JP5747552B2 - Cooling system and cooling device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cooling system and a cooling device for cooling an electronic device housed in a housing.

  In recent years, with the advent of an advanced information society, a large amount of data has been handled by computers, and many computers are installed in the same room and managed collectively. For example, in a data center, a large number of racks (server racks) are installed in a computer room, and a plurality of computers (servers) are stored in each rack. Then, jobs are distributed organically to those computers, and a large number of jobs are processed efficiently.

  A large amount of heat is generated from the computer as the job is processed. Therefore, a means for cooling the computer is required in order to prevent the failure and malfunction of the computer due to heat.

  In a typical data center, air adjusted to a predetermined temperature by an air conditioner such as a packaged air conditioner is sent to the vicinity of the rack by a large blower fan, and the air is taken into the rack by a blower fan provided in the rack. The computer is cooling.

  Air (cold air) adjusted to a predetermined temperature by the air conditioner is sent to one surface (intake surface) side of the rack, for example, under the floor of the equipment installation area where the rack is installed. The air is taken into the rack from one side of the rack, cools the computer, and then discharged from the other side (exhaust surface) of the rack. Air discharged from the rack (warm air) returns to the air conditioner through the ceiling of the equipment installation area.

  By the way, a data center consumes a large amount of power to cool a computer, and reduction of power consumption is required from the viewpoint of reducing carbon dioxide emissions and protecting the global environment. In order to reduce the power consumed in the data center, it is important to save power in air conditioning equipment including air conditioners. However, at present, the power saving of air-conditioning equipment has almost reached its limit, and it is not possible to expect a significant power reduction in the future. In addition, the needs required for data centers are diversifying, and it is also required to install computers in high density in a more compact room without preparing a large computer room or air conditioning equipment.

  Therefore, a plurality of racks are arranged close to each other so that the exhaust surface and the intake surface face each other, a heat exchanger is installed between the racks, and the air discharged from the rack is cooled by the heat exchanger. It has been proposed to supply the next rack. Thereby, it is avoided that warm air diffuses in the room, and the air conditioner can be operated efficiently. Depending on the scale of the computer room, the computer can be operated without using a large air conditioner.

JP 2009-123212 A JP 2003-152377 A JP 2009-97774 A JP 2010-171079 A

  It is an object of the present invention to provide a cooling system and a cooling device that can suppress variation in air volume on the intake surface of a housing in which an electronic device is stored.

According to one aspect of the disclosed technology, a housing that houses an electronic device and is disposed close to a wall of a room, takes in air from one surface side, and discharges the air from the other surface side, and the one of the housings A plurality of heat exchangers arranged in parallel on the surface side for cooling the air entering the housing, the plurality of heat exchangers depending on the distance between the heat exchanger and the wall Thus, a cooling system is provided in which the distances from the housing are arranged at different positions.

  According to the one aspect described above, the distance between the heat exchanger and the housing can be adjusted, and variation in the air volume at the intake surface of the housing can be suppressed.

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view illustrating a rack installed in a computer room. FIG. 2 is a schematic top view of the same. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the connection between the heat exchanger and the chiller unit. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining problems of the cooling system illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 5 is a schematic top view illustrating the cooling system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the result of simulating the wind speed distribution when the heat exchanger, the blower, and the rack are arranged as shown in FIG. FIGS. 7A to 7C are diagrams showing the simulation results of the wind speed distribution when the rack, the heat exchanger, and the connection portion are arranged as shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is a schematic side view illustrating the cooling system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is a schematic front view of the same. FIG. 10 is a schematic side view showing a modification of the second embodiment.

  Hereinafter, before describing the embodiment, a preliminary matter for facilitating understanding of the embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic side view illustrating a rack installed in a computer room, and FIG. 2 is a schematic top view of the same. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the connection between the heat exchanger and the chiller unit. In FIGS. 1 and 2, white arrows indicate the air flow direction.

  A plurality (two in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2) of racks 11 are arranged in the computer room with the intake surface and the exhaust surface facing each other. In each rack 11, a plurality of computers 12 are stored side by side in the height direction.

  A heat exchanger 15 and a blower 16 are disposed on the intake surface side of each rack 11. The heat exchanger 15 has a pipe through which the refrigerant passes and fins connected to the pipe, and cools the air flowing between the fins. As shown in FIG. 3, the heat exchanger 15 is connected to a chiller unit 19 installed outdoors via a pipe. The chiller unit 19 cools a refrigerant (for example, water) to a certain temperature, supplies the refrigerant to the heat exchanger 15, and recovers the refrigerant after heat exchange from the heat exchanger 15.

  The blower 16 is provided with a plurality of blower fans 16a. An air flow is formed by the rotation of the blower fans 16a, and the air cooled by the heat exchanger 15 is sent into the rack 11.

  Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the first heat exchanger 15, the first blower 16, the first rack 11, the second rack from the upstream side (the left side in FIGS. 1 and 2) in the air flow direction through the rack 11. The heat exchanger 15, the second blower 16, and the second rack 11.

  The first heat exchanger 15 cools indoor air, and the air cooled by the first heat exchanger 15 is sent to the first rack 11 by the first blower 16. Then, the air (warm air) whose temperature has increased by cooling the computer 12 in the first rack 11 is discharged from the exhaust surface of the rack 11.

  The second heat exchanger 15 is disposed close to the exhaust surface of the first rack 11, and cools the air discharged from the first rack 11. The air cooled by the second heat exchanger 15 is sent into the second rack 11 by the second blower 16, cools the computer 12 in the rack 11, and then is discharged from the exhaust surface.

  Similarly, when three or more racks 11 are arranged, the air discharged from the previous rack 11 is cooled by the heat exchanger 15 and sent to the next rack 11 by the blower 16. With such a configuration, there is an advantage that the space for installing the rack 11 can be reduced, and that the warm air discharged from the rack 11 can be prevented from diffusing into the room.

  However, the above-described computer cooling system has the following problems.

  When the computer room is large and the space between the rack 11 and the wall of the room can be taken wide enough, as shown by the white arrow in the top view of FIG. It passes through and returns to the intake surface side of the first rack 11. For this reason, the air flow rate is substantially uniform in the width direction of the rack 11.

  However, the computer room may be small and the rack 11 may need to be placed in contact with the wall. In such a case, for example, as shown by a white arrow in the top view of FIG. 4, a large variation occurs in the air flow rate in the width direction of the rack 11. Thereby, the heat generating part in the computer 12 arranged in the rack 11 may not be sufficiently cooled.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 5 is a schematic top view illustrating the cooling system according to the first embodiment. 5, the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals. In this embodiment, an example is described in which the computer (an example of an electronic device) stored in a rack (an example of a housing) is cooled. However, the present embodiment can also be applied to the cooling of other electronic devices. .

  In the computer room, a plurality of racks 11 are arranged with the intake surface and the exhaust surface facing each other. In each rack 11, a plurality of computers 12 are stored side by side in the height direction. The width of the rack 11 is, for example, 0.7 m, the depth is, for example, 0.8 m, and the height is, for example, 2 m.

  A first blower 16 is arranged in front of the first rack 11 (the left rack 11 in FIG. 5) (the intake surface side), and three heats are placed in front of the first blower 16. Exchangers (first heat exchangers) 15a, 15b, and 15c are arranged.

  The heat exchanger 15 c is disposed on the passage side (the side farthest from the wall) and is in close contact with the blower 16.

  The heat exchanger 15b is arranged at the center in the width direction of the rack 11 and at a position about 30 cm away from the first blower 16. Between this heat exchanger 15b and the 1st air blower 16, the cylindrical connection part 17b which connects the heat exchanger 15b and the air blower 16 airtightly is provided.

The heat exchanger 15a is disposed on the wall side and at a position about 60 cm away from the first blower 16. During this heat exchanger 15a and the first blower 16, tubular connecting portion 17 a to contact with the heat exchanger 15a and the blower 16 hermetically is provided.

  On the exhaust surface side of the first rack 11, a second heat exchanger 15 is disposed close to the first rack 11. Further, a second blower 16 is disposed between the second heat exchanger 15 and the second rack 11.

  The heat exchangers 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15 are all connected to a chiller unit installed outdoors (see FIG. 3). Each of these heat exchangers 15a, 15b, 15c has a pipe through which the refrigerant passes and fins connected to the pipe, and cools the air passing between the fins.

  Each of the first and second blowers 16 has a plurality of blower fans 16a, and the air flow is formed by the rotation of the blower fans 16a and is cooled by the heat exchangers 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15. Air is sent into the rack 11.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the heat exchangers 15a, 15b, and 15c divided into three along the width direction of the rack 11 are used as the first heat exchanger. The heat exchangers 15a, 15b, and 15c are arranged on the intake surface side of the first rack 11 while being shifted in the front-rear direction (the direction of air flow by the blower 16). The air cooled by these heat exchangers 15a, 15b, and 15c is supplied individually (in parallel) to the wall side, center, and passage side of the first rack 11 via the blower 16 and the connecting portions 17a and 17b. Is done.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a simulation result of wind speed distribution when the heat exchanger 15, the blower 16, and the rack 11 are arranged as shown in FIG. 4 (comparative example). Here, the wind speed distribution in the plane including the front surface of the first heat exchanger 15 (the plane at the position F in FIG. 4) is shown. In FIG. 6, A is a side passage portion of the rack 11, and air flows in the direction from the back to the front (+ side) in this passage portion. Further, in the portion of the heat exchanger 15 in FIG. 6, air flows in the direction toward the rack 11 (− side).

  From FIG. 6, it can be seen that the wind speed is slow at the left side (opposite the wall) of the heat exchanger 15 and the wind speed is fast at the right side (wall side). In a more detailed wind speed distribution simulation, the wind speed at the left side of the heat exchanger 15 was about 0.5 m / sec, and the wind speed at the right side (wall side) was about 2 m / sec. From this simulation result, when the heat exchanger 15, the blower 16, and the rack 11 are arranged as shown in FIG. It can be seen that the variation in the amount is large.

  FIGS. 7A to 7C show results of simulating the wind speed distribution when the rack 11, the heat exchangers 15a, 15b, and 15c and the connection portions 17a and 17b are arranged as shown in FIG. 5 (Example). FIG. FIG. 7A shows the wind speed distribution on a plane including the front surface of the heat exchanger 15a (the plane at the position F1 in FIG. 5). FIG. 7B shows the wind speed distribution on the plane including the front surface of the heat exchanger 15b (the plane at the position F2 in FIG. 5). Furthermore, FIG.7 (c) is a wind speed distribution in the plane (plane in the position of F3 in FIG. 5) including the front surface of the heat exchanger 15c.

  From these FIGS. 7A to 7C, it can be seen that the wind speed (air volume) at the front surface of each of the heat exchangers 15a, 15b, 15c is substantially uniform. In a more detailed wind speed distribution simulation, the wind speed at the front surface of each heat exchanger 15a, 15b, 15c was about 3 m / sec.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the heat exchangers 15 a, 15 b, and 15 c divided into three along the width direction of the rack 11 are used in front of the first rack 11. These heat exchangers 15a, 15b, and 15c are arranged so as to be shifted in the front-rear direction according to the distance from the wall. Thereby, the wind speed in the width direction of the rack 11 can be made uniform. As a result, insufficient cooling of the computer 12 in the rack 11 is avoided, and a failure or malfunction due to heat of the computer 12 can be prevented.

  The connecting portions 17a and 17b may be made telescopic (for example, bellows type), and casters (wheels) or the like may be provided in the heat exchangers 15a, 15b, and 15c to be movable. Thereby, the distance between the air blower 16 and heat exchanger 15a, 15b, 15c can be adjusted according to an installation place and the required wind speed distribution.

  Moreover, although the case where the air blower 16 was provided separately from the rack 11 was demonstrated in the above-mentioned embodiment, when the air blower fan is provided in the rack 11, the air blower 16 may be abbreviate | omitted.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the number of divisions of the heat exchanger disposed in front of the first rack 11 is three has been described. However, depending on the width of the rack 11 (a housing for housing the electronic device), the heat exchanger It is good also considering the division | segmentation number of an exchanger as 2 or 4 or more.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 8 is a schematic side view illustrating a cooling system according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a schematic front view thereof. 8 and 9, the same components as those in FIG. 5 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  In the present embodiment, the first blower 16 is disposed on the intake surface side of the first rack 11, and six heat exchangers 25 a are provided as the first heat exchanger in front of the first blower 16. ~ 25f are arranged.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the heat exchangers 25a, 25c, and 25e are arranged on the upper side in this order, and the heat exchangers 25b, 25d, and 25f are arranged on the lower side in this order. Between these heat exchangers 25a to 25f and the first blower 16, connection portions 27a to 27f are provided for individually and airtightly communicating between the heat exchangers 25a to 25f and the blower 16, respectively. ing.

  In the first embodiment, the case where the air discharged from the last rack 11 moves to the intake surface side of the first rack 11 through the side of the rack 11 has been described. There is air moving to the intake surface side of the first rack 11. In this case, variation in the air flow rate occurs in the height direction of the rack 11.

  In this embodiment, it has the heat exchangers 25a-25f divided | segmented into the width direction and the height direction of the rack 11, and these heat exchangers 25a-25f are separately set according to the position of the width direction and a height direction. Can be shifted in the front-rear direction. Thereby, the wind speed of the width direction and the height direction of the rack 11 can be equalized. As a result, insufficient cooling of the computer 12 in the rack 11 is avoided, and a failure or malfunction due to heat of the computer 12 can be prevented.

  A plurality of fans (first fan) are installed in parallel according to the number of divisions of the first heat exchanger, and the rotation speed of these fans is individually controlled according to the installation location and required wind speed distribution. May be. For example, in the cooling system of FIG. 10, heat exchangers 25 a to 25 f divided into six are arranged in front of the first rack 11. And the six air blowers 26a-26f are arrange | positioned so that it may each respond | correspond individually to those heat exchangers 25a-25f.

  In this way, by installing a plurality of first blowers according to the number of divisions of the heat exchanger and individually controlling the rotation of these blowers, the variation in the air flow rate at the intake surface of the rack 11 is further increased. Can be small.

  Regarding the above embodiment, the following additional notes are disclosed.

(Appendix 1) A housing that houses electronic equipment, takes air from one side and discharges it from the other side,
A plurality of heat exchangers arranged in parallel on the one surface side of the housing to cool the air entering the housing;
The cooling system, wherein the plurality of heat exchangers are arranged at different positions from each other.

  (Supplementary note 2) The cooling system according to supplementary note 1, wherein distances between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing are changeable.

  (Supplementary Note 3) A supplementary note 1 is provided between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing, and a communication unit that individually communicates between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing. Or the cooling system of 2.

  (Additional remark 4) The said housing is arrange | positioned close to the wall of a room, and the distance between the said heat exchanger and the said housing is set according to the distance between the said heat exchanger and the said wall. The cooling system according to any one of appendices 1 to 3, characterized by:

  (Supplementary note 5) The cooling system according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 4, wherein a blower is provided between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing.

  (Appendix 6) The cooling system according to any one of appendices 1 to 5, wherein the plurality of heat exchangers are arranged in a width direction of one surface of the casing.

  (Supplementary note 7) The cooling system according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 6, wherein the plurality of heat exchangers are arranged in a height direction of one surface of the casing.

  (Supplementary note 8) The cooling system according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 7, wherein the electronic device is a computer, and the casing is a rack capable of storing a plurality of the computers.

(Supplementary note 9) a plurality of heat exchangers arranged in parallel on one surface side of the housing in which the electronic device is stored;
A communication section for individually communicating between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing;
The cooling device, wherein the plurality of heat exchangers can be individually set at a distance from the housing.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Rack, 12 ... Computer, 15, 15a-15c, 25a-25f ... Heat exchanger, 16, 26a-26f ... Blower, 16a ... Blower fan, 17a, 17b, 27a-27f ... Connection part, 19 ... Chiller unit .

Claims (5)

A housing that houses electronic equipment, is placed close to the wall of the room, takes in air from one side and discharges it from the other side,
A plurality of heat exchangers arranged in parallel on the one surface side of the housing to cool the air entering the housing;
The cooling system, wherein the plurality of heat exchangers are arranged at positions where the distances from the housing are different from each other according to the distance between the heat exchanger and the wall .   The cooling system according to claim 1, wherein distances between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing are changeable.   The connecting portion for individually communicating between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing is provided between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing. The cooling system described.   The cooling system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the plurality of heat exchangers are arranged in a width direction of one surface of the casing. A plurality of heat exchangers arranged in parallel on one surface side of the housing in which the electronic device is housed, and a communication unit for individually communicating between the plurality of heat exchangers and the housing,
The cooling device, wherein the plurality of heat exchangers can be individually set at a distance from the housing.

Images