CN107427180B

CN107427180B - Floor cleaning article having strips with differential bond pattern

Info

Publication number: CN107427180B
Application number: CN201680015721.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: N·J·波利奇基奥
Original assignee: Procter and Gamble Co
Current assignee: Procter and Gamble Co
Priority date: 2015-04-02
Filing date: 2016-04-01
Publication date: 2020-12-15
Anticipated expiration: 2036-04-01
Also published as: EP3277146B1; CA2981656A1; CN107427180A; JP2018510030A; WO2016161235A1; EP3277146A1; JP6835931B2; KR20170122813A; KR102027667B1; JP2020000943A; CA2981656C

Abstract

The invention discloses a cleaning product. The cleaning article has a laminate construction. The cleaning article includes a sheet and hydrophilic gather strip elements joined together at a plurality of bonds. The gather strip element has a plurality of layers overlapping one another to provide strips extending outwardly from the bonds. The different layers are differentially bonded to provide a configuration that allows the strip to advantageously present a dynamically changing area to the target surface during cleaning under normal use conditions. By varying the surface area, more liquid and associated debris can be cleaned from the target surface.

Description

Floor cleaning article having strips with differential bond pattern

Technical Field

The present invention relates to cleaning articles, and more particularly to cleaning articles for absorbing cleaning fluids from a target surface.

Background

Various cleaning articles have been created for dusting and light cleaning. For example, cloth wipes and paper towels have been used that are dry or wetted with polishing and cleaning compositions on relatively flat surfaces such as countertops in kitchens, bathrooms, sinks and floors. However, rags and paper towels can be problematic for the following reasons: such as hygiene (the user's hands may come into contact with chemicals, dirt, or surfaces during cleaning), reach (the user may have difficulty reaching into a hard-to-reach location with a hand carrying a wipe or towel), and inconvenience (cleaning between small-gap articles typically requires moving the articles).

To overcome the problems associated with the use of rags and paper towels, various reusable dust collecting devices have been used for more than a century, using felt and hair, as shown by US 823,725 issued in 1906 to Hayden, and using yarn, as shown in 4,145,787. To solve the problems with reusable dust collecting devices, disposable cleaning articles have been developed that have limited reusability. These disposable cleaning articles may include a brush portion made of synthetic fiber bundles (known as tow fibers) attached to a sheet, as shown in the following patents: 6,813,801, 7,003,856, 7,566,671, 7,779,502, 7,937,797, 8,146,197, 8,151,402, 8,161,594, 8,186,001, 8,245,349, 8,528,151, 8,756,746 and 8,763,197.

The disposable duster may provide wet cleaning as disclosed in 7,566,671, and commonly assigned 7,803,726, and commonly assigned US 2008/0028560. Tow fibers can become entangled when wet and are not suitable for cleaning large or heavily wetted surfaces, such as floors.

To overcome the problem of large and/or heavily wetted surfaces, floor sheets have been developed. The floor sheet may comprise a mass of absorbent cellulose as disclosed in 7,191,486 and 7,721,381, and may comprise at least two inner sheets as disclosed in 9,032,577. The flooring sheet may comprise AGM to further aid in liquid absorption and retention as disclosed in commonly assigned 5,960,508, 6,003,191, 6,048,123 and 6,766,552. Other attempts to make cleaning pads combine both hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties as disclosed in 7,694,379 (commonly assigned 7,480,956). Another attempt includes a free floating hoop as disclosed in commonly assigned 7,028,364. Other related attempts in the art include US 2003/0300991, 2011/0041274, 6,245,413, 6,681,434, 6,701,567, 7,458,128, 7,624,468, 8,341,797, 8,707,505 and 8,863,347.

While these attempts have been directed to absorbing liquids from wetted target surfaces, particularly floors, there remain problems. A substantially flat floor sheet presents the same surface for the entire cleaning task. Dirt can be redeposited from the saturated floor sheet. And substantially flat floor sheets may not be sufficiently cleaned into floor crevices or grout lines.

Thus, there is a need for cleaning articles that can be used on wetted surfaces and present a dynamically changing surface throughout the cleaning task.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention includes a cleaning article having a laminate construction. The cleaning article includes a sheet and a hydrophilic gather strip element having strips and joined to the sheet at elongate bonds. The gather strip element includes at least a first layer adjacent the sheet and at least one outward layer disposed outboard thereof. Each of the layers is joined to the sheet by an elongate common bond. The at least one layer is also joined to the sheet by a second bond that is not coincident with and spaced apart from the common bond, and the at least one layer is not joined to the sheet by the second bond.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a cleaning article according to the present invention.

Fig. 2A is a vertical cross-sectional view, scaled to scale and taken along line 2-2 of fig. 1.

Fig. 2B is a vertical cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment having an inverted cone geometry.

FIG. 3 is a broken bottom plan view of an alternative embodiment having a non-linear intermediate bond line and an inverted pyramidal geometry, with the upper portion having a sinusoidal bond and the lower portion having a spot bond.

Fig. 4A is a bottom plan view of an alternative embodiment having two intermediate bond lines.

Fig. 4B is a vertical sectional view taken along line 4B-4B of fig. 4A.

Fig. 5A-5G are scaled and are vertical cross-sectional views of alternative embodiments of gather strip elements each having two sheets of material.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a handle that can be used with the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a floor cleaning tool useful in the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a graphical representation of the performance of a flooring sheet according to the present invention and a commercially available flooring sheet.

Detailed Description

Referring to fig. 1, the cleaning article 10 may be generally elongated and rectangular, although other shapes are contemplated and possible. The cleaning article 10 may comprise two or more components joined in laminate form to provide a cleaning article 10 suitable for floor cleaning. The cleaning article may have a sheet 12 that forms a frame for attaching other components thereto. The cleaning article 10 may also have a gather strip element 25 having a plurality of layers 27 of stacked outwardly extending flexible strips 17. The absorbent core may be disposed between the gather strip element 25 and the sheet 12.

The cleaning article 10 may be disposable. By disposable, it is meant that the cleaning article 10 is used for a single cleaning task, or generally no more than a few square meters, and then discarded. In contrast, the reusable cleaning article 10 is laundered or otherwise restored after use.

The cleaning article 10 has at least two, more preferably at least three, four or more laminae that are joined/folded in laminate form to the cleaning article 10. The sheet 12 may also provide attachment to a floor cleaning tool, as described below. As used herein, unless otherwise specified, joined includes direct contact relationships between two parts and relationships with intermediate parts between the two.

The cleaning article 10 can have a longitudinal axis LA and a transverse axis TA orthogonal thereto. The cleaning article 10 and its respective components can have two longitudinal edges 20 parallel to the longitudinal axis LA and two transverse edges 22 parallel to the transverse axis TA.

As described below, the strips 17 may advantageously be substantially, or preferably completely, contained within the footprint of the sheet 12. In particular, the distal end of the strip 17 may be contained within and defined by a footprint defined by two longitudinal edges 20 and two transverse edges 22 of the sheet 12. This arrangement is believed to promote mobility of the strip 17 in use and present a dynamic surface area of the cleaning article 10 to the target surface in use due to the direct pressure encountered by the strip 17 when the user presses the cleaning tool against the floor.

The length of the cleaning article 10 is taken in the longitudinal direction. The width of the cleaning article 10 corresponds to a transverse direction perpendicular to the length direction and disposed within the plane of the sheet 12. The thickness is defined as the dimension in the z-direction. The XY plane is defined as the plane defined by the cleaning article 10. The Z-direction of the cleaning article 10 is the direction perpendicular to the plane of the sheet. The cleaning article 10 may have a length of 20 to 50cm and a width of 10 to 20 cm. The cleaning article may specifically be 30+/-2cm long by 14+/-2cm wide, as measured at the largest dimension, in order to fit the head of a typical cleaning implement 70, as discussed below. The optional core may specifically have a width of 6.5+/-2cm and a length of 26+/-2 cm. Of course, those skilled in the art will recognize that other shapes are possible and within the scope of the present invention.

The cleaning article 10 can have an outwardly facing cleaning side and attachment sites opposite thereto. The attachment site of the cleaning article 10 may have one or more attachment strips 30 for attachment to the head of the implement, such as two parallel strips 30 as shown. The strip 30 may comprise a loop material adapted for complementary attachment to the head of a cleaning implement having hooks.

The cleaning article 10 can be viewed as having one lamina or as having two, three or more laminae joined in face-to-face relationship. The lamina may be refolded in a serpentine fashion to provide a plurality of laminae in the Z direction.

More specifically, the cleaning article may comprise a construction of at least one sheet 12 and at least one gather strip element 25. The sheet 12 and gather strip element 25 are joined in face-to-face relationship with at least one permanent bond to form a laminate.

The sheet 12 may serve as a foundation structure for attaching gather strip elements 25 thereto. Other laminae and features may be interposed between the sheet 12 and gather strip element 25 without departing from the invention.

In particular, the sheet 12 may comprise a synthetic nonwoven sheet 12. The sheet material 12 with synthetic fibers provides for convenient engagement of the gather strip element 25 thereto. Nonwovens include spunbond, carded and airlaid web materials, as known in the art and made from synthetic fibers. Suitable nonwoven sheets may be manufactured according to commonly assigned 6,797,357.

Preferably, the sheet 12 comprises cellulose to provide absorbent capacity. The cellulosic sheet 12 may have a permanent wet strength resin added thereto, as is known in the art. Or the sheet 12 may preferably comprise a mixture of cellulosic and synthetic fibers to provide absorbency and barrier properties, and to provide for convenient engagement of the gather strip element 25. By cellulose, it is meant that the component is a major percentage by weight of the cellulose fiber.

The sheet 12 and/or gather strip element 25 can be hydrophilic to advantageously absorb water from the surface being cleaned. By hydrophilic, it is generally meant that the component will absorb water upon use and retain such water upon ordinary use, but without applying excessive compressive force.

In particular, the hydrophilic versus hydrophobic properties can be measured as follows. A 1 gram sample of the material was oven dried at about 110 ℃ for 12 hours and then conditioned at 65% relative humidity/21 ℃ for five days. The sample was then dried again at 110 ℃ for 12 hours. Humidity increase was measured as a percentage of moisture regain:

moisture regain ═ [ (total conditioned sample weight at 65% RH-weight of dried sample) ÷ weight of dried sample ] × 100%.

As used herein, a hydrophilic material has a moisture regain of greater than about 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, and preferably greater than about 6% at 65%. Table 1 below shows the results of comparing the% moisture regain for different fiber types at equilibrium in 65% RH.

TABLE 1：

Moisture regain (percentage)

While hydrophilic materials may be useful in the present invention described herein, such materials may not have sufficient strength for use in even disposable cleaning articles 10. Therefore, it is important to select an appropriate material.

For example, if the gather strip 17 is 100% cellulose, the wet coefficient of friction may be too great for a user to move the cleaning article 10 over a particular target surface. By mixing different materials, the surface area for dirt collection can be maintained while optimizing the wet coefficient of friction. Also, using gather strips 17 of different lengths, even with the same material, increases the cleaning surface area without unduly increasing the wet coefficient of friction, thereby providing ease of movement on the target surface.

Referring to fig. 2A and 2B, the sheet 12 may comprise a laminate of two, three, or more plies. In particular, the laminate may comprise three plies, an outward facing ply 12A for contact with the cleaning implement, an intermediate ply/core 12B for absorption, and an inward facing ply 12C for joining to the gather strip element 25.

The outer-facing ply 12A may comprise a hydroentangled spunbond nonwoven having a basis weight of 20 to 80 gsm. A45 gsm nonwoven from Avgol Nonwovens (Tel-Aviv, Israel) has been found to be suitable. As used herein, a nonwoven is a component having a mixture of air-laid and/or wet-laid fibers that are not woven together.

The intermediate layer sheet/core 12B may serve as a storage container to absorb and retain liquid collected from the target surface by the gather strip element 25. The intermediate layer sheet/core 12B may comprise a bicomponent fiber/synthetic air-laid web. A cellulose concentrate containing 85:15 cellulose: a 135gsm airlaid of bicomponent fibers is suitable.

The intermediate layer sheet/core 12B may also include an absorbent gelling material [ AGM ], as known in the art. AGM may increase retention of absorbed liquids and provide increased capacity of the cleaning article 10. The cleaning article 10 may be free of foam to save costs.

The inner-facing ply 12C may comprise a mixture of wet-laid fibers formed into a weave that is bonded to the synthetic nonwoven using methods such as hydroentanglement or hydroentanglement. The inner-facing ply 12C may comprise a 23gsm tissue with a 17gsm polypropylene spunbond as a composite material sold under the trade name Genesis tissue by Suominen (Helsinki, Finland). If desired, a specialized core 12B may be incorporated into the cleaning article 10. The dedicated core 12B may be between any of the

plies

12A,12C of the sheet 12 or disposed on an inwardly or outwardly oriented face of the sheet 12. In particular, the core 12B may include an intermediate ply. The core 12B and/or additional/alternative intermediate plies may be narrower than the outward-facing ply 12A and the inward-facing ply 12C. The core 12B and/or interlayer sheets may be about half the width of the outward facing sheets 12A and inward facing sheets 12C and centered on the longitudinal axis. In particular, the width of the core 12B and/or the intermediate plies may be less than or equal to the spacing between the strips 30 of attachment material.

The width of the core 12B and/or sheet 12 and gather strip element 25 is measured as follows. The cleaning article 10 is disposed on a flat horizontal surface. Smoothing out wrinkles and other disruptions to general planarity. The cleaning article is pulled taut by the fingertips. A steel ruler, vernier caliper or tool manufacturer grid, commonly available from l.s. starrett Co. (Athol, MA), is used to measure the width between the gather strip 17 and the opposite end of the core 12B. The outward facing plies 12A,12C and layer 27 may be removed as needed to provide an unobstructed path for measurement.

The width of the core 12B is measured in a transverse direction parallel to the transverse axis. If the core 12B has a variable width, the width is measured at the narrowest point. The width of the gather strip element 25 is also measured in the cross direction. The width of the gather strip element 25 is measured between the distal ends of the opposing gather strips 17 disposed relatively on the longitudinal axis and in the XY plane. If the gather strip element 25, and in particular the opposite end of the gather strip 17, has a variable width, the width is measured at the widest point. It is believed that a width difference of at least 4, 6,8, 10, 12, or 14cm bisected on the longitudinal axis is suitable for the embodiments described herein.

It is believed that the difference in width between the opposing gather strips 17 and the core 12B promotes stability of the core 12B and/or the middle layer sheet 12B to retain liquid transferred from the gather strip elements 25. Furthermore, it is believed that this geometry assists in draining the acquisition strips 17 of absorbed liquid. In addition, this geometry provides a gap that is believed to facilitate movement of the gather strip 17 so that different portions thereof are presented to the target surface in response to the user moving the cleaning article 10 during ordinary use.

The three

plies

12A,12B and 12C may be permanently joined together using adhesives and/or thermal bonds, as is known in the art, to form the sheet 12. An optional attachment strip 30 of loop material may be joined to the outwardly facing surface of the outer side ply 12A to removably join the cleaning article 10 to a handle 60 or implement. The strip 30 may be continuous or discontinuous.

Referring to fig. 3, the cleaning article 10 may further include a hydrophilic gather strip 17 disposed in the gather strip element 25. As used herein, gather strip 17 refers to a cantilever strip extending outwardly from a proximal end to a corresponding distal end. The individual gather strips 17 can have a proximal end at or offset from the longitudinal centerline of the article 10 and have a length (taken in the transverse direction) greater than the corresponding width (as taken in the longitudinal direction) to provide an aspect ratio of at least 1 and optionally 2 to 20, and optionally 5 to 15. The gather strip 17 may have a length, taken from a respective proximal end juxtaposed with the bond 38 to a respective distal end juxtaposed with the transverse edge of the cleaning article, of from 3 to 15cm, from 4 to 12cm, or in particular from 5 to 8cm, and a width of from 3 to 20mm, from 4 to 15mm, or in particular from 6 to 8 mm. These particular dimensions have been found to be suitable for floor cleaning when the cleaning tool is used.

The gather strips lie in the XY plane as desired for manufacture, although deformation that may occur during use due to fuzzing prior to use and/or due to movement against a target surface is deformed out of the XY plane. The gather strips 17 may be incorporated into one of the sheets 12 described herein or may be disposed on a separate sheet 12. The gather strips 17 may extend parallel to the width of the article or may be disposed at an acute angle thereto. The gather strips 17 may be straight, as shown, curved, serpentine or have any desired shape.

The gather strip element 25 may comprise the same materials, and in particular hydrophilic, and more particularly fibers, as described above for the inward facing ply 12C. The gather strip element 25 and/or the sheet 12 may alternatively or additionally comprise microfibers, as is known in the art.

Referring back to fig. 2A and 2B, the gather strip element 25 may comprise one or more plies folded back on itself in a serpentine fashion. This arrangement provides at least double, triple or more thicknesses. The double thickness provides a loop at the distal end of the respective strip 17 when the layer 27 is cut into individual gather strips that are generally transversely oriented. The loop is believed to be advantageous because it helps to space apart the strips 17 that overlap in the Z-direction.

The folded configuration may be accomplished by c-folding as shown throughout the figures. One skilled in the art will recognize that the c-folds may be cascaded to provide z-folds, w-folds, or other multi-layer folds, as is known in the art and includes c-folds.

The gather strip element 25 can include 2 to 25, 5 to 20, and alternatively about 10 layers 27 of gather strips 17 depending on the desired absorbent capacity and texture of the intended target surface. The gather strips 17 provided on each edge, in particular the longitudinal edges, may advantageously comprise a loop at the distal end and a free end having a single thickness at the distal end of the gather strips 17 to provide a different response during cleaning and to reach and retain more debris in advance during cleaning.

In particular, it is believed that the differential response of the gather strips presents a dynamically changing surface area to the target surface during cleaning under normal use conditions. By varying the surface area, more liquid and associated debris can be cleaned from the target surface.

A non-limiting gather strip element 25 having three separate gather strip materials is shown. The upper sheet, which is closer to the sheet 12, is folded onto itself to provide four acquisition strip layers 27. The two lower gather strip 17 layers 27 are z-folded onto themselves to provide three gather strip layers 27 each.

The sheet 12 and gather strip element 25 may be joined by a plurality of bonds 38, as shown below. Bond 38 may be a thermal bond, an adhesive bond, an ultrasonic bond, or the like, as is known in the art.

The intermediate bond 38 may join all layers 27/laminae of the cleaning article 10 to ensure an integral construction and prevent loss of individual components in use. The intermediate bonds 38 may be common to all of the layers 27 of gather strip element 25 and join each layer 27 of gather strip element 25 to the sheet 12, either directly or indirectly.

Two outboard bonds 38 may be provided and only join the layers 27 of gather strip elements 25 of adjacent sheets 12. For the embodiments described herein, the outboard bonds 38 may be laterally spaced on center by at least about 7cm such that the outboard bonds are spaced outwardly from the core 12B and do not overlap the core 12B. If such bonds join only a portion of the layer 27 of gather strip element 25 directly or indirectly to the sheet 12, the outboard bond 38 or the intermediate bond 38 may be considered the second bond 38.

Typically, all of the layers 27 of gather strip element 25 are joined to the sheet 12 by at least one bond 38. The layer 27 closest to the sheet 12 can be considered to be the first layer 27. Subsequent layers 27 are considered relatively adjacent to sheet 12 and may be considered as a second layer 27, a third layer 27, a fourth layer 27, etc. in that order. The layer 27 that is distal from the sheet 12 and closest to or in contact with the floor is considered the distal layer 27.

The bonds 38 may be longitudinally coextensive with the sheet 12 or slightly shorter than the sheet 12. In a less preferred embodiment, the outboard bonds may only join portions of the gather strip element 25 that are distal and not adjacent to the sheet 12.

This arrangement provides a relatively long gather strip 17 on the target surface and a shorter gather strip inside. It is believed that gather strips having different lengths improve cleaning efficacy by allowing gather strips 17 to move independently of each other and form a space therebetween. It is believed that such spacing between the gather strips 17, and in particular presenting the gather strips 17 in overlapping layers, is important in providing sufficient area to the surface being cleaned to effectively pick up and retain soil by the cleaning article 10. Thus, the layer 27 may be made by a single fold, multiple folds or by a simple superposition without folds.

Referring back to fig. 3, the gather strip element 25 may be joined to the sheet using sinusoidal bonds 38, zigzag bonds 38, all collectively referred to as serpentine bonds 38 or other non-linear bonds 38. The pattern of bonds 38 provides for relatively long and relatively short individual gather strips 17. In addition, the gather strips 17 each have a respective proximal end that is not parallel to the longitudinal axis. This geometry provides a proximal end that is believed to facilitate the gather strip twisting and breaking during cleaning.

Alternatively, the intermediate bonds 38 may comprise an array of discrete bonds 38, as disclosed in commonly assigned EP application serial No. 15162895.5, P & G case No. 13742F. It is contemplated that the discrete bonds 38 promote a dynamically changing presentation of the gather strip element 25 to the target surface during ordinary use.

It is believed that gather strips 17 of different lengths, when in use, present different strips 17 and/or portions thereof to the target surface. It is also believed that the irregular proximal ends of the gather strips 17 present a different strip 17, or portion thereof, to the target surface in use.

Generally, by presenting different gather strips 17 and/or different portions of gather strips 17 to the target surface during use, it is believed that the saturated portions of the cleaning article 10 do not remain in contact with the target surface. Presenting different portions of the gather strip element 25 during use minimizes redeposition and allows unsaturated portions of the gather strip element 25 to contact, absorb and retain liquids from the target surface. It is believed that improved cleaning occurs by dynamically changing the active portion of the gather strip element 25 that contacts the target surface. Importantly, the dynamic change of the active portion of the gather strip element 25 occurs automatically and without user intervention, except for the normal fore and aft stroke as part of normal cleaning.

Preferably, the cleaning article is free of tow fibers. Tow fibers tend to entangle and clump when wet, reducing cleaning efficacy. In less preferred embodiments, however, the cleaning article may also comprise one or more thin layers of tow fibers. The thin layers of tow fibers may be joined to the sheet 12 or gather strip element 25 in a face-to-face relationship. The thin layer of tow fibers may be adapted and configured for direct contact with a target surface during cleaning. Alternatively, a thin layer of tow fibers may be disposed between the sheet 12 and the gather strip element 25.

The tow fibers may be synthetic. As used herein, "bundle fibers" and/or "tow" refer to fibers comprising synthetic polymers including polyesters, polypropylenes, polyethylenes, biologically derived polymers such as polylactic acid, biopolyethylene, biopolyesters, and the like. Tow fibers also include fibers from natural sources such as cellulose, cellulose acetate, flax, hemp, jute and blends thereof made where the individual fibers are relatively long strands made in tow form. A bundle fiber can be defined as any fiber having a distinct terminus and a length of at least about 1 cm. The tow fibers may extend continuously and in a substantially transverse direction between the transverse edges of the article 10.

The one or more sheets 12, gather strip element 25, and optionally one or more layers of tow fibers may be joined by a plurality of permanent bonds 38. The bonds 38 are intended to minimize or prevent stray or shed tow fibers from becoming loose. One or more such sheets 12, gather strip element 25 and one or more layers of tow fibers may directly overlap one another, typically with or without intervening members or components therebetween.

The one or more bonds 38 may be formed by adhesive bonding, thermal bonding, ultrasonic bonding, or the like. In thermal bonding and ultrasonic bonding, energy and compressive pressure are applied to the localized bond 38 sites. The synthetic sheet 12 and synthetic tow fibers melt at such localized points. Upon refreezing, the local material of the sheet 12 and tow fibers refreeze together at such local points, forming local welds, which are bonds 38.

If desired, the sheet 12 may be covered by an outwardly facing liquid impermeable barrier. The barrier prevents the absorbent liquid from contacting the user's hands, tools, etc. Suitable barriers include LDPE films, as known in the art.

Referring to fig. 2B, the gather strip element 25 may comprise a serpentine folded member having a width that decreases as the distal edge of the gather strip element 25 is approached. This geometry provides an inverted pyramidal configuration when in use. The construction of such gather strip elements 25 may provide multiple layers 27 of gather strip elements 25 having multiple widths. The width may decrease from the first layer 27 to the distal layer 27, and in particular the width may decrease monotonically from the first layer 27 to the distal layer 27. It is contemplated that the inverted pyramidal configuration advantageously presents more edges to the target surface during cleaning.

Referring to fig. 4A-4B, the cleaning article may be free of a common bond 38 joining all of the layers 27 of the gather strip element 25 to the sheet 12. Instead, the first bond 38 may join one or more of the proximal layers 27 to the sheet 12. The second bond 38 may join one or more of the distal layers 27 to the proximal layers 27, but does not join the distal layers 27 directly to the sheet. This arrangement is expected to provide the following benefits: if the cleaning article 10 is particularly thick in the z-direction, bonds 38 through all of its components are avoided.

Any of the sheet 12, gather strip element 25, and/or optional tow fiber layer may optionally be coated, in whole or in part, with an adhesive, wax, newtonian or non-newtonian oil, or combinations thereof, in order to improve cleaning and increase retention of absorbed debris. The cleaning article 10 optionally may be used with a cleaning solution or other solution that may be used for other purposes, such as treating a cosmetic surface or disinfecting, etc., if desired. The cleaning solution may be pre-applied to the cleaning article 10, resulting in a pre-wetted cleaning article 10, or may be contained in a separate reservoir for dosing the cleaning article 10 and/or target surface. The cleaning solution may comprise a majority of water and at least about 0.5, 2,5, or 10 weight percent solids, or at least about 30 weight percent or 50 weight percent aqueous, non-aqueous, or mixtures thereof.

Referring to fig. 5A-5G, various alternative gather strip elements 25 are shown. While the various gather strip elements 25 are shown as having two layers 25, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention is not so limited. The gather strip element 25 may have one, two, three or more layers 27 with bonds 38 as shown, or with different bonds 38. Those skilled in the art will also recognize that various combinations and mixtures of these embodiments may be incorporated into a single cleaning article 10 as desired.

Referring to fig. 5A, the gather strip element 25 may comprise two sheets of material, each sheet having an open c-fold. It is contemplated that this arrangement is advantageously believed to provide a generally symmetrical opposing geometry that facilitates cleaning in a common back and forth motion, and provides cleaning articles 10 of generally equal thickness.

Referring to fig. 5B, the gather strip element 25 may comprise two sheets of material, each sheet having a z-fold with a shortened outer leg. It is contemplated that this arrangement advantageously provides a generally symmetrical opposing geometry. Each longitudinal edge of the cleaning article 10 has two c-folds which provide a loop gather strip 17 and two free ends of the gather strip 17. It is believed that providing this arrangement of the free and loop ends of the gather strips 17 and a substantially constant thickness facilitates cleaning in a common back and forth motion.

Referring to fig. 5C, the gather strip element 25 may comprise two sheets of material, each sheet having C-folds oriented in opposite directions. It is contemplated that this arrangement advantageously provides a generally symmetrical opposing geometry. Each longitudinal edge of the cleaning article 10 has a c-fold which provides a loop gather strip 17 and two free ends of the gather strip 17. It is believed that providing this arrangement of the free and loop ends of the gather strips 17 facilitates cleaning in a common back and forth motion.

Referring to fig. 5D, the gather strip element 25 may comprise two sheets of material, each sheet having a c-fold oriented in the same direction. It is contemplated that this arrangement is advantageously provided with the free ends of the ring-like gather strips 17 on one longitudinal edge and the gather strips 17 on the other longitudinal edge. This arrangement provides different types of gather strips 17 suitable for different cleaning tasks.

Referring to fig. 5E, the gather strip element 25 may comprise two sheets of material, each sheet having a z-fold with a shortened outer leg and arranged to provide a W-fold. It is contemplated that this arrangement is believed to advantageously provide two outwardly facing annular gather strips on each longitudinal edge of the cleaning article 10.

Referring to fig. 5F, the gather strip element 25 may comprise two sheets of interfolded material. It is contemplated that this arrangement advantageously provides a generally symmetrical opposing geometry. Each longitudinal edge of the cleaning article 10 has a c-fold providing a single free end of the collecting strip 17 with a loop-like collecting strip 17 and a thicker central region of the collecting strip 17. It is expected that having a thicker central region allows the gather strips 17 to move and present a different surface area to the floor when in use.

Referring to fig. 5G, the gather strip element 25 may include two or more independent serpentine layers 27. Each gather strip element 25 may be joined to the sheet 12 by a dedicated bond 38. Each such gather strip element 25 may then have two outwardly extending banks of gather strips 17. The described arrangement provides the advantage that additional gather strips 17 are available and that the inwardly oriented gather strips 17 can be wound during use. It is expected that this is believed to allow different gather strips 17 to have different functions and increase the amount of dynamic surface area presented to the floor in use.

Of course, those skilled in the art will recognize that combinations and mixtures of the foregoing alternative alternatives are possible and contemplated herein. For example, the cleaning article 10 may have more than two bond lines 38. One such bond line 38 may be straight or all of the bond lines 38 may not be straight. If three bond lines 38 are used, for example, the bond lines 38 may be symmetrically opposed and serpentine, whereas the center bond line 38 is straight. Or a single gather strip element 25 may be joined to the sheet by a plurality of bond lines.

Referring to fig. 6, the cleaning article 10 may be removably attached to a handle 60. In particular, the attachment system may provide removable attachment of the cleaning article 10 to a suitable and optional handle 60. The cleaning article 10 attachment system and optional complementary handle 60 attachment may comprise adhesive bonding, cohesive bonding, mechanical bonding through a sleeve, or the like. One common attachment system includes a sleeve into which the tip of the handle 60 may be inserted. Suitable handles 60 are disclosed in commonly assigned US 8,578,564 and D674,949S.

Referring to fig. 7, the cleaning article 10 may be removably attached to an implement 70. In particular, the floor cleaning tool 70 may allow for cleaning of a floor while a user is standing, and may also provide for spraying of a cleaning solution or other liquid onto the floor. The typical floor cleaning tool 70 has a handle 72 for grasping by a user and to which a head 74 is attached, and preferably pivotally attached. The head 74 moves against the floor or other target surface. The cleaning tool 70 may be removably attached to the bottom of the head. Preferably, the strip 17 is defined by the footprint of the head 74 during use, thereby facilitating dynamic movement of the strip 17 during cleaning.

Removable attachment of the cleaning article 10 to the implement 70 may be accomplished using adhesives, hook and loop systems, and clips. A fixture and suitable cleaning implement 70 are disclosed in commonly assigned 6,484,356. A suitable vacuum tool 70 is disclosed in 7,137,169. Suitable spray tools 70 are disclosed in commonly assigned 5,888,006, 5,988,920, 6,842,936, 7,182,537, 7,536,743, 7,676,877 and 8,186,898.

The cleaning article 10 may also be used manually without the handle 60 or implement 70. The various cleaning articles 10 described herein can be packaged and sold in kit form if desired. This arrangement provides the benefit that the user has the option of different cleaning articles 10 for different tasks. For example, if desired, multiple sizes of cleaning articles 10 may be sold together in a single kit. This arrangement allows the user to select the particular cleaning article 10 that is best suited for the instant task.

It is believed that the cleaning article 10 of the present invention addresses the unmet need for cleaning modern wood/laminates. The particular cleaning article 10 is constructed from 10 layers 27 of strips 17. The width of each strip 17 is about 7 mm. All 10 layers 27 are joined at an intermediate bond 38. The four layers 27 adjacent and closest to the sheet 12 are also attached thereto with additional bonds 38 disposed laterally outboard of the intermediate bonds 38.

The cleaning article 10 according to the present invention, and two commercially available control samples, were tested as described above. The first control sample was a WetJet floor sheet sold by the present assignee. The sample contains AGM and is generally considered to be disposable. The second control sample was a microfiber floor sheet sold by Bona and is generally considered reusable for multiple cleaning tasks. These two samples are believed to represent a wide range of disposable and reusable floor sheets.

The test was performed on a 6mm thick transparent polycarbonate resin glass (plexi-glass) surface disposed on a matt black cardboard. For each sample tested, the gloss of the surface was measured using a BYK-Gardner gloss meter.

BYK-Gardner^TM"scrub" abrasion test the scrubber was used for consistency between samples. After the initial gloss measurement, the surface was treated with 2ml of a common cleaning solution sold under the Swiffer brand as a WetJet liquid and generally sprayed evenly over the test surface. A 200 gram weight was placed on each sample. Each sample was cycled back and forth 50 times. The test surface was then allowed to air dry. The final gloss of the surface was tested and the corresponding reading was subtracted.

No fouling was used for this test. Thus, the change in gloss represents surface damage caused by the corresponding sample.

Four replicates were performed for each sample. Each replicate test was performed on three different locations of the test surface to determine the effect on gloss. The results are shown in Table 2. Thus, each entry of the change in gloss represents an average of 12 data points. The relative surface area of the sample was also determined.

TABLE 2：

The data in table 2 show that the Bona microfiber samples disadvantageously resulted in a significant reduction in gloss when tested as described above. The WetJet sample resulted in less loss of gloss than the Bona microfiber sample. The loss of gloss indicates that surface damage can occur by ordinary cleaning on the unsoiled test surface. Without being bound by theory, it is believed that the greater surface damage from the microfiber sample may be due to the inclusion of a relatively abrasive material, such as nylon.

Surprisingly, the inventive samples show minimal loss in gloss with differences almost within the standard deviation. Without being bound by theory, it is believed that the less surface damage of the microfiber sample may be due to the beneficial effect of having a moving strip 17 that presents a dynamic surface area to the target surface when in use.

The above test was repeated using 0.77 square meters of RN 104577 Santos Mahogany engineered hardwood laminate wood flooring (distributed by Home Legend (Fontana, CA)). The floor was contaminated with soil comprising about 2% ultra fine dust suspended in water/pure solution (clay soil sold by PTI soils). About 2ml of this solution was applied to the test surface using a paint roller and allowed to air dry. The soil was then rewetted with 2ml of cleaning solution. Each sample was then cycled back and forth on the floor 25 times. The difference in gloss between the resulting samples is shown in table 3 below.

Table 3 shows that the cleaning article 10 of the present invention minimizes the potential for surface damage relative to the control sample, even in the presence of a more stringent test using particulate soil on newer flooring materials.

Referring to fig. 8, Bona flooring sheets and the flooring sheet 10 according to the present invention were tested for 10 cycles on each of the aforementioned RN 104577 Santos Mahogany engineered hardwood floors. The floor was divided into two halves, one for each sample. The floor was cleaned and the initial gloss recorded. A solution of dirt, oil and isopropyl alcohol was applied to the floor and air dried. A commercially available WetJet cleaning liquid sold by the present assignee was sprayed onto the test surface.

Each sample was tested with eight front and back wipes in each direction to cover about 2.8 square meters, representing one cycle. After each cycle, the test surface was measured for two film formations, i.e., appearance of haze, and tested for streaks. The process was repeated with the same sample until 10 cycles were completed.

Figure 8 shows that a commercially available Bona microfiber sample exhibited both streaking and haze above the subjective visible detection threshold. Both properties generally increase in the direction of the disadvantage in the test. In contrast, the cleaning article 10 according to the present invention advantageously exhibits streaking and haze well below the visible detection threshold [1 dimensionless scale ] over all 10 cycles.

The dimensions and values disclosed herein are not to be understood as being strictly limited to the exact numerical values recited. Rather, unless otherwise specified, each such dimension is intended to mean both the recited value and a functionally equivalent range surrounding that value. For example, a dimension disclosed as "40 mm" is intended to mean "about 40 mm".

Each document cited herein, including any cross-referenced or related patent or application, is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety unless expressly excluded or otherwise limited. The citation of any document is not an admission that it is prior art with respect to any invention disclosed or claimed herein or that it alone, or in combination with any other reference or references, teaches, suggests or discloses any such invention. Further, to the extent that any meaning or definition of a term in this document conflicts with any meaning or definition of the same term in a document incorporated by reference, the meaning or definition assigned to that term in this document shall govern.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described, it would be obvious to those skilled in the art that various other changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is therefore intended to cover in the appended claims all such changes and modifications that are within the scope of this invention.

Claims

1. An elongated cleaning article for cleaning a wetted target surface, said elongated cleaning article having two opposing longitudinal edges defining a width therebetween and two opposing transverse edges defining a length therebetween, said elongated cleaning article comprising:

a nonwoven sheet having an inwardly oriented face and an outwardly oriented face opposite the inwardly oriented face;

an absorbent core joined to the inwardly oriented face of the nonwoven sheet, the absorbent core having a core width; and

a hydrophilic gather strip (44) element having a gather strip element width joined to at least one of the absorbent core and the nonwoven sheet at two outer elongate bonds, each of the outer elongate bonds being disposed laterally outward of the absorbent core and not overlapping the absorbent core, the gather strip element comprising at least two overlapping layers, each of the overlapping layers having a strip extending outward from the outer elongate bonds, the strip having an aspect ratio defined by a length to width ratio of the strip, the aspect ratio being at least 1, the gather strip element width being greater than the core width.

2. An elongate cleaning article according to claim 1 further comprising a common bond disposed intermediate said outboard elongate bonds, said common bond joining all of said overlying layers to said nonwoven sheet.

3. An elongate cleaning article according to any preceding claim further comprising two attachment strips disposed on said outwardly oriented face of said nonwoven sheet and laterally outboard of said outboard elongate bonds.

4. An elongate cleaning article according to claim 3 wherein at least two of said overlapping layers of said hydrophilic gather strip element are c-folded over each other.

5. An elongate cleaning article according to claim 3 wherein at least three of said superposed layers of said hydrophilic gather strip element are z-folded over each other.

6. An elongate cleaning article according to claim 1 removably attachable to a cleaning implement, said cleaning implement comprising a head and a handle pivotally attached to said head, said head removably receiving said elongate cleaning article.