Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Methods – Surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-07
2003-11-25
Lo, Weilun (Department: 3761)
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Methods
Surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
C604S385040, C604S386000, C156S264000, C156S270000, C156S271000, C156S269000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06652701
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a sanitary absorbent article such a sanitary napkin, diaper, adult brief, incontinence pad and the like. More particularly, the invention relates to a novel sanitary absorbent article and to a component layer thereof that can be produced with less waste material generated, and to a method of and apparatus for the manufacture thereof. The invention also extends to a method and apparatus for manufacturing the novel absorbent article.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The technology surrounding absorbent articles, particularly sanitary napkins, has undergone several advances over the past two decades. One of these advances was the addition of multi-functional flaps to the longitudinal sides of the napkin. When in use such flaps are folded over the sides of the wearer's undergarment and secured thereto. They thus more firmly secure the napkin to the undergarment, provide an increased absorptive area for bodily exudates, and help prevent the undergarment from becoming soiled. The flap concept has generally met with success in the marketplace, and napkins with flaps of various configurations and conformations are available to the consumer.
Such sanitary absorbent articles are ordinarily composed of several layers of various materials affixed together to form a laminated structure. They are generally manufactured in the following manner: A laminated web comprised of the materials forming each of the individual component layers of the final article is provided. At least one layer of material, and more likely several, is continuous throughout the web. The web is then sealed at various points and severed to form discrete articles.
Alternatively, although generally uncommon, each of the individual component layers which make up the article could be produced separately, through their severance from a continuous sheet of material of which the layer is formed. These various component layers could then be combined together (i.e. laminated) to form the article.
In either method, the articles or the component layers themselves (as the case may be) receive their shape as they are severed from the laminated web or the continuous material, respectively.
An example of a sanitary napkin and a severing pattern therefor currently employed in the art are illustrated in
FIGS. 1 and 2
, respectively, of the present specification. This severing pattern may be employed in either of the aforementioned methods for the manufacture of such articles. The article being produced by this pattern is symmetric about both imaginary longitudinal and transverse centre-lines. The transverse ends of successive articles are aligned and the longitudinal side of opposing flaps of successive articles are substantially in contact with one another. The shaded material is not used in the production of an article and is therefore discarded as waste. Depending on the shape of the item being manufactured, the amount of waste is substantial, which contributes to an increased manufacturing cost.
Heretofore it appears that manufacturers have sought to optimise the configuration and shape of the sanitary absorbent articles generally, and particularly the flaps, on the basis of characteristics present in the individual final product. In this respect wearer comfort, absorptive efficiency, and leakage prevention have generally been taken into consideration. While the cost of manufacturing is important, little attention has been paid to designing the individual articles with a view to reducing the amount of waste material produced during their mass-production by the methods described above. As such articles are mass-produced in significant amounts, a reduction in waste material would provide significant savings in the cost of manufacturing.
OBJECTS AND STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved sanitary absorbent article with flaps, such as a sanitary napkin, or a component layer of a sanitary napkin, such as a cover layer, which has been designed so as to reduce the amount of waste material generated during the mass-production thereof.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of production of such an absorbent article or a component layer. It is still a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for producing such an absorbent article or component layer.
In one aspect, as embodied and broadly described herein, the invention provides a plurality of component layers for use in sanitary absorbent articles, each component layer comprising:
(A) a main body, said main body having a first transverse side, a second transverse side, a first longitudinal side, a second longitudinal side, and an imaginary longitudinal centre-line;
(B) a first flap projecting laterally from the first longitudinal side of said main body, said first flap having two longitudinal sides, and said first flap being positioned with respect to said main body such that when
(i) two of the component layers are placed longitudinal side by longitudinal side, and
(ii) one of the component layers is rotated with respect to the other of the component layers such that the first longitudinal side of said main body of each of the component layers faces the first longitudinal side of said main body of the other of the component layers, and
(iii) the first transverse side of said main body of each of the component layers is aligned with the second transverse side of said main body of the other of the component layers, and
(iv) an imaginary line generally parallel to, and located in-between, the longitudinal centre-lines of each of said main bodies of each of the component layers simultaneously intersects said first flap of each of the component layers;
one of the longitudinal sides of said first flap of one of the component layers is substantially in contact with one of the longitudinal sides of said first flap of the other of the component layers, and
said first flaps of each of the component layers do not overlap.
In the present specification, the term “component layer of a laminated absorbent article” refers one of the discrete layers of which a laminated absorbent article is comprised as distinct from the other layers of which the same article is composed. For example, if the laminated absorbent article is a sanitary napkin, such component layer might be a fluid permeable cover layer, a fluid impervious barrier layer, a transfer layer or an absorbent core layer. A component layer need not be comprised of a single material, but may itself be a laminate or two or more materials otherwise combined to form an integral whole.
It is preferred that the main body of the component layer be generally rectangular in shape with rounded ends. When the component layer is of such a conformation, the first and second transverse sides are the shorter opposing sides and will generally have an arcuate shape. The first and second longitudinal sides are the longer opposing sides and will be straight or arcuate. Preferably, the longitudinal sides are in an hourglass shape wherein in a central portion of the article the cross-section is narrower than the cross-section at the transverse ends. It should be understood however that the shape of such sides is not essential to the invention, and thus the transverse or the longitudinal sides could be either arcuate or straight, or any combination thereof. Nor is it essential that the main body be generally rectangular, as component layers having main bodies in the shape of a square, parallelogram or any other polygon, or even that of an oval, hour-glass or dog-bone, are all within the scope of the present invention. Where such is the case (i.e. where the main body is not rectangular), the longitudinal sides of the layer will be considered to be those opposing sides of a greater relative length as compared with the other opposing sides of the main body. Where it is impossible to make such a determination, any opposing pair of sides may be considered to be the longitudinal sides, or at the limit, opposi
Johnson & Johnson Inc.
Lo Weilun
Stephens Jacqueline F
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