Pump and electronic apparatus having this pump

Abstract

A pump includes: a housing having a heating receiving portion thermally connected to a heat generating element and a pump chamber; a stator; and a rotary member disposed in the pump chamber, and having a stirring portion which stirs a fluid in the pump chamber and a magnet contained within the rotary member.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-133537, filed Apr. 28, 2004, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

1. Field

The present invention relates to a pump disposed in a liquid-cooling type cooling device which cools, using a liquid refrigerant, a heat generating element such as a central processing unit (CPU), and an electronic apparatus comprising this pump.

2. Description of the Related Art

As a pump, a pump described in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2003-343492 has been known. This pump has a concave portion in one end face, and comprises a disc-shaped impeller having a plurality of vanes on the other end face. This impeller has a magnetic field generation portion on an inner periphery of the concave portion. The magnetic field generation portion is constituted by fixing an annular member comprising a permanent magnet onto the concave portion of the impeller formed of a resin. As to the magnetic field generation portion, the impeller is formed of a plastic magnet, and a portion corresponding to the magnetic field generation portion is magnetized.

As another pump, a pump described in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 11-166500 has been known. It is known that this pump comprises a motor including a stator having a plurality of coils, and a rotor made of a permanent magnet. The stator is molded out of a resin to thereby constitute a molded stator. The rotor is molded out of a resin to thereby constitute a cylindrical molded rotor. The vanes constituting the impeller protrude from an outer periphery of the molded rotor.

Additionally, in the central processing unit (CPU) for use in an electronic apparatus, a heating amount during operation tends to increase with speeding-up of a process or multi-function. As this thermal countermeasure, in recent years, an electronic apparatus comprising a so-called liquid-cooling type cooling device has been put into practical use. The device cools the CPU by mean of a liquid refrigerant having a specific heat much higher than that of air. In this cooling device, there has been a demand for a pump which has a stable pumping performance and which is capable of cooling the heat generating element satisfactorily for an extend period.

To obtain a stable performance as the pump, the pump is preferably constituted in such a manner as to rotate a rotary member such as an impeller by the motor having the stator and a rotor magnet constituted of a permanent magnet. However, as described in the Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2003-343492, in the pump constituted by fixing an annular member (rotor magnet) constituted of the permanent magnet to the concave portion of the impeller formed of a resin, the rotor magnet is exposed to the liquid refrigerant in a pump chamber. Therefore, in the pump constituted in this manner, the rotor magnet is easily corroded by the liquid refrigerant. When the rotor magnet is corroded by the liquid refrigerant, there is a possibility that the performance of the motor drops, the liquid refrigerant is contaminated, and the cooling effect of the refrigerant drops.

Moreover, in the pump described in the Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 11-166500, the stator is molded out of the resin, the vanes constituting the impeller are protruded on the outer periphery of the cylindrical molded rotor, and it is therefore difficult to miniaturize the pump. Therefore, it is difficult to mount the pump constituted in this manner onto the electronic apparatus constituted by arranging various components in a comparatively dense manner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description of the embodiments given below, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a portable computer according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the portable computer of FIG. 1 as viewed from the side of a plurality of exhaust ports of the first housing;

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a cooling device contained in the first housing;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a pump;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the pump in a state in which a second cover is omitted;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing one example of another rotary member capable of being disposed in the pump;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view cut along line VII-VII in FIG. 3; and

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing the positional relation ships between the pump and a CPU in a portable computer according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A first embodiment of the present invention will be described hereinafter with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7. FIGS. 1 and 2 show a portable computer 1 which is an electronic apparatus. The portable computer 1 comprises a main unit 2, and a display unit 3. The main unit 2 comprises a first housing 10 having a flat box shape. The first housing 10 comprises a bottom wall 11a, an upper wall 11b, a front wall 11c, right and left side walls 11e, 11d, and a rear wall 11f.

As shown in FIG. 1, the upper wall 11b has a palm rest 12 and a keyboard attaching portion 13. The keyboard attaching portion 13 is disposed behind the palm rest 12. A keyboard 14 is attached to the keyboard attaching portion 13. The front wall 11c, right and left side walls 11e, 11d, and rear wall 11f constitute a peripheral wall along a peripheral direction of the first housing 10.

As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of exhaust ports 15 are formed in the peripheral wall of the first housing 10, for example, the rear wall 11f. These exhaust ports 15 are arranged in a row in a width direction of the first housing 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, the display unit 3 comprises a second housing 20 having a flat box shape, and a liquid crystal display panel 21 which is a display panel. The liquid crystal display panel 21 is contained in the second housing 20. The liquid crystal display panel 21 has a screen 21a which displays an image. The screen 21a of the liquid crystal display panel 21 is exposed to the outside of the second housing 20 through an opening 22 formed in the front surface of the second housing 20.

The second housing 20 is supported on a rear end portion of the first housing 10 via a hinge (not shown). Therefore, the display unit 3 is rotatable over a closed position in which the unit is reclined in such a manner as to cover the palm rest 12 and the keyboard 14 from above, and an opened position in which the unit rises in such a manner as to expose the palm rest 12, keyboard 14, and screen 21a.

As shown in FIG. 3, a printed circuit board 30 is contained in the first housing 10. As shown in FIG. 7, the printed circuit board 30 is disposed parallel to the bottom wall 11a of the first housing 10. A CPU 31 which is a heat generating element is mounted on an upper surface of the printed circuit board 30. The CPU 31 is constituted by a microprocessor which is the nucleus of the portable computer 1.

The CPU 31 has a base substrate 32 and an IC chip 33 disposed in a middle portion of the upper substrate of the base substrate 32 and having a flat square shape. The heat output of the IC chip 33 during operation is very large as a result at speeding-up of processing or increasing of functions, and cooling is required in order to maintain stable operation.

As shown in FIG. 3, a liquid-cooling type cooling device 40 which cools the CPU 31 using a liquid refrigerant such as an antifreeze liquid is mounted in this portable computer 1. The cooling device 40 is contained in the first housing 10. The cooling device 40 comprises a pump 100 which functions both as a heat receiving portion and a heat exchange unit, a heat radiating portion 50, a circulation path 60, an electromotive fan 70 and the like.

As shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 7, the pump 100 forcedly circulates the liquid refrigerant in the circulation path 60, and comprises a pump housing 101 which also functions as the heat receiving portion, a rotary member 102, a motor 103 having a rotor magnet 103a and a stator 103b, and a control substrate 104.

The pump housing 101 comprises a housing main body 110, a first cover 111, and a second cover 112. The housing body 110 has a flat box shape which is one size larger than the CPU 31, and has a concave portion 113 opened upwards.

The housing body 110 comprises a main portion 121 having a frame shape, and a heat receiving plate 122 which is a heat receiving portion to close a downward opened opening end of the main portion 121 in a liquid-tight manner. That is, the concave portion 113 is defined by an inner surface of the main portion 121 and an upper surface of the heat receiving plate 122. The heat receiving plate 122 which also functions as the bottom wall of the concave portion 113 faces the CPU 31. The lower surface of the heat receiving plate 122 forms a flat heat receiving surface 122a. The heat receiving plate 122 is preferably formed of a metal material having high thermal conductivity such as copper, aluminum, and aluminum alloy. An O-ring 124 is disposed between the main portion 121 and the heat receiving plate 122. It is to be noted that The housing body 110 may have an integral structure.

The first cover 111 formed of a resin closes the opening end of the concave portion 113 in a liquid-tight manner. An O-ring 123 is disposed between The housing body 110 and the first cover 111. The upper surface of the first cover 111 has a stator containing concave portion 115 which contains the stator 103b, and a control substrate containing concave portion 116 which contains the control substrate 104.

An inner portion of the pump housing 101, that is, a region surrounded with the concave portion 113 and the first cover 111 is partitioned into a pump chamber 118, and a reserve tank 119 which accumulates the liquid refrigerant by an annular partition wall 117. The partition wall 117 is formed integrally with The housing body 110 (main portion 121 in the present embodiment).

The pump chamber 118 is disposed in the vicinity of one corner portion among four corner portions of the pump housing 101. That is, the center position of the pump chamber 118 is eccentric with respect to that of the pump housing 101. The reserve tank 119 is disposed in such a manner as to surround the pump chamber 118 from the remaining three corner portions among four corner portions of the pump housing 101. A communication port 130 which allows communication between the pump chamber 118 and the reserve tank 119 is formed in the partition wall 117.

The housing body 110 (main portion 121 in the present embodiment) is provided with a suction tube 131 and a discharge tube 132. The suction tube 131 and the discharge tube 132 are arranged horizontally with an interval therebetween. An upstream end of the suction tube 131 protrudes outwards via the side wall (main portion 121 in the present embodiment) of the housing body 110. A downstream end of the suction tube 131 opens in the reserve tank 119, and faces the communication port 130 of the partition wall 117.

The downstream end of the discharge tube 132 protrudes to the outside via the side wall (main portion 121 in the present embodiment) of The housing body 110, and is aligned with the upstream end of the suction tube 131. The upstream end of the discharge tube 132 opens into the pump chamber 118 through the partition wall 117.

As best shown in FIG. 7, the rotary member 102 has a disc-shaped rotary portion 102b and a rotation shaft 102a formed integrally with the rotary portion 102b. The rotary portion 102b has a surface (this surface will be hereinafter referred to as the lower surface) facing the heat receiving plate 122, and a surface (this surface will be hereinafter referred to as the upper surface) 108b opposite to the lower surface 108a. The rotary member 102 is contained in the pump chamber 118 in a posture in which an axis of the rotation shaft 102a crosses the heat receiving plate 122, for example, at right angles. Moreover, as to the rotary member 102, the rotation shaft 102a is rotatably supported by the first cover 111 and the heat receiving plate 122 in a state in which the rotation shaft 102a extends over the first cover 111 and the heat receiving plate 122.

The motor 103 rotates the rotary member 102, and has a rotor magnet 103a and a stator 103b. The rotor magnet 103a is constituted, for example, of an annular permanent magnet in which a plurality of cathodes and anodes are mutually magnetized. The rotor magnet 103a is fixed to the rotary member 102 coaxially with the rotary member 102, and contained in the pump chamber 118. At least a region of the rotor magnet 103a facing the pump chamber 118 in the outer surface of the magnet is covered with the rotary member 102 in such a manner that the magnet does not contact the liquid refrigerant in the pump chamber 118. In the present embodiment, the whole region of the outer surface of the rotor magnet 103a is covered with the rotary member 102.

In detail, the rotor magnet 103a is disposed in such a manner as to extend along the peripheral edge of the upper surface 108b of the rotary portion 102b and to protrude upwards, and is covered with a part of the rotary member 102. The rotary member 102 is molded/formed, for example, by inserting the rotor magnet 103a.

That is, the rotary portion 102b has a protruding portion 109 disposed along the peripheral edge of the upper surface 108b and protruding in a direction (upward) opposite to a direction (downward) of the heat receiving plate 122. The rotor magnet 103a is disposed in the protruding portion 109. It is to be noted that in the present embodiment, the rotor magnet 103a is formed in such a manner that the length of the magnet in a direction crossing the rotation shaft 102a at right angles is less than that in a direction parallel to the rotation shaft 102a is shorter and a sectional shape is vertically long rectangular shape (see FIG. 7).

The rotary member 102 has a stirring portion 107 for stirring the liquid refrigerant in the pump chamber 118 on at least one of the lower surface 108a and the upper surface 108b of the rotary portion 102b. When the stirring portion 107 is disposed on the lower surface 108a of the rotary member 102, the liquid refrigerant can be satisfactorily passed in the vicinity of the heat receiving plate 122. Therefore, when the stirring portion 107 is disposed on the lower surface 108a of the rotary member 102, a cooling effect of the CPU 31 can be enhanced. When the stirring portion 107 is disposed on the upper surface 108b of the rotary member 102, the efficiency of the pump 100 can be raised.

As the pump 100 disposed in the cooling device 40, a pump having a high cooling efficiency is preferable. In this case, the stirring portion 107 may be disposed on at least the lower surface of the rotary member 102. In general, the portable computer 1 has been required to be made this. Therefore, when the pump 100 is mounted on an electronic apparatus as in the portable computer 1, the pump is preferably as thin as possible. In this case, the stirring portion 107 may be disposed only on the lower surface of the rotary member 102. Thus, the pump 100 can be made this as compared with a case where the stirring portions 107 are disposed on opposite surfaces (upper and lower surfaces) of the rotary member 102.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 7, an impeller constituted by disposing the stirring portion 107 having a plurality of vanes 105 on the lower surface of the rotary portion 102b is adopted as the rotary member 102.

It is to be noted that as the rotary member 102, a rotary member shown in FIG. 6, that is, the rotary member constituted by disposing the stirring portions 107 on the upper and lower surfaces of the rotary portion 102b may be adopted. When the stirring portion 107 is disposed on the upper surface 108b of the rotary member 102, the stirring portion 107 is preferably disposed on a tip surface of the protruding portion 109 as shown in FIG. 6, and the stirring portion 107 may be disposed in a region other than the tip surface of the protruding portion 109.

Moreover, the rotary member 102 is not limited as long as the rotary member is capable of stirring a fluid such as a liquid refrigerant in the pump chamber 118, and feeding the fluid to the outside of the pump chamber 118 from the inside of the pump chamber 118. Therefore, the rotary member 102 is not limited to a member (impeller) comprising the stirring portion 107 having the vanes 105. The rotary member 102 may comprise the stirring portion 107 having, for example, a plurality of concave portions 106 (see FIG. 6). Even when this rotary member 102 is adopted, the fluid in the pump chamber 118 can be stirred, and fed to the outside of the pump chamber 118 from the inside of the pump chamber 118. The rotary member 102 may comprise the stirring portion 107 having, for example, a spirally formed groove.

The stator 103b constituting the motor 103 is contained in the stator containing concave portion 115 formed in the upper surface of the first cover 111. Additionally, the stator 103b needs to be disposed corresponding to the rotor magnet 103a via the first cover 111. Therefore, the stator containing concave portion 115 is disposed in a position facing the rotor magnet 103a. The center position of the stator containing concave portion 115 is eccentric with respect to that of the first cover 111. The control substrate containing concave portion 116 is disposed in a position avoiding the stator containing concave portion 115.

The opening of the concave portion 13 is closed by the first cover 111, and accordingly the stator containing concave portion 115 is formed in such a manner as to enter the rotor magnet 103a. That is, the stator 103b is coaxially disposed inside the rotor magnet 103a via the first cover 111. The stator 103b is electrically connected to the control substrate 104.

Electric conduction with respect to the stator 103b is performed, for example, simultaneously with power supply to the portable computer 1. By the electric conduction, a rotary magnet field is generated in the peripheral direction of the stator 103b, and the magnet field is magnetically bonded to the rotor magnet 103a. As a result, a rotary torque extending along the peripheral direction of the rotary member 102 is generated between the stator 103b and the rotor magnet 103a, and the rotary member 102 rotates.

The second cover 112 is fixed to the upper surface of the first cover 111. The stator 103b and the control substrate 104 are covered with the second cover 112. The second cover 112 is a cover for inhibiting leak or evaporation of the liquid refrigerant, and is formed by a metal material such as an aluminum alloy. It is to be noted that the second cover 112 may be omitted.

The pump 100 constituted in this manner is placed on the printed circuit board 30 in such a manner as to cover the CPU 31 from above. As shown in FIG. 7, the pump housing 101 of the pump 100 is fixed to the bottom wall 11a of the first housing 10 together with the printed circuit board 30. The bottom wall 11a has boss portions 17 in positions corresponding to four corner portions of the pump housing 101. The boss portions 17 protrudes upwards from the bottom wall 11a. The printed circuit board 30 is superimposed upon the tip surfaces of the boss portions 17. It is to be noted that reference numeral 34 in FIG. 7 denotes a reinforcing plate which reinforces the printed circuit board 30 from the lower surface.

The pump 100 is attached to the bottom wall 11a of the first housing 10 in such a manner as to cover the CPU 31 from above by the following attaching mechanism. Concave portions 141 are disposed in four corner portions of the pump housing 101. A bottom wall (corner portions of the heat receiving plate 122) which defines the concave portions 141 has through holes 142 through which cylindrical inserts 143 are passed. The inserts 143 have protruding portions 143a protruding outwards in a horizontal direction along a peripheral direction on upper ends of the inserts. The inserts 143 have groove portions 143b extending along the peripheral direction.

The pump 100 is pressed onto the CPU 31 as follows by this attaching mechanism. First, the inserts 143 are passed through coil springs 144. This insert 143 is inserted from the upward opened opening end of the concave portion 141 of the first cover 111, and the groove portion 143b is positioned below the heat receiving surface 122a of the pump 100. A C-ring 145 to prevent dropping is fitted in the groove portion 143b. Accordingly, the inserts 143 are attached to the pump 100 while the protruding portions 143a are urged by the coil springs 144 in a direction detached from the bottom wall defining the concave portions 141.

A conductive grease (not shown) is applied to the upper surface of the IC chip 33 or a region of the heat receiving surface 122a corresponding to the IC chip 33, and the heat receiving surface 122a of the pump housing 101 is disposed facing the IC chip 33. Screws 146 passed through the inserts 143 are screwed into the boss portions 17 on the printed circuit board 30. Accordingly, the inserts 143 are fixed to the boss portions 17, and the pump 100 is pressed onto the IC chip 33 by elasticity of the coil spring 146. Accordingly, the IC chip 33 is thermally connected to the heat receiving surface 122a of the pump housing 101 via the conductive grease.

In this portable computer 1, the pump 100 is fixed onto the printed circuit board 30 in such a manner that a center (center of the heat receiving surface 122a) of the pump housing 101 agrees with that of the IC chip 33. On the other hand, the center (rotation shaft 102a) of the rotary member 102 is eccentric from that of the pump housing 101. Therefore, the center of the IC chip 33 is eccentric from that of the rotary member 102 facing the chip via the pump housing 101. Consequently, more heat from the IC chip 33 can be absorbed by the liquid refrigerant. That is, to absorb more heat from the IC chip 33 by the liquid refrigerant, the IC chip 33 is preferably disposed facing a position where the liquid refrigerant flows fast via the pump housing 101. A flow of the liquid refrigerant generated by rotation of the rotor magnet 103a becomes fast away from the center of the rotary member 102. Therefore, by the constitution, more heat from the IC chip 33 can be absorbed by the liquid refrigerant.

As shown in FIG. 3, the heat radiating portion 50 comprises a heat radiating portion main body 51 and a plurality of heat emitting fins 57 thermally connected to the heat radiating portion main body 51. The heat radiating portion main body 51 comprises a substantially U-shape pipe in which the liquid refrigerant flows. The heat radiating portion main body 51 has a refrigerant inlet 54 and a refrigerant outlet (not shown, disposed inside the drawing surface from the refrigerant inlet in FIG. 3) in such a manner that the refrigerant flows inside. That is, one opening end of the substantially U-shaped pipe constitutes the refrigerant inlet 54, and the other opening end constitutes the refrigerant outlet. That is, the pipe (heat radiating portion main body 51) of the heat radiating portion 50 constitutes a part of the circulation path 60 (the circulation path 60 will be described later in detail).

The heat radiating portion main body 51 is contained in the first housing 10 in a posture (transversely reclined posture) obtained by rotating the substantially U-shaped pipe by 90° in such a manner that the refrigerant inlet 54 is disposed above and the refrigerant outlet is disposed below. The heat emitting fins 57 are formed, for example, of metal materials superior in thermal conductivity, such as aluminum alloy and copper. The heat emitting fins 57 are formed in square plate shapes. The heat emitting fins 57 are arranged parallel to one another at intervals. The respective heat emitting fins 57 are soldered to the heat radiating portion main body 51.

The heat radiating portion 50 is contained in the first housing 10 in a posture in which the heat emitting fins 57 are disposed facing the exhaust ports 15 of the first housing 10. A pair of brackets 58 are soldered to the heat radiating portion 50. These brackets 58 are fixed to the boss portions (not shown) protruding from the bottom wall 11a of the first housing 10 by screws. Thus, the heat radiating portion 50 is fixed to the bottom wall 11a of the first housing 10.

The circulation path 60 comprises a first tube 61, a second tube 62, and the pipe (heat radiating portion main body 51) of the heat radiating portion 50. That is, the heat radiating portion main body 51 functions as both the heat radiating portion 50 and the circulation path 60. The first tube 61 connects the discharge tube 132 of the pump 100 to the refrigerant inlet 54 of the heat radiating portion 50. The second tube 62 connects the suction tube 131 of the pump 100 to the refrigerant outlet of the heat radiating portion 50. Therefore, the liquid refrigerant is circulated between the pump 100 and the heat radiating portion 50 through the first tube 61 and second tube 62.

The electromotive fan 70 feeds cooling air to the heat radiating portion 50, and is disposed immediately before the heat radiating portion 50. The electromotive fan 70 comprises a fan casing 71 and a centrifugal impeller 72 contained in the fan casing 71. The fan casing 71 has a discharge port 71a which discharges the cooling air. The discharge port 71a is connected to the heat radiating portion 50 via a duct 73.

The impeller 72 is rotated/driven by a motor (not shown), for example, when the power supply of the portable computer 1 is turned on, or the temperature of the CPU 31 reaches a predetermined temperature. Accordingly, cooling air is supplied to the heat radiating portion 50 from the discharge port 71a of the fan casing 71.

Next, an operation of the cooling device 40 will be described.

During the use of the portable computer 1, the IC chip 33 of the CPU 31 generates heat. The heat generated by the IC chip 33 is conducted to the pump housing 101 via the heat receiving surface 122a of the pump 100. Since the concave portion 113 (pump chamber 118 and reserve tank 119) of the pump housing 101 is filled with the liquid refrigerant, the liquid refrigerant absorbs much heat conducted to the pump housing 101.

The electric conduction to the stator 103b of the motor 103 is performed, for example, simultaneously with the turning-on of the power supply to the portable computer 1. Accordingly, a rotation torque is generated between the stator 103b and the rotor magnet 103a, and the rotor magnet 103a rotates together with the rotary member 102. When the rotary member 102 rotates, the liquid refrigerant in the pump chamber 118 is pressurized, discharged from the discharge tube 132, and guided into the heat radiating portion 50 from the refrigerant inlet 54 via the first tube 61. The liquid refrigerant heated by heat exchange in the pump housing 101 circulates toward the refrigerant outlet from the refrigerant inlet 54 in the heat radiating portion 50, and the heat from the IC chip 33 absorbed by the liquid refrigerant is conducted to the heat emitting fins 57 in the process.

When the impeller 72 of the electromotive fan 70 rotates during the use of the portable computer 1, the cooling air blows toward the heat radiating portion 50 from the discharge port 71a of the fan casing 71. This cooling air passes among the heat emitting fins 57 disposed adjacent to one another. Accordingly, the heat emitting fins 57 and the heat radiating portion main body 51 are cooled, and much of heat conducted to the heat emitting fins 57 or the heat radiating portion main body 51 rides on the flow of the cooling air, and is discharged to the outside of the first housing 10 from the exhaust ports 15.

The liquid refrigerant cooled by the heat radiating portion 50 is guided to the suction tube 131 of the pump housing 101 via the second tube 62. This liquid refrigerant is returned to the reserve tank 119 from the suction tube 131. The liquid refrigerant returned to the reserve tank 119 absorbs the heat from the IC chip 33 again while sucked into the pump chamber 118. When this cycle is repeated, the heat from the IC chip 33 is successively transferred to the heat radiating portion 50, rides on the flow of the cooling air passing through the heat radiating portion 50, and is discharged to the outside of the first housing 10.

As described above, the pump 100 of the present embodiment comprises the heat receiving plate 122 thermally connected to the heat generating element comprising the CPU 31, and the pump housing 101 having the pump chamber 118 in which the liquid refrigerant is contained. That is, the pump 100 has a function of the heat receiving portion, and that of the heat exchange unit. Therefore, the pump 100 can be preferably used in the above-described cooling device 40 mounted on the portable computer 1.

Moreover, in the pump 100, at least the region of the rotor magnet 103a facing the pump chamber 118 is covered with the rotary member 102. Concretely, the rotary member 102 formed of a resin is molded and formed by covering the rotor magnet 103a. Therefore, the rotor magnet 103a does not contact the liquid refrigerant in the pump chamber 118. Therefore, the rotor magnet 103a can be inhibited from being corroded by the liquid refrigerant. Consequently, a drop in the performance of the motor 103 caused by corrosion of the rotor magnet 103a by the liquid refrigerant, or a drop in the cooling effect by contamination of the liquid refrigerant can be inhibited. Therefore, according to the pump 100, the heat generating element like the CPU 31 can be satisfactorily cooled for an extended period.

Additionally, the pump 100 comprises the rotary member 102 having the stirring portion 107 for stirring the liquid refrigerant in the pump chamber 118 on one surface of the lower surface 108a and the upper surface 108b. Therefore, the pump 100 can be formed to be thin as compared with the pump comprising the impeller on whose peripheral surface the vanes are disposed.

Furthermore, in the pump 100, the stirring portion 107 for stirring the liquid refrigerant in the pump chamber 118 is disposed only on the lower surface 108a of the rotary member 102. Therefore, the pump 100 can efficiently cool the heat generating element like the CPU 31, and can be formed to be thinner as compared with a case where the stirring portion 107 is disposed on the lower surface 108a and the upper surface 108b of the rotary member 102.

Moreover, in the pump 100, the protruding portion 109 is disposed along the peripheral edge of the upper surface 108b of the rotary portion 102b of the rotary member 102, and protrudes upwards. Moreover, the rotor magnet 103a is disposed in the protruding portion 109. Therefore, when the stator 103b is disposed in the protruding portion 109, the motor 103 can be easily constituted by the rotor magnet 103a and the stator 103b. Therefore, even when the rotor magnet 103a is disposed in the rotary member 102, the rotary member 102 can be satisfactorily rotated.

Furthermore, the portable computer 1 of the present embodiment comprises the heat radiating portion 50 which discharges the heat of the CPU 31; the pump 100 which feeds the refrigerant to the heat radiating portion 50; and the circulation path 60 which circulates the liquid refrigerant between the pump 100 and the heat radiating portion 50 and which transfers the heat from the CPU to the heat radiating portion 50 via the liquid refrigerant. Therefore, the CPU 31 can be satisfactorily cooled by the portable computer 1 of the present embodiment for an extended period.

A second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 8.

A pump 100 disposed in a portable computer 1 of the present embodiment is different from the pump 100 of the first embodiment in a sectional shape of a rotor magnet 103a. That is, in the present embodiment, the rotor magnet 103a is formed in such a manner as to have a flat rectangular sectional shape of the magnet, whose length in a direction crossing a rotation shaft 102a at right angles is greater than that in a direction parallel to the rotation shaft 102a. It is to be noted that another constitution is the same as that of the first embodiment including portions (not shown), and therefore denoted with the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

In the pump 100 of the present embodiment, the rotor magnet 103a is formed in such a manner as to have a flat rectangular sectional shape whose length in a direction crossing the rotation shaft 102a at right angles is greater than that in a direction parallel to the rotation shaft 102a. Thus, a protruding height of a protruding portion 109 of a rotary member 102 can be reduced. Therefore, according to the pump 100 of the present embodiment, a heat generating element like a CPU 31 can be satisfactorily cooled for an extended period in the same manner as in the pump 100 of the first embodiment. Therefore, the pump can be formed to be thin as compared with the pump 100 of the first embodiment.

Moreover, according to the portable computer 1 of the present embodiment, the heat generating element like the CPU 31 can be satisfactorily cooled for an extended period in the same manner as in the portable computer 1 of the first embodiment, and can be made thin as compared with the portable computer 1 of the first embodiment.

It is to be noted that in the pumps 100 of the first and second embodiments, the stirring portion 107 is disposed only on the lower surface 108a of the rotary member 102, but the stirring portion 107 may be disposed on at least one of the lower surface 108a and the upper surface 108b of the rotary member 102. That is, the stirring portion 107 may be disposed only on the upper surface 108b of the rotary member 102.

Moreover, the pump of the present invention can be broadly used not only in an electronic apparatus like the portable computer and the cooling device mounted in the apparatus but also in another apparatus. Furthermore, the electronic apparatus of the present invention is not limited to a portable computer, and can be broadly used in a heat generating element and the apparatus comprising the cooling device which cools the heat generating element.

Claims

1. A pump comprising:

a housing having a heat receiving portion thermally connected to a heat generating element, and a pump chamber;

a stator; and

a rotary member disposed in the pump chamber, and having a stirring portion which stirs a fluid in the pump chamber and a magnet contained within the rotary member.

2. The pump according to claim 1 wherein the rotary member has a shaft, and is disposed in the pump chamber in such a posture that an axis of the shaft crosses the heat receiving portion.

3. The pump according to claim 2 wherein the magnet is formed in such a manner as to have a rectangular sectional shape whose length in a direction crossing the shaft at right angles is longer than that in a direction parallel to the shaft.

4. The pump according to claim 3 wherein

the rotary member has a disc-shaped rotary portion,

the rotary portion has a protruding portion disposed along a peripheral edge of a surface opposite to the surface facing the heat receiving portion and protruded in a direction opposite to that of the heat receiving portion,

the magnet is disposed in the protruding portion.

5. An electronic apparatus comprising:

a housing having a heat generating element; and

a cooling device including a heat radiating portion, a circulation path thermally connected to the heat radiating portion, and a pump forcedly circulating a fluid in the circulation path and having a heat receiving portion thermally connected to the heat generating element,

wherein the pump comprises:

a pump housing having the heat receiving portion and a pump chamber;

a stator; and

a rotary member having a stirring portion to stir the fluid in the pump chamber, and a magnet contained within the rotary member, the rotary member feeding the fluid into the circulation path.

6. The electronic apparatus according to claim 5 wherein

the rotary member has a shaft, and is disposed in the pump chamber in such a posture that an axis of the shaft crosses the heat receiving portion.

7. The electronic apparatus according to claim 6 wherein

the magnet is formed in such a manner as to have a rectangular sectional shape whose length in a direction crossing the shaft at right angles is longer than that in a direction parallel to the shaft.

8. The electronic apparatus according to claim 7 wherein

the rotary member has a disc-shaped rotary portion,

the rotary portion has a protruding portion disposed along a peripheral edge of a surface opposite to the surface facing the heat receiving portion and protruded in a direction opposite to that of the heat receiving portion,

the magnet is disposed in the protruding portion.