Contained UPS System with Temperature Control

Abstract

An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system includes an enclosure, a floor system, a UPS, and at least one air conditioning unit. The enclosure defines an interior chamber. The floor system is disposed in the interior chamber. The floor system includes a floor that defines within the interior chamber a main compartment above the floor and a plenum below the floor. The at least one battery is disposed in the plenum. The UPS is disposed in the main compartment and is electrically connected to the at least one battery. The at least one air conditioning unit is operable to generate a first conditioned air flow through the main compartment and a second conditioned air flow through the plenum such that the main compartment is maintained at a first temperature and the plenum is maintained at a second temperature different from the first.

1 . An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system comprising:
 an enclosure defining an interior chamber;   a floor system in the interior chamber, the floor system including a floor that defines within the interior chamber a main compartment above the floor and a plenum below the floor;   at least one battery disposed in the plenum;   a UPS disposed in the main compartment and electrically connected to the at least one battery; and   at least one air conditioning unit operable to generate a first conditioned air flow through the main compartment and a second conditioned air flow through the plenum such that the main compartment is maintained at a first temperature and the plenum is maintained at a second temperature different from the first.   
     
     
         2 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein:
 the at least one air conditioning unit generates and forces a first supply air flow into the main compartment and generates and forces a second supply air flow into the plenum; and 
 the second supply air flow is cooler than the first supply air flow. 
 
     
     
         3 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein the second temperature is at least 8° C. less than the first temperature. 
     
     
         4 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein:
 the first temperature is in the range of from about 30° C. to 35° C.; and 
 the second temperature is in the range of from about 22° C. to 27° C. 
 
     
     
         5 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein the second conditioned air flow is a circulating air flow that originates at the at least one air conditioning unit and returns to the at least one air conditioning unit. 
     
     
         6 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein at least a portion of the second conditioning air flow is directed from the plenum into the main compartment. 
     
     
         7 . The UPS system of  claim 6  wherein the redirected portion of the second conditioning air flow is directed to an intake port of an integrated cooling system forming a part of the UPS. 
     
     
         8 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein the volume of the plenum is less than the volume of the main compartment. 
     
     
         9 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein:
 the plenum is separated from the main compartment by a floor; 
 the floor includes at least one floor panel; and 
 the at least one floor panel is removable to permit access to the at least one battery from the main compartment. 
 
     
     
         10 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein the at least one battery includes a plurality of batteries electrically connected to form a battery string in the plenum. 
     
     
         11 . The UPS system of  claim 1  wherein the enclosure includes a mobile container. 
     
     
         12 . A method for providing an uninterruptible power supply, the method comprising:
 providing an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system including:
 an enclosure defining an interior chamber; 
 a floor system in the interior chamber, the floor system including a floor that defines within the interior chamber a main compartment above the floor and a plenum below the floor; 
 at least one battery disposed in the plenum; 
 a UPS disposed in the main compartment and electrically connected to the at least one battery; and 
 at least one air conditioning unit; and 
   operating the at least one air conditioning unit to generate a first conditioned air flow through the main compartment and a second conditioned air flow through the plenum such that the main compartment is maintained at a first temperature and the plenum is maintained at a second temperature different from the first.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12  including:
 generating and forcing a first supply air flow into the main compartment and generating and forcing a second supply air flow into the plenum using the at least one air conditioning unit; 
 wherein the second supply air flow is cooler than the first supply air flow. 
 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12  wherein the second temperature is at least 8° C. less than the first temperature. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 12  wherein:
 the first temperature is in the range of from about 30° C. to 35° C.; and 
 the second temperature is in the range of from about 22° C. to 27° C. 
 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 12  wherein the second conditioned air flow is a circulating air flow that originates at the at least one air conditioning unit and returns to the at least one air conditioning unit. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 12  including directing at least a portion of the second conditioning air flow from the plenum into the main compartment. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17  including directing the redirected portion of the second conditioning air flow to an intake port of an integrated cooling system forming a part of the UPS. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 12  wherein the volume of the plenum is less than the volume of the main compartment. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 12  wherein:
 the plenum is separated from the main compartment by a floor; 
 the floor includes at least one floor panel; and 
 the method includes removing the at least one floor panel to access the at least one battery from the main compartment.