Granted Patent B2

US 11,470,746 · App. 16/938,534 · Granted Oct 11, 2022

Inventors: Steven Embleton (Austin, TX); Jon Taylor Fitch (Austin, TX); Sandor T. Farkas (Round Rock, TX); Joseph Danny King (Georgetown, TX)

Assignee: Dell Products L.P.

H05K7/20836H05K7/20736

Abstract

Claims (64)

1. An information handling system comprising a computing device, the information handling system comprising:

a computing component of the computing device that is housed in a chassis; and

a heating component adapted to increase a temperature of a portion of an airflow when the heating component is in an active state, wherein the portion of the airflow is adapted to thermally manage the computing component by reducing a temperature of the computing component,

wherein the airflow is:

received by the chassis via an air receiving exchange, and

exhausted by the chassis via an air expelling exchange;

a chassis environmental manager programmed to:

obtain a corrosion rate of the computing component;

make a determination that the corrosion rate indicates a premature failure of the computing component based on a service life of the computing component; and

in response to the determination:

initiate an environmental control modification using the heating component to mitigate the premature failure by reducing the corrosion rate of the computing component.

2. The information handling system of claim 1 , wherein initiating the environmental control modification comprises:

transitioning the heating component from an inactive state to the active state, wherein the heating component is not adapted to increase the temperature of the airflow while in the inactive state.

3. The information handling system of claim 2 , wherein the chassis environmental manager is further programmed to:

after initiating the environmental control modification:

make a second determination that a humidity level and a temperature associated with the computing component are within a nominal threshold; and

in response to the second determination:

transition the heating component to the inactive state.

4. The information handling system of claim 1 , wherein the heating component is further adapted to increase a second temperature of a second portion of the airflow, wherein the second portion of the airflow is adapted to thermally manage a second computing component of a second computing device housed in a second chassis when the heating component is in the active state.

5. The information handling system of claim 4 , wherein the heating component is disposed in a portion of the information handling system through which the airflow traverses.

6. The information handling system of claim 1 , wherein the heating component comprises:

a chassis heater disposed adjacent to the air receiving exchange.

7. The information handling system of claim 1 , wherein the heating component comprises:

a return fan adapted to obtain a sub-portion of the portion of the airflow after the portion of the airflow has performed a thermal exchange with the computing component; and

a return duct adapted to recirculate the sub-portion of the portion of the airflow by the computing component.

8. The information handling system of claim 1 , wherein the computing component is a trace of a circuit card.

9. The information handling system of claim 8 , wherein the corrosion rate is obtained using a humidity sensor integrated into the computing component, wherein the computing component is operably connected to an integrated circuit.

10. A method for environmentally managing an information handling system comprising a computing device, comprising:

thermally managing, using a portion of an airflow, a computing component of the computing device that is housed in a chassis by reducing a temperature of the computing component; and

while thermally managing the computing component, heating the portion of the airflow using a heating component that it is in an active state to increase a temperature of the airflow,

wherein the portion of the airflow is:

received by the chassis via an air receiving exchange, and

exhausted by the chassis via an air expelling exchange;

obtaining, by a chassis environmental manager, a corrosion rate of the computing component;

making, by the chassis environmental manager, a determination that the corrosion rate indicates a premature failure of the computing component based on a service life of the computing component; and

in response to the determination:

initiating, by the chassis environmental manager, an environmental control modification using the heating component to mitigate the premature failure by reducing the corrosion rate of the computing component due to the portion of the airflow.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein initiating the environmental control modification comprises:

transitioning the heating component from an inactive state to the active state, wherein the heating component is not adapted to increase the temperature of the portion of the airflow while in the inactive state.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:

after initiating the environmental control modification:

make a second determination that a humidity level and a temperature associated with the computing component are within a nominal threshold; and

in response to the second determination:

transition the heating component to the inactive state.

13. The method of claim 10 , further comprising:

increasing, using the heating component, a second temperature of a second portion of the airflow while the second portion of the airflow thermally manages a second computing component of a second computing device housed in a second chassis while the heating component in the active state.

14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the heating component is disposed in a portion of information handling system through which the airflow traverses.

15. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer readable program code, which when executed by a computer processor enables the computer processor to perform a method for environmentally managing an information handling system comprising a computing device, the method comprising:

thermally managing, using a portion of an airflow, a computing component of the computing device that is housed in a chassis by reducing a temperature of the computing component; and

while thermally managing the computing component, heating the portion of the airflow using a heating component that it is in an active state to increase a temperature of the airflow,

wherein the portion of the airflow is:

received by the chassis via an air receiving exchange, and

exhausted by the chassis via an air expelling exchange;

obtaining, by a chassis environmental manager, a corrosion rate of the computing component;

making, by the chassis environmental manager, a determination that the corrosion rate indicates a premature failure of the computing component based on a service life of the computing component; and

in response to the determination:

initiating, by the chassis environmental manager, an environmental control modification using the heating component to mitigate the premature failure by reducing the corrosion rate of the computing component due to the portion of the airflow.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15 , wherein initiating the environmental control modification comprises:

transitioning the heating component from an inactive state to the active state, wherein the heating component is not adapted to increase the temperature of the portion of the airflow while in the inactive state.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the method further comprises:

after initiating the environmental control modification:

making, by the chassis environmental manager, a second determination that a humidity level and a temperature associated with the computing component are within a nominal threshold; and

in response to the second determination:

transitioning, by the chassis environmental manager, the heating component to the inactive state.

Assignments (9)