GB2437770A

GB2437770A - Reactive cooling system for a rack-mount cabinet

Info

Publication number: GB2437770A
Application number: GB0608727A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Ted Reddicliffe
Original assignee: Cannon Technologies Ltd
Current assignee: Cannon Technologies Ltd
Priority date: 2006-05-03
Filing date: 2006-05-03
Publication date: 2007-11-07
Also published as: GB0608727D0

Abstract

A cooling system for a rack mounted components comprises a movable air guidance plate to direct air flow around the cabinet according to the cooling requirements of the components. Movable air guidance plates 12 may be controlled by a control means 6 in response to sensed temperatures from temperature sensors 8. Variable speed fans may also be provided and controlled to achieve required air flow. The system may also include a database that contains information on the cooling requirements of the electronic devices in the cabinet. The invention allows new components to be installed in the rack without physical reconfiguration of the cooling components. The air flow may also be better directed onto "hot spots" than in the prior art.

Description

REACTIVE COOLING SYSTEM

The present invention relates to a cooling system for a rackmount cabinet used to house electronic equipment.

The advent of large scale telecommunication networks has brought with it the need to locally store large quantities of interconnected telecommunication devices. These devices have traditionally been installed in rooms containing rackmount cabinets.

Electronic equipment, particularly recently developed information technology (IT) servers, are consuming ever-increasing electrical loads. These servers and associated equipment, such as hubs and switches, are increasingly being stacked in cabinets in densely packed configurations in order to minimise the amount of floor space they occupy in what are typically expensive buildings having extensive telecommunication infrastructures. The general trend in the IT industry towards compressing increasing amounts of IT capacity into available real estate is posing a growing challenge for cooling systems. Various heat exchangers and room plans are required to cope with this dramatically increased heat load.

It is recognised in the industry that a considerable percentage of cooling air is wasted as one hot spot in a critical server can require a whole room or building to be run at a high cooling load in order to cool that localised area to within the server's operating parameters.

Another problem associated with conventional rackmount cabinets is that they undergo various configurations of equipment during their useful life. Each re-configuration of equipment within a cabinet will change the cooling requirements within that particular cabinet, again, because of the need to cater to localized hot spots. Often, the re-configuration of only a few devices within a cabinet will require the entire re-configuration of the cabinet and, in some cases, re-configuration of several cabinets. Also, a fixed configuration will operate a different work loads causing variations in cooling requirements.

Also, in most circumstances, in order to eliminate the need to re-configure entire cabinets or rooms, the air conditioning will simply be increased in an entire room or building, thereby resulting in an increase of general energy waste.

What is needed is a reactive cooling system which can dynamically re-configure airflow within a rackmount cabinet in response to changing cooling requirements.

In order to provide a solution to the problems associated with the prior art, the present invention provides a reactive cooling system for cooling at least one rackmount cabinet, the reactive cooling system comprises: at least one movable air guidance plate arranged such that, in use, the flow of air in the cabinet can be altered.

Preferably, the reactive cooling system further comprises: at least one variable speed directional fan arranged to further control the flow of air in or around the cabinet.

Preferably, the reactive cooling system further comprises: temperature monitoring means comprising a plurality of temperature sensors for monitoring a plurality of areas in the rackmount cabinet; fan control means arranged to individually control each variable speed fan; guidance plate control means arranged to individually control each guidance plate; and controller means for controlling the fan control means and the guidance plate means based on information received from the temperature monitoring means.

Preferably, the controller means further comprises: a database containing information relating to cooling requirements of a variety of types of electronic devices; and input means for inputting the types of electronic devices which are housed in the rackmount cabinet.

An example of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side view of a rackmount cabinet of a cooling system in accordance with a first example of the present invention; Figure 2 is a perspective view of a rackmount cabinet in accordance with a first example of the present invention; Figure 3 is a top view of a rackmount cabinet in accordance with a second example of the present invention; and Figure 4 is a view of a horizontal guide plate barrier in accordance with a third example of the present invention.

With reference to Figure 1, a reactive cooling system 1 in accordance with one example of the present invention comprises a rackmount cabinet 2 for housing electronic equipment 13, 14 such as a network server 13 or a network hub 14.

The reactive cooling system 1 also comprises an array of individually actuated horizontal guide plates 2 which separate a heat exchanging shaft 20 from an electronic equipment section 30 of the rackmount cabinet 2. Each horizontal guide plate 12 can be individually controlled by a guide plate control means 6. The horizontal guide plates 12 can be moved from a closed position, where no air is allowed to flow from the heat exchanging shaft 20 to the electronic equipment section 30, to an open position, where air can freely circulate between the heat exchanging shaft 20 and the electronic equipment section 30. The heat exchanging shaft 20 may be behind the equipment section, in front of the equipment section or, as is the case in the example of Figure 3, surround the equipment section entirely.

The guide plates can open either towards the heat exchanging shaft 20 or towards the electronic equipment section 30. Guide plates may also be positioned in the front of a rackmount cabinet or on the sides. The guide plate control means 6 can also actuate any individual horizontal guide plate 12 into a plurality of positions, each having a different degree of opening, where air is merely limited from passing from the heat exchanging shaft 20 to the electronic equipment section 30.

In the alternate example of Figure 4, the barrier between the heat exchanging shaft 20 and the electronic equipment section 30 can comprise a plurality of guide plate arrays 12, 12' such that the airflow may be more closely directed. This example of the present invention is particularly useful where equipment to be cooled is spaced well apart, leaving air gaps which could allow air to inefficiently exhaust without passing through the hot inner surfaces of the equipment.

The air guide plates 12 can be made of metal, plastic, rubber, wood or even brush like materials. Brush material would provide sufficient air guidance effect whilst allowing projections such as cables, connectors or other items to impinge into the air flow areas whilst maintaining the integrity of air flow containment and control.

Finally, in the most basic form of the invention, the air guidance plates may be adjusted manually.

Cooled air from an exterior cooling system is drawn from meshed doors or either the top guidance plate 11 or the bottom guidance plate 10, these plates also being individually controlled by the guide plate control means 6. Either of the apertures relating to the top guidance plate 11 or the bottom guidance plate 10 may alternatively be used to expel hot air from the rear or the front of the rackmount cabinet 2, as needed.

The reactive cooling system 1 further comprises an array of individually actuated directional fans 9. Each fan 9 is individually controlled by the fan control means 5. In this example, the fans are located in the electronic equipment section and behind the electronic equipment 13, 14 itself. In alternate examples of the invention, the fans 9 may be placed in other areas inside and/or outside the rackmount cabinet 2. Alternatively, a single larger capacity fan may be placed at a large exhaust port (such as the large exhaust port covered by the top guidance plate 11) and/or a large input port (such as the large exhaust port covered by the top guidance plate 10).

The reactive cooling system 1 further comprises an array of temperature sensors 8 which measure the temperature in various parts of the rackmount cabinet 2 and are connected to a central temperature monitoring means 7. In order to increase the reliability of the system 1, sensors 8 may be paired so as to provide redundancy. Also, a discrepancy measured between two paired sensors 8 will be indicative of malfunction in the system.

As will be appreciated by the skilled reader, the fans 9, the sensors 8 and the horizontal guide plates 2 may be placed at various other positions in the rackmount cabinet 2. Rackmounted electrical equipment 13, 14 is most usually mounted in the horizontal plane and fixed to mounting posts (not shown) at units of height which are International Standards and of standard widths. A dominant standard in the IT industry is a width of 48.3cm (19 inches) and a height of a multiple of 44.5 mm (1.75 inches). Thus, using known standards, it is possible to position the abovementioned components of the present invention so as to tailor the reactive cooling system 1 to a specific model of rackmount cabinet 2.

Some equipment requires horizontal front to rear air flow, other equipment requires side air flow or vertical airflow. By having guide plates at different locations in the cabinet, it is possible to control and guide air in any direction within the enclosure, including flow from the rear, front, base or roof of the cabinet to any air inlet face on a specific piece of equipment to be cooled. With reference to Figure 2, the rackmount cabinet 2 of the present invention may also comprise side guide plates 22 for controlling airflow on the sides of the electronic equipment 13, 14.

Now, with reference to Figure 3, the present invention may also include side inlets 33 for cross-section ventilation of equipment. In the first example of Figure 3, both the front horizontal guideplates 44 and the rear horizontal guideplates 12 are open and both the front and rear side guide plates 22 are closed. Thus, in this configuration, cooling air flows from the rear of the rackmount cabinet 2 towards the front of the rackmount cabinet 2.

In the second example of Figure 3, both the rear horizontal guideplates 12 and the front horizontal guide plates 44 are closed. In this example, both side inlets 33 are open and one rear side guide plate 22 is open while the diametrically opposed front side guide 22 is also open. Thus, in this configuration, cooling air flows from one side of the equipment section to the other.

The temperature monitoring means 7, the fan control means 5 and the guide plate control means 6 are all controlled by the system controller 4. In use, the temperature sensors 8 measure the temperature of various areas inside the rackmount cabinet 2. This information is recorded by the temperature monitoring means 7 and then sent to the system controller 4.

With reference to Figure 1, the heat generated by the network server 13 and the network hub 14 will be measured by the temperature sensors 8 which surround them. The temperature monitoring means 7 will then pass that information on to the system controller 4. The system controller 4 will then ascertain what action is necessary in order to most efficiently cool the equipment 13, 14.

When an area reaches a predefined temperature, the system controller will send signals to the fan control means 5 and/or the guide plate control means 6 in order to cool the warm area. The default position of the guide plates may be programmed in the system controller 4 or the guide plate control means 6 as either open or closed. Thus, guide plates may initially be in closed positions and, as the temperature of certain areas of the rackmount cabinet 2 increases, the plates corresponding to that area will open. Alternatively, the guide plates 12 may initially be fully open and then completely or partially close unless temperatures are at a high enough level to require cooling airflow.

The system controller 4 may also comprise a database which includes information relating to the cooling needs of a plurality of different electronic devices In this example, the system controller 4 would comprise input means for inputting the type (e.g. model number) of equipment which is installed in the rackmount cabinet 2. Then, information would be extracted from a database containing the cooling requirements of a plurality of known devices, and an alarm would be activated.

Finally, the system controller 4 may also comprise a failsafe mechanism which would send a signal to the guide plate control means 6 to position the plates in a certain configuration when a system malfunction occurs. For example, if a malfunction were to occur, all guide plates could be forced open regardless of the equipment which is housed in the rackmount cabinet 2 and the various temperatures in the cabinet.

Using the temperature, location and cooling requirement information, the system controller 4 determines how the airflow through the rakcmount cabinet 2 is to be configured and sends control signals to both the fan control means 5 and the guide plate control means 6. In the example of Figure 1, the guide plate control means 6 activates the bottom guidance plate 10 in order to draw in cool air from an exterior cooling means (not shown). Also, the top guidance plate 11 is opened in order to permit hot air to leave the rackmount cabinet 2. The guide plate control means 6 also sends activation signals to individual horizontal guide plates 12 which are closest to the pieces of equipment 13, 14. Upon reception of these signals, the horizontal guide plates will at least partially let air flow from the heat exchanging shaft 20 to the electronic equipment section 30.

In the example of Figure 1, the temperature measured around the network server 13 is higher than that measured around the network hub 14. Thus, a greater open area for air flow would be provided by plates 12 to cool the network server 13 than would be provided to cool the network hub 14. In cases where equipment is of a height which is more than one guide plate 12 unit, several plates may be programmed to act in perfect unison or, alternatively, variations in positions may be programmed in order to cater for specific needs.

In order to further cool the electronic equipment 13, 14 installed in the rackmount cabinet, the fan control means 5 will send control signals to the desired individual fan or fans 9. The individual fans 9 will further help cool the electronic equipment 13, 14. In the example of Figure 1, the individual fans 9 are located just inside the electronic equipment section and facilitate the passage of cold air from the heat exchanging shaft 20 to the electronic equipment section 30. However, the individual fans 9 may be placed anywhere inside or outside the rackmount cabinet 2 and may be used to either move air around the rackmount cabinet 2, pull/push air into the rackmount cabinet 2 or pull/push air out of the rackmount cabinet 2.

Claims

CLAIMS

1. A reactive cooling system for cooling at least one rackmount cabinet, the reactive cooling system comprising: at least one movable air guidance plate arranged such that, in use, the flow of air in the cabinet can be altered.

2. The reactive cooling system of claim 1, further comprising: at least one variable speed directional fan arranged to further control the flow of air in or around the cabinet.

3. The reactive cooling system of claim 2, further comprising: temperature monitoring means comprising a plurality of temperature sensors for monitoring a plurality of areas in the rackmount cabinet; fan control means arranged to individually control each variable speed fan; guidance plate control means arranged to individually control each guidance plate; and controller means for controlling the fan control means and the guidance plate means based on information received from the temperature monitoring means.

4. The reactive cooling system of any of the previous claims, wherein the controller means further comprises: a database containing information relating to cooling requirements of a variety of types of electronic devices; and input means for inputting the types of electronic devices which are housed in the rackmount cabinet.