woven metal mesh in a form of a long strip, a fiber cluster or a porous powder sintered strip, wherein the capillary tissue 20 of the preferred embodiment is a woven metal mesh comprising a linear section 21, a first hook 22 integrally formed by bending an end of the linear section 21, and a second hook 23 formed by bending another end of the linear section 21, and the first hook 22 comprises a first arc section 221 extended from an end of the linear section 21 and a first press section 222 extended from an end of the first arc section 221 and parallel to the linear section 21, and the second hook 23 of this preferred embodiment includes a second arc section 231 extended from another end of the linear section 21.
During assembly, the capillary tissue 20 is put into the hollow chamber 15, and its linear section 21 is attached and contacted with the right sidewall 14, wherein the first arc section 221 of the first hook 22 is disposed immediately adjacent to the internal arc wall 161 of the rear closed end 16, and the first press section 222 of the first hook 22 is attached and contacted partially with a rear section of the left sidewall 13, and the first hook 22 is abutted between the left and right sidewalls 13, 14. In the meantime, the linear section 21, the first hook 22 and the second hook 23 are also clamped and fixed by the upper and lower panels 11, 12. The front closed end 17 requiring to be sealed is tapered, and the second arc section 231 of the second hook 23 and an internal arc wall (whose numeral is not shown in the figure) of the front closed end 17 are attached with a gas exhaust/filling opening (not shown in the figure); and then a working fluid 30 such as water is filled into the hollow chamber 15 through the gas exhaust/filling opening and adhered onto the capillary tissue 20. Finally, a heating process and a gas exhaustion process are applied to the metal pipe 10, and then the gas exhaust/filling opening is soldered and sealed to complete the manufacture of the heat pipe 1 of the present invention.
The manufactured heat pipe 1 includes an evaporation section 100, a thermal insulation section 101 and a condensation section 102 sequentially along the lengthwise direction of the heat pipe 1, and the first hook 22 is formed inside the evaporation section 100, and the second hook 23 is formed inside the condensation section 102, and the linear section 21 is disposed immediately adjacent to the right sidewall 14 and interconnected with internal spaces of the evaporation section 100, the thermal insulation section 101 and the condensation section 102.
With reference to FIG. 5, the plurality of fins 5 are sheathed onto the condensation section 102 of the heat pipe 1, and the evaporation section 100 is attached directly onto an electronic heat generating device 6, wherein a large quantity of heat is produced after the operation of the generating device 6 takes place and conducted directly to the lower panel 12 of the heat pipe 1, and then from the lower panel 12 to the first hook 22 of the capillary tissue 20, so that the working fluid 30 adhered to an interior of the first hook 22 is vaporized, and the vaporized fluid flows from the interior of the evaporation section 100 through the thermal insulation section 101 to the condensation section 102 quickly, and the condensation section 102 is provided for exchanging heat between each fin 5 and air to condense the fluid in the condensation section 102 into a liquid, and the liquid is returned to a position of the first hook 22 from the second hook 23 through the linear section 21 by capillary action forces of the capillary tissue 20, so as to constitute a continuous circulation of a heat dissipation mechanism of the heat pipe 1.
With reference to FIG. 6 for a capillary tissue 20 of a heat pipe in accordance with another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second hook 23 can be comprised of a second arc section 231 and a second press section 232, wherein the second arc section 231 is attached with an internal arc wall of the front closed end 17, and the second press section 232 is attached and contacted with a front section of the left sidewall 13, and the second hook 23 is abutted between the left and right sidewalls 13, 14, such that the backflow of the working fluid 30 in a liquid form in the capillary tissue 20 can be expedited.
With reference to FIG. 7, the heat pipe 1 of the present invention can be assembled by the metal pipe 10 and the capillary tissue 20 in accordance with the foregoing preferred embodiment as well as putting the capillary tissue 20 into the circular metal pipe 10, and pressing the metal pipe 10 by a planarization process, such that the upper and lower panels 11, 12 can be clamped onto upper and lower surfaces of the flat heat pipe 1 in accordance with this preferred embodiment, so as to enhance the stability of the connection.
With reference to FIG. 8, the capillary tissue 20 of the heat pipe 1 of the present invention can be manufactured in accordance with the foregoing preferred embodiments, as well as this preferred embodiment, wherein the capillary tissue 20 is comprised of a linear section 21 and a first hook 22 connected to an end of the linear section 21, and the linear section 21 can be made of a woven metal mesh, and the first hook 22 is U-shaped and made of a porous powder sintered strip, and the linear section 21 is disposed immediately adjacent to an internal surface of the right sidewall 14, and the first hook 22 is attached onto internal surfaces of a rear section of the right sidewall 14, an internal arc wall 161 of the rear closed end 16 and a rear section of the left sidewall 13. Similarly, the linear section 21 can be a porous powder sintered strip or a fiber cluster (not shown in the figure), and the first hook 22 can be a woven metal mesh or a fiber cluster (not shown in the figure) to provide equivalent effects as the aforementioned preferred embodiments.
In summation of the description above, the flat heat pipe with hook capillary tissue of the present invention provides an innovative product capable of achieving the expected functions, overcoming the shortcomings of the prior art, and complying with the patent application requirements, and thus the present invention is duly filed for patent application.
The present invention is illustrated with reference to the preferred embodiment and not intended to limit the patent scope of the present invention. Various substitutions and modifications have suggested in the foregoing description, and other will occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. Therefore, all such substitutions and modifications are intended to be embraced within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A flat heat pipe with hook capillary tissue, comprising:

a metal pipe, being in a flat shape, and formed by enclosing two opposite panels and two sidewalls extended from the two panels respectively, and having a hollow chamber formed in the metal pipe;

a capillary tissue, being in a shape of a long strip, and having a hook formed at an end of the capillary tissue, and the capillary tissue being contained in the hollow chamber and abutted against one of the sidewalls, and the hook being abutted between the two sidewalls; and

working fluid, filled into the hollow chamber and adhered onto the capillary tissue.

2. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 1, wherein the capillary tissue is a woven metal mesh, a fiber cluster or a porous powder sintered strip.

3. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 1, wherein the capillary tissue includes a woven metal mesh and a porous powder sintered strip coupled to the woven metal mesh.

4. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 1, wherein the capillary tissue includes a fiber cluster and a porous powder sintered strip coupled to the fiber cluster.

5. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 1, wherein the capillary tissue includes a fiber cluster and a woven metal mesh coupled to the fiber cluster.

6. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 1, wherein the metal pipe further includes a rear closed end coupled to the two panels and the two sidewalls, and an internal arc wall is formed at the rear closed end, and the hook includes a first arc section disposed immediately adjacent to the internal arc wall and a first press section extended from the first arc section, and the first press section is disposed adjacent to the other sidewall.

7. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 6, wherein the metal pipe further includes a front closed end coupled to the two panels and the two sidewalls, and the capillary tissue further includes a second hook disposed immediately adjacent to an internal wall of the front closed end.

8. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 7, wherein the second hook includes a second arc section disposed immediately adjacent to an internal wall of the front closed end and a second press section extended from the second arc section and disposed immediately adjacent to the other sidewall.

9. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 1, wherein both sidewalls are in a semicircular shape.

10. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 1, wherein the heat pipe includes an evaporation section, and the hook is formed at an internal space of the evaporation section.

11. A flat heat pipe with hook capillary tissue, comprising:

a capillary tissue, contained in the hollow chamber, and having a linear section and a hook formed by bending an end of the linear section, and abutted against one of the sidewalls corresponding to the linear section, and the hook being abutted between the two sidewalls; and

12. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 11, wherein the capillary tissue is a woven metal mesh, a fiber cluster or a porous powder sintered strip.

13. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 11, wherein the linear section is a woven metal mesh and the hook is a porous powder sintered strip.

14. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 11, wherein the linear section is a fiber cluster and the hook is a porous powder sintered strip.

15. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 11, wherein the linear section is a fiber cluster and the hook is a woven metal mesh.

16. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 11, wherein the metal pipe further includes a rear closed end coupled to the two panels and the two sidewalls, and an internal arc wall formed inside the rear closed end, and the hook includes a first arc section extended from the linear section and a first press section extended from the first arc section and parallel to the linear section, and the first arc section is disposed immediately adjacent to the internal arc wall, and the first press section is disposed immediately adjacent to the other sidewall.

17. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 16, wherein the metal pipe further includes a front closed end coupled to the two panels and the two sidewalls, and the capillary tissue further includes a second hook extended from the linear section, and the second hook is disposed immediately adjacent to an internal wall of the front closed end.

18. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 17, wherein the second hook includes a second arc section extended from the linear section, and a second press section extended from the second arc section, and the second arc section is disposed immediately adjacent to an internal wall of the front closed end, and the second press section is disposed immediately adjacent to the other sidewall.

19. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 11, wherein the two sidewalls are in a semicircular arc shape.

20. The flat heat pipe with a hook capillary tissue of claim 11, wherein the heat pipe includes an evaporation section and the hook is formed in a space inside the evaporation section.