Patent ID: 7896166

Claim:
A compact filter element and housing arrangement comprising: an elongated core, a nonwoven filter element coiled onto the core and including end faces; a first cover disposed in an upper region of the filter arrangement, individual layers of the nonwoven filter element being attached to the first cover such that incoming fluid to be filtered is deflected and enters the nonwoven filter element, said fluid then flowing through the nonwoven filter element and afterward exiting the filter element as filtered liquid; a housing in which the nonwoven filter element is enclosable and including an inlet, disposed at a bottom of the arrangement, for the incoming fluid to enter the arrangement, and an outlet, also disposed at the bottom of the arrangement, for filtered said filtered fluid to exit the arrangement, wherein the incoming fluid flows upward from the inlet between an outer portion of the nonwoven filter element and the housing toward the upper region of the arrangement, and from there flows through the nonwoven filter element; a resealable sealed connection formed between the housing and the first cover; a bottom plate supported at a lower region of the arrangement; and a rotatable device by which the first cover is releasable from the housing to permit removal of the first cover, the nonwoven filter element, the core and the bottom plate from the housing; wherein said elongated core is secured at a first end to said first cover; wherein said elongate core has a second end opposing said first end, said second end having a catch connection, said catch connection engaging said bottom plate of said filter element, said catch connection mounting said filter element to said core; wherein the nonwoven filter element is configured such that the filtered fluid collects in a collection area defined between said bottom plate and the nonwoven filter element and flows from the collection area radially inward between the nonwoven filter element and the bottom plate to the outlet, the bottom plate is connected to the nonwoven filter element by an adhesive, the bottom plate and the nonwoven filter element attached to the first cover are configured for insertion into the housing, and the core defines said catch connectable with the bottom plate connecting the bottom plate and core together.