Incorporation of apertured area into an absorbent article

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2021251820-A1
Application number	US-202117239775-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 26, 2021
Priority date	Mar 30, 2017
Publication date	Aug 19, 2021
Grant date	—

Abstract

An absorbent article having improved handling of body exudates. The absorbent article can minimize the amount of body exudates in contact with a wearer's skin and can minimize the incidence of leakage of body exudates from the absorbent article. The benefits of the absorbent article are achieved, in part, by a body facing material having features that help minimize contact of body exudates with the wearer's skin while also being constructed so that the body facing material does not stick to the wearer's skin in use. The body facing material includes a plurality of hollow projections, a plurality of apertures and bonded areas. The bonded areas may be formed with adhesive or by mechanical bonds.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An absorbent article including a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction and having a front waist region, a back waist region and a crotch region between the front waist region and the back waist region, the absorbent article comprising:
a body facing material comprising a plurality of apertures, wherein the plurality of apertures define an aperture area on the body facing material; an outer cover; and an absorbent body positioned between the body facing material and the outer cover, the absorbent body having a width in the lateral direction and a length in the longitudinal direction; and a secondary liner including a width in the lateral direction and a length in the longitudinal direction, the width of the secondary liner being greater than the width of the absorbent body and the length of the secondary liner being greater than the length of the absorbent body, wherein the body facing material is attached to the secondary liner by a mechanical bonded area that extends through at least a portion of the aperture area.

2 . The absorbent article of claim 1 wherein the body facing material includes a width in the lateral direction and a length in the longitudinal direction; the body facing material further includes opposed first and second lateral edges extending along the length in the longitudinal direction and includes a front edge and a back edge, both extending along the length in the lateral direction, wherein the mechanical bonded area extends along at least a portion of the first and second lateral edges.

3 . The absorbent article of claim 2 , wherein the aperture area has a length in the longitudinal direction and a width in the lateral direction; wherein the width of the aperture area is less than the width of the body facing material.

4 . The absorbent article of claim 3 , wherein the body facing material is attached to the secondary liner by a first lateral attachment region proximate the first lateral edge and by a second lateral attachment region proximate the second lateral edge, the first lateral attachment region disposed proximate the first lateral edge and extending from proximate the front edge to proximate the back edge, and the second lateral attachment region disposed proximate the second lateral edge and extending from proximate the front edge to proximate the back edge.

5 . The absorbent article of claim 3 , wherein the mechanical bonded area extends from the first and second lateral edges of the body facing material in the lateral direction and through the aperture area.

6 . The absorbent article of claim 3 , wherein the body facing material further includes a second aperture area separated from the aperture area by a land area and wherein the land area separating the aperture area from the second aperture area is attached to the secondary liner.

7 . The absorbent article of claim 4 , wherein the first lateral attachment region and the second lateral attachment region do not overlap the aperture area.

8 . The absorbent article of claim 4 , wherein the mechanical bonded area overlaps with the first lateral attachment region and the second lateral attachment region.

9 . The absorbent article of claim 1 , wherein the mechanical bonded area that attaches the body facing material to the secondary liner is formed with plurality of discrete mechanical bonds, and wherein at least some of the plurality of discrete mechanical bonds are disposed through the apertures of the apertured area.

10 . An absorbent article including a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction and having a front waist region, a back waist region and a crotch region between the front waist region and the back waist region, the absorbent article comprising:
a body facing material comprising a plurality of apertures, wherein the plurality of apertures define an aperture area on the body facing material; an outer cover; an absorbent body positioned between the body facing material and the outer cover, the absorbent body having a width in the lateral direction and a length in the longitudinal direction; and a secondary liner including a width in the lateral direction and a length in the longitudinal direction, the width of the secondary liner being greater than the width of the absorbent body and the length of the secondary liner being greater than the length of the absorbent body, wherein the body facing material is attached to the secondary liner by an adhesive bonded area that is discrete from the aperture area and by a mechanical bonded area, the mechanical bonded area extending through at least a portion of the aperture area.

11 . The absorbent article of claim 10 , wherein the body facing material includes a width in the lateral direction and a length in the longitudinal direction; the body facing material further includes opposed first and second lateral edges extending along the length in the longitudinal direction and includes a front edge and a back edge, both extending along the length in the lateral direction, wherein the adhesive bonded area extends along at least a portion of the first and second lateral edges.

12 . The absorbent article of claim 11 , wherein the adhesive bonded area is disposed between the aperture area and the first lateral edge and between the aperture area and the second lateral edge such that there is no overlap between the adhesive bonded area and the aperture area.

13 . The absorbent article of claim 11 , wherein adhesive bonded area and the mechanical bonded area overlap.

14 . The absorbent article of claim 12 , wherein the mechanical bonded area extends from the first lateral edge of the body facing material to the second lateral edge at the front edge of the body facing material.

15 . The absorbent article of claim 14 , further including a second mechanical bonded area that extends from the first lateral edge of the body facing material to the second lateral edge at the back edge of the body facing material.

16 . The absorbent article of claim 15 , further including additional mechanical bonded areas located between the mechanical bonded area at the front edge of the body facing material and the back edge of the body facing material.

17 . The absorbent article of claim 10 , wherein the mechanical bonded area is formed of pressure bonds formed by pressure bonding or ultrasonic bonds formed by ultrasonic bonding.

18 . The absorbent article of claim 10 , wherein the mechanical bonded area comprises a plurality of discrete mechanical bonds and wherein at least some of the plurality of discrete mechanical bonds are disposed through the apertures of the apertured area.

19 . The absorbent article of claim 11 , wherein the adhesive bonded area extends along the first lateral edge and the second lateral edge from the front edge to the back edge.

20 . The absorbent article of claim 15 , wherein the mechanical bonded area and the second mechanical bonded area extend through the aperture area and wherein the body facing material is unbonded to the secondary liner in the aperture area other than by the mechanical bonded area and the second mechanical bonded area.

Assignees

• Kimberly Clark Co

Inventors

• Beitz Mark J
• Evenson Stacy E
• Hammond Andrew T
• Kleuskens Sarah
• Abney Patrick D

Classifications

• A61F13/5116 Primary

  being formed of multiple layers (A61F13/5123 takes precedence) · CPC title

• A61F13/51121

  characterised by the material · CPC title

• A61F2013/51182

  with non-continuous bonding · CPC title

• A61F13/51104 Primary

  the top sheet having a three-dimensional cross-section, e.g. corrugations, embossments, recesses or projections · CPC title

• A61F13/496

  in the form of pants or briefs · CPC title