Disposable absorbent article having doubled side flaps and backsheet strips

[0001] The present invention relates to disposable absorbent articles, such as disposable diapers and other articles intended for incontinents.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] Disposable absorbent articles are designed to absorb and retain excretions and prevent soiling of the user's body and clothing, as well as bedding and other objects with which the user contacts, for example US 4892528, US 20040236299.

[0003] As disposable absorbent articles are used more and more often, their complexity increases with the use of additional features improving their parameters and appearance. The costs of materials and manufacturing processes also increase as complexity increases. As a result, sales prices for these products have risen to a level that many potential buyers around the world cannot afford. There is therefore a need to develop a simple disposable absorbent article.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0004] A disposable absorbent article includes two diagonally opposite, extending along the backing strips connected to the outer surface of the absorbent assembly in transversely opposite joining zones. Each strip of backing layer may comprise a water impermeable layer and may be stretchable. The absorbent assembly has a lower top layer doubled by its folding, therefore it includes a first layer and a second layer. The absorbent assembly further includes laterally opposite lateral flaps, which are formed by folded inwardly and doubled parts of the bottom cover layer. A longitudinal flexible collecting element is attached to each side flap at its proximal edge. When the product is worn, the flexible collection elements shorten and lift the side flaps to form side barriers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0005] In the accompanying drawings, the respective reference numbers designate structurally corresponding elements that may be identical, but need not be, in the few examples given. Some drawings may have been simplified by omitting selected elements to make other elements visible. Such omission of elements in some drawings does not necessarily prove the presence or absence of the element in one embodiment, unless explicitly indicated in the relevant description.

[0006] In the drawings and description, lowercase letters next to a reference number generally indicate symmetrical elements, e.g. the left and right side edges of the absorbent assembly 200 are designated by reference numbers 237a and 237b, respectively. The reference number without a lowercase letter identifies all the elements to which this reference number applies, e.g. the same side edges as a group are marked 237.

Figure 1 is a plan view of an exemplary disposable diaper 20 shown in its flat, uncontracted state (i.e., without contraction caused by elastic elements). In Figure 1, the inner portion of the diaper 20 is on the viewer's side.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the outer portion of the diaper 20 of Figure 1.

Figure 3, Figure 4 and Figure 5 are cross-sections of the diaper 20 of Figure 1 and Figure 2 along respective section lines 3-3, 4-4 and 5-5. In these sections, the inner portion of the diaper 20 points upwards.

Figure 6, Figure 7 and Figure 8 respectively represent a simplified side, front and back view of the diaper 20 of Figure 1 worn around the lower torso of the wearer's body.

Figure 9 is a plan view of an example of a fragment of formed woven material.

Figure 10 and Figure 11 are a simplified elevational view of the left and right of an exemplary diaper 20 containing cohesive attachment patches, worn around the lower torso of the user.

Figure 12 is a simplified plan view of another exemplary disposable diaper 20 shown in its flat, uncontracted state, with the inner portion facing the viewer.

Figure 13 is a simplified plan view of the outer portion of the diaper 20 of Figure 12.

Figure 14 is a perspective view of an exemplary diaper 20 shown in a relaxed, contracted state, with the inner portion facing up.

Figure 15 is a plan view of an exemplary absorbent assembly 200 shown separately from other parts of the exemplary diaper whose inner portion is directed toward the viewer.

Figure 16 is a section of the absorbent assembly of Figure 15 along section line 16-16.

Figure 17 is a view of the absorbent assembly of Figure 15 along section line 17-17.

Figure 18 is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary absorbent assembly 200 showing details of an exemplary absorbent core having superabsorbent particles contained within pockets.

Figure 19 is a cross-section of an exemplary absorbent assembly 200 having an additional bottom layer 226 along a section line corresponding to section line 4-4 of Figure 1.

Figure 20 is a plan view of another exemplary disposable diaper 20 shown in its flat, uncontracted state, with the inner portion facing the viewer.

Figure 21 is a plan view of another exemplary disposable diaper 20 shown in its flat, uncontracted state, with the inner portion facing the viewer.

Figure 22 is a plan view of the outer portion of the diaper 20 of Figure 1.

Figure 23 is a cross-sectional view of the diaper 20 of Figure 21 and Figure 22 along section line 23-23, with the inner portion facing up.

Figure 24 is a plan view of another exemplary disposable diaper 20 shown in its flat, uncontracted state, with the inner portion facing the viewer.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0007] The following terms as used herein have the meanings set out below:

[0008] The term "absorbent article" means articles that absorb and retain liquid; more precisely, it means products which are placed on or near the body of the user in order to absorb and retain various excretions.

[0009] The term "diaper" means an absorbent article generally worn by infants and incontinence persons on the lower torso, so that it surrounds the wearer's waist and legs, particularly adapted to the collection and retention of urine and feces.

[0010] The term "disposable" refers to the nature of absorbent articles that generally should not be washed or otherwise restored or reused (i.e. they must be discarded after one use, preferably recycled, composted or otherwise removed) not harmful to the environment).

[0011] The term "longitudinal" means the direction from the waist edge to the opposite waist edge of the product and generally parallel to the maximum linear dimension of the product. Directions within 45 ° of the longitudinal direction are considered "longitudinal".

[0012] The term "transverse" means the direction from the side edge to the opposite side edge of the product and generally perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. Directions within 45 ° of the lateral direction are considered "lateral".

[0013] The term "positioned" means that the element is attached and positioned in a certain place or position in a uniform structure with other elements.

[0014] The term "attached" means elements joined or joined by fastening, attachment, joining etc. by any method suitable for the joined elements and the materials from which they are made. Many suitable methods of joining elements are well known, including adhesive bonding, pressure bonding, welding, mechanical bonding, etc.

Such joining methods can be used to connect elements in a specific area continuously or discontinuously.

[0015] The term "cohesive" means a property of a material that, when formed, adheres to itself, but does not adhere more to other materials.

[0016] The terms "water-permeable" and "water-impermeable" mean the permeability of materials in the context of their intended use for disposable absorbent articles. In particular, the term "water-permeable" means a layer or layer structure having pores, openings and / or connected voids that allow liquid water to pass through its thickness without applying pressure. In turn, the term "impermeable to water" means a layer or layer structure through which the thickness of liquid water cannot pass without applying pressure. The water impermeable layer or layer structure according to this definition may be water vapor permeable, ie it may be "water vapor permeable". Such a water vapor permeable layer or layer is often referred to as "breathable" in the art. It is well known in the art that a typical method of measuring water permeability through materials typically used in absorbent articles is a hydrostatic pressure test, also called a water column hydrostatic test or a water column test. Appropriate well-known official methods of testing the water column were approved by INDA (formerly the International Association of Nonwovens and Disposable Products, now the Association of the Nonwovens Industry) and EDANA (European Association of Disposable Products and Nonwovens).

[0017] The terms "proximal" and "distal" mean respectively the position of the element relatively close or far from the center of the structure, e.g. the proximal edge of the longitudinal element is positioned closer to the longitudinal axis than the distal edge of the same element with respect to the same longitudinal axis.

[0018] The terms "interior" and "exterior" mean, respectively, the position of the item to be placed on the body or towards the body of the user while wearing the absorbent article, and of the item that is to be placed on or towards the clothing worn on the absorbent article. Synonyms of the terms 'interior' and 'exterior' are 'internal' and 'external', as well as 'inside' and 'outside' respectively. In addition, if the absorbent article is placed with its inside facing upwards, e.g. prepared to position the user on it, synonyms also include "upper" and "lower", "above" and "below", "above" and "below", and "up" and "down", respectively.

Description of embodiments of the diaper [0019] In this part of the description reference is made to Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3, Figure 4, Figure 5, Figure 6, Figure 7 and Figure 8.

[0020] The portion at one end of the exemplary diaper 20 is designed as the front portion 36 covering the waist, the longitudinally opposite portion at the other end is designed as the rear portion 38 covering the waist, and the intermediate portion as the portion 37 covering the crotch.

[0021] The basic structure of the diaper 20 comprises an absorbent unit 200 with a front edge 236, a rear edge 238, lateral opposite edges 237, an inner surface 202 and an outer surface 204. The longitudinal axis 42 extends between the centers of the front edge 236 and the rear edge 238, and transverse axis 44 extends between the centers of side edges 237. The absorbent assembly 200 includes laterally opposite side flaps 247 and a lower cover layer 25, described in more detail below.

[0022] The basic structure of the diaper 20 further includes two diagonally opposite, extending along the backsheets strips designated as the left bottom layer strip 100a and the right bottom layer strip 100b. The side layer strips have, respectively, a front edge 136 enclosing the waist, a rear edge 138 enclosing the waist, proximal edges 156, inner surfaces 102 and outer surfaces 104. Both strips of the backsheet together define the respective side edges 137 of the diaper 20.

[0023] The side layer strips 100 and the bottom cover layer 25 are joined together in transversely opposite longitudinal joining zones, such as exemplary joining zones 220.

[0024] When the diaper 20 is worn in the lower torso of the wearer, the front edges 136 of the back layer stripes covering the waist, the front edge 236 of the absorbent assembly, the rear edges 138 of the bottom layer stripes covering the waist and the rear edge 238 of the absorbent assembly surround the wearer's waist, side edges 137 surround the user's legs, the part 37 covering the crotch is generally between the user's legs, and the absorbent assembly 200 extends from the front portion 36 of the waist through the portion 37 of the crotch to the rear portion 38 of the waist.

[0025] Part or all of each of the underlayer strips may be formed of elastically stretchable material or materials. Optionally or additionally, part or all of each of the backing strips may be extensible to a greater extent than the natural extensibility of the material or materials from which the backing strip is made. Similarly, part of the absorbent assembly may be formed of elastically stretchable material or materials. Optionally or additionally, part of the absorbent assembly may be more extensible than the natural stretch of the material or materials from which the absorbent assembly is made. Additional stretch may be desirable to allow the diaper 20 to conform to the wearer's body during its movement. Additional transverse stretch may be particularly desirable to allow the diaper user to stretch the front waist portion and / or the back waist portion to surround the wearer's waist, i.e., adjust the waist circumference and diaper to a particular user. Such transverse extension of the enclosing or enclosing portion may impart a piles an overall hourglass shape and may provide customization of the appearance of the diaper being used. In addition, additional stretch may be desirable to minimize the cost of the diaper because a relatively smaller amount of material is needed if the material is stretchable as described.

[0026] In order to fit the wearer's waist, some embodiments use the additional transverse stretch of the absorbent assembly 200 only between the transversely opposite attachment zones 220, so that the absorbent assembly 200 and the underlayer strips 100 are joined instead of the entire absorbent assembly.

[0027] Additional extensibility of the backing strips and / or the absorbent assembly can be obtained in various ways. For example, the material or materials from which they are or can be made are backing strips and / or the absorbent assembly may be corrugated by one of the known methods. Alternatively, all or part of the backing strips and / or the absorbent assembly may be made of woven molded material or molded woven laminate as described in US Patent No. 5,518,801 issued May 21, 1996 to Chappell et al. An exemplary fragment 300 of such formed woven material 305 is shown in Figure 9. Such molded woven material 305 includes discrete laterally projecting portions 310 in which the original material has been altered by extrusion or other deformation to produce longitudinally oriented alternating ridges 312 and cavities 314. The molded woven material 305 further includes laterally projecting unchanged parts 316 between protruding laterally changed parts 310.

[0028] stretched applying stretch

Such a woven material 305 can be transverse to the original dimension after a relatively lower force than required for the same undeformed material to the same extent.

in particular, the application of opposing divergent forces directed generally perpendicular to ridges 312 and depressions 314 extends such formed woven material along an axis between opposing forces and produces a shrinking resistance force, mainly in unchanged regions 316. The resistance force is relatively smaller than the resistance force generated by the same material in unchanged form at stretching to the same extent, at least to the stretch at which the ridges and pits in the changed regions flatten and begin to exert a resistance force. As a result, woven materials have stretch properties similar to traditional elastic materials in the stretch range useful in absorbent articles, but can be made of relatively less expensive materials that are not naturally elastic, so their use may be advantageous in terms of manufacturing cost absorbent products.

In addition, separate parts of the backing strips and / or the absorbent assembly may be formed so that they have a different range of stretch or) are stretchable to a greater or lesser extent after the application of specific opposing tensile forces, i.e. they are relatively easier or harder to stretch. Such different extensibility may be desirable so that, for example, one or both of the waist-covering parts can extend laterally or relatively more easily than the crotch-covering part.

Description of the backing strips [0030] The diaper 20 comprises two opposite in the transverse direction, extending along the backing strips designated as the left backing layer strip 100a and the right backing strip 100b according to figure 1, figure 2, figure 3, figure 4 and figure 5 The backsheets may be formed from a nonwoven, for example a synthetic nonwoven, such as mass formed or carded polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester or rayon. Optionally or additionally, each bottom layer strip may comprise a water impermeable layer formed of a suitable material, e.g. a polyethylene or other polyolefin film, a microporous breathable film, a hydrophobic nonwoven fabric or a film produced from coextruded polyolefin layers. For example, a suitable coextruded film can be purchased from Clopay Plastic Products Co. from Mason, Ohio, USA symbol M18-327. A multi-layer backing strip, for example a film or nonwoven laminate, may also be suitable and oriented towards the non-woven fabric on the outside providing the feel and clothing appearance of the outer layer, relative to the non-woven fabric placed inside to separate the film from the user's skin or nonwoven outside and inside.

[0031] The front waist portion and the back waist portion can be connected in a number of ways to form a waist hole and two leg holes to surround the wearer's waist and legs. For this purpose, for example, separate connecting elements, such as safety pins, separate tapes, a separate strap or connecting straps and / or a separate strap can be used. Optionally or additionally, the fastening elements can be incorporated into a disposable absorbent article to allow the user to place the diaper on the user's body without or using separate fasteners. Many suitable types of such embedded fasteners are well known, including, for example, tapes, adhesives, adhesive tabs, ribbons, buttons, hooks, loops, latches, other types of mechanical fasteners, cohesive patches, etc. Some suitable mechanical fasteners can be adapted to bond the nonwoven fabric, e.g., a nonwoven layer of a laminated bottom layer or a bottom cover layer.

[0032] The fastening of the front waist portion and the rear waist portion can be opened or re-fastened, allowing adjustment of the diaper fit on the wearer and checking the inside of the diaper without removing it completely from the user. The fastener may optionally be permanent, i.e. its opening may require destruction of part of the diaper, e.g., tearing off part of the diaper or tearing of the joined side seams.

[0033] Cohesive attachment patches can be formed by applying coherent material to a substrate. Cohesive material can be applied in a variety of patterns, for example, a continuous film, separate dots, stripes, polygons, etc., and / or spaced or connected geometric elements constituting the grid. Suitable synthetic coherent products can be purchased from Andover Coated Products, Incorporated, Salisbury, Massachusetts, USA; they are described in US Patent No. 6156424 issued December 5, 2000 to Taylor.

[0034] Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3, Figure 5 and Figure 10 and Figure 11 show cohesive attachment patches 110a and 110b on the outer surface of respective strips 100a and 100b in the front portion 36 encompassing the waist. In this embodiment, the functionally complementary cohesive attachment patches 120a and 120b are disposed on the inner surface of the respective backing strips 100a and 100b in the back portion 38 enclosing the waist. If the diaper 20 is worn as shown in Figure 10 and Figure 11, the coherent attachment patches inside coincide with the cohesive attachment patches on the outside, and the coherence of the overlapping cohesive bonding patches causes the front part 36 including the waist and the back part 38 enclosing the waist to connect on the sides of the diaper 20 The configuration shown in these figures has been adapted to be fastened from the back to the front.

[0035] The front cohesive attachment patches may optionally be placed inside the diaper 20, and the rear cohesive attachment patches may be placed outside the diaper 20 to adapt the configuration for fastening from front to back. Cohesive fastening patches may optionally be arranged in a reversible configuration, enabling the user to use both fastening options, i.e. from back to front or front to back, depending on personal preferences. For example, cohesive fastening patches that are located on the outside and inside of the diaper 20 may allow the rear cohesive fastening patch to be applied to the front cohesive fastening patch or the front cohesive fastening patch on the rear coherent fastening patch.

[0036] If the bottom part of the diaper is stretchable, it is preferred that the cohesive attachment patches are similarly stretchable, so that the movement of the bottom part of the stretchable diaper is not restricted.

[0037] Alternatively, adhesive tabs can be attached to the diaper 20 and can be used to connect the back portion 38 covering the waist and the front portion 36 covering the waist. For example, as shown in Figure 12 and Figure 13, transversely facing adhesive tabs 114a and 114b may be attached to the respective backing strips 100a and 100b at or at the side edges 137a and 137b of the diaper 20. Suitable adhesive tapes can be purchased at 3M Corporation, St. Paul, Minnesota,

USA, symbol XMF99121 and Avery Dennison Corporation, Specialty Tape Division, Mentor, Ohio, USA, symbol F4416.

[0038] Optionally, attachment patches used in conjunction with adhesive tabs may also be attached to the diaper 20. For example, the patch patches 116 may be attached to the outer surfaces 104 of the respective backing strips 100 and / or absorbent assembly 200, as shown in Figure 13. If a patch patch is used, adhesive tabs may adhere to the patch patch to connect the back portion 38 including waist and front portion 36 including waist. The connecting patch is used to separate the tensile force transferred by each adhesive tab over an area larger than the contact area of ​​the adhesive tab and can itself transfer part of the tensile force and thereby relieve some of the force exerted on the bottom of the diaper, for example, backing strips. Therefore, for example, the use of such a patch patch may allow the use of a relatively inexpensive and relatively low strength material for the bottom of the diaper. If mechanical fasteners are used instead of adhesive tabs, the connecting patch may have a surface and / or elements engaging with the mechanical fastener, e.g. loops to which the hooks engage. If the bottom part of the diaper is stretchy, it is preferred that the connecting patch is similarly stretchy, so that the movement of the bottom part of the stretchable diaper is not restricted.

Description of the absorbent assembly [0039] As shown in Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3, Figure 4 and Figure 5, the absorbent assembly 200 has laterally opposite side flaps 247 formed by composite parts of the absorbent assembly in the direction of longitudinal axis 42, forming both respective side flaps 247 and side edges 237 of the absorbent assembly 200. The absorbent assembly 200 may simply be loosely folded or may be wrinkled along a portion of each of its side edges 237. For example, it may be advantageous to crease the side edge portion 237 at the perineum portion 37 so that the appearance of the diaper 20 is more refined. Optionally or in addition to wrinkling, a portion of each of the folded side flaps 247 adjacent the side edges 237 may be attached to the inner surface 202 of the absorbent assembly 200 to achieve a similar result. The side flaps can overlap the absorbent body 250, i.e. proximal edges 255 of the side flaps may extend laterally inward of the respective side edges 257 of the absorbent body 250. The side flaps may possibly not overlap the absorbent body.

[0040] In the exemplary diaper 20 shown in Figure 1, the absorbent assembly 200 includes the full length of the backsheets 100 between the front edges 136 including the waist and the rear edges 138 including the waist. This full length configuration may be desirable to minimize the amount of waste material and the difficulties associated with the production of the diaper 20, especially if the method of making the diaper 20 requires the introduction of the material or materials of the absorbent assembly 200 in the form of a continuous material or multiple continuous materials. In addition, such a full length configuration may be desirable to separate the user's skin from the underlayer strips. Optionally, the absorbent assembly 200 may be shorter and include less than the full length of the backsheets. Such a shorter configuration may be desirable to minimize the total amount of material and the cost of the diaper 20. Optionally, the absorbent assembly 200 may extend longitudinally beyond the bottom layer stripes. Such a longer configuration may be desirable to minimize the total amount of backing strip material and thus the cost of the diaper 20.

[0041] Each of the side flaps 247 is attached to the inner surface 202 of the absorbent unit 200 in the connecting zones located at or at the front edge 236 and the rear edge 238. For example, in the diaper 20 shown in Figure 2, the left side flap 247a is attached to the inner surface 202 of the absorbent assembly 200 in the connecting zones 251a and 251c, and the right side flap 247b is attached to the inner surface 202 in the connecting zones 251b and 251d. Connecting zones can have an even or different surface.

[0042] Between the zones connecting the proximal edges 255 of the side flaps 247 remain free, i.e. they are not connected to the inner surface 202 of the absorbent assembly 200. Furthermore, between the connecting zones it is preferred if each side flap includes a longitudinally extensible elastic flap member attached at proximal side flap. For example, in the diaper 20 shown in Figure 1, elastic bands 267 are attached at a corresponding edge closer to 255 side flaps. The elastic member of the flap may be between two layers of the absorbent assembly or may be attached to the surface of the absorbent assembly and remain exposed.

[0043] After stretching, the elastic flap elements allow the edges of the proximal side flaps to stretch to the uncontracted length of the absorbent assembly according to figure 1. If the elastic elements of the flap are allowed to relax, they contract and take away parts of the proximal edges along which the elastic elements of the flap are attached. For example, if the exemplary diaper 20 is in a relaxed state, as shown in Figure 14, the elastic bands 267 shrink to take the edges closer to 255 of the side flaps 247. The contraction forces of the elastic bands pull the front portion 36 covering the waist and the rear portion 38 covering the waist to each other. so that the absorbent assembly 200 and the entire diaper 20 are bent into a U-shape, in which the inside of the U-shape is formed by the inner parts of the diaper. Because the proximal edges remain free between the connecting zones, the shrinking forces of the elastic bands raise the proximal edges of the 255 side flaps 247 relative to the inner surface

202 absorbent assembly and thus raise the side flaps to the position where they constitute the side barriers. The transverse spacing of the raised side edges is selected so as to receive excreta from the lower torso of the user into the space between the raised side flaps. The width of each of the side flaps 247 thus becomes its height, with the free portion of the proximal edge raised and the side flap raised. Preferably, the height is chosen to allow the proximal edges to fit 255 to the folds of the wearer's legs to form a seal to help prevent accumulated excretions from leaking from the diaper.

[0044] As shown in Figure 15, Figure 16 and Figure 17, the absorbent assembly 200 comprises an absorbent body 250 for absorbing and retaining liquid excreta. The absorbent body 250 includes a front edge 256, a rear edge 258, laterally opposite side edges 257, an inner surface 252 and an outer surface 254.

[0045] The absorbent assembly 200 may include an upper cover layer arranged above the absorbent body 250 in addition to the bottom cover layer located under the absorbent body 250. If both are present, such an upper cover layer and a lower cover layer may be joined together and contain the absorbent body between them 250, and thus thus form an absorbent body 200. For example, in the exemplary absorbent assembly 200 shown in Figure 15, Figure 16 and Figure 17, the top cover layer 24 and bottom cover layer 25 are joined together in transversely opposite connecting zones 29.

[0046] If present, the top cover layer is water permeable and allows liquid excretions to pass through its thickness into the absorbent body. Preferably, the top cover layer is formed of a soft, non-irritating material on the user's skin, for example, a synthetic non-woven material, such as mass molded or carded polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester or rayon.

[0047] The bottom cover layer 25 is doubled by its folding, therefore it comprises a first layer 27 and a second layer 28 at least on the side flaps 247, i.e. at least between each side edge 237 and the corresponding edge closer to side flap 255, both layers 27 and 28 are present, and between the side edges 237 under the absorbent body 250 only one of the layers 27 and 28 must be present. In some embodiments, the first layer 27 and the second layer 28 are present on substantially the entire surface of the bottom cover layer 25. In both these construction variants, the elastic elements 267 of the side flaps are located between the first layer 27 and the second layer 28 at the proximal edges of side flaps 247. Folding doubling is a particularly easy and cost-effective method of processing thin materials in a production system, in part because it is not necessary to accurately align the edges of separate sheets when producing a doubled structure. In addition, doubling by folding means that there is no need to connect doubled layers, at least at the bend, although the layers can be joined together if desired for certain purposes, as referred to below.

[0048] The proximal edge 255 of at least one side flap 247 is formed at the point where the bottom cover layer 25 is folded by doubling. For example, in the embodiment shown in Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3, Figure 4 and Figure 5, both edges closer to 255 of the side flaps 247 are formed by folding the bottom cover layer 25 for doubling. In this embodiment, the bottom cover layer 25 is folded twice to form two proximal edges 255, while layers 27 and 28 overlap and are joined at the original edges 33 longitudinally extending the bottom cover layer 25 in the longitudinally extending connection zone 35 located under the absorbent body 250 Alternatively, the connecting zone 35 may be located transversely, differently from the position shown in the drawings. For example, the joining zone 35 may be located at one of the side edges 237 of the absorbent assembly 200 or may be located between one of the proximal edges 255 of one of the side flaps 247 and the corresponding side edge 237. In another example, the bottom cover layer 25 may be folded only once at the proximal edge 255 of one of the side flaps 247 and the joining zone 35, wherein the layers 27 and 28 are joined together and may be located at the proximal edge of the side flap 247 opposite in the transverse direction , so that the original longitudinal edges 33 are exposed there. As an alternative to applying the original longitudinal edges 33, the original edges 33 may be transversely arranged, and the bottom cover layer 25 may be connected at the two transversely arranged connecting zones 35 at the two primary edges 33 to another structural element, such as an absorbent pad 250, or two other structural elements such as backing stripes 100.

[0049] The layers 27 and 28 of the double bottom cover layer 25 may remain unconnected and thus may freely contact or be separated. Alternatively, the layers of the doubled lower cover layer 25 may be connected transversely or intermittently between the proximal edges 255 of the side flaps 247 and the side edges 237 of the absorbent assembly 200. Optionally or additionally, the layers of the double bottom layer 25 may be connected transversely or intermittently under the absorbent body 250 between the side edges 237 of the absorbent unit 200. For example, the double layers of the bottom layer 25 may be joined by means of adhesives, mechanical or thermal connections or using a combination of known joining methods.

[0050] In the embodiment shown in Figure 1, Figure 2 and Figure 4, layers 27 and 28 are joined together in transversely spaced connecting zones 260 extending longitudinally through the portion 37 including the crotch and parts 36 and 38 including the waist. Such a longitudinally extending joint generally prevents separation of layers and thus an undesirable stretched or sagging appearance around the user's legs, and also slightly stiffens the side flaps 247 and thus helps maintain their proper fit to the body.

[0051] Optionally or additionally, layers 27 and 28 of the doubled lower cover layer 25 can be joined together in portions 36 and 38 covering the waist at the front and rear edges 236 and 238 of the absorbent assembly 200, for example in the transversely extending joining zones 259 shown in the drawing 1, figure 3 and figure 5. This transverse connection may be transversely discontinuous or transversely continuous. If such a longitudinally extending connection is continuous, it prevents separation of layers and thus an undesirable unfinished appearance at the edges of the waist, and also creates a barrier preventing leakage of liquid excreta from between layers on the front and / or rear edge of the absorbent assembly.

[0052] Exemplary materials suitable for use in the double bottom cover layer include breathable polyolefin membranes, molded microporous or other breathable membranes, breathable solid membranes, and hydrophobic nonwovens. Suitable nonwovens include SM (molded, blown) composites, SMS (molded, blown, molded) and SMMS (molded, blown, blown, molded). Materials permeable to a pair of side layers can be selected to suit the overall economy and function of the product. For example, a relatively inexpensive non-woven fabric with a relatively low basis weight can provide adequate water impermeability after doubling, and a relatively low cost can offset the cost associated with using more material than a single-layer top layer made of a relatively more expensive nonwoven.

[0053] The absorbent assembly and the backsheets may be connected over part or all of the absorbent assembly. Preferably, the second layer 28 of the bottom cover layer 25 is connected to the bottom layer strips in opposite transverse directions running along the joining zones, e.g. in the example joining zones 220 shown in Figure 2, Figure 3, Figure 4, Figure 5, Figure 13 and drawing

19, Parts of the underlayer strips outside of such a connecting pattern are not limited by the connection with the absorbent assembly and therefore remain stretchable. For example, the relatively narrow, longitudinally extending joining zone 220 leaves most of the width of the respective underlayer strip 100 for free stretching, which allows the underlayer strip 100 to be stretched transversely.

[0054] Within the bonding zones, the absorbent assembly may be attached to the bottom layer strips in a continuous or discontinuous manner. For example, an adhesive film can be applied over the entire area of ​​the bonding zones and used to continuously connect the absorbent assembly to the underlayer strips. In the alternative example, the adhesive can be applied discontinuously on or within the boundaries of the joining zones, for example in the form of dots, strips, balls, spirals, etc. and use them to connect the absorption unit to the underlayer strips.

[0055] The absorbent core is 250 can be attached to the first layer 27 of the bottom cover layer 25 in any part or all of the area of ​​the absorbent core. Preferably, the absorbent body is attached on its outer surface to the lower surface layer, so that the bonding pattern is cross-shaped, i.e. the bonding pattern forms or has the form of a cross or mark

+. The cross-shaped joining pattern may be contiguous, i.e. all of its parts may touch or join within a pattern to form a continuous string, or may contain separated parts and therefore not adjacent, however, its arrangement will still form a general cross-like pattern. An example of an adjacent cross-shaped joining pattern 210 is shown in Figure 15, Figure 16 and Figure 17. Suitable configurations of cross-shaped joining patterns are disclosed in US Patent Application No. 10/880128 filed June 29, 2004.

[0056] If glue is used for joining, less may be needed for the cross-shaped joining pattern than for the more extensive joining pattern. Furthermore, the parts of the bottom cover layer outside of such a cross-shaped joining pattern are not limited by the connection with the absorbent assembly and can therefore be stretchable. In particular, the relatively narrow, extending along part 212 of the cross-shaped connecting pattern 210, as shown in Figure 15 and Figure 17, leaves most of the width of the bottom cover layer 25 in the front portion 36 covering the waist and the rear portion 38 covering the waist unrestricted by the absorbent body 250, which allows the bottom cover layer to be stretched laterally in these areas. The relatively wide, laterally extending portion 214 of the cross-shaped joining pattern 210, as shown in Figure 15 and Figure 16, prevents the bottom portion of the top layer 25 in the crotch portion 37 to which the absorbent pad 250 is attached, sliding relative to the absorbent pad 250 in in this area, which increases the effectiveness of the raised side flaps. For example, if the bottom cover layer in the crotch portion 37 could slide freely across, raised side flaps 247 could warp and not be in contact with the body or be in the wrong position.

[0057] Within the cross-connecting pattern, the absorbent body can be attached to the bottom cover layer in a continuous or discontinuous manner. For example, an adhesive layer can be applied over the entire area of ​​the cross-shaped joining pattern and used to continuously connect the absorbent assembly to the bottom cover layer. In an alternative example, the adhesive may be applied discontinuously on or within the boundaries of the cross-shaped joining pattern, for example in the form of dots, strips, balls, spirals, etc., and used to connect the absorbent assembly to the lower surface layer.

[0058] The absorbent body 250 comprises a reservoir 272 for absorbing and retaining liquid excreta. Suitable materials for the absorbent body are cellulose fibers in the form of pulverized wood pulp, which is referred to as aerated fiber material, layers or sheets of natural or synthetic material or fibrous materials, polymer or superabsorbent polymers etc. These absorbent materials can be used separately or in combination . Many known absorbent materials can be used in a discontinuous form, i.e. in the form of fibers, granules, particles, layers and the like. Such a discontinuous form of absorbent material may be fixed with an adhesive joining the discontinuous elements together to form a coherent layer or connecting the discontinuous elements to the substrate layer or connecting the discontinuous elements together and to the substrate layer.

[0059] The absorbent body may comprise a collecting element in addition to one or more tanks. The collecting element of the absorbent body collects the deposited liquid excreta and transfers it to the reservoir of the absorbent body. The collecting element can be formed of any porous absorbent material that absorbs and transfers liquid excretions to the absorbent tank or reservoirs. Preferred collecting element materials include synthetic fibrous materials, open cell polymeric foam materials, nonwoven fibrous materials, cellulosic nonwovens and various combinations of synthetic materials and nonwovens. For example, the collecting element may be formed of nonwoven or nonwovens of synthetic fibers, including polyester, polypropylene and / or cotton and any (or) other

Examples of such polyethylene, natural fibers, including cellulose, blends of such fibers or equivalent materials, or combinations of collecting materials are described more fully in US Patent No.

4950264 issued to Osborn on August 21, 1990. High-fluff collection nonwovens suitable for the collecting element of the present invention can be purchased from Polymer Group, Inc. (PGI), 450 NE Blvd, Landisville, New Jersey 08326, USA, article symbol 98920.

[0060] Such an absorption body 290 of the absorbent body is shown in the reservoir 272 of the absorbent body in Figure 15, Figure 16 and Figure 17. A separation layer 292, e.g. of thin fabric or non-woven fabric, can be placed between the absorption body 272 of the absorption body 27 and the refill body 290 absorbent so as to prevent the gel formed by the super absorbent polymer from coming into contact with the user's skin. Such a separation layer 292 may extend laterally beyond the side edges 257 of the absorbent body 250, and the upper cover layer 24 may be attached to the separation layer 292. In this arrangement, the liquid excreta deposited on the upper cover layer 24 passes through the thickness of the upper cover layer 24 and is absorbed by the collecting element 290 of the absorbent body, so that some or all of it can then pass through the thickness of the separation layer 292 and be absorbed.

retained by the refill reservoir 272 [0061] As shown in Figure 18, in some embodiments, the absorbent refill reservoir 272 may include a discontinuous form of absorbent material, immobilized in pockets formed by a layer of thermoplastic material, e.g., hot melt adhesive, which discontinuously contacts and adheres to the substrate layer, and sticks out from the substrate layer in the area of ​​the pockets. Elements of such an absorbent body suitable for collecting liquid excretions are described in pending and jointly granted US Patent Application Nos. 10/776839 and 10/776851; both were made on February 11, 2004. An example of a reservoir 272 for an absorbent body of this type is shown in Figure 18. In this absorbent core reservoir 272, super absorbent polymer particles 270 are contained within the pockets 280 formed by the thermoplastic material layer 275. The reservoir of the absorbent body may contain particles of super absorbent polymer and fiber material, so that both materials can be inside the pockets formed by the layer of thermoplastic material. Alternatively, as shown in Figure 18, an exemplary absorbent body may not contain fiber material, therefore the element may be relatively thinner and more flexible for the user's convenience. In addition, super absorbent polymer particles can be relatively more easily immobilized if no fiber material is present. As shown in Figure 18, the layer 275 of thermoplastic material discontinuously contacts and adheres to the layer 274 of the substrate in the connecting areas 282. Between connecting areas 282, layer 275 projects from substrate layer 274 to form pockets 280. Layer 275 can be in the form of a sheet of fibers of thermoplastic material through which liquid excreta can pass and be absorbed by super absorbent polymer particles 270.

[0062] In Figure 18, a separate top layer 276 of the thermoplastic layer is shown in the layer 275 of the thermoplastic material. Optionally, a separate cover layer 276 of the thermoplastic layer may be omitted. Alternatively, two absorbent core reservoirs, as shown in Figure 18, with the exception of the top layer 276 of the thermoplastic layer may be applied to one inverted absorbent core reservoir so that the respective layers of the substrate are at a certain distance opposite each other. In this combination of absorbent body reservoir elements, the top substrate layer can be the upper top layer.

[0063] The absorbent assembly may include an additional bottom layer to increase leakage protection. Such an additional bottom layer may be impermeable to water and may be formed of a suitable material, e.g. a polyethylene or other polyolefin film, a microporous breathable film, a hydrophobic nonwoven or a film produced from coextruded polyolefin layers. For example, a suitable coextruded film can be purchased from Clopay Plastic Products Co.

from Mason, Ohio, USA symbol M18-327. For example, as shown in Figure 19, the additional bottom layer 226 may be placed under the absorbent body 250 between the layers 27 and 28 of the bottom cover layer 25. The additional bottom layer may optionally be attached to the absorbent assembly inside or outside the bottom cover layer. Such additional bottom layer may extend laterally closer than one of the side edges 237 of the absorbent assembly 200, as shown in Figure 19, or may extend laterally and overlap one or both side edges.

[0064] If such an additional bottom layer is attached to the absorbent assembly between the bottom cover layer and the absorbent body, the additional bottom layer may be attached to the bottom cover layer in accordance with a cross-shaped joining pattern similar to the one shown in Figure 15, making the bottom part the top layer outside the cross-shaped joining pattern is not limited by the connection to the additional bottom layer and these parts are stretchable.

[0065] Optionally or additionally, the additional bottom layer in such an embodiment can be attached by means of such a cross-shaped joining pattern to the absorbent body, whereby the parts of the bottom surface layer outside the cross-shaped joining pattern are not limited by connection to the absorbent body and these parts are stretchable. In this embodiment, even if the additional bottom layer is attached to the bottom cover layer in a non-cross pattern, the bottom cover layer is not indirectly limited by the absorbent assembly and therefore remains stretchable.

Description of the shape of the product [0066] The finished diaper may generally have a rectangular shape, such as the exemplary diaper 20 shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2. Such a generally rectangular configuration may be desirable to minimize waste and the difficulties associated with making the diaper 20. The diaper may optionally have side edges 137 that are not straight, but instead curved and / or cut, so that the overall shape of the diaper 20 in a flat projection is in the form of an hourglass or letter I. Such a non-rectangular configuration may be desirable to give matching appearance of the diaper 20 during use. Such a non-rectangular configuration may further be desirable to give the impression that the diaper 20 will fit comfortably between the user's legs.

[0067] A non-rectangular diaper configuration can be created in one of several ways. For example, laterally the distal parts may be cut from the diaper so that the transverse dimension on or at transverse axis 44 is smaller than the transverse dimension on or at the front edge 136 waist and smaller than the transverse dimension on or at the rear edge 138 waist, i.e. that diaper it was narrower in the part 37 covering the crotch than at the edges of the waist. An exemplary form of such a non-rectangular diaper configuration is shown in the drawing

twenty. As shown in this drawing, the backing strips 100 can be removed to form laterally opposite side cut-outs 111, leaving the lateral strips continuous in the longitudinal direction.

[0068] Optionally, a portion of each bottom layer strip 100 can be folded inwardly to form a non-rectangular diaper configuration. For example, as shown in Figure 21, Figure 22 and Figure 23, the transversely opposite portion 107 of the backing strips 100 in the crotch portion 37 can be folded inwardly so that they overlap the respective side flaps 247, and can be combined with side flaps, for example in the respective connecting zones 109. Preferably, each of the bent transversely opposite portions 107 extends laterally only a portion of the distance from the respective side edge 237 of the absorbent assembly 200 towards the longitudinal axis 42, so that the respective exposed portions of the side flaps are uncovered and form breathable side barriers during diaper use as described above.

[0069] Optionally, the bottom layer strips may be discontinuous in the longitudinal direction to form a non-rectangular diaper configuration. For example, as shown in Figure 24, the backing strips may be separated into the left front backing strip 100a, the left rear backing strip 100c, the right front backing strip 100b and the right rear backing strip 100d, so that each of these strips the backing layer may extend laterally beyond the side edges 237 of the absorbent assembly 200, thereby giving the diaper 20 an "I" shape.