The discovery of a new patent filed by Sony Interactive Entertainment has unveiled an interesting direction for the internal layout of their upcoming console. While not directly named, this is widely believed to be the Playstation 5, but could also be applied to other Sony products.
Patents can give insight into new products or features, and a lot has already been learned about Sony’s Playstation consoles - including the current design of pre-production ‘dev kits’ of the Playstation 5.
The new patent describes a new heatsink design. Typically, a heatsink would sit on top of a chip and be clamped down to the mainboard to maintain good thermal contact. A fan would then blow air away from the heatsink moving the heat away. The new design shows a multi-part heat sink with thermal contact made from the underneath of the chip and transferred through the mainboard via a part of the heatsink assembly that is physically built into the board itself. A regular heatsink then makes contact with the board rather than a chip.
This new design is important, as it should allow faster and more efficient heat transfer away from the processing unit. This optimization will result in cooler operating temperatures and the possibility of fanless design resulting in quieter use. There should also be a height reduction in the external heatsink leading to a thinner design. The full patent document can be found here at the US Patent Office.
Sources: US Patent Office, PSU.com -PS5 Heatsink Patent Is Now Public