Task-lit cabinet

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9534776-B2
Application number	US-201514730337-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 4, 2015
Priority date	May 20, 2011
Publication date	Jan 3, 2017
Grant date	Jan 3, 2017

Abstract

Methods, apparatuses, and products passively generate electrical energy from waste heat. Electronic components in cabinets generate waste heat that is used to illuminate an interior of a cabinet. A thermovoltaic semiconductor detects a temperature differential between a pair of terminals installed in the cabinet. The thermovoltaic semiconductor generates a low voltage output in response to the temperature differential. A power supply receives the low voltage output and produces a higher voltage for low-wattage light sources installed in the cabinet.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus, comprising:
a cabinet for housing a rack of electronic components, the cabinet having ports to convect waste heat from an interior of the cabinet, the waste heat produced by the electronic components housed within the cabinet;
a thermovoltaic semiconductor having a pair of terminals, a first terminal of the pair of terminals installed proximate an upper frontal area of the cabinet, a second terminal of the pair of terminals installed proximate an exit port of the ports in an opposite upper backside area of the cabinet, the thermovoltaic semiconductor passively generating electrical power in response to a temperature differential between the pair of terminals;
selectively connecting an end of a bus cable to an output terminal of the thermovoltaic semiconductor, the bus cable distributing the electrical power to interior lighting that illuminates an interior of the cabinet; and
series connecting another end of the bus cable to another bus cable in a neighboring cabinet, the bus cable and the another bus cable daisy chained together to electrically distribute the electrical power passively generated by the thermovoltaic semiconductor to the neighboring cabinet.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a light emitting diode connected to the bus cable to receive the electrical power and to produce the interior lighting illuminating the interior of the cabinet.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a light emitting diode adhesively adhered to an interior sidewall of the cabinet, the light emitting diode connected to the bus cable to receive the electrical power and to produce the interior lighting illuminating the interior of the cabinet.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a switch connected between the output terminal of the thermovoltaic semiconductor and the end of the bus cable.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the switch electrically closes when a door in the cabinet is opened, the switch creating an electrical connection between the output terminal of the thermovoltaic semiconductor and the end of the bus cable.

6. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the switch electrically opens when a door in the cabinet is closed.

7. A method, comprising:
convecting waste heat from a cabinet, the waste heat produced by electronic components racked within the cabinet;
passively generating electrical power by a thermovoltaic semiconductor, the thermovoltaic semiconductor having a first terminal installed proximate an upper frontal area of the cabinet, the thermovoltaic semiconductor having a second terminal installed proximate an exit port in an opposite upper backside area of the cabinet, the thermovoltaic semiconductor passively generating the electrical power in response to a temperature differential between the first terminal and the second terminal caused by the waste heat produced by the electronic components in the cabinet;
selectively connecting an end of a bus cable to an output terminal of the thermovoltaic semiconductor, the bus cable distributing the electrical power to interior lighting that illuminates an interior of the cabinet; and
series connecting another end of the bus cable to another bus cable in a neighboring cabinet racking additional electronic components, the bus cable and the another bus cable daisy chained together to electrically distribute the electrical power passively generated by the thermovoltaic semiconductor to the additional electronic components racked in the neighboring cabinet.

8. The method of claim 7 , further comprising connecting a light emitting diode to the bus cable to receive the electrical power and to produce the interior lighting illuminating the interior of the cabinet.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising adhesively adhering the light emitting diode to an interior sidewall of the cabinet.

10. The method of claim 7 , further comprising connecting a switch between the output terminal of the thermovoltaic semiconductor and the end of the bus cable.

11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising closing the switch when a door in the cabinet is opened, the switch creating an electrical connection between the output terminal of the thermovoltaic semiconductor and the end of the bus cable.

12. The method of claim 10 , further comprising opening the switch when a door in the cabinet is closed.

13. The method of claim 7 , further comprising storing the electrical power passively generated by the thermovoltaic semiconductor in a battery housed within the cabinet.

Assignees

• At & T Ip I Lp

Inventors

• Irvin David
• Fryer Todd Andrew
• Nicas Nicholas A

Classifications

• F21V33/0012 Primary

  Furniture (hospital beds F21V33/0072) · CPC title

• F21V23/04

  the elements being switches (safety devices F21V25/00) · CPC title

• F21Y2115/10

  Light-emitting diodes [LED] · CPC title

• Y10S74/09

  Perpetual motion gimmicks · CPC title

• H05K7/183

  support rails therefor · CPC title