LIQUID-COOLING HEAT SINK AND HEAT EXCHANGER THEREOF

Abstract

A liquid-cooling heat sink includes a base, a cover and a heat exchanger. The cover has an intake pipe and an exhaust pipe. The heat exchanger includes heat-dissipating plates overlapping with each other. Each heat-dissipating plate has dividing strips. Any two adjacent dividing strips define a through-hole. Both ends of each heat-dissipating plate are provided with a notch respectively. Each heat-dissipating plate overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively. The dividing strips form an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole respectively to thereby define a multi-direction sub-channel. The cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel. In this way, the heat-exchanging efficiency and heat-dissipating effect are improved.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a heat sink, and in particular to a liquid-cooling heat sink and a heat exchanger thereof.

2. Description of Prior Art

With the rapid advancement of science and technology, the performance and power of electronic elements increase greatly, so that the amount of heat generated by the electronic elements also gets more and more. If the heat generated by the electronic elements is not dissipated to the outside, the heat will be accumulated in the electronic elements to cause the increase of their temperature. As a result, the performance of the electronic elements is deteriorated and thus their lifetime is shortened.

Therefore, a heat sink is mounted in an electronic apparatus such as a computer host, a liquid crystal display, a television set, a plasma TV to dissipate its heat. At an early stage, a fan is often used as the heat sink. However, the heat-dissipating effect of the fan is insufficient. Thus, in order to increase the heat-dissipating effect, the industry in this field proposes a liquid-cooling heat sink, which includes a base, a cover covering the base, and a heat exchanger disposed between the base and the cover. The base is brought into thermal contact with an electronic element to be cooled. The heat generated by the electronic element is conducted to the heat exchanger. An accommodating space is formed between the base and the cover for allowing a cooling liquid to flow through. The cover is provided with an intake pipe and an exhaust pipe. The cooling liquid flows into the accommodating space from the intake pipe to be heat-exchanged with the heat exchanger and then exits via the exhaust pipe. The circulation of the cooling liquid continuously carries the heat of the electronic element to the outside, thereby achieving a heat-dissipating effect by liquid cooling.

However, the performance of the conventional liquid-cooling heat sink depends on the heat-exchanging efficiency between the heat exchanger and the cooling liquid. Thus, if the contact area and contact time between the heat exchanger and the cooling liquid are increased, the heat-exchanging efficiency between the heat exchanger and the cooling liquid can be increased greatly.

Therefore, it is an important issue for the present Inventor to solve the above problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is to provide a liquid-cooling heat sink, which is capable of increasing the contact area and contact time between the heat exchanger and the cooling liquid, thereby increasing the heat-exchanging efficiency and heat-dissipating effect.

The present invention provides a liquid-cooling heat sink, including:

a base;

a cover covering the base, an accommodating space being formed between the base and the cover for allowing a cooling liquid to be disposed therein, the cover having an intake pipe and an exhaust pipe both in communication with the accommodating space; and

a heat exchanger disposed in the accommodating space and comprising a plurality of heat-dissipating plates overlapping with each other, each of the heat-dissipating plates being constituted of a plurality of dividing strips, any two adjacent dividing strips defining a through-hole, both ends of each heat-dissipating plate being provided with a notch respectively;

wherein each of the heat-dissipating plates overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively, the dividing strips form an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole respectively to thereby define a multi-direction sub-channel for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through, the cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel.

The present invention provides a liquid-cooling heat sink, including:

a base;

a cover covering the base, an accommodating space being formed between the base and the cover for allowing a cooling liquid to be disposed therein, the cover having an intake pipe and an exhaust pipe both in communication with the accommodating space; and

a heat exchanger disposed in the accommodating space and comprising a plurality of heat-dissipating plates overlapping with each other, each of the heat-dissipating plates being constituted of a plurality of curved dividing strips, any two adjacent curved dividing strips defining a through-hole, both ends of each heat-dissipating plate being provided with a notch respectively;

wherein each of the heat-dissipating plates overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively, the curved dividing strips form an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole respectively to thereby define a plurality of multi-direction sub-channels for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through, the cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel.

The present invention is to provide a heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink, which is capable of increasing the contact area and contact time between the heat exchanger and the cooling liquid, thereby increasing the heat-exchanging efficiency and heat-dissipating effect.

The present invention provides a heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink, disposed in the liquid-cooling heat sink for allowing a cooling liquid to flow through, the heat exchanger including:

a plurality of heat-dissipating plates overlapping with each other, each of the heat-dissipating plates being constituted of a plurality of dividing strips, any two adjacent dividing strips defining a through-hole, both ends of each heat-dissipating plate being provided with a notch respectively;

wherein each of the heat-dissipating plates overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively, the dividing strips form an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole respectively to thereby define a multi-direction sub-channel for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through, the cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel.

In comparison with prior art, the present invention has the advantageous features as follows:

According to the present invention, each of the heat-dissipating plates overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively. The dividing strips form an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole respectively to thereby define a multi-direction sub-channel for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through. The cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel. Thus, after the cooling liquid flows into the notch of each heat-dissipating plate from the intake notch channel, the cooling liquid flow through the heat-dissipating plate and then through the gaps between the adjacent two overlapped heat-dissipating plates to thereby enter the adjacent through-holes. Since the dividing strips define an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole, the cooling liquid is guided by the intersecting structure to flow upwards, downwards, leftwards and rightwards into the multi-direction sub-channels in the through-holes of each heat-dissipating plates. In this way, the contact area and contact time between the cooling liquid and the heat-dissipating plates are increased greatly, and the heat-dissipating effect of the heat sink is thus improved.

According to the above, each of the heat-dissipating plates overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively. The cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel. Thus, the periphery of the heat exchanger is provided with the intake notch channel and the exhaust notch channel. As a result, the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe may not have to be provided on the top of the cover and may be provided on one side edge or both side edges of the cover. Therefore, the space occupied by the heat sink in the vertical direction is reduced, which shortens the thickness of the heat sink. Further, the positions of the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe can be changed based on practical demands, which makes the heat sink to have changeable spatial arrangements.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a heat-dissipating plate according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an assembled perspective view showing the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of FIG. 3, wherein an intake pipe and an exhaust pipe are located above the heat exchanger;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional perspective view showing the heat-dissipating plate according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a top view of FIG. 5 showing that a cooling liquid flows between the heat-dissipating plates;

FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view taken in a direction parallel to a first dividing strip and showing the heat-dissipating plate according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional perspective view taken in a direction parallel to a second dividing strip and showing the heat-dissipating plate according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing another arrangement of the first embodiment of the present invention, wherein the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe are located on both side edges of the heat exchanger;

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view showing the heat-dissipating plate according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view showing a third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view showing an arrangement of the third embodiment of the present invention, wherein the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe are located above the heat exchanger; and

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing another arrangement of the third embodiment of the present invention, wherein the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe are located on both side edges of the heat exchanger.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The detailed description and technical contents of the present invention will become apparent with the following detailed description accompanied with related drawings. It is noteworthy to point out that the drawings is provided for the illustration purpose only, but not intended for limiting the scope of the present invention.

Please refer to FIG. 1, which is an exploded perspective view showing the first embodiment of the present invention. The present invention provides a liquid-cooling heat sink 1, which includes a base 10, a cover 20, and a heat exchanger 30.

The base 10 is made of metallic materials having high heat conductivity such as aluminum, copper or the like. The base 10 can be formed into any suitable shape. In the first embodiment, the base 10 is formed into a flat disk. After the cover 20 covers the base 10, an accommodating space S is formed between the base 10 and the cover 20 for allowing a cooling liquid and the heat exchanger 30 to be disposed therein. As shown in FIG. 3, the bottom surface of the base 10 is brought into thermal contact with a heat source (not shown) to be cooled, thereby conducting the heat generated by the heat source to the heat exchanger 30.

The cover 20 is also made of metallic materials having high heat conductivity such as aluminum, copper or the like. The cover 20 is formed into a shape corresponding to the outer profile of the base 10 to thereby cover the base 10. Of course, the base 10 may be formed into a recessed disk, while the cover 20 is formed into a flat disk. The periphery of the cover 20 is connected to the periphery of the base 10. In this way, an accommodating space S can be also defined between the base 10 and the cover 20.

The top of the cover 20 is provided with an intake pipe 21 and an exhaust pipe 22 both in communication with the accommodating space S. The intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 are formed on the cover 20 by a machining process or a welding process.

In order to avoid the leakage of the cooling liquid from the connecting portion between the base 10 and the cover 20, a gasket 11 is disposed into the connecting portion between the base 10 and the cover 20. It can be seen from FIG. 4 that, when the gasket 11 is disposed in the connecting portion between the base 10 and the cover 20, the leakage of the cooling liquid is prevented. Of course, it can be contemplated that the way of preventing the leakage of the cooling liquid from the connecting portion between the base 10 and the cover 20 is not limited to the gasket 11 only. Alternatively, a welding process such as resistance welding or diffusion welding may be used to tightly weld the connecting portion between the base 10 and the cover 20 to prevent the leakage of the cooling liquid.

The heat exchanger 30 is disposed in the accommodating space S and comprises a plurality of heat-dissipating plates 31 overlapping with each other. Each of the heat-dissipating plates 31 is made of metallic materials having high heat conductivity such as aluminum, copper or the like. The heat-dissipating plates 31 are used to absorb the heat of the heat source (not shown) brought into thermal contact with the base 10.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the second embodiment, each of the heat-dissipating plates 31 has a plurality of first dividing strips 311 and a plurality of second dividing strips 312 intersecting with the first dividing strips 311. It should be noted that, FIG. 2 shows that the first dividing strips 311 and the second dividing strips 312 perpendicularly intersect with each other to form a cross structure, which is a preferred embodiment. Of course, it can be contemplated that the first dividing strips 311 and the second dividing strips 312 may intersect with each other to form an X-shaped structure to achieve the same effect. Both ends of each heat-dissipating plate 31 are provided with a first notch 313 and a second notch 314 to correspond to the locations of the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 respectively. The first notch 313 and the second notch 314 are located at two opposite ends of each heat-dissipating plate 31. Both ends of each first dividing strips 311 correspond to the first notch 313 and the second notch 314 respectively, while both ends of the second dividing strips 312 correspond to both side edges of the heat-dissipating plate 31 on which the first notch 313 and the second notch 314 are not provided. In the first embodiment, since the first dividing strips 311 and the second dividing strips 312 intersect with each other, most of the through-holes 315 are square, and the rest through-holes 315 near the periphery of the heat-dissipating plate 31 are irregular.

When the heat-dissipating plates 31, 31′ overlap with each other to form the heat exchanger 30 of the present invention, any heat-dissipating plate 31 overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate 31′ in a head-to-tail manner, so that the first notch 313 and the second notch 314 of each heat-dissipating plate 31 correspond to the second notch 314′ and the first notch 313′ of another adjacent heat-dissipating plate 31′ respectively, thereby forming an intake notch channel 316 and an exhaust notch channel 317. In other words, each heat-dissipating plate 31 and adjacent one heat-dissipating plate 31′ are staggered with each other by approximate 180 degrees. According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the intake notch channel 316 and the exhaust notch channel 317 are symmetrical to each other.

It can be seen from FIG. 5 that, since the locations of the through-holes 315 of each heat-dissipating plate 31 are not symmetrical to each other in the left-and-right direction, the first dividing strips 311′ and the second dividing strips 312′ of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31′ intersect with each other in the through-holes 315 of the upper heat-dissipating plate 31, thereby forming an intersecting portion (structure). The intersecting portion divides each through-hole into a plurality of multi-direction sub-channels for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through. The first dividing strips 311 and the second dividing strips 312 of each heat-dissipating plate 31 intersect with the first dividing strips 311′ and the second dividing strips 312′ of the adjacent upper and lower heat-dissipating plate 31′, and these intersecting portions stack up to form a retaining wall. As shown in FIG. 6, this retaining wall extends from the lowest heat-dissipating plate 31 or 31′ to the upmost heat-dissipating plate 31. The retaining wall not only changes the flowing direction of the cooling liquid, but also rapidly conducts the heat generated by the heat source below the base 10 to each heat-dissipating plate 31 or 31′. Then, the first dividing strips 311, 311′ and the second dividing strips 312, 312′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′ conduct the heat to the whole heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′ to heat-exchange with the cooling liquid completely.

In order to better understand the three-dimensional flow of the cooling liquid in the heat exchanger 30, please refer to FIG. 7. According to the construction of the whole heat exchanger 30, the through-holes 315 of the upper heat-dissipating plate 31 is divided into a plurality of multi-direction sub-channels by the intersecting structure (may be a cross structure) constituted of the first dividing strips 311′ and the second dividing strips 312′ of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31′. As a result, the cooling liquid flows into the through-hole 315 and then the liquid is guided to flow upwards, downwards, leftwards and rightwards by the first dividing strips 311′ and the second dividing strips 312′ of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31′. By this arrangement, the contact area and the contact time between the cooling liquid and the heat-dissipating plates 31, 31′ can be increased greatly, and the heat-dissipating effect of the heat sink is thus improved.

FIG. 8 and FIG. 6 are two cross-sectional views taken from different cross-sectional lines. FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken in a direction parallel to the first dividing strips 311 at the intersecting portions of the dividing strips of the upper heat-dissipating plate 31 and the dividing strips of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31′. FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken in a direction perpendicular to the first dividing strips 311 at the intersecting portions of the dividing strips of the upper heat-dissipating plate 31 and the dividing strips of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31′. It can be seen from FIG. 8 that, the cooling liquid enters the intake pipe 21 (not shown in this figure) and the intake notch channel 316 to flow through the intake-side notches 313 and 314′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′. Since the adjacent two heat-dissipating plates 31, 31′ overlap with each other in a staggered manner, the cooling liquid will flow through the gaps between the adjacent two heat-dissipating plates 31, 31′, and the cooling liquid is guided by the second dividing strips 312, 312′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′ to flow upwards, downwards, leftwards and rightwards to enter the multi-direction sub-channels formed in the through-holes 315, 315′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′. Finally, the cooling liquid flows into the exhaust-side notches 313′ and 314 of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′ and then into the exhaust notch channel 317 to exit via the exhaust pipe 22 (not shown in this figure).

Please refer to FIG. 9, which is a vertical cross-sectional view taken in a line connecting the first notch 313 and the second notch 314 (i.e., in a direction parallel to the second dividing strips 312). Please also refer to FIG. 7. After the cooling liquid enters the intake notch channel 316 via the intake-side notches 313 and 314 of each heat-dissipating plate 31 (the flowing direction in

FIG. 7 is from the upside into the page), since the adjacent two heat-dissipating plates 31, 31′ overlap with each other in a staggered manner, the cooling liquid flow through the gaps between the adjacent two heat-dissipating plates 31, 31′, and the cooling liquid is guided by the first dividing strips 311 or 311′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′ to flow upwards, downwards, leftwards and rightwards. Then, the cooling liquid flows into the multi-direction sub-channels formed by the through-holes 315, 315′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′. Finally, the cooling liquid exits via the exhaust notch channel 317 formed by the exhaust-side notches 313 and 314 of each heat-dissipating plate 31 (i.e., the liquid exits via the lower portion of the page). It should be noted that, FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken in a direction perpendicular to the connecting line of the intake notch channel 316 and the exhaust notch channel 317, so that the first notch 313, the second notch 314, the intake notch channel 316, and the exhaust notch channel 317 cannot be seen in FIG. 9.

Please refer to FIG. 10. Another feature of the present invention lies in that the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 can be arranged on both side edges of the cover 20. More specifically, since the side edges of each heat-dissipating plate 31 are provided with the first notches 313 and the second notches 314, the cooling liquid enters the intake pipe 21 and flows into the intake notch channel 316. Then, the cooling liquid flows through the intake-side notches 313, 314′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′ and flows into the multi-direction sub-channels. Finally, the cooling liquid flows into the exhaust notch channel 317 via the exhaust-side notches 313′, 314 of each heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′ and exits via the exhaust pipe 22. By this arrangement, the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 need not to be provided on the top of the cover 20, and may be provided on one side or both side edges of the cover 20. In this way, the space occupied by the heat sink 1 in the vertical direction can be reduced to conform to the requirements for compact design.

Please refer to FIG. 11 showing the heat-dissipating plate 31a of the second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, each heat-dissipating plate 31a, 31a′ has a plurality of dividing strips 311a, 311a′. The side edges of each heat-dissipating plate 31a, 31a′ are provided with a first notch 313a, 313a′ and a second notch 314a, 314a′ to correspond to locations of the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 respectively. In the second embodiment, each dividing strip 311a is formed into a curved shape, so that the adjacent two dividing strips 311a, 311a′ define a curved through-hole 315a. More specifically, one notch 314a, 314a′ is formed into a curved shape, and the curved dividing strips 311a, 311a′ are arranged at interval to follow the profile of the curved notch 314a, 314a′, thereby defining a plurality of curved through-holes 315a or 315a′. The first notch 313a, 313a′ and the second notch 314a, 314a′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31a, 31a′ are substantially located at two opposite ends of the heat-dissipating plate 31a, 31a′.

When the heat-dissipating plates 31a, 31a′ overlap with each other to form the heat exchanger 30 of the present invention, each heat-dissipating plate 31a and adjacent one heat-dissipating plate 31a′ overlap with each other in a head-to-tail manner. As a result, the first notch 313a and the second notch 314a of each heat-dissipating plate 31a correspond to the second notch 314a′ and the first notch 313a′ of adjacent another heat-dissipating plate 31a respectively. In other words, each heat-dissipating plate 31a and the adjacent one heat-dissipating plate 31a′ are staggered with each other by approximate 180 degrees, thereby forming an intake notch channel 316a and an exhaust notch channel 317a.

Since the curved through-holes 315a of each heat-dissipating plate 31a are not symmetrical to each other in the left-and-right direction, the first dividing strips 311a′ of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31a′ will intersect with the first dividing strips 311a of the upper heat-dissipating plate 31a, thereby dividing each through-hole 315a into a plurality of multi-direction sub-channels for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through.

Please refer to FIGS. 12 to 14 showing the third embodiment of the present invention. Similar to the first embodiment, the base 10b in the third embodiment is formed into a plate, and the cover 20b is formed as a hollow cover. The cover 20b covers the base 10a to form an accommodating space S there between. A gasket 11b is disposed in a connecting portion between the base 10b and the cover 20b to prevent the leakage of the cooling liquid. Of course, it can be contemplated that the base 10b may be configured as a hollow cover and the cover 20 is formed into a plate.

In the third embodiment, each heat-dissipating plate 31b has a plurality of first dividing strips 311b and a plurality of second dividing strips 312b intersecting with the first dividing strips 311b. It should be noted that, in FIG. 12, the first dividing strips 311b and the second dividing strips 312b intersect with each other perpendicularly to form a cross structure, which is merely a preferred embodiment. Of course, it can be contemplated that, the first dividing strips 311b and the second dividing strips 312b may intersect with each other to form an X-shaped structure, which also achieves the same effect. One side of each heat-dissipating plate 31b is formed with a plurality of notches 313b in the direction of the first dividing strips 311b. Another side of each heat-dissipating plate 31b is formed with a plurality of notches 314b in the direction of the second dividing strips 312b. The adjacent two first dividing strips 311b and adjacent two second dividing strips 312b define a through-hole 315b respectively. The through-hole 315b has a substantially square shape.

As shown in FIG. 12, when the heat-dissipating plates 31b, 31b′ overlap with each other to form the heat exchanger 30b of the present invention, each heat-dissipating plate 31b and adjacent one heat-dissipating plate 31b′ overlap with each other in a head-to-tail manner. As a result, the notch 313b and the notch 314b of each heat-dissipating plate 31b correspond to the notch 314b′ and the notch 313b′ of adjacent another heat-dissipating plate 31b respectively. In other words, each heat-dissipating plate 31b and the adjacent one heat-dissipating plate 31b′ are staggered with each other by approximate 180 degrees, thereby forming a notch channel 316b or 317b. After the adjacent two heat-dissipating plates 31b, 31b′ overlapping with each other, the intersecting structure formed by the first dividing strips 311b′ and the second dividing strips 312b′ of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31b′ divide the through-hole 315b of the upper heat-dissipating plate 31b into a plurality of multi-direction sub-channels for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through.

Please refer to FIG. 13 showing that the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 are provided above the heat exchanger 30. It can be contemplated that, when the cooling liquid enters the notches 313b, 314b or the through-hole 315b of the upmost heat-dissipating plate 31b, the cooling liquid flows through the gaps between the adjacent two heat-dissipating plates 31b, 31b' via the notch channels 316b, 317b formed on four side edges of the heat exchanger 30b. Then, the cooling liquid is guided by the first dividing strips 311b, 311b′ or the second dividing strips 312b, 312b′ (not shown) to flow upwards, downwards, leftwards, rightwards into the multi-direction sub-channels formed in the through-holes 315b or 315b′ of each heat-dissipating plate 31b. Finally, the cooling liquid exits via the notch 314b or 313b of each heat-dissipating plate 31b. By this arrangement, the contact area and contact time between the cooling liquid and the heat-dissipating plates are increased greatly, and the heat-dissipating effect of the heat sink is thus improved.

Please refer to FIG. 14 showing that the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 are provided on both side edges of the heat exchanger 30. Please also refer to FIG. 12. In the third embodiment, the notches 313b and 314b are provided on two adjacent side edges of the heat-dissipating plate 31b, while the lower heat-dissipating plate 31b′ and the upper heat-dissipating plate 31b are staggered with each other by approximate 180 degrees. That is to say, the notches 313b′ and 314b′ of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31b′ are located on another two side edges different from the two side edges on which the notches 313b, 314b of the upper heat-dissipating plate 31b. As a result, the four side edges of the heat exchanger 30b are provided with the notches 313b, 314b, 313b′ and 314b′ to form a notch channel 316b or 317b on each side edge. Thus, the heat exchanger 30b of the third embodiment allows the cooling liquid to enter via any one of the four side edges and exits via any one of the rest three side edges. More specifically, in the third embodiment, the four side edges of the heat exchanger 30 are provided with the notch channels 316b or 317b, the entering side and the exiting side of the cooling liquid are not limited to the two opposite side edges as shown in the first embodiment and the second embodiment and may be two adjacent side edges.

According to the above, in the first to third embodiments of the present invention, since the side edges of each heat-dissipating plate 31 are formed with an intake notch channel 316 and an exhaust notch channel 317 respectively, the cooling liquid can flow into the heat exchanger 30 via the upside of the heat-dissipating plate 31. Alternatively, the cooling liquid may flow into the heat exchanger 30 via the side edges of the heat-dissipating plate 31 on which the notches 313 or 314 are provided. In other words, there are several arrangements for the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22. For example, the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 may be provided on the top or bottom of the cover 20. the intake pipe 21 is provided on the top or bottom of the cover 20, while the exhaust pipe 22 is provided on one side edge of the cover 20. The intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 are provided on two opposite or adjacent side edges of the cover 20. Therefore, the liquid-cooling heat sink 1 of the present invention is capable of guiding the cooling liquid to flow in multiple directions. Further, the arrangement for the intake pipe 21 and the exhaust pipe 22 can be changed based on practical demands.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the above preferred embodiments, the profile of the heat-dissipating plate 31, 31′ and the shapes of the dividing strips 311, 311′ and the through-holes 315, 315′ can be changed in a manner equivalent to those of the above preferred embodiments. For example, in the second embodiment, the dividing strips 311a, 311a′ and the through-holes 315, 315a are formed into a curved shape with respect to the line connecting the first notch 313 and the second notch 314. However, the dividing strips 311a, 311a′ and the through-holes 315a, 315a′ may be arranged to be parallel to or inclined with respect to the line connecting the first notch 313 and the second notch 314 as long as the dividing strips 311a, 311a′ intersect with each other to divide the through-holes 315a, 315a′ of the lower heat-dissipating plate 31a, 31a′ into a plurality of multi-direction sub-channels.

In the first embodiment and the second embodiment, the dividing strips 311a, 311a′ and the through-holes 315a, 315a′ are symmetrical to each other with respect to the line connecting the first notch 313 and the second notch 314, so that the intake notch channel 316 and the exhaust notch channel 317 are symmetrical to each other. However, the dividing strips 311a, 311a′ and the through-holes 315a, 315a′ may not be symmetrical to each other with respect to the line connecting the first notch 313 and the second notch 314, so that the intake notch channel 316 and the exhaust notch channel 317 are not symmetrical to each other.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the foregoing preferred embodiments, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the details thereof. Various equivalent variations and modifications can still occur to those skilled in this art in view of the teachings of the present invention. Thus, all such variations and equivalent modifications are also embraced within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A liquid-cooling heat sink, including:

a base;

a cover covering the base, an accommodating space being formed between the base and the cover for allowing a cooling liquid to be disposed therein, the cover having an intake pipe and an exhaust pipe both in communication with the accommodating space; and

a heat exchanger disposed in the accommodating space and comprising a plurality of heat-dissipating plates overlapping with each other, each of the heat-dissipating plates being constituted of a plurality of dividing strips, any two adjacent dividing strips defining a through-hole, both ends of each heat-dissipating plate being provided with a notch respectively;

wherein each of the heat-dissipating plates overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively, the dividing strips form an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole respectively to thereby define a multi-direction sub-channel for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through, and the cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel.

2. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 1, wherein the two notches are provided on two opposite ends of each heat-dissipating plate to make the intake notch channel and the exhaust notch channel to be symmetrical to each other.

3. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 1, wherein the two notches are provided on two adjacent ends of each heat-dissipating plate to make the intake notch channel and the exhaust notch channel to be unsymmetrical to each other.

4. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 1, wherein the dividing strips of each heat-dissipating plate comprises a plurality of first dividing strips and a plurality of second dividing strips, and the second dividing strips intersect with the first dividing strips to form an X-shaped structure.

5. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 4, wherein the through-holes of each heat-dissipating plate are divided by the intersecting portions of the first dividing strips and the second dividing strips into the sub-channels.

6. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 4, wherein the dividing strips of each heat-dissipating plate comprises a plurality of first dividing strips and a plurality of second dividing strips, and the second dividing strips perpendicularly intersect with the first dividing strips to form a cross structure.

7. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 6, wherein the through-holes of each heat-dissipating plate are divided by the perpendicularly intersecting portions of the first dividing strips and the second dividing strips into the sub-channels.

8. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 1, wherein the base and the cover are made of metallic materials having high heat conductivity, a gasket is disposed in a connecting portion between the base and the cover, and the accommodating space is formed in the cover.

9. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 1, wherein the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe are provided on the top of the cover.

10. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 1, wherein the intake pipe is provided on the top of the cover, and the exhaust pipe is provided on one side edge of the cover.

11. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 1, wherein the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe are provided on both side edges of the cover.

12. A heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink, disposed in the liquid-cooling heat sink for allowing a cooling liquid to flow through, the heat exchanger including:

a plurality of heat-dissipating plates overlapping with each other, each of the heat-dissipating plates being constituted of a plurality of dividing strips, any two adjacent dividing strips defining a through-hole, both ends of each heat-dissipating plate being provided with a notch respectively;

wherein each of the heat-dissipating plates overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively, the dividing strips form an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole respectively to thereby define a multi-direction sub-channel for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through, and the cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel.

13. The heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 12, wherein the two notches are provided on two opposite ends of each heat-dissipating plate to make the intake notch channel and the exhaust notch channel to be symmetrical to each other.

14. The heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 12, wherein the two notches are provided on two adjacent ends of each heat-dissipating plate to make the intake notch channel and the exhaust notch channel to be unsymmetrical to each other.

15. The heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 12, wherein the dividing strips of each heat-dissipating plate comprises a plurality of first dividing strips and a plurality of second dividing strips, and the second dividing strips intersect with the first dividing strips to form an X-shaped structure.

16. The heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 15, wherein the through-holes of each heat-dissipating plate are divided by the intersecting portions of the first dividing strips and the second dividing strips into the sub-channels.

17. The heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 15, wherein the dividing strips of each heat-dissipating plate comprises a plurality of first dividing strips and a plurality of second dividing strips, and the second dividing strips perpendicularly intersect with the first dividing strips to form a cross structure.

18. The heat exchanger of a liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 17, wherein the through-holes of each heat-dissipating plate are divided by the perpendicularly intersecting portions of the first dividing strips and the second dividing strips into the sub-channels.

19. A liquid-cooling heat sink, including:

a base;

a cover covering the base, an accommodating space being formed between the base and the cover for allowing a cooling liquid to be disposed therein, the cover having an intake pipe and an exhaust pipe both in communication with the accommodating space; and

a heat exchanger disposed in the accommodating space and comprising a plurality of heat-dissipating plates overlapping with each other, each of the heat-dissipating plates being constituted of a plurality of curved dividing strips, any two adjacent curved dividing strips defining a through-hole, both ends of each heat-dissipating plate being provided with a notch respectively;

wherein each of the heat-dissipating plates overlaps with adjacent one heat-dissipating plate in a head-to-tail manner, so that the two notches of each heat-dissipating plate form an intake notch channel and an exhaust notch channel respectively, the curved dividing strips form an intersecting structure on upper and lower sides of each through-hole respectively to thereby define a plurality of multi-direction sub-channels for allowing the cooling liquid to flow through, and the cooling liquid flows from the intake notch channel into the multi-direction sub-channels and exits via the exhaust notch channel.

20. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 19, wherein one of the notches is curved, and the curved dividing strips are arranged at intervals to follow the profile of the curved notch, thereby defining a plurality of curved through-holes.

21. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 19, wherein the two notches are provided on two opposite ends of each heat-dissipating plate.

22. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 19, wherein the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe are provided on the top of the cover.

23. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 19, wherein the intake pipe is provided on the top of the cover, and the exhaust pipe is provided on one side edge of the cover.

24. The liquid-cooling heat sink according to claim 19, wherein the intake pipe and the exhaust pipe are provided on both side edges of the cover.