Patent Issued for Heat recovery from data center cooling system (USPTO 11800690): United Services Automobile Association

2023 NOV 10 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- A patent by the inventors Culbertson, II, William Preston (San Antonio, TX, US), Osterkamp, Bryan J. (New Braunfels, TX, US), Philbrick, Ashley Raine (San Antonio, TX, US), Post, Nathan Lee (San Antonio, TX, US), Russell, Ryan Thomas (San Antonio, TX, US), St. Martin, Courtney (Roswell, GA, US), filed on July 21, 2022, was published online on October 24, 2023, according to news reporting originating from Alexandria, Virginia, by NewsRx correspondents.

Patent number 11800690 is assigned to United Services Automobile Association (San Antonio, Texas, United States).

The following quote was obtained by the news editors from the background information supplied by the inventors: “Many businesses require large amounts of computing power and storage for data relating to customers. Banks of computers store data relating to customer purchases, such as model number; warrantee information; service requirements; values, beneficiary information, and distribution information, such as for insurance contracts. Insurance contracts also may require personal information, such as age and health information. Automobile insurance may require collection and maintenance of information relating to the vehicles insured, drivers’ safety records, and the like.

“Further, almost all types of business relationships require amounts owed and owing, contact information, credit and billing information. These categories of information must be maintained securely. Often, categories of information are kept separately from other categories to improve security. For example, credit card numbers typically are kept separately from other personally-identifiable information. The types of information that must be stored are myriad, and the number of entries for each type is large.

“Typically, this equipment is housed in a data center, often a building separate from other buildings. Modern data centers therefore often have large banks of computing units to accommodate manipulation of large amounts of data. Data centers also typically have large storage banks to store the data required to do service customers.

“Such equipment typically is maintained at essentially constant temperature in clean air essentially devoid of dust particles and other deleterious materials suspended in the air. Both liquid water and vapor are controlled to preclude shorting of electrical connections in the equipment.

“Such computer devices consume a significant amount of power and generate a significant amount of heat. At least a portion of the heat must be removed to avoid overheating the equipment.

“There is a need in the art for a system and method that addresses the shortcomings discussed above.”

In addition to the background information obtained for this patent, NewsRx journalists also obtained the inventors’ summary information for this patent: “The present disclosure is directed to systems and methods for recovering value from waste cooling air from a data center.

“In one aspect, the disclosure is directed to a system to create a dehydrating environment from the waste cooling air from a data center. The system comprises a drying room disposed above the data center, with at least one air duct placing the drying room in fluid communication with the data center. The air duct conveys waste cooling air from the data center into the drying room.

“The drying room includes an interior cavity configured to receive a moisture laden product. The drying room also includes a doorway configured to allow the moisture laden product to enter and exit the drying room. The drying room removes moisture from the moisture laden product by exposing the moisture laden product to the waste cooling air from the data center and conveys moisture laden air from the drying room to an air handling unit through a wet air return duct.

“In another aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a system to distribute waste cooling air from a data center. The system includes a reservoir tank configured to receive the waste cooling air from the data center. The reservoir tank includes an insulated wall that assists in maintaining a temperature within the reservoir tank and a reservoir tank blower configured to convey the waste cooling air from the data center into the reservoir tank and to pressurize the interior of the reservoir tank.

“The local tank is in fluid communication with the reservoir tank and in fluid communication with a blower via a hose. Pressurized waste cooling air from the data center is delivered from the local tank out of the blower when a blower valve is opened.”

The claims supplied by the inventors are:

“1. A system configured to create a dehydrating environment from waste cooling air from a data center, the system comprising: a data center, the data center including at least one computer server rack being cooled by airflow from an air handling unit so as to create waste cooling air; a drying room, the drying room including an interior cavity configured to receive a moisture laden product therein; an air duct, the air duct placing the drying room in fluid communication with the data center, the air duct being configured to convey the waste cooling air from the data center into the drying room; and a supplemental HVAC device; wherein the drying room is configured to remove moisture from the moisture laden product by exposing the moisture laden product to the waste cooling air from the data center; wherein the drying room further includes a wet air return duct configured to convey moisture laden air from the drying room back to the air handling unit; and wherein the supplemental HVAC device is disposed between the wet air return duct and the air handling unit.

“2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the supplemental HVAC device includes an air filter therein.

“3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the supplemental HVAC device includes a dehumidifier therein.

“4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the air handling unit removes water from air passing through it in the form of condensate.

“5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the air duct is disposed in a ceiling of the data center; the air duct is disposed in a floor of the drying room; and the drying room is located above the data center.

“6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the wet air return duct includes a filter therein located upstream of the supplemental HVAC device.

“7. A system to distribute waste cooling air from a data center, the system comprising: a data center, the data center including at least one computer server rack generating heat that is being cooled by airflow from an air handling unit so as to create waste cooling air; a reservoir tank configured to receive the waste cooling air from the data center; the reservoir tank including a reservoir tank blower configured to convey the waste cooling air from the data center into the reservoir tank, and to pressurize an interior of the reservoir tank; the reservoir tank being in fluid communication with a blower via a hose; wherein pressurized waste cooling air from the data center is delivered from the reservoir tank out of the blower when a blower valve is opened; and wherein the reservoir tank includes a temperature sensor, and a bleeder valve; and the system is configured to open the bleeder valve to allow introduction of additional waste cooling air from the data center if a sensed temperature by the temperature sensor falls below a predetermined temperature.

“8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the reservoir tank includes a high heat capacity wall configured to help maintain an interior temperature of the reservoir tank.

“9. The system according to claim 8, wherein the insulated wall is disposed outwards of the high heat capacity wall.

“10. The system according to claim 7, further including: a local tank; the local tank includes a local tank blower valve; the local tank is in fluid communication with the reservoir tank, the local tank is configured to store pressurized waste cooling air therein, and the local tank is located away from the reservoir tank between the reservoir tank and the blower; and wherein pressurized waste cooling air from the data center is delivered from the local tank out of the blower when the local tank blower valve is opened.

“11. The system according to claim 7, further including an outside air intake system, the outside air intake system including an air intake valve disposed upstream of an air handling unit; wherein the air intake valve opens to introduce outside air when a sensed pressure drops below a predetermined level.

“12. The system according to claim 11, wherein the outside air intake system includes an air filter.

“13. A method for dehydrating a moisture laden product, the method comprising: cooling a data center including at least one computer server rack with cooling airflow from an air handling unit, so as to create waste cooling air; directing the waste cooling air through an air duct from the data center to a drying room; including the moisture laden product in the drying room; wherein the drying room is configured to remove moisture from the moisture laden product by exposing the moisture laden product to the waste cooling air from the data center to create moisture laden air; directing the moisture laden air through a wet air return duct from the drying room back to the air handling unit.

“14. The method of claim 13, further comprising filtering the moisture laden air with a filter in a supplemental HVAC device located between the wet air return duct and the air handling unit.

“15. The method of claim 13, further comprising removing moisture from the moisture laden air with a dehumidifier in a supplemental HVAC device located between the wet air return duct and the air handling unit.

“16. The method of claim 13, further comprising filtering the moisture laden air with a filter in a supplemental HVAC device located between the wet air return duct and the air handling unit; and removing moisture from the moisture laden air with a dehumidifier in the supplemental HVAC device.

“17. The method of claim 13, wherein the air duct is disposed in a ceiling of the data center, the air duct is disposed in a floor of the drying room, and the drying room is located above the data center; and wherein the step of directing the wasting cooling air through the air duct includes allowing the waste cooling air to rise from the data center into the drying room.

“18. The method of claim 13, further comprising filtering the moisture laden air with a filter located in the wet air return duct located upstream of a supplemental HVAC device.

“19. The method of claim 13, wherein the air handling unit removes moisture from the moisture laden air passing through it in the form of condensate.

“20. The method of claim 13, wherein the air handling unit cools the moisture laden air, and removes dust and contaminates, so as to recirculate the air into the data center as cooling airflow.”

URL and more information on this patent, see: Culbertson, II, William Preston. Heat recovery from data center cooling system. U.S. Patent Number 11800690, filed July 21, 2022, and published online on October 24, 2023. Patent URL (for desktop use only): https://ppubs.uspto.gov/pubwebapp/external.html?q=(11800690)&db=USPAT&type=ids

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