Process Integration in Heatsink Design Exploration

pstang

In simulation driven product design process, various methods and process have been used to improve and streamline the product development.  Some of the typical approaches are to perform design of experiment, optimization or robustness studies with finite element analysis.  In these studies, engineers vary different types of parameters, for example topology, gauge, size and boundary shape, in order to improve product design performance.  However, there are design scenarios that involve design configuration or load boundary condition changes that cannot be easily solved with typical finite element-based approaches.  One good example is in the design of heat sink, the change of fin numbers cannot be captured by typical design parameters.