GB2391161A

GB2391161A - Sanitary underpants

Info

Publication number: GB2391161A
Application number: GB0317732A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Renata Ikic
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-07-29
Filing date: 2003-07-29
Publication date: 2004-02-04
Also published as: GB0217518D0; GB0317732D0

Abstract

A pair of underpants 1 comprises a crotch portion having at least two superposed layers of fabric 6, 7, between which one or more adhesive wings 21 of a sanitary product such as a sanitary towel 20, can be concealed. The underpants may be a standard pair of ladies' briefs having an additional layer attached to the inside or the outside of the crotch portion. The additional layer may comprise more than one layer of fabric and may be stitched to the crotch portion in such a way that leaves an opening for the wings between the two layers along the leg openings. Also claimed is a 'feminine hygiene pack' comprising one or more pairs of the said underpants and a plurality of replacement sanitary towels.

Description

r improvements in or Relating to Sanitary Clothing The present invention

relates to improvements in or relating to sanitary clothing. in particular, it relates to improvements in underpants that are to be 5 worn in conjunction with items of sanitary wear, such as sanitary towels, incontinence pads and the like.

Sanitary towels are used by many women for absorbing the blood that is lost during menstruation. In order to cater to different women's needs, there are a wide variety of such towels on the market, which differ in their specific 10 shape and dimensions. As a general rule, a standard sanitary towel takes the form of an elongate, flexible absorbent pad. Typically, the absorbent pad has a thin waterproof backing layer, and the backing layer carries a sufficient amount of adhesive to allow the pad to be secured to an inner surface of a crotch portion of a pair of ladies' briefs. Usually, the adhesive is covered by a 15 protective layer or strip that is removed from the towel to expose the adhesive just before use. This ensures that the adhesive does not lose its stickiness prior to use and maximises the probability that the towel will remain secured to a ladies' briefs for as long as its use is required.

Certain problems have been identified with the use of sanitary towels of 20 the standard design. Most notably, such towels can become detached from a ladies' briefs during use, owing to a loss of stickiness of the adhesive backing.

Also, as a wearer's inner thighs typically exert an inward pressure on the elongate sides of such towels, there is a tendency for those towels to become deformed by being squashed in a lateral direction during use. Such deformation 25 can cause the width of the towel to decrease relative to the width of the crotch portion, thereby allowing the lateral edges of the crotch portion, which are typically elasticated, to overlap and curl around the sides of the towel. Thus the briefs can actually obstruct the flow of blood to the towel, causing blood to

( leak onto the briefs. In order to overcome such problems, sanitary towels have been developed which comprise thin, flexible, adhesive extensions or 'wings'.

Such 'winged' towels are based on the standard sanitary towel, but are characterized in that they have a pair of flexible 'wings', which protrude from 5 the opposing elongate sides of the towel. The wings are usually formed by an extension of the lower waterproof layer of the towel together with an absorbent covering layer, which extends over the main body of the towel. The wings are provided with adhesive on the side of the waterproof layer, such that when the adhesive is exposed and the towel put in place, the wings can be wrapped lo around the lateral edges of the briefs and secured to an outer surface of the crotch portion. Primarily, the wings provide a protective barrier against leakage of blood onto the lateral edges of the crotch portion of the briefs, so even if the towel becomes deformed during use and the lateral edges of the briefs are caused to curl around the main body of the towel, the wings curl with the 15 edges of the briefs and act as a physical barrier to prevent menstrual blood coming into contact with the lateral edges of the briefs. Furthermore, the additional adhesive on the wings ensures that the towel is held more securely in place than a standard sanitary towel.

However, there are still problems associated with the use of such 20 winged sanitary towels. For example, the aesthetic results of wearing such a towel are not pleasing. The wings of the towel are quite clearly visible from the outside of a pair of briefs when worn. This can render some women self conscious about wearing them. Furthermore, as the adhesive applied to each wings does not cover the whole surface area of the wing, when a winged towel 25 is worn, the lateral edges of the wings sit generally proud of the briefs making the wings not only more visible, but also easier to dislodge. This can be particularly problematic when tight fitting clothing is worn over briefs, such as hosiery.

It is an object of the invention to alleviate some or all of these problems. In particular it is an object of the invention to provide a novel pair of underpants which can be used to conceal substantially the wings of a winged sanitary towel.

S According to one aspect of the invention therefore there is provided a pair of underpants having a crotch portion which comprises at least two superposed layers of fabric, wherein said layers are arranged substantially to conceal one or more adhesive wings, provided on an item of sanitary wear which is to be worn inside said underpants, by enabling said wings to be 10 interposed two of said layers.

By "crotch portion" is meant generally a portion of a pair of underpants that extends between a wearer's legs. It may encompass a region of the underpants, which when wom, extends partially up the front and rear lower torso regions of a wearer. Thus, for example, when considering a standard pair 15 of ladies' briefs which generally comprise front and rear panels of fabric which are joined to define a waist opening for fitting around the lower torso of a wearer and a crotch panel which connects the front and rear panels, the combination of front, rear and crotch panels defining left and right openings for receiving the wearer's legs, the term "crotch portion" is not intended 20 necessarily to refer only to the crotch panel as sewn, but may extend beyond this panel to include, in particular, at least part of the front and rear panels.

The term "layers" is intended to encompass configurations where the crotch portion is formed from two or more separate pieces of fabric which are superposed each other, as well as configurations where a single piece of fabric 25 is folded upon itself a number times to provide a layered effect.

Typically, said crotch portion has two opposite, arcuate lateral edges, each lateral edge partially defining a respective opening for receiving a wearer's leg, said underpants being characterised in that said crotch portion comprises at

least two layers of fabric which are superimposed each other, and in that said layers are adapted, at each of said opposite lateral edges of said crotch portion, to allow access to the facing surfaces of two adjacent layers of said at least two layers of fabric, for allowing one or more adhesive wings to be interposed said 5 two adjacent layers for substantially concealing said one or more adhesive wings. It will be appreciated that the term "opposite lateral edges" refers to the opposite free lateral edges of the underpants, positioned within the crotch region and which specifically form part of each leg opening.

10 Said underpants may comprise a standard pair of ladies' briefs having at least one additional layer of fabric attached to either an inner or an outer surface of said briefs, such that said additional layer substantially covers either the inner or the outer surface of the crotch portion of said briefs.

The additional layer may cover either the entire inner or outer surface 15 of the briefs. However, to minimize the bulkiness of the garment and to minimize the amount of material which has to be used in making the gannent, it is preferable that the additional layer only partially covers the surface of the briefs to which it is attached. Thus, when the additional layer is attached to the outer surface of the briefs, the additional outer layer may not extend 20 completely over the front and/or rear panels of the briefs. Likewise, when the additional layer is attached to the inner surface of the briefs, the additional inner layer may not cover the entire inner surfaces of the front and/or rear panels of the briefs.

The briefs and the additional layer may comprise the same type of 25 fabric; for example, the briefs and additional layer may be made of cotton, cotton/elastane mix, nylon/elastane mix, or any other type of fabric that is suitable for manufacturing undergarments. Alternatively, the briefs and additional layer may comprise two or more different types of fabric.

( The additional layer itself may comprise a single piece of fabric which has been cut to shape, or alternatively, the additional layer may comprise two or more pieces of fabric which are joined together, for example by stitching, to give the desired shape.

5 Preferably said additional layer is attached to said briefs by stitching, said stitching being arranged such that the opposite lateral edges of the crotch portion of said briefs and corresponding opposite lateral edges of said additional layer of fabric remain substantially unattached to allow insertion of said adhesive, lateral wings between said crotch portion and said additional 10 layer. The additional layer may be sewn to the briefs in any manner appropriate to ensure that the additional layer remains secured to the briefs, whilst maintaining an opening between the opposite lateral edges of the additional layer and crotch portion of the briefs, to allow for insertion, between 15 said additional layer and briefs, of adhesive wings provided on an item of sanitary wear. As the dimensions of wings of different items of sanitary wear; can vary considerably, particularly in terms of their size as measured in a: direction substantially parallel to an elongate side of an item of sanitary wear: to which the wings are attached, it is preferable to ensure the additional layer is 20 of sufficient size to enable substantially all sizes of wings to be inserted and received between the additional layer and crotch portion of the briefs.: If the additional layer is attached to the outer surface of the briefs, it is preferable that each of the opposite lateral edges of the additional layer extends beyond a respective one of each of the corresponding opposite lateral edges of: 25 said crotch portion of said briefs so as to provide a slight overlap. 1 Similarly, if the additional layer is attached to the inner surface of the briefs, it is preferable that each of the opposite lateral edges of the crotch portion of the briefs extends beyond a respective one of each of the

corresponding opposite lateral edges of the additional layer so as to provide a slight overlap.

Irrespective of whether the additional layer is attached to the inner or outer surface of a pair of briefs, the crotch portion of the underpants essentially S comprises an outermost layer and an innermost layer. When the additional layer is secured to the outer surface of the briefs, the additional layer forms the outermost layer of the underpants and the briefs themselves form the innermost layer. Conversely, when the additional layer is attached to the inner surface of the briefs, the briefs form the outermost layer and the additional layer forms 10 the innermost layer.

In order to conceal fully the wings of an item of sanitary wear that is worn inside said underpants, it is preferable that the outermost layer be large enough to overlap the opposite lateral edges of the innermost layer. Thus, when the underpants are worn and viewed from the outside, the outermost layer 15 completely conceals the innermost layer. In this respect, the wings, which are wrapped around and secured to the outer facing surface of innermost layer, are completely concealed by the overlying outermost layer.

The overlap may be of any desired size. However, it is important that the overlap is not so large that the underpants are rendered uncomfortable to 20 wear, or so that the outermost layer is able to curl around the lateral edges of the innermost layer, thereby inserting itself between the sanitary towel and a wearer of the pants so that the outermost layer interferes with the function of the item of sanitary wear. Typically an overlap of somewhere in the range of about O cm to about 2.5 cm is suitable, although the overlap may be larger than 25 this.

The additional layer may comprise more than one layer of fabric.

Preferably the additional layer has a hem provided along each of its opposite lateral edges.

By using an additional layer that of itself comprises more than one layers of fabric which are joined together, the additional layer has improved shape retention as compared to a single layer of fabric and is therefore less likely to move laterally relative the crotch portion the briefs. However, in order 5 to reduce the bulkiness of the garment, the additional layer may simply be formed with a hem which runs along each of its opposite lateral edges for assisting shape retention of the outer layer when the underpants are worn by specifically reinforcing the lateral edges of the additional layer. Alternatively, the additional layer may be formed from a single layer of fabric having a type 10 of elasticated band or strip attached along its opposite lateral edges to aid maintenance of shape. The addition of an elasticated strip or band to the opposite lateral edges of the additional layer is generally desirable when the additional layer is comprised of cotton, or substantially of cotton, to avoid stretching of the additional layer which could lead to a loss of shape of the IS additional layer along its edges. Indeed, as is typical for a conventional pair of ladies', cotton underpants, elasticated bands or strips may be attached along, or sewn into each of the free edges of the underpants, i.e. along the edges defining the waist and leg openings, so that the underpants provide a more comfortable and secure fit.

20 Preferably, the item of sanitary wear to be worn inside the underpants of the present invention is a sanitary towel.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a pair of underpants in accordance with the present invention having a winged sanitary towel attached to the inner surface of the crotch portion of said underpants and 25 the wings of said towels being interposed and concealed between two adjacent layers of said crotch portion.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a feminine hygiene pack comprising one or more pairs of underpants according

to the present invention and a plurality of replacement sanitary towels.

Following is a description by way of example only of an embodiment

of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings in 5 vhich: F1G. 1 is an isometric view of a pair of underpants in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the crotch portion of the underpants of FIG. 1 as viewed from the exterior of the garment.

10 FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the crotch portion of the underpants of FIGS. 1 and 2.

A pair of underpants 1 in accordance with the present invention as shown in FIG. 1 comprises a first front panel of fabric 2 and a second rear panel of fabric 3, which first and second panels are joined directly to each 15 other by stitching at side seams 4 to define an opening 5 for receiving and fitting around the waist or hips of a wearer depending on the style of the briefs. A third "crotch" panel of fabric 6, which is preferably a double layer sewn together around its edges, is attached to said first and second panels such that the combination of first, second and third panels further defines two 20 apertures for receiving respectively the left and right legs of a wearer of the underpants. Thus, in combination, the first, second and third panels of the underpants essentially form a conventional pair of ladies' briefs.

Typically, the briefs are made of cotton, cotton/elastane mix, nylon/elastane mix, or any other fabric that is suitable for the manufacture of 25 underwear. A shaped outer layer 7 is formed from a piece of fabric such that it has two substantially linear, substantially parallel ends 10, 11, arranged at opposite ends of the outer layer 7. The outer layer also has two opposite arcuate lateral

edges 16, 17 which extend between the linear ends 10, 11, as shown in FIG. 2.

The outer layer 7, which may be made from the saline or a different fabric to that of the briefs. partially covers the outer surface of said briefs, generally in a region of said briefs that fits over the crotch of the wearer, which region is 5 hereinafter referred to as the "crotch portion" of the briefs. Similar to the shape of the outer layer 7, the crotch portion, which comprises the crotch panel 6 and part of the first and second panels 2, 3, also has two opposite arcuate lateral edges 18, 19.

The outer layer is secured at a first position to the outer surface of said 10 first panel 2 and at a second position to the outer surface of the second panel 3. The outer layer extends from the first panel 2, around the outer surface of the third panel 6 to the second panel 3, thereby completely covering the outer surface of the third panel 6 and partially covering the outer surfaces of the first and second panels. The combination of the crotch portion and outer layer 7 in 15 the underpants 1 creates essentially a pocket which is open at both opposite arcuate lateral edges of the crotch portion 18, 19 and outer layer 16, 17.

As shown in FIG. 2 by chain-dot lines, the outer layer 7 is attached to the crotch portion of the briefs by end lines of stitching 8, 9. At one linear end 10 of the outer layer, the outer layer 7 is secured to the first panel 2 by an end 20 line of stitching 8 that runs generally parallel the one end 10. At the other linear end 11 of the outer layer, the outer layer 7 is attached to the second panel 3 by an end line of stitching 9, which runs substantially parallel to said other end 11. The outer layer 7 is further secured to the first 2 and second 3 panels by additional side lines of stitching 12, 13, 14 and 15, each of which 25 side lines extends from one end of respective end lines 8, 9 towards the centre of the crotch portion, juxtaposed a respective one of the arcuate sides. Each of said additional side lines of stitching 12, 13, 14, 15 is shorter in length than lines 8 and 9. Furthermore, each of the additional side lines of stitching 12, 13,

14, 15 runs substantially parallely to the adjacent arcuate lateral edges of the first and second panels. Providing such additional lines of stitching ensures that the outer layer 7 is held more securely in position, and furthermore, the close proximity of these additional side lines of stitching 12, 13, 14 and 15 to the 5 arcuate lateral edges of the first 2 and second 3 panels reduces the tendency for the outer layer to move laterally relative to the briefs when the underpants are wom. This helps to prevent the underlying opposite, arcuate lateral edges 18, 19 of the briefs from becoming exposed such they are visible from the exterior of the garment.

10 FIG. 2, by virtue of the inclusion of phantom dashed lines showing details of the crotch portion of the briefs that would otherwise be hidden by the outer layer 7, shows that the opposite lateral edges 16,17 of the outer layer extend beyond and overlap the corresponding, respective opposite lateral edges of the underlying crotch portion of said briefs 18 and 19. The overlap is 15 generally greatest in a central region 24 of the outer layer, which overlaps the third panel of the briefs, and is typically of the order of about 0.2 cm to 2.5 cm. On either side of this central region, i.e. between said central region and ends 10, 11, the overlap is gradually reduced in magnitude until there is substantially no overlap.

20 The underpants as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 are adapted to be worn in conjunction with a sanitary towel having laterally protruding adhesive flaps, or wings'. The sanitary towel 20 as shown in FIG. 1 is fixed to an inner surface of the underpants within the crotch portion of the briefs. Thus, depending on the specific dimensions of the sanitary towel, the towel 20 substantially covers 25 the inner surface of the third panel 6 of the underpants and may also contact part of the inner surfaces of the first 2 and second 3 panels.

Once the sanitary towel 20 is properly secured to the inner surface of the briefs, via adhesive which is provided on the back of the sanitary towel,

I: each wing of the sanitary towel lies adjacent one of the two opposite lateral edges of the briefs. FIG.1 shows a view of one side of the underpants in accordance with the present invention, and thus shows one wing 21 of the sanitary towel 20 substantially adjacent to one of the opposite lateral edges 18, 5 19 of the briefs. An adhesive strip 23 provided on the back of each wing, is then exposed by removal of a protective backing covering (not shown), and the crotch portion of the briefs and outer layer are then prised apart so that each wing can be carefully folded around the adjacent lateral edge of the crotch portion of the briefs and stuck to the outer surface of said crotch portion, in a 10 movement illustrated by arrow A, such that each wing is inserted into the pocket defined between the outer layer and crotch portion of the briefs. The outer layer 7 and crotch portion of the briefs are then allowed to come together so that the wings become concealed between the two.

As shown in FIG. 3, once properly fitted, the main body of a sanitary 15 towel 20 is attached to the inner surface of the crotch portion of the beefs, which in the particular view shown, is an inner surface of the crotch panel 6.

The sanitary towel 20 has two wings 21, each wing being wrapped around a respective lateral edge of the crotch portion 6 of the briefs and stuck by adhesive to the outer surface of the crotch portion. The outer layer 7 is of a 20 large enough size to overlap the crotch portion at either lateral edge, such that the wings 21 and crotch portion 6 of the briefs are not visible from the exterior of the underpants when they are properly fined on wearer.

The underpants of the present invention provide a garment that is suitable for wearing in conjunction with winged sanitary towels, such that the 25 wings of the sanitary towel are held and concealed within the garment for providing greater security and a more aesthetically pleasing result than would be achieved with wearing winged sanitary towels in conjunction with a standard pair of ladies' briefs.

Claims

( Claims

1) A pair of underpants having a crotch portion which comprises at least two superposed layers of fabric, wherein one or more of said layers are 5 arranged substantially to conceal one or more adhesive wings, provided on an item of sanitary wear which is to be worn inside said underpants, by enabling said one or more wings to be interposed two of said at least two layers.

2) A pair of underpants as claimed in claim 1, wherein said crotch portion 10 has two opposite lateral edges, each lateral edge partially defining an opening for receiving a wearer's leg, said underpants being characterised in that said crotch portion comprises at least two layers of fabric which are superimposed on each other, and in that said layers are adapted, at each of said opposite lateral edges of the crotch portion, to allow access to the facing surfaces of two 15 adjacent layers of said at least two layers of fabric, for enabling said one or more adhesive wings to be interposed said two adjacent layers for substantially concealing said one or more adhesive wings.

3) A pair of underpants as claimed in claim 2, wherein said underpants 20 comprise a standard pair of ladies' briefs having at least one additional layer of fabric attached to either an inner or an outer surface of said briefs, such that said additional layer substantially covers either the inner or the outer surface of the crotch portion of said briefs.

25 4) A pair of underpants as claimed in claim 3, wherein said additional layer is attached to said briefs by stitching, said stitching being arranged such that the opposite lateral edges of the crotch portion of said briefs and corresponding opposite lateral edges of said additional layer of fabric remain

( substantially unattached to each other to allow insertion of said adhesive wings between said briefs and said additional layer.

5) A pair of underpants as claimed in claim 3 or claim 4, wherein said 5 additional layer is attached to the outer surface of said briefs and each of said opposite lateral edges of said additional layer extends beyond a respective one of the corresponding opposite lateral edges of said crotch portion of said briefs.

6) A pair of underpants as claimed in claim 3 or claim 4, wherein said 10 additional layer is attached to the inner surface of said briefs, and each of said opposite lateral edges of said crotch portion of said briefs extends beyond a respective one of the corresponding opposite lateral edges of said additional layer. 15 7) A pair of underpants as claimed in any of claims 3 to 6, wherein said additional layer comprises more than one layer of fabric.

8) A pair of underpants as claimed in any of claims 3 to 7, wherein said additional layer has a hem provided along each of its opposite lateral edges.

9) A pair of underpants as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein said item of sanitary wear is a sanitary towel.

10) A pair of underpants of any of claims 1-8 having a winged sanitary 25 towel attached to the inner surface of the crotch portion of said underpants and the wings of said towel being interposed and concealed between two adjacent layers of said crotch portion.

11) A feminine hygiene pack comprising one or more pairs of underpants as claimed in any of claims 1 to 10 and a plurality of replacement sanitary towels.

12) A pair of underpants as substantially hereinbefore described with 5 reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.