Sanitary napkin

• US 7,708,725 B2
• Filed: 06/07/2004
• Issued: 05/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Original Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Inventors: Tanio, Toshiyuki, Kinoshita, Masataka, Tamagawa, Noritatsu, Nishitani, Kazuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Zalukaeva; Tatyana
• Assistant Examiner(s): ANDERSON, CATHARINE L
• Application Number:
  US10/862,928
• Publication Number:
  US 20040260263A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,157 Days
• Field of Search: 60438504-38505, 60438525-38528, 604/385.101, 604/380
• US Class Current: 604/385.04
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/4704 having preferential bending zones, e.g. fold lines or grooves
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/4751 the means preventing fluid flow in a transversal direction
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/4753 the barrier being not integral with the topsheet or backsheet
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/5616 using flaps, e.g. adhesive, for attachment to the undergarment leakage prevention means encirculing the crotch portion A61F13/476
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2013/4706 enlarged in the anal area
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2013/583 with strips on several places
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2013/586 on lateral flaps

Abstract

A sanitary napkin that is provided with large rear flaps to effectively prevent liquid from leaking obliquely rearward. The rear flaps are disposed rearward of fold-back flaps to be wrapped around a crotch part of an undergarment. The rear flap is of a shape spreading rearwardly from a starting point. With a pressure from the thighs acting forward of the starting point, leakage preventing walls forward of the starting point can be maintained in a rising state during wear. On the other hand, the leakage preventing walls rearward of the starting point may possibly fall outward. However, even if the leakage preventing walls fall outward rearward of the starting point, they will never project out of the rear flaps. Accordingly, they hardly leave a stain on an undergarment.

Claims

1. A sanitary napkin comprising:

an elongated main body having a skin-side surface and a garment-side surface and including

a liquid absorbent layer;

a pair of leakage preventing walls disposed on the skin-side surface of the main body and extending longitudinally of the main body in parallel with each other; and

a pressure-sensitive adhesive layer disposed on the garment-side surface of the main body for adhering to an inner surface of an undergarment,

the main body having a front portion with front flaps projecting from transversely opposing sides thereof, each front flap having a first starting point disposed on each of opposing side edge portions of the sanitary napkin from which a width of the sanitary napkin starts to increase and a first spreading portion in which the width gradually increases forward from the first starting point,

the main body further having a rear portion with rear flaps projecting from transversely opposing sides thereof, each rear flap having a second starting point disposed on each of the opposing side edge portions of the sanitary napkin from which a width of the sanitary napkin starts to increase and a second spreading portion in which the width gradually increases rearward from the second starting point,

each of the pair of leakage preventing walls having

a sheet that is folded and fixed to the skin-side surface of the main body to have a longitudinally extending rising base, and

an elastic member that is so tensioned between longitudinal front and rear ends of the leakage preventing wall as to raise the sheet from the skin-side surface, the rear end of the leakage preventing wall being located rearward of the second starting point of the rear flap, wherein,

when one of the leakage preventing walls is fully stretched transversely outward from between its longitudinal front and rear ends, the stretched sheet of the leakage preventing wall projects transversely outward beyond one of the first starting points of the front flaps and one of the second starting points of the rear flaps, and

when the one leakage preventing wall is stretched transversely outward within an area between the one second starting point and the rear end of the one leakage preventing wall, while being restrained from being stretched transversely outward within an area between the one second starting point and the front end of the one leakage preventing wall, the stretched sheet of the leakage preventing wall is prevented from projecting beyond an edge of the second spreading portion of the rear flap.

2. A sanitary napkin according to claim 1, wherein, when fully stretched transversely outward, the sheet of the leakage preventing wall is prevented from projecting beyond the edge of the second spreading portion of the rear flap at a position spaced 80±

10 mm apart rearwardly from a transverse reference line on which the sanitary napkin is intended to face a center of the vaginal opening.

3. A sanitary napkin according to claim 1, wherein rearward of the second spreading portion, the rear flap has an intermediate portion with a linear side edge extending longitudinally over a length equal to or greater than 60 mm.

4. A sanitary napkin according to claim 3, wherein the linear side edge is parallel with a longitudinal centerline of the sanitary napkin.

5. A sanitary napkin according to claim 3, wherein the linear side edge is so inclined as to come closer to a longitudinal centerline of the sanitary napkin rearwardly.

6. A sanitary napkin according to claim 3, wherein W1/L1 is equal to or greater than 0.7, where L1 represents a length from the second starting point to a front end of the linear side edge and W1 represents a width from second the starting point to the front end of the linear side edge.

7. A sanitary napkin according to claim 1, wherein the skin-side surface of the main body has an elongated main absorbent region that is surrounded by a compressed groove and intended to face the wearer'"'"'s body from the vaginal opening to the cleft of the buttocks, wherein

the main absorbent region has a rear end that is not spaced more than 20 mm apart longitudinally from the rear end of the leakage preventing wall.

8. A sanitary napkin according to claim 1, wherein when fully developed transversely outward, the sheet of the leakage preventing wall has a maximum width of 20 to 50 mm from the rising base.

9. A sanitary napkin according to claim 1, which has a length equal to or greater than 400 mm and a width equal to or greater than 180 mm between the linear side edges of the rear flaps.

10. A sanitary napkin according to claim 1, wherein the leakage preventing wall is accordion-folded at two fold lines, the accordion-folded wall being operable to unfold obliquely upward to upwardly extend a skin-contacting panel of the leakage preventing wall.

11. A sanitary napkin according to claim 3, wherein the lateral distance from a longitudinal centerline of the sanitary napkin to the linear side edge of each one of the rear flaps is greater than a maximum distance from the longitudinal centerline to a side edge of a corresponding one of the front flaps.