Air dryer housing, air dryer assembly, compressed-air supply system, and vehicle

1 . An air dryer housing comprising:

a desiccant container having a chamber fillable with desiccant and having a desiccant side;

a port device configured to connect said air dryer housing to a compressed-air supply providing a compressed-air flow;

said port device being connectable in a pressure-tight manner to said desiccant container on said desiccant side thereof;

said port device having, at said desiccant side, a valve body projecting into said chamber of said desiccant container;

a valve piston movable in said valve body;

said valve body and said valve piston conjointly defining a ventilation valve unit configured as a pneumatic relay valve;

said port device having a system-side port side and said port device being connectable to a compressed-air supply system; and,

said valve piston being movable between a first position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a first direction and a second position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a second direction.

2 . The air dryer housing of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the following applies:

i) said port device integrally forms said valve body;

ii) said ventilation valve unit projects entirely into said desiccant container;

and,

iii) said ventilation valve unit is arranged entirely within said desiccant container.

3 . The air dryer housing of claim 1 , wherein said air dryer housing is configured for a double-chamber air dryer; and, said desiccant container defines a container interior space partitioned into a first chamber and a second chamber.

4 . The air dryer housing of claim 3 , further comprising a web extending along a longitudinal extent of said desiccant container wherein said first chamber and said second chamber are pneumatically connected via at least one opening in said web.

5 . The air dryer housing of claim 3 , wherein said port device has a first port connection piece and a second port connection piece; said first port connection piece has a first preload spring receptacle; and, said second port connection piece is formed by said valve body.

6 . The air dryer housing of claim 1 , wherein:

said port device defines a port flange having at least one pneumatic port in the form of at least one of the following: a compressor port, a pneumatics port, a ventilation port, and a regeneration port; and, said at least one pneumatic port is configured as a recess in the form of at least one channel and/or at least one bore formed in said port device or on a port side.

7 . The air dryer housing of claim 6 , wherein:

said port device is configured as a port assembly having a dryer flange and a compressor flange;

said at least one pneumatic port in said dryer flange is assigned a corresponding pneumatic remote port in said compressor flange; and,

each pneumatic port is pneumatically connected to respective pneumatic remote ports via corresponding connecting lines.

8 . The air dryer housing of claim 1 , wherein said valve body has a valve body diameter that is less than a desiccant container diameter of the desiccant container, such that, in a radial intermediate space between said valve body and said desiccant container, there is formed a flow gap is formed for guiding said compressed-air flow past said valve body.

9 . The air dryer housing of claim 1 , wherein:

said valve piston has a relay surface and a switching surface;

said relay surface is larger than said switching surface;

said valve piston is of stepped cylindrical configuration; and,

said compressed air is applied to said relay surface via a regeneration port to move said valve piston into a regeneration position wherein said switching surface lifts off from a ventilation valve seat of said valve body.

10 . The air dryer housing of claim 1 , wherein:

said valve body has a covering diaphragm fastened pressure-tight to said valve body to form a valve interior space; and,

said covering diaphragm has, on a side facing toward the valve interior space, a restoring spring receptacle for receiving a restoring spring and/or, on a side averted from said valve interior space, a preload spring receptacle for receiving a preload spring, wherein the preload spring is configured to apply a preload force to the desiccant.

11 . The air dryer housing of claim 10 , further comprising a second preload spring receptacle for receiving a second preload spring.

12 . The air dryer housing of claim 9 , wherein a damping cushion is arranged between said ventilation valve seat and said switching surface and is formed from an elastomer; and/or, a damping disk is arranged between said valve piston and a covering diaphragm and is formed from an elastomer.

13 . An air dryer arrangement comprising:

an air dryer housing including:

a desiccant container having a chamber fillable with desiccant and having a desiccant side;

a port device configured to connect said air dryer housing to a compressed-air supply providing a compressed-air flow;

said port device being connectable in a pressure-tight manner to said desiccant container on said desiccant side thereof;

said port device having, at said desiccant side, a valve body projecting into said chamber of said desiccant container;

a valve piston movable in said valve body;

said valve body and said valve piston conjointly defining a ventilation valve unit configured as a pneumatic relay valve;

said port device having a system-side port side and said port device being connectable to a compressed-air supply system; and,

said valve piston being movable between a first position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a first direction and a second position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a second direction;

said air dryer arrangement further comprising:

a regeneration switching valve configured as a 2/2 directional solenoid valve; and,

said regeneration switching valve being configured to selectively establish a pneumatic connection between a pneumatics main line and a regeneration port.

14 . An air dryer arrangement comprising:

an air dryer housing including:

a desiccant container having a chamber fillable with desiccant and having a desiccant side;

a compressed-air supply;

a port device configured to connect said air dryer housing to said compressed-air supply providing a compressed-air flow;

said port device being connectable in a pressure-tight manner to said desiccant container on said desiccant side thereof;

said port device having, at said desiccant side, a valve body projecting into said desiccant container;

a valve piston movable in said valve body;

said valve body and said valve piston conjointly defining a ventilation valve unit configured as a pneumatic relay valve;

said port device having a system-side port side and said port device being connectable to a compressed-air supply system;

said valve piston being movable between a first position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a first direction and a second position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a second direction;

said desiccant being in loose and/or granular form;

said port device being configured to connect said air dryer housing to said compressed-air supply with said compressed-air supply being the compressed-air supply system for operating a pneumatic system; and,

said compressed-air supply being the compressed-air supply system for operating a pneumatics system with said compressed-air flow.

15 . A compressed-air supply system for providing a compressed-air supply to a pneumatic system including an air spring system of a vehicle, the compressed-air supply system comprising:

an air dryer housing; and,

said air dryer housing including:

a desiccant container having a chamber fillable with desiccant and having a desiccant side;

a port device configured to connect said air dryer housing for providing a compressed-air flow;

said port device being connectable in a pressure-tight manner to said desiccant container on said desiccant side thereof;

said port device having, at said desiccant side, a valve body projecting into said chamber of said desiccant container;

a valve piston movable in said valve body;

said valve body and said valve piston conjointly defining a ventilation valve unit configured as a pneumatic relay valve;

said port device having a system-side port side and said port device being connectable to said compressed-air supply system; and,

said valve piston being movable between a first position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a first direction and a second position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a second direction.

16 . A vehicle having a pneumatic system including an air spring system, the vehicle comprising:

an air dryer housing including:

a desiccant container having a chamber fillable with desiccant and having a desiccant side;

a port device configured to connect said air dryer housing to a compressed-air supply providing a compressed-air flow;

said port device being connectable in a pressure-tight manner to said desiccant container on said desiccant side thereof;

said port device having, at said desiccant side, a valve body projecting into said chamber of said desiccant container;

a valve piston movable in said valve body;

said valve body and said valve piston conjointly defining a ventilation valve unit configured as a pneumatic relay valve;

said port device having a system-side port side and said port device being connectable to a compressed-air supply system; and,

said valve piston being movable between a first position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a first direction and a second position wherein said compressed-air flow passes through said desiccant container in a second direction.