Surgery – Means and methods for collecting body fluids or waste material – Absorbent pad for external or internal application and...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-04
2001-12-11
Lewis, Aaron J. (Department: 3761)
Surgery
Means and methods for collecting body fluids or waste material
Absorbent pad for external or internal application and...
C604S385010, C604S385190, C604S385201, C604S385240, C604S385270, C604S385280
Reexamination Certificate
active
06328724
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an absorbent article, such as a diaper or an incontinence guard, having a front-part, a rear-part and an intermediate crotch-part and including an absorbent body enclosed between an outer, liquid-impermeable casing sheet and an inner liquid-permeable casing sheet and longitudinally extending flaps located on respective sides of the longitudinal, symmetry axis of the article and extending transversely to said axis and comprising longitudinally extending elastic elements that extend along those edges of the flaps that face towards said longitudinal symmetry axis, wherein the absorbent body is divided into a central part and two side-parts by means of folding indications at least in the crotch part of said article, wherein said folding indications extend mutually divergently to the side-edges of the absorbent body on respective sides of the longitudinal symmetry axis of said article in front and rear sections thereof.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
An absorbent article of this kind is known from SE-C2-502 548. The purpose of the longitudinally extending side-flaps is to impede the lateral flow of urine along the inner casing sheet of the article, and to prevent the wearer's skin coming into contact with excretement. Because the absorbent body is curved by virtue of the contraction of the elastic threads that extend along the edges of the flaps, a collecting volume is formed between the inner casing sheet and the inner surfaces of the flaps.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to increase this collecting volume to reduce the risk of lateral leakage when a person wearing the absorbent article lies on his/her side, and to reduce the risk of the side-flaps blocking the entrance of said collecting volume.
These objects are achieved in accordance with the invention by means of an absorbent article of the aforedescribed kind that is characterized in that the side-flaps are joined to the outer casing sheet along its longitudinal edges, and in that each of the side-flaps extends from a point in the crotch-part on the inside of said article, inwardly towards the longitudinal symmetry axis of said article at a distance from the longitudinal symmetry axis which decreases successively in a direction towards the front-part and rear-part respectively, up to a point in said front and said rear parts. Because the flaps extend right up to the side-edges of the outer casing sheet, the collecting volume is considerably increased. This collecting volume will be largest within those regions to which liquid will run when the person wearing the article lies on his/her side. The fact that the flaps are narrowest in the crotch-part eliminates the risk of the flaps blocking said entrance, while, at the same time, ensuring a safer sealing function by reason of the fact that the flap elastic can be positioned in the groins of the wearer.
In one preferred embodiment, the width of the flaps in their narrowest part will be smaller than 2 cm, while the width of the main-part of the absorbent body in its narrowest section located in the crotch-part will be at most 60% of the total width of the article in this section thereof, wherein the width of the flaps in their respective narrowest parts is smaller than half the width of the main-part of the absorbent body in its narrowest section located in the crotch-part. The article will also preferably include longitudinal elastic elements which extend along the side-edges of the article, at least in the crotch-part, on respective sides of the longitudinal symmetry axis of the article, so as to form so-called leg elastic, wherein when the article is held flat with the elastic elements stretched, the transverse distance between the outer limitation of the elastic elements that form said leg elastic and the inner limitation of the longitudinal elastic elements along the edges of the side-flaps in the narrowest part of said flaps is smaller than 3.5 cm. The longitudinal flaps in front and rear sections of the front and rear parts of the article extend longitudinally up to the longitudinal symmetry axis of the article and are joined together in these sections. The inner and the outer casing sheets extend beyond the absorbent body around the whole of its perimeter and are joined together at said parts which lie outside the absorbent body. When the article is held flat with the elastic elements stretched, the side-flaps will extend beyond the side-edges of the outer casing sheet and will include the longitudinally extending elastic elements that form leg elastic, and fastener devices which enable the side-edges of said article in said front and rear parts to be fastened together and therewith impart a pants-like configuration to said article. The side-flaps also extend longitudinally along the full length of the article. The folding indications will preferably have a width of at least 2 times the thickness of the absorbent body.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4795452 (1989-01-01), Blaney et al.
patent: 5672166 (1997-09-01), Vandemoortele
patent: 5792130 (1998-08-01), Widlund et al.
patent: 6222092 (2001-04-01), Hansen et al.
patent: 6254583 (2001-07-01), Coates
Fransson Eva
Gustafsson Anders
Ronnberg Peter
Bogart M.
Lewis Aaron J.
SCA Molnlycke AB
Young & Thompson
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