Air seal for server rack

摘要

An air seal for a server rack installed in a data center which delivers cool air to the fronts of racks and removes warm air at the back, where one or more of the racks are elevated by wheels or legs. A seal support member of rigid plastic and of right angle cross section has a horizontal portion and a vertical portion. The horizontal portion is adhesively secured to a downwardly facing surface at the bottom front and/or back of the rack. The horizontal portion is recessed at opposite ends to accommodate wheels or legs at opposite sides of the rack. The vertical portion extends across the full width of the rack and projects downward. A sealing strip of EPDM foam is adhesively secured to the vertical portion and is held flexed against the floor, forming a seal against the flow of by-pass air underneath the rack.

主权项

1. An air seal suitable for and intended for retrofit installation on an underside of an elevated server rack to close an existing space between the server rack and an underlying floor surface on which the server rack is supported, the server rack being of predetermined width having a downwardly facing, transversely disposed and generally horizontal surface adjacent at least one of a front or back of said server rack which surface is elevated a distance above said underlying floor surface, said air seal comprising
an elongated support member formed of substantially rigid material and having, in cross sectional configuration, upper and lower support portions disposed substantially at right angles to each other, said elongated support member having a length corresponding closely with the predetermined width of said server rack, an adhesive strip element on an upper surface of said upper support portion, said adhesive strip element having an upwardly facing adhesive surface to adhesively secure said upper support portion to said elevated, downwardly facing horizontal surface, said upper support portion being formed with recesses at opposite ends thereof to accommodate legs or wheels at sides of the server rack, said lower support portion of said elongated support member extending downward from said upper support portion in an installed position of said elongated support member and said lower support portion having a lower edge, and an elongated strip of elastically flexible material having an upper portion secured to a surface of said lower support portion and extending substantially the full length of said lower support portion said elongated sealing strip of flexible material having an unsupported flexible lower portion extending downward below the lower edge of said lower support portion a distance such that, when said upper support portion is installed on said downwardly facing elevated surface, a lower portion of said strip of flexible material will engage and be resiliently displaced by said underlying floor surface to form an air seal between said floor surface and said downwardly facing surface of said server rack, said elongated sealing strip being sufficiently flexible to enable said support member and said sealing strip to be manually inserted into the existing space between said downwardly facing surface and said floor surface and pressed upwardly to adhere said adhesive strip to said downwardly facing surface.