Disposable wearing article having multilayered core comprising convex gaps and v-shaped cutouts

• US 7,329,246 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2004
• Issued: 02/12/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Original Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Inventors: Kinoshita, Akiyoshi, Yagi, Akiko, Ono, Yoshio, Tsuji, Tomoko
• Primary Examiner(s): Zalukaeva; Tatyana
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chapman; Ginger
• Application Number:
  US10/850,445
• Publication Number:
  US 20050148988A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,362 Days
• Field of Search: 604/383, 604/396, 604/385.101, 604/385.23, 604/385.12, 604378-380, 604/385.01, D24/124, D24/126
• US Class Current: 604/396
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/4946 the edge leakage prevention means being an absorbent medium A61F13/49426 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/496 in the form of pants or briefs
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/5323 having absorbent material located in discrete regions, e.g. pockets
• 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

Abstract

Here is disclosed a disposable pull-on wearing article improved so that a body fluid absorbent core may be curved about a crotch region toward front and rear waist regions without forming thick creases creating a feeling of discomfort against a wearer, and wherein a concavity bulging downward may be quickly formed in the crotch region as the core is curved.

The article includes a body fluid absorbent core which includes a first core lying on a transverse middle of a crotch region and a pair of second cores lying on both sides of the first core. Front and rear end portions of the respective second cores are spaced apart from the first core by slit-like gaps and intermediate portions extending between the front and rear end portions are contiguous to the first core. Outer side edges of the respective second cores are formed with laid down V-shape cutouts.

Claims

1. A disposable pull-on wearing article having a longitudinal axis and a transverse axis, said article comprising:

a front waist region;

a rear waist region;

a crotch region;

an outer cover;

a body fluid absorbent panel being bonded at a transversely middle zone thereof and at longitudinally opposite ends to said outer cover and extending over said crotch region further into said front and rear waist regions, said body fluid absorbent panel having a longitudinal direction extending toward said front and rear waist regions and a transverse direction crossing said longitudinal direction,

said body fluid absorbent panel comprising a body fluid absorbent core having an inner surface facing a wearer'"'"'s skin and an outer surface facing away from said wearer'"'"'s skin and a liquid-pervious sheet covering at least said inner surface of said inner surface and facing said wearer'"'"'s skin;

said core traversing said crotch region and extending into said front waist region and into said rear waist region, and comprising a central portion extending longitudinally from said front waist region through said crotch region into said rear waist region, said core also comprising two lateral portions, each lying on opposite lateral sides of said central portion;

said lateral portions each having a front end region, a rear end region and an intermediate region between front and rear end regions as viewed in said longitudinal direction;

said front and rear end regions being spaced apart from said central portion by front and rear pairs of slit-like gaps formed in said core between said central portion and said lateral portions and extending in an arc from lateral edges of said core toward said longitudinal axis and toward said transverse axis, and said intermediate region of each lateral portion being contiguous to and continuous with said central portion;

wherein an outer side edge of said intermediate region of each lateral portion defines a plurality of V shaped cutouts whose vertices point toward said longitudinal axis, and whose sides diverge from one another as they extend away from said longitudinal axis; and

said body fluid absorbent panel being provided in a vicinity of said outer side edges with elastic members extending in a stretched state in said longitudinal direction.

2. The disposable pull-on wearing article according to claim 1, wherein said elastic members include at least one pair of thread- or ribbon-like elastomer extending across said cutouts in said longitudinal direction along said outer side edges.

3. The disposable pull-on wearing article according to claim 1, wherein said core has inner and outer surfaces thereof wrapped with a liquid absorbent and spreading sheet and sections of said liquid absorbent and spreading sheet respectively covering said inner and outer surfaces are not bonded together in said slit-like gaps.

4. The disposable pull-on wearing article according to claim 1, further comprising an outer cover having a resistance against permeation of body fluids and serving as a chassis for said absorbent panel so that said absorbent panel extends over said crotch region and further extends into said front and rear waist regions on said outer cover.

5. The disposable pull-on wearing article according to claim 4, wherein said outer cover is of annular configuration.

6. A disposable pull-on wearing article having a longitudinal axis and a transverse axis, said article comprising:

a front waist region;

a rear waist region;

a crotch region;

an outer cover;

a body fluid absorbent panel being bonded at a transversely middle zone thereof and at longitudinally opposite ends thereof to said outer cover and extending over said crotch region further into said front and rear waist regions;

said body fluid absorbent panel comprising a body fluid absorbent core having an inner surface facing a wearer'"'"'s skin and an outer surface facing away from said wearer'"'"'s skin and a liquid-pervious sheet covering at least said inner surface of said inner and outer surfaces and facing said wearer'"'"'s skin;

said core traversing said crotch region and extending into said front waist region and comprising a center segment and two lateral segments, each lying on opposite lateral sides of said central segment and which are shorter in dimensions than said central segment in a longitudinal direction along said longitudinal axis;

said lateral segments respectively having front end portions, rear end portions and intermediate portions extending between these front and rear end portions as viewed in said longitudinal direction;

said front and rear end portions of said lateral segments being spaced apart from said central segment by front and rear pairs of slit-like gaps formed in said core between said central segment and respective said lateral segments and extending in an arc from lateral edges of said core toward said longitudinal axis in the longitudinal direction of said longitudinal axis, and said intermediate portions of said lateral segments being contiguous to said central segment;

said intermediate portion being formed along said transversely opposite outer side edges thereof between terminal ends of said slit-like gaps with laid down V-shape cutouts whose vertices point toward said longitudinal axis, and whose sides diverge from one another as they extend away from said longitudinal axis; and

said body fluid absorbent panel being provided in a vicinity of said outer side edges with elastic members extending in a stretched state in said longitudinal direction.

7. The disposable pull-on wearing article according to claim 6, wherein opposite lateral sides of said center segment gradually diverge from one another with distance from said longitudinal axis.

8. A disposable pull-on wearing article having a longitudinal axis and a transverse axis, said article comprising:

a front waist region;

a rear waist region;

a crotch region;

a body fluid absorbent panel extending over said crotch region into said front and rear waist regions;

said body fluid absorbent panel comprising a body fluid absorbent core;

said core extends over said crotch region and into said front and rear waist regions, said core comprising a central portion, extending longitudinally from said front waist region through said crotch region into said rear waist region, said central portion having a transverse width that gradually increases with distance away from a center of said crotch region so that said transverse width of said central portion is greater in said front waist region and said rear waist region than in said crotch region;

said core also comprising two lateral portions, each lying on opposite lateral sides of said central portion;

said lateral portions being shorter in a longitudinal direction than said central portion, and being continuous with said central portion in at least a region of said transverse axis;

said intermediate region of each said lateral portions being continuous with said central portion,

wherein lateral edges of said core define forward and rearward pairs of channels extending in arcs toward said longitudinal and transverse axes and which together define a partial border between said center segment and said lateral segments, and

wherein outside lateral edges of said lateral portions define a plurality of V-shaped cutouts whose vertices point toward said longitudinal axis, and whose sides diverge from one another as they extend away from said longitudinal axis.