Absorbent core with absorbent material pattern

• US 10,441,481 B2
• Filed: 05/05/2015
• Issued: 10/15/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
• Original Assignee: The Procter & Gamble Company
• Inventors: Bianchi, Ernesto Gabriel, Jackels, Hans Adolf
• Primary Examiner(s): Marcetich, Adam
• Assistant Examiner(s): Arble, Jessica R
• Application Number:
  US14/703,973
• Publication Number:
  US 20150342801A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,624 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/15634 Making fibrous pads between sheets or webs
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/15642 by depositing continuous layers or pads of fibrous material on single sheets or webs
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/1565 by depositing continuous layers of fibrous material between webs, e.g. wrapping layers of fibrous material
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/15674 by wrapping webs or pads between webs moving in their longitudinal direction
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/5323 having absorbent material located in discrete regions, e.g. pockets
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/534 having an inhomogeneous composition through the thickness of the pad A61F13/538, A61F13/539 take precedence; homogeneous cores with tissue wrapping A61F13/53
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/535 inhomogeneous in the plane of the pad, e.g. core absorbent layers being of different sizes A61F13/5323, A61F13/537 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/538 characterised by specific fibre orientation or weave
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/539 characterised by the connection of the absorbent layers with each other or with the outer layers
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2013/530481 having superabsorbent materials, i.e. highly absorbent polymer gel materials
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2013/5349 being a tissue-wrapped core
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2013/5386 by the fibre orientation in the z plane or vertical direction

Abstract

A substantially planar absorbent core (28) extending in a transversal direction (x) and a longitudinal direction (y), and comprising a core wrap (16, 16′) enclosing an absorbent material (60) substantially free of cellulose fibers, the absorbent material forming a pattern of discrete absorbent material areas. The pattern comprises transversally-orientated areas (752) and longitudinally-orientated areas (754). The absorbent core may further comprise at least two longitudinally-orientated channel-forming areas (26).

Claims

1. A substantially planar absorbent core extending in a transversal direction and a longitudinal direction, having a width in the transversal direction and a length in the longitudinal direction, and comprising a core wrap enclosing an absorbent material substantially free of cellulose fibers, the absorbent material forming a pattern of discrete absorbent material areas which comprises transversally-oriented-areas and longitudinally-oriented areas, wherein some of the discrete absorbent material areas are separated by unbonded areas wherein a top side of the core wrap is unbonded to a bottom side of the core wrap, and other of the discrete absorbent material areas are separated by bonded areas wherein the top side of the core wrap is bonded to the bottom side of the core wrap, and wherein at least one bonded area interrupts at least one longitudinally-oriented area.

2. The absorbent core of claim 1, wherein the absorbent core comprises a longitudinal axis, a front region, a middle region and a back region, these three regions being of equal length in the longitudinal direction as measured on the longitudinal axis, and at least some of the transversally-oriented areas are comprised in at least one of the back region and the front region.

3. The absorbent core of claim 2, wherein at least some of the longitudinally-oriented areas are comprised in the middle region of the absorbent core.

4. The absorbent core of claim 1, wherein at least some of the transversally-oriented areas have a dimension in the transversal direction which is at least 20% of the width of the absorbent core.

5. The absorbent core of claim 4, wherein at least some of the transversally-oriented areas have a dimension in the transversal direction which is from 25% to 99% of the width of the absorbent core.

6. The absorbent core of claim 1, wherein at least some of the longitudinally-oriented areas have a dimension in the longitudinal direction which is at least 15% of the length of the absorbent core.

7. The absorbent core of claim 1, wherein the absorbent material consists of superabsorbent polymer particles.

8. The absorbent core of claim 1, wherein the absorbent material is macroscopically profiled in the longitudinal direction.

9. The absorbent core of claim 8, wherein a basis weight of the absorbent material is higher in the middle region of the core than in the front region or back region.

10. The absorbent core of claim 1, further comprising a thermoplastic adhesive material to immobilize at least some of the absorbent material within the core wrap.

11. The absorbent core of claim 10 comprising an auxiliary glue on one of an inner side of the top side of the core wrap or the bottom side of the core wrap.

12. An absorbent article comprising the absorbent core of claim 1.

13. A substantially planar absorbent core extending in a transversal direction and a longitudinal direction, having a width in the transversal direction and a length in the longitudinal direction, and comprising a core wrap enclosing an absorbent material substantially free of cellulose fibers, the absorbent material forming a pattern of discrete absorbent material areas which comprises transversally-oriented areas and longitudinally-oriented areas, wherein some of the discrete absorbent material areas are separated by unbonded areas wherein a top side of the core wrap is unbonded to a bottom side of the core wrap, and other of the discrete absorbent material areas are separated by bonded areas wherein the top side of the core wrap is bonded to the bottom side of the core wrap, and wherein at least one unbonded area is adjacent to at least one bonded area.

14. A substantially planar absorbent core extending in a transversal direction and a longitudinal direction, having a width in the transversal direction and a length in the longitudinal direction, and comprising a core wrap enclosing an absorbent material substantially free of cellulose fibers, the absorbent material forming a pattern of discrete absorbent material areas which comprises transversally-oriented areas and longitudinally-oriented areas, wherein some of the discrete absorbent material areas are separated by unbonded areas wherein a top side of the core wrap is unbonded to a bottom side of the core wrap, and other of the discrete absorbent material areas are separated by bonded areas wherein the top side of the core wrap is bonded to the bottom side of the core wrap, and wherein at least one bonded area interrupts at least one transversally-oriented area.