Rotatable Filter Insert for Flow Direction Reversal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional compressed gas and air filters are limited in their ability to change flow direction after installation, making them suitable for either dust filtration or coalescing, but not both, and have suboptimal fluidic channel designs that affect differential pressure and flow efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A filter design with a separable upper part into a metal housing and a plastic insert allows for optimized channel courses and flow direction reversal, using a rotatable connection element and three-dimensionally curved channels to enhance flow technology and accommodate different filter elements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the filter head is designed as a single metal component with inlet and outlet channels, then pressure resistance is improved, but flow efficiency deteriorates due to suboptimal channel courses with edges and shoulders
Solution Approach 1:
The filter head is divided into two separate components: a metal housing (pressure-resistant part) and a plastic insert (flow-optimized part). The metal housing maintains pressure resistance while the plastic insert provides optimized channel courses without edges and shoulders, resolving the contradiction between strength and flow efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The filter head combines metal and plastic materials in a composite structure. The metal housing provides mechanical strength and pressure resistance, while the plastic insert provides optimized fluid flow characteristics. This composite approach allows each material to contribute its superior properties to the overall system.
2Ease of manufacture
If the filter is designed with fixed inlet and outlet channels, then manufacturing simplicity is improved, but adaptability deteriorates as the filter cannot change flow direction after installation
Solution Approach 1:
The plastic insert containing the inlet and outlet channels is made rotatable within the metal housing. This dynamic element allows the channel orientation to be changed after installation by rotating the insert to different angular positions, enabling the filter to adapt to different flow directions while maintaining a relatively simple manufacturing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The rotatable insert design allows a single filter unit to perform multiple functions by accommodating different flow directions. The same filter housing and insert combination can be configured for various installation scenarios, making the filter universally applicable to different system requirements without requiring multiple specialized designs.
3Ease of manufacture
If the inlet and outlet channels are designed with short straight sections and 90° bends, then manufacturing ease is improved, but differential pressure increases due to non-uniform flow courses
Solution Approach 1:
The plastic insert channels are designed with curved, smooth transitions instead of sharp 90° bends. The curved channel courses eliminate edges and shoulders that cause flow separation and pressure losses, providing more uniform flow patterns that reduce differential pressure across the filter while remaining manufacturable through injection molding.
Data Source
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AI summary
The filter for pressurized gas systems for the separation of gas flow led with e.g. dirt particles, condensate and oil, comprises an inlet channel (5) and outlet channel (6) which contain an upper filter part (1), and a hollow cylindrical filter element (7) having lower filter part (2). The upper filter part has housing and an insert, in which the course of the inlet and outlet channels is optimized. The insert is fastened revolvable and exchangeable within the housing. The housing is formed pressure resistant and the insert is formed difference-pressure resistant. The filter for pressurized gas systems for the separation of gas flow led with e.g. dirt particles, condensate and oil, comprises an inlet channel (5) and outlet channel (6) which contain an upper filter part (1), and a hollow cylindrical filter element (7) having lower filter part (2). The upper filter part has housing and an insert, in which the course of the inlet and outlet channels is optimized. The insert is fastened revolvable and exchangeable within the housing. The housing is formed pressure resistant and the insert is formed difference-pressure resistant. The inlet channel and outlet channel have a three-dimensional bent progression. The arc radius of the inlet channel and outlet channel is larger than the half diameter of the upper part. The housing has an inlet- and outlet opening, which partially cover over the corresponding openings of the inlet- and outlet channel, and are integrated into connection elements, which are formed for the connection at external directions. The inlet- and outlet channel is limited directly or indirectly into a filter chamber by a filter material of the filter element and the other channel flows directly or indirectly into a collecting chamber, in which from the filter element and the lower part the filters are formed. The filter element has a connection element with a supply channel and discharge channel. The filter chamber and the collecting chamber are connected with the inlet- and outlet channel of the upper part. The filter element has a guidance element in the region of the orifice of the supply channel and discharge channel in the filter chamber. The openings are mirror- or point symmetrically faced to the filter element of the inlet channel and outlet channel. The openings of the inlet- and outlet channel are nodular- or semicircular. The connection element is pivotably opposite to the upper part, so that the filter chamber is optionally connectable with the inlet- and outlet channel of the upper part. The insert has a reception for a functional component for a differential pressure indication. The cover of the hollow cylindrical filter element consists of partly filter material. An independent claim is included for a filter element.