GB2528432A

GB2528432A - Rack assembly, method of assembly thereof and kit of parts for assembly thereof

Info

Publication number: GB2528432A
Application number: GB1409639.0A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Edward A Reddicliffe
Original assignee: Cannon Technologies Ltd
Current assignee: Cannon Technologies Ltd
Priority date: 2014-05-30
Filing date: 2014-05-30
Publication date: 2016-01-27
Anticipated expiration: 2034-05-30
Also published as: GB201409639D0; GB2528432B

Abstract

A rack assembly for a server, comprising: a plurality of elongate members 10 arranged in parallel with one another; at least one frame 20 connected orthogonally to the plurality of elongate members; and one or more brackets 30. The brackets are arranged to mate with and provide reinforcement to the frame, and to engage with the server in use. The brackets and frame comprise corresponding hooks 50 and recesses 60 respectively, or corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use. The rack may be substantially square in shape. The brackets may have a lip 40 that engages with the server when in use, and may also comprise a retaining mechanism arranged to retain the frame to the elongate members. The rack may also comprise an interface component arranged to mate with the frame and an elongate member. The elongate members and the frame may also comprise hooks and recesses or hook and hooks to engage with each other.

Description

RACK ASSEMBLY, METHOD OF ASSMEBLY THEREOF AND KIT OF PARTS

FOR ASSEMBLY THEREOF

The present invention relates to rack assemblies for equipment such as servers, switches and cable connection components. More parboularly, it relates to rack assemblies that can be manufactured and assembled quickly and at low cost.

Known server rack assemblies are typically constructed using a combination of welding and fastening, for example, screw and bolt or riveting, techniques. For example, racks of the current art may comprise a fully welded frame, welded sub-assemblies and/or a proliferation of bolts and other welded components. Such rack assemblies generally require extensive time and expertise to construct, requiring the involvement of skilled personnel in order to perform the welding, screw and bolt or rivet work. For example, welding processes generally require expensive and bulky fume extraction equipment as well as intricate cleaning systems to manage the aftermath of grinding and fettling processes that ensure welds have acceptable neatness.

Further, jigs are typically required during the assembly of such rack assemblies for welding and fastener solutions and said jigs, being expensive to purchase and therefore limited in availability, can often create bottlenecks in the production of rack assemblies during high volume surges and therefore manufacturers are not able to cope with rapid increases in demand.

Further, it is not feasible to assemble fully welded racks at the point of use, where fume extraction equipment, cleaning equipment and jigs are not available; rather they must be assembled at the manufacturing site.

As a result of the need to assemble the rack assemblies at the manufacturing site, assembled rack assemblies subsequently require excessive space during transportation to the point of use, thus increasing transportation costs. There also exists the risk that completed rack assemblies may be damaged during transportation.

There is therefore an ongoing desire to provide rack assemblies that are cheaper to manufacture as well as easier to assemble.

According to the present invention, there is provided a rack assembly for a server, comprising: a plurality of elongate members arranged in parallel with one another; at least one frame connected orthogonally to the plurality of elongate members; and one or more brackets, the one or more brackets being arranged to mate with and provide reinforcement to the frame, and the one or more brackets being arranged to engage with the server in use, wherein the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or one or more brackets and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.

One advantage of the particular arrangement of the rack assembly of the present invention is that it eliminates the need for welding. As mentioned above, welding creates numerous problems due to the requirement of skilled workers and specialised equipment, and therefore welded rack assemblies offer limited flexibility on each of these accounts.

Another advantage of the present invention, resulting in part from the absence of welding, is that the rack assembly is cheaper to manufacture than conventional rack assemblies. For example, the present invention requires less capital investment in terms of welding equipment, less electricity for powering said welding equipment, it does not require the use of jigs or additional fixtures and is not restricted to an assembly point at the place of manufacture of the components, or being assembled by skilled personnel. The rack assembly of the present invention removes the need for expensive and time consuming welding of racks or sub-components and also avoids the need for excessive numbers of fasteners such as screws, bolts and rivets.

The arrangement of the rack assembly of the present is especially advantageous for providing support for servers and other electrical equipment in its thermal management. Specifically, electrical equipment often heats up in use, and transfer of heat to the rack assembly on which the electrical equipment sits through conduction and convention means results. With welded joints, the continuous expansion and contraction of said joints can lead to weakening of said joints. The present invention, on the other hand, being deficient of said welded joints, is deficient of this problem; the hooks and recesses provide more tolerance in the rack assembly at its joints compared with welded joints.

A further advantage, also resulting in part from the absence of welding, is the ease with which that the rack assembly of the present invention may be assembled. For example, it may be assembled by an unskilled worker and without the use of specialist equipment.

A further advantage of the rack assembly of the present invention is the freedom over the location at which the rack assembly is assembled. The present invention enables the rack assembly to be assembled at any location, and not necessarily the point of manufacture, because it does not require any skilled personnel for the assembly, nor does it require special tools or jigs for the same purpose. This is particularly useful in cases where the point of deployment of the rack assembly is situated within enclosed spaces that have narrow doors and stairways that prevent fully assembled rack assemblies from entry. In the present case, however, racks may be delivered to the point of deployment in their unassembled forms and then subsequently be installed into their fully assembled forms.

The rack assemblies of the present invention are essentially self-jigging.

By this, it is meant that it holds itself in place during assembly, which avoids the need for additional jig equipment which is often large and expensive.

The present invention further provides flexibility in production of the rack assemblies. In particular, rack assemblies may be set up at any location and by anyone, and without the need for additional equipment, such that sudden changes in demand for the rack assemblies may be accommodated easily.

The mating of the one or more bracket with the frame advantageously provides reinforcement to the frame. This is especially important as the rack assembly of the present invention does not have welds, which may otherwise provide reinforcement to the structure.

The one or more brackets and the frame of the rack assembly comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or one or more brackets and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks, that engage with one another in use. Said hooks and recesses may aid the connection of the frame and the elongate members in such a way that they are arranged orthogonally to one another. Said hooks and recesses may also assist in the self-jigging operation of the rack assembly.

Preferably, the frame of the rack assembly may be substantially square or rectangular in shape. The specific dimensions of the rack assembly may be in accordance with standard server rack dimensions.

In some examples, the frame of the rack assembly may be constructed from separate elongate members that are connected together in use. In other examples, the frame of the rack assembly may comprise a single member that si extruded and bent into shape.

Preferably, the brackets of the rack assembly may comprise a lip that engages with the server in use. The lip may provide support to the server and hold it in place in use.

In some examples, the one or more brackets of the rack assembly may further comprise a retaining mechanism arranged to retain the frame to the elongate members. The retaining mechanism may preferably comprise at least one of a hook, fastener, clip or clasp.

In other examples, the rack assembly may further comprise corresponding engagement components for connecting the frame to the elongate members. The engagement means may preferably comprise a screw and a nut. Usually, only one screw and nut per bracket is required to achieve a rapid, rigid and robust rack assembly.

Preferably, the rack assembly may further comprise one or more interface components arranged to mate with at least the frame and an elongate member.

In some examples, the interface component may be a washer.

Preferably, the interface component may be arranged between the frame and the elongate member.

Preferably, the interface components and the elongate members may comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the interface components and the elongate members may comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the interface components and the elongate members may each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.

Preferably, the interface components and the frame may comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the interface components and the frame may comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the interface components and the frame may each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.

In some examples, the elongate members and the frame may comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the elongate members and the frame may comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the elongate members and the frame may each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.

According to the present invention, there is also provided a method for assembling the rack assembly as described above, comprising the steps of: arranging the plurality of elongate members in parallel with one another; arranging the frame orthogonally to the elongate members; and engaging corresponding hooks and recesses of the one or more brackets and the frame respectively, or engaging corresponding recesses and hooks of the one or more brackets and the frame respectively, or engaging hooks of each of the one or more brackets and the frame, such that the one or more brackets being arranged to mate with and provide reinforcement to the frame.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is also provided a kit of parts for assembling the rack assembly described above, wherein the kit comprises: a plurality of elongate members arranged in parallel with one another in use; at least one frame arranged to be connected orthogonally to the plurality of elongate members; one or more brackets, wherein the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or one or more brackets and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.

Certain preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figures 1A and lB show examples of a rack assembly of the present invention; Figures 2A and 2B show an example of the components of the rack assembly of the present invention; Figures 3A to 3C show a detailed example of the components of the rack assembly of the present invention; and Figure 4 shows another detailed example of the components of the rack assembly of the present invention.

Figures 1A and lB illustrate examples of a rack assembly 1 of the present invention, comprising elongate members 10, frames 20 and brackets 30 comprising a lip 40. In the example of Figure 1A, there is provided a frame at the lower end of the rack assembly 1 and a frame at the upper end of rack assembly 1, and brackets 30 are shown to be arranged on the lower of said frames. In addition to the two frames 20 shown at Figure 1A, there is also provided an additional frame therebetween in Figure lB.

In each of Figures 1A and 1B, the frames 20 illustrated are substantially square in shape. However, in other examples of the present invention, the frames may be of any conceivable shape, including rectangular, circular, triangular, hexagonal etc. Figures 2A and 2B show a more detailed view of the frame 20, brackets 30 and an elongate member 10 of the rack assembly. Figure 2A shows the above-mentioned components prior to assembly and Figure 2B shows the same components after assembly of the rack assembly is completed. It can be seen that bracket 30 comprises a lip 40 that is arranged to engage with a server in use.

Bracket 30 further comprises hooks 50 that are arranged to engage with corresponding recesses 60 in the frame 20. Although not shown in the figures, the hooks and recesses that engage with one another in use may equally be arranged on the frame and the brackets respectively, or in other words in the opposite arrangement to that shown in the figures.

As it can be seen in Figure 2A, the brackets 30 are arranged to mate with and provide reinforcement to the frame 20. It should be understood that a substantial portion of the rim of frame 20 may be in contact with bracket 30 when the components are assembled.

Figures 2A and 2B also show means by which the frame 20, bracket 30 and elongate member 10 are connected together using screw 70 and nut 80, which is, in this case, incorporated into interface component 90. This arrangement eliminates the need for welding of joints, as is required by rack assemblies of the prior art.

Advantages of the absence of welding in the manufacture and assembly of the rack assembly of the present invention include reduced assembly time and costs, no requirement for skilled personnel to assemble the rack assembly, no requirements for specialist tools or jigs for the same purpose and improved flexibility over the point of manufacture and assembly. Although not shown in the figures, the bracket 30 may further comprise a retaining mechanism arranged to retain the frame to the elongate member i.e. without the use of engagement means such as a screw and nut as shown in the figures. Such a retaining mechanism may comprise at least one of a hook, fastener, clip or clasp.

In Figures 2A and 2B, interface component 90 is arranged between the frame 20 and the elongate member 10 in use, and therefore mates with both the frame 20 and elongate member 10. Interface component 90 is shown to further comprise hooks 150 and elongate member 10 is shown to further comprise recesses 160, and said hooks 150 and recesses 160 are arranged to engage with one another. Of course, it will be appreciated that the particular arrangement and ordering of the brackets 30, frames 20, interface component 90 and elongate member 10 may differ in other examples of the present invention.

For example, Figures 3A to 30 show the same ordering of the bracket 30, frame 20, interface component 90 and elongate member 10 as Figures 2A and 2B.

However, Figure 4 shows an arrangement whereby the interface component 90 is arranged behind the elongate member 10 instead of between elongate member 10 and frame 20.

The arrangement of Figures 2A and 2B and 3A to 30 may be advantageous in that interface component 90 sits within elongate member 10, thus providing reinforcement to elongate member 10. In Figures 2 and 3, the hooks 150 of interface component 90 are arranged to engage with recesses 160 of elongate member 10, thus positioning interface component 90 in alignment with elongate member 10, frame 20, bracket 30, screw 70 and nut 80.

In other examples of the present invention (not shown in the figures), the interface component and the frame may comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the interface components and the frame may comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the interface components and the frame may each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another. Further, the elongate members and the frame may comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the elongate members and the frame may comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the elongate members and the frame may each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A rack assembly for a server, comprising: a plurality of elongate members arranged in parallel with one another; at least one frame connected orthogonally to the plurality of elongate members; and one or more brackets, the one or more brackets being arranged to mate with and provide reinforcement to the frame, and the one or more brackets being arranged to engage with the server in use, wherein the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or one or more brackets and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.
2. A rack assembly according to claim 1, wherein the frame is substantially square or rectangular in shape.
3. A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the frame is constructed from separate elongate members that are connected together in use.
4. A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the one or more brackets comprise a lip that engages with the server in use.
5. A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the one or more brackets further comprise a retaining mechanism arranged to retain the frame to the elongate members.
6. A rack assembly according to claim 5, wherein the retaining mechanism comprises at least one of a hook, fastener, clip or clasp.
7. A rack assembly according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the rack assembly further comprises corresponding engagement components for connecting the frame to the elongate members.
8. A rack assembly according to claim 7, wherein the engagement means comprises a screw and a nut.
9. A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the assembly further comprises one or more interface components arranged to mate with at least the frame and an elongate member.
10.A rack assembly according to claim 9, wherein the interface component is arranged between the frame and the elongate member.
11.A rack assembly according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the interface components and the elongate members comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the interface components and the elongate members comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the interface components and the elongate members each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another.
12. A rack assembly according to any of claims 9 to 11, wherein the interface components and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the interface components and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the interface components and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another.
13.A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the elongate members and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the elongate members and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the elongate members and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another.
14.A method for assembling the rack assembly of any preceding claim, comprising the steps of: arranging the plurality of elongate members in parallel with one another; arranging the frame orthogonally to the elongate members; and engaging corresponding hooks and recesses of the one or more brackets and the frame respectively, or engaging corresponding recesses and hooks of the one or more brackets and the frame respectively, or engaging hooks of each of the one or more brackets and the frame, such that the one or more brackets being arranged to mate with and provide reinforcement to the frame.
15.A kit of parts for assembling the rack assembly of any of claims Ito 13, wherein the kit comprises: a plurality of elongate members arranged in parallel with one another in use; at least one frame arranged to be connected orthogonally to the plurality of elongate members; one or more brackets, wherein the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or one or more brackets and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.Amendments to claims have been filed as followsCLAIMS1. A rack assembly for a server, comprising: a plurality of elongate members arranged in parallel with one another; at least one frame connected orthogonally to the plurality of elongate members; one or more brackets, the one or more brackets being arranged to mate with and provide reinforcement to the frame, and the one or more brackets being arranged to engage with the server in use; and one or more interface components arranged to mate with at least the zt 15 frame and an elongate member, C\J wherein the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or one or more brackets and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use.2. A rack assembly according to claim 1, wherein the frame is substantially square or rectangular in shape.3. A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the frame is constructed from separate elongate members that are connected together in use.4. A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the one or more brackets comprise a lip that engages with the server in use.5. A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the one or more brackets further comprise a retaining mechanism arranged to retain the frame to the elongate members.6. A rack assembly according to claim 5, wherein the retaining mechanism comprises at least one of a hook, fastener, clip or clasp.7. A rack assembly according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the rack assembly further comprises corresponding engagement components for connecting the frame to the elongate members.8. A rack assembly according to claim 7, wherein the engagement means comprises a screw and a nut.9. A rack assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the interface component is arranged between the frame and the elongate member.10.A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the interface components and the elongate members comprise corresponding hooks C'J and recesses respectively, or the interface components and the elongate members comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the interface components and the elongate members each comprise r corresponding hooks that engage with one another.11. A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the interface components and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the interface components and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the interface components and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another.12.A rack assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the elongate members and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the elongate members and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or the elongate members and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another.13.A method for assembling the rack assembly of any preceding claim, comprising the steps of: arranging the plurality of elongate members in parallel with one another; arranging the frame orthogonally to the elongate members; arranging one or more interface components to mate with at least the frame and an elongate member; and engaging corresponding hooks and recesses of one or more brackets and the frame respectively, or engaging corresponding recesses and hooks of one or more brackets and the frame respectively, or engaging hooks of each of one or more brackets and the frame, such that the one or more brackets being arranged to mate with and provide reinforcement totheframe.14.A kit of pads for assembling the rack assembly of any of claims ito 12, wherein the kit comprises: r a plurality of elongate members arranged in parallel with one another in use; at least one frame arranged to be connected orthogonally to the plurality of elongate members; one or more brackets, wherein the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding hooks and recesses respectively, or the one or more brackets and the frame comprise corresponding recesses and hooks respectively, or one or more brackets and the frame each comprise corresponding hooks that engage with one another in use; and one or more interface components arranged to mate with at least the frame and an elongate member.