Disposable hygiene article with improved fit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11253403-B2
Application number	US-201817293136-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 5, 2018
Priority date	Dec 5, 2018
Publication date	Feb 22, 2022
Grant date	Feb 22, 2022

Abstract

The present invention relates to a disposable hygiene article comprising first and second compression lines in a forward region of the article. The article has a core with a first area which has its narrowest width (M) in the transverse direction (x) in a front portion or at a location of a transition between the front portion and a crotch portion of the article. The absorbent core in the crotch portion comprises the first and second compression lines, which are separated from each other at their closest point by a minimum distance D1, measured in the transverse direction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A disposable hygiene article, comprising a transverse direction (x), a longitudinal direction (y) and a longitudinal centre line (A) dividing the article into left-hand and right-hand portions (I) and (II), whereby said article has a front portion, a crotch portion and a rear portion, and said article comprises a liquid-permeable topsheet, a liquid-impermeable backsheet and an absorbent core arranged between the topsheet and backsheet, whereby an outer contour of the absorbent core is defined by mutually symmetrical mirror-imaged portions arranged symmetrically about the centerline (A), and defined by first and second core edge lines, and the absorbent core is delimited by a core front edge in the front portion and a core rear edge in the rear portion, the absorbent core comprising a first region extending in the longitudinal direction (y) of the article from the front portion over the crotch portion to the rear portion, and wherein an outer contour of the first region is defined by mirror-imaged first and second first region edge lines and a first region front edge and a first region rear edge, wherein
the first region has its narrowest width (M) in the transverse direction (x) in the front portion or at the location of a transition between the front portion and the crotch portion; and
wherein the absorbent core comprises mutually symmetrical first and second compression lines, arranged symmetrically about the longitudinal centerline (A),
wherein the first compression line extends from a front endpoint (PF 1 ) to a rear endpoint (PR 1 ) via a first turning point (T 1 ), and wherein:
the front endpoint (PF 1 ) is located at or adjacent to an outer edge of the first region of the absorbent core left of the longitudinal centre line (A) and forward of the narrowest width (M),
the rear endpoint (PR 1 ) is located at or adjacent to an outer edge of the first region of the absorbent core left of the centre line (A) and rearward of the narrowest width (M),
the first turning point (T 1 ) is located left of the centre line (A) and right of the front and rear endpoints (PF 1 PR 1 ) in the transverse direction, and between the front and rear endpoints (PF 1 PR 1 ) in the longitudinal direction,

wherein the second compression line (PF 1 PR 1 ) extends from a front endpoint (PF 2 ) to a rear endpoint (PR 2 ) via a second turning point (T 2 ), and wherein:
the front endpoint (PF 2 ) is located at or adjacent to an outer edge of the first region of the absorbent core right of the longitudinal centre line (A) and forward of the narrowest width (M),
the rear endpoint (PR 2 ) is located at or adjacent to an outer edge of the first region of the absorbent core right of the centre line (A) and behind the narrowest portion (M),
the second turning point (T 2 ) is located right of the centre line (A) and left of the front and rear endpoints (PF 2 , PR 2 ) in the transverse direction, and between the front and rear endpoints in the longitudinal direction,

wherein the first compression line and the second compression line are spaced from each other by a minimum distance (D 1 ) between their respective turning points (T 1 , T 2 ), and wherein the distance (D 1 ) is at least 1 mm in a transverse direction.

2. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein the minimum distance D 1 is spaced in the longitudinal direction from the narrowest width (M) by a second distance D 2 , wherein D 2 is between 0 mm and 15 mm.

3. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein the minimum distance D 1 is located behind the narrowest width (M).

4. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein the front endpoints (PF 1 , PF 2 ) of the first and second compression lines are spaced apart from each other in the transverse direction by a distance D 3 , and wherein the rear endpoints (PR 1 , PR 2 ) of the first and second compression lines are spaced apart from each other in the transverse direction by a distance D 4 , and wherein D 3 is greater than D 4 .

5. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 4 , wherein D 3 is between 30 mm and 70 mm.

6. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 4 , wherein D 4 is between 30 mm and 60 mm.

7. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein each of the first and second compression lines comprises a smooth curve.

8. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , where each of the first and second compression lines is continuous.

9. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein each of the first and second compression lines comprises a single turning point (T 1 , T 2 ).

10. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein an angle of inflection (V 1 , V 2 ) for each of the first and second compression lines is between 90 and 130 degrees.

11. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein the rear endpoints are located at or behind the narrowest width (M) by a distance D 6 , wherein the distance D 6 is measured in the longitudinal direction and is between 15 mm and 50 mm.

12. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein the front endpoint of each of the first and second compression lines is located in an outer third of the first region of the core, measured in a transverse direction.

13. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein each of front endpoints of the first and second compression lines is located transversally outwards of an outer edge of the first region of the core at its narrowest point (M).

14. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , further comprising a front transverse foldline and a rear transverse fold line, wherein the front transverse fold line is positioned at or behind the narrowest width (M).

15. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein the first region comprises a head part and two leg portions extending symmetrically about the centre line (A) in a longitudinal direction (y) of the article, and wherein said absorbent core further comprises a second region at least partially surrounded by said first region, and wherein the second region has an average density which is at least 20% lower than the average density of the first region.

16. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 15 , wherein the minimum distance D 1 is spaced apart in a longitudinal direction from the front transverse fold line.

17. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 15 , wherein the second region has an average density which is at least 30% lower than the average density of the first region.

18. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 15 , wherein the second region has an average density which is at least 50% lower than the average density of the first region.

19. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 15 , wherein said first region is compressed more than the second region and the first region is stiffer than the second region.

20. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 19 , wherein the higher average density of the absorbent material is obtained by means of compression and/or providing an embossing pattern to the first region which covers at least portion of the first region, and wherein the second region is free of the embossing pattern.

21. The disposable hygiene article according to claim 1 , wherein the two leg portions start and diverge from a common leg portion start point (a 0 ) in the crotch portion and extend over a portion of the c

Assignees

• Essity Hygiene & Health Ab

Inventors

• Ekstedt Sofia
• Sohl Josefin

Classifications

• A61F13/47218

  with a raised crotch region, e.g. hump · CPC title

• A61F13/47236 Primary

  characterised by an unusual contour · CPC title

• A61F13/47272

  with a longitudinal raised end, e.g. cup-shaped gluteal groove (for edge leakage prevention A61F13/494) · CPC title

• A61F13/5616

  using flaps, e.g. adhesive, for attachment to the undergarment (leakage prevention means encirculing the crotch portion A61F13/476) · CPC title

• A61F13/4756

  the means consisting of grooves, e.g. channels, depressions or embossments, resulting in a heterogeneous surface level · CPC title