HYBRID HOUSING FOR NOTEBOOK COMPUTERS

Fujitsu has developed a new type of housing for notebook computers. It is a hybrid housing composed of resin and metal which provides a comb ination of structural strength, efficient heat dissipation, and light weight. This hybrid housing is manufactured by adapting an in-mold met hod in which resin is bonded to an aluminum plate inside a metallic mo ld with the aid of an adhesive. At first, we checked that the hybrid h ousing has the high heat dissipation characteristics required for sub- notebook PCs by using thermal simulation. We investigated the relation ship between the aluminum/resin ratio and heat dissipation characteris tics of the hybrid housing model. We found that the use of aluminum on the bottom (which must be strong and have a high heat dissipation) an d the use of resin on the side (which must have good moldability for f orming complex shapes) provided the best balance between weight and co oling performance. In the next step, we conducted experiments to find the following: (1) an adhesive suitable for bonding aluminum with resi n inside a metallic mold, (2) a resin that minimizes warpage in the ho using caused by the different thermal expansion coefficients of its tw o materials, and (3) a molding process suitable for mass production. C ompared to a conventional resin housing, the hybrid housing we develop ed resulted in a reduction of component temperature in a sub-notebook PC of from 5 degrees C to about 10 degrees C and a 20% weight reductio n. This hybrid housing was applied to Fujitsu's sub-notebook PC, the F MV-BIBLO NC.