Disposable diaper

• US 20020115979A1
• Filed: 11/13/2001
• Published: 08/22/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Original Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Inventors: Ikeda, Miyuki, Mishima, Yoshitaka
• Granted Patent: US 6,685,690 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 604/385.101
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/15203 Properties of the article, e.g. stiffness or absorbency chemical aspects A61L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/49011 the elastic means is located at the waist region
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/49466 the edge leakage prevention means being at the waist region

Abstract

A disposable diaper has a plate-like member which is and flexible and substantially non-stretchable and attached to an end flap in a rear waist region and extends in a transverse direction of the diaper. The plate-like member has stiffness higher than that of the end flap so that shrinkage and/or distortion of the end flap can be restrained by the plate-like member.

Claims

1. A disposable diaper comprising a liquid-pervious topsheet, a liquid-impervious backsheet and a liquid-absorbent core disposed between these sheets so as to define, a front waist region, a rear waist region and a crotch region extending between these waist regions, and a pair of end flaps extending outward in a longitudinal direction of said diaper from longitudinally opposite ends of said core lying in said front and rear waist regions:

said disposable diaper further comprising a plate-like member which is flexible and substantially non-stretchable and is attached to an end flap at least in a rear waist region to extend in a transverse direction and has stiffness higher than that of the end flap.

2. The disposable diaper according to claim 1, wherein an elastic member associated with a waist-opening being stretchable in said transverse direction is secured under tension to said end flap at least in said rear waist region and said plate-like member lies between said end of said core and said elastic member associated with the waist-opening.

3. The disposable diaper according to claim 1, wherein said plate-like member has transversely opposite side portions and an intermediate portion extending between said transversely opposite side portions and wherein inner surface of said plate-like member facing a wearer'"'"'s skin curves from said transversely opposite side portions toward said intermediate portion so as to describe circular arcs going far off from the wearer'"'"'s skin.

4. The disposable diaper according to claim 3, wherein said intermediate portion of said plate-like member is formed to be convex toward the wearer'"'"'s skin.

5. The diaper according to claim 1, wherein said plate-like member is made of foamable polyethylene and has stiffness of about 0.5 mN·

cm˜

150 mN·

cm as measured by Gurley'"'"'s Stiffness Test.