Device for cleaning liquids or gaseous media and precipitating element for said device

Abstract

A device for cleaning liquids or gaseous media, having a cup-shaped or pot-shaped housing, having an exchangeable interior precipitating element, a medium inlet for medium to be cleaned, a medium outlet for cleaned medium and a housing cover, removably connected to the housing by a connection. The housing has a first circumferential connector and the housing cover has a compatible second circumferential connector, which can be engaged and disengaged by circumferential twisting relative to each other. The first connector or the second connector have at least one interruption extending in the connector axial direction and the precipitating element has at least one positioning arm which, in the installed state of the precipitating element and when the housing cover is connected to the housing, is received at least partially in the at least one connector interruption, in a position and orientation corresponding to the connector interruption.

1 - 26 . (canceled) 
     
     
         27 . A device for cleaning liquid or gaseous media, comprising:
 a cup-shaped or pot-shaped housing, having an exchangeable precipitating element situated in the device, which element separates a raw medium region and a clean medium region in the device from one another, having a medium inlet, opening into the raw medium region, for medium to be cleaned, having a medium outlet, going out from the clean medium region, for cleaned medium,   a housing cover detachably connected to the housing by a connection,
 the housing having first circumferential connecting means and 
 the housing cover having second circumferential connecting means fitted thereto, which connecting means can be brought into and out of engagement through rotation relative to one another in the circumferential direction, 
   wherein, one of the first connecting means or the second connecting means has at least one connecting means interruption running in the connecting means axial direction, and   wherein the precipitating element has at least one positioning arm that, in the installed state of the precipitating element and when the housing cover is connected to the housing, is received at least partly in the connecting means interruption, running in a position and orientation corresponding to the at least one connecting means interruption.   
     
     
         28 . The device as recited in  claim 27 , wherein a plurality of connecting means interruptions are provided distributed around the circumference of one of the first connecting means or the second connecting means, and wherein the precipitating element has a plurality of positioning arms configured so as to fit correspondingly to the connecting means interruptions. 
     
     
         29 . The device as recited in  claim 28 , wherein the connecting means interruptions of one of the first connecting means or the second connecting means and the positioning arms form a key-lock coding with each other. 
     
     
         30 . The device as recited in  claim 29 , wherein at least one of:
 the connecting means interruptions of one of the first connecting means or the second connecting means and the positioning arms are irregularly distributed in the circumferential direction, or   the connecting means interruptions of one of the first connecting means or the second connecting means have different widths from one another in the circumferential direction, and the positioning arms have a differing width, fitting thereto, in the circumferential direction.   
     
     
         31 . The device as recited in  claim 27 , wherein each at least one positioning arm is detachably lockable in the associated connecting means interruption by interacting locking elements. 
     
     
         32 . The device as recited in  claim 27 , wherein the precipitating element has a hollow cylindrical basic shape having a precipitating material body and having two end plates sealing this body at its ends, and wherein either
 each at least one positioning arm is one of connected to, or made in one piece with, one of the end plates of the precipitating element, or   each at least one positioning arm is connected to the precipitating material body of the precipitating element in positionally fixed fashion in the circumferential direction and in the axial direction.   
     
     
         33 . The device as recited in  claim 27 , wherein the precipitating element has a precipitating material body having a hollow cylindrical basic shape and having a supporting body situated therein, and wherein each at least one positioning arm is either connected to, or made in one piece with, the supporting body of the precipitating element. 
     
     
         34 . The device as recited in  claim 27 , wherein the precipitating element has a precipitating material body formed from two partial precipitating material bodies, each having a hollow cylindrical basic shape, and wherein two end faces, facing one another, of the two partial precipitating material bodies are connected to one another via an intermediate plate, and wherein each at least one positioning arm is either connected to, or made in one piece with, the intermediate plate of the precipitating element. 
     
     
         35 . The device as recited in  claim 27 , wherein between the housing and the housing cover there is situated a seal that seals these from each other when the housing cover is connected to the housing, and wherein one of the seal, or a seal bearer that bears the seal, is one of connected to, or made in one piece with, the at least one positioning arm. 
     
     
         36 . The device as recited in  claim 35 , wherein the seal is situated, as a sealing ring, either radially externally on the seal bearer or axially at the end face on the seal bearer. 
     
     
         37 . The device as recited in  claim 36 , wherein the seal is either molded onto the seal bearer, or is placed onto the seal bearer as a separately produced component. 
     
     
         38 . The device as recited in  claim 35 , wherein each at least one positioning arm, the seal bearer, and the seal are formed in one piece with one another from a thermoplastic elastomer. 
     
     
         39 . The device as recited in  claim 27 , wherein the connection between the housing and the housing cover having the first connecting means and the second connecting means is formed by an axial region of overlap of the housing and housing cover having one of interacting screw threadings or interacting bayonet connection elements. 
     
     
         40 . The device as recited in  claim 27 , comprising one of an oil filter, a fuel filter, or an oil mist separator of an internal combustion engine of a motor vehicle. 
     
     
         41 . A precipitating element for a device as recited in  claim 27 , the device having a housing and having a housing cover connected detachably to the housing, the housing having first circumferential connecting means and the housing cover having second circumferential connecting means fitting thereto, which can be brought into and out of engagement through rotation relative to one another in the circumferential direction, and the precipitating element configured to be received exchangeably in the device,
 wherein the precipitating element has at least one positioning arm that, in the installed state of the precipitating element and when the housing cover is connected to the housing, is configured to be received in a connecting means interruption that is provided in one of the first connecting means or the second connecting means, running in the axial direction of the connecting means.   
     
     
         42 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 41 , wherein the precipitating element has a plurality of positioning arms that are configured so as to fit correspondingly to a plurality of connecting means interruptions. 
     
     
         43 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 42 , wherein the positioning arms are at least one of distributed irregularly in the circumferential direction have a different width from one another in the circumferential direction. 
     
     
         44 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 41 , wherein each at least one positioning arm has locking elements that are detachably lockable with locking elements provided in the associated connecting means interruption. 
     
     
         45 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 41 , wherein the precipitating element has a hollow cylindrical basic shape having a precipitating material body and two end plates that cover this body at its ends, and wherein each at least one positioning arm is one of connected to, made in one piece with one of the end plates of the precipitating element, or connected in a positionally fixed fashion to the precipitating material body of the precipitating element in the circumferential direction and in the axial direction. 
     
     
         46 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 41 , wherein the precipitating element has a precipitating material body having a hollow cylindrical basic shape and having a supporting body situated therein, and that each at least one positioning arm is either connected to, or made in one piece with, the supporting body of the precipitating element. 
     
     
         47 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 41 , wherein the precipitating element has a precipitating material body formed from two partial precipitating material bodies each having a hollow cylindrical basic shape, and wherein two end faces, facing one another, of the two partial precipitating material bodies are connected to one another via an intermediate plate, and that each at least one positioning arm is either connected to, or made in one piece with, the intermediate plate of the precipitating element. 
     
     
         48 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 27 , wherein either a seal, or a seal bearer that bears a seal, is either connected to, or made in one piece with, the at least one positioning arm, the housing and the housing cover being sealable against one another by the seal when they are connected to one another in the installed state of the precipitating element. 
     
     
         49 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 48 , wherein the seal is situated, as a sealing ring, either radially externally on the seal bearer or axially at the end face on the seal bearer. 
     
     
         50 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 49 , wherein the seal is either molded onto the seal bearer or is placed onto the seal bearer as a separately produced component. 
     
     
         51 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 48 , wherein each at least one positioning arm, the seal bearer, and the seal are formed in one piece with one another from a thermoplastic elastomer. 
     
     
         52 . The precipitating element as recited in  claim 27 , comprising one of an oil filter insert of an oil filter, a fuel filter insert of a fuel filter, or an oil mist separator insert of an oil mist separator, of an internal combustion engine of a motor vehicle.