SPEC Fan Design
Certain mezzanines were reported to heat excessively when mounted on a SPEC carrier is some PCs (see Fine Delay Temperature Issues).
The solution we've found to be efficient and cost-effective is an add-on fan unit. The unit consists of a small fan mounted on a PCB acting as a mechanical support and hosting the fan's power supply (a DC/DC converter from 12 V to 5 V). The PCB is attached to the SPEC using the same screws that attach the mezzanine (see photos below). The fan fits in the cutout under the FMC and pumps the air out of the mezzanine area.
The fan unit takes power from the P12V/GND testpoints next to the SPEC power supply. One needs to solder two right-angled pins to connect the fan unit (see photo below):
fan_power.jpg
Design Files
The alpha version of the fan design is available in the repository (Altium format). We are working on an official EDA release.