Passive thermal-control structure for speakers and associated apparatuses and methods
地域：
CA
CA Mountain View
摘要
The present document describes a passive thermal-control structure for speakers and associated apparatuses and methods. The architecture of the passive thermal-control structure is such that heat is transferred from electronic subsystems of the electronic speaker device to the passive thermal-control structure, which acts as an internal, structural frame of the electronic speaker device and provides both thermal mitigation and structural stability. The passive thermal-control structure conducts heat from the electronic subsystems to a housing of the electronic speaker device. The housing of the electronic speaker device may dissipate the heat to the ambient environment to prevent thermal runaway of the electronic subsystems, and the internal frame mitigates the temperature of the housing from exceeding ergonomic temperature limits.
說明書
Electronic speaker devices (e.g., speakers) have evolved to perform a variety of functions. Such functions may be related to voice commands spoken to a virtual assistant that is integrated into the electronic speaker device to retrieve information, manage a home-automation system, play media, and so on.
When a form factor of the electronic speaker device is reduced, heat generated from electronic subsystems of the electronic speaker device can result in thermal runaway conditions that damage the electronic subsystems. To manage the heat generated from the electronic subsystems, a thermal-control system may be used. However, the design and architecture of an efficient and effective thermal-control system that prevents the thermal runaway, while maintaining the reduced form factor, presents multiple challenges.
權利要求
What is claimed is:1. An electronic speaker device comprising:a housing; one or more printed circuit boards positioned within the housing and including one or more heat-dissipating components; one or more speaker modules; a passive thermal-control structure positioned within the housing and thermally coupled to the one or more heat-dissipating components, the passive thermal-control structure comprising at least two thermal-structure components thermally coupled together that:form a structural frame for the electronic speaker device; conduct heat away from the heat-dissipating components; define a cavity to house the one or more speaker modules; and have different densities relative to one another; and a base connected to the housing and configured to support a weight of the electronic speaker device, the base having an exterior surface forming a plane, the at least two thermal-structure components being configured to house the one or more speaker modules in an orientation facing a direction that is substantially parallel to the plane formed by the exterior surface of the base. 2. The electronic speaker device of claim 1 , wherein:the second thermal-structure component includes an outer surface having multiple recessed areas; and each recessed area forms a substantially planar surface for mounting a printed circuit board. 3. An electronic speaker device comprising:a housing; one or more printed circuit boards positioned within the housing and including one or more heat-dissipating components; multiple speaker modules, the multiple speaker modules being vertically stacked relative to a base on which the electronic speaker device rests; a passive thermal-control structure positioned within the housing and thermally coupled to the one or more heat-dissipating components, the passive thermal-control structure comprising at least two thermal-structure components thermally coupled together that:form a structural frame for the electronic speaker device; conduct heat away from the heat-dissipating components; define a cavity that houses the multiple speaker modules; have different densities relative to one another; and include a first thermal-structure component and a second thermal-structure component, the first thermal-structure component having an aperture for a speaker driver of each of the multiple speaker modules. 4. The electronic speaker device of claim 3 , wherein:the first thermal-structure component and the second thermal-structure component are configured to house the one or more speaker modules in an orientation in which a center of gravity of the one or more speaker modules is offset from a center of the electronic speaker device; and the first thermal-structure component has a higher density than the second thermal-structure component to balance the center of gravity of the one or more speaker modules. 5. The electronic speaker device of claim 3 , wherein the first thermal-structure component has a first wall thickness that is greater than a second wall thickness of the second thermal-structure component. 6. The electronic speaker device of claim 3 , wherein the first and second thermal-structure components are formed from different metal materials relative to one another. 7. The electronic speaker device of claim 6 , wherein the first thermal-structure component includes an aluminum material and the second thermal-structure component includes a magnesium material. 8. The electronic speaker device of claim 3 , wherein the first and second thermal-structure components include diecast metals. 9. An electronic speaker device comprising:a housing; one or more printed circuit boards positioned within the housing and including one or more heat-dissipating components, the one or more printed circuit boards including:a main logic board having a System-on-Chip (SoC); and an audio-power board having one or more audio-power components that dissipate heat; one or more speaker modules; and a passive thermal-control structure positioned within the housing and thermally coupled to the one or more heat-dissipating components, the passive thermal-control structure comprising at least two thermal-structure components thermally coupled together, the main logic board and the audio-power board being mounted to the second thermal-structure component, the at least two thermal-structure components configured to:form a structural frame for the electronic speaker device; conduct heat away from the heat-dissipating components; define a cavity to house the one or more speaker modules; and have different densities relative to one another. 10. The electronic speaker device of claim 9 , wherein:the second thermal-structure component comprises first and second recessed areas formed on an outer surface of the second thermal-structure component; the main logic board is mounted to a substantially planar surface of the first recessed area; and the audio-power board is mounted to another substantially planar surface of the second recessed area. 11. An electronic speaker device comprising:a housing; one or more printed circuit boards positioned within the housing and including one or more heat-dissipating components; one or more speaker modules; and a passive thermal-control structure positioned within the housing and thermally coupled to the one or more heat-dissipating components, the passive thermal-control structure comprising at least two thermal-structure components thermally coupled together that:form a structural frame for the electronic speaker device; conduct heat away from the heat-dissipating components; define a cavity to house the one or more speaker modules; have different densities relative to one another; and include a first thermal-structure component and a second thermal-structure component; and a thermal-interface material that thermally connects:the first thermal-structure component to the second thermal-structure component; and the one or more heat-dissipating components to the first thermal-structure component or the second thermal-structure component. 12. An electronic speaker device comprising:a housing; one or more printed circuit boards positioned within the housing and including one or more heat-dissipating components; one or more speaker modules; and a passive thermal-control structure positioned within the housing and thermally coupled to the one or more heat-dissipating components, the passive thermal-control structure comprising at least two thermal-structure components thermally coupled together that:form a structural frame for the electronic speaker device; conduct heat away from the heat-dissipating components; define a cavity to house the one or more speaker modules; have different densities relative to one another; and include a first thermal-structure component and a second thermal-structure component; and a heat spreader thermally coupled to an inner surface of the second thermal-structure component, the heat spreader thermally connecting an upper area of the second thermal-structure component to a lower area of the second thermal-structure component. 13. A passive thermal-control structure for an electronic speaker device, the passive thermal-control structure comprising:a first thermal-structure component formed of a first material; and a second thermal-structure component thermally coupled to the first thermal-structure component to form a structural frame for the electronic speaker device, the second thermal-structure component formed of a second material having a different density than the first material, the structural frame:defining a cavity to house multiple speaker modules of the electronic speaker device in a vertically-stacked orientation, relative to a base on which the electronic speaker device rests, with the multiple speaker modules facing a lateral side of the electronic speaker device; and configured to be thermally connected to a plurality of heat-dissipating components of the electronic speaker device. 14. The passive thermal-control structure of claim 13 , wherein the first thermal-structure component includes an aperture for each speaker driver of the multiple speaker modules. 15. The passive thermal-control structure of claim 14 , wherein the first thermal-structure component is an aluminum material and the second thermal-structure component is a magnesium material. 16. The passive thermal-control structure of claim 14 , wherein the first thermal-structure component has a higher density than the second thermal-structure component. 17. A passive thermal-control structure for an electronic speaker device, the passive thermal-control structure comprising:a first thermal-structure component formed of a first material; and a second thermal-structure component thermally coupled to the first thermal-structure component to form a structural frame for the electronic speaker device, the second thermal-structure component including an outer surface having multiple recessed areas, each recessed area forming a substantially planar surface for mounting a printed circuit board having one or more of the plurality of heat-dissipating components, the second thermal-structure component formed of a second material having a different density than the first material, the structural frame:defining a cavity to house multiple speaker modules of the electronic speaker device; and configured to be thermally connected to a plurality of heat-dissipating components of the electronic speaker device. 18. The passive thermal-control structure of claim 17 , wherein the first thermal-structure component and the second thermal-structure component are thermally coupled together via a thermal-interface material. 19. A passive thermal-control structure for an electronic speaker device, the passive thermal-control structure comprising:a first thermal-structure component formed of a first material; a second thermal-structure component thermally coupled to the first thermal-structure component to form a structural frame for the electronic speaker device, the second thermal-structure component formed of a second material having a different density than the first material, the structural frame:defining a cavity to house multiple speaker modules of the electronic speaker device; and configured to be thermally connected to a plurality of heat-dissipating components of the electronic speaker device; and a thermal-interface material that thermally connects the first thermal-structure component to the second thermal-structure component. 20. The passive thermal-control structure of claim 19 , further comprising a heat spreader thermally coupled to an inner surface of the second thermal-structure component, the heat spreader thermally connecting an upper area of the second thermal-structure component to a lower area of the second thermal-structure component.
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