ABSORBENT ARTICLE

• US 20110288514A1
• Filed: 12/24/2009
• Published: 11/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Original Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Inventors: Nakajima, Osamu, Noda, Yuki, Komatsu, Shinpei, Kuroda, Kenichiro
• Granted Patent: US 8,993,832 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 604/380
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/4704 having preferential bending zones, e.g. fold lines or grooves
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/47245 with asymmetry around the x or y axis
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/4756 the means consisting of grooves, e.g. channels, depressions or embossments, resulting in a heterogeneous surface level
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/533 having discontinuous areas of compression

Abstract

Described is an absorbent article that includes at least a liquid-permeable sheet, a liquid-impermeable sheet, and an absorption body sandwiched between the liquid-permeable sheet and the liquid-impermeable sheet. A pair of right and left compressed grooves are formed along the longitudinal direction. Each compressed groove is separated into a right or left compressed groove located in the longitudinal side edge part at least in the center region of the absorption body, a front-side compressed groove located in the longitudinal front part of the side edge part, and a rear-side compressed groove located in the longitudinal rear part of the side edge part and out of these compressed grooves. The compressed groove located on the widthwise innermost side is formed to allow its end part in the separation portion to run in parallel with the longitudinal centerline or face outwardly in the width direction.

Claims

1. An absorbent article comprising at least a liquid-permeable sheet, a liquid-impermeable sheet, and an absorption body sandwiched between said liquid-permeable sheet and said liquid-impermeable sheet, wherein

a pair of right and left compressed grooves are formed along the longitudinal direction on the skin-contact surface side of said absorbent article, each compressed groove is separated into a right or left compressed groove located in the longitudinal side edge part at least in the center region of the absorption body, a front-side compressed groove located in the longitudinal front part of said side edge part, and a rear-side compressed groove located in the longitudinal rear part of said side edge part and out of these compressed grooves, the compressed groove located on the widthwise innermost side is formed to allow its end part in the separation portion so as to run in parallel with the longitudinal centerline or face outwardly in the width direction.

2. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein widthwise overlap of end parts is provided between said right or left compressed groove and said front-side compressed groove and between said right or left compressed groove and said rear-side compressed groove.

3. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein the distance between right and left compressed grooves at the position corresponding to a body fluid discharge port is larger than the distance between front end parts of the right and left compressed grooves or the distance between rear end parts of the right and left compressed grooves.

4. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein a transverse compressed groove traversing the longitudinal centerline is provided between front end parts of said right and left compressed grooves and/or between rear end parts of said right and left compressed grooves.

5. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein said transverse compressed groove is provided between said front-side compressed grooves and between said rear-side compressed grooves and the rigidity of the compressed groove part provided between said rear-side compressed grooves is lower than the rigidity of the compressed groove part provided between said front-side compressed grooves.

6. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein said front-side compressed groove and said rear-side compressed groove are connected to form a convex curve outwardly in the longitudinal direction.

7. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of point-like compressed parts are disposed at intervals in the region almost surrounded by said right and left compressed grooves, said front-side compressed groove and said rear-side compressed groove.

8. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein all of said compressed grooves consist of a high-compressed part and a low-compressed part and said high-compressed part is composed of transverse high-compressed part regions formed to almost fully traverse the compressed groove in the widthwise direction and disposed at intervals in the longitudinal direction of the compressed groove and non-transverse high-compressed part regions formed not to traverse the compressed groove and disposed at intervals between said regions.

9. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein said low-compressed part is formed to continue in the longitudinal direction of the compressed groove between transverse high-compressed part regions.