JP2001157693A - Disposable absorbent article - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inexpensive disposable absorbent article with excellent texture on flaps and excellent gas permeability. SOLUTION: A top sheet, a back sheet, an absorbent body with an absorbent body arranged between these both sheets and the outermost layer sheet on the central part of which the absorbent body is bonded and fixed are provided and a pair of the first elastic member are arranged along the longer direction of the above absorbent body and waist flaps are respectively provided on both end edge parts in the longer direction of the outermost layer sheet and the second elastic members are respectively arranged on the waist flaps and on the outermost layer sheet, dented cutout parts are formed on both side parts of the absorbent body and a pair of left and right side flaps are respectively provided above and below the constricted parts of the dented cutout parts and the third elastic members are arranged on each of the side flaps in the width direction of the absorbent body.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a disposable absorbent article, and more particularly to a disposable absorbent article such as a disposable diaper used for infants, adults and the like or for incontinent persons.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional disposable diaper is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 52-40.
As disclosed in JP-A-267, a liquid-permeable top sheet, a liquid-impermeable back sheet, and an absorber positioned between these two sheets constitute a diaper main body, and the diaper main body includes: There is known a so-called flat type in which a pair of left and right side flaps are integrally formed, arranged on both side edges on the back side of the side flaps, and a fastening tool is fastened on the abdomen side.

Recently, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 57-77304 has been proposed.
As disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication, a so-called pants-type disposable diaper in which a pair of left and right leg openings and a waist opening are formed by joining and fixing the abdominal region and the dorsal region of the pair of left and right side flaps to each other. Has been proposed. The pants-type disposable diaper is configured such that a leg opening and a waist opening are formed to be extendable and contractable, respectively, to fit a body shape. Such pants-type disposable diapers can usually be worn by the wearer in a standing position, and the "diaper separation" of infants
It is useful for toilet training for accelerating exercise, or for incontinents or walking adults.

Also, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 58-143809,
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-207605 discloses a flat-type and pants-type disposable diaper in which a backsheet is covered with a nonwoven fiber for the purpose of producing a disposable garment having a well-designed sewing appearance. It has been disclosed.

[0005] On the other hand, some proposals have also been made on a method of manufacturing disposable diapers. They are basically
JP-A-57-77304 and JP-A-1-29210
The cross-flow method in which the longitudinal direction of the absorber is perpendicular to the flow direction as shown in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2 (1993) -207, is represented.

[0006] Generally, these types of disposable diapers have the problem that the productivity is significantly reduced and the cost must be increased. That is, a technique for inserting an elongated elastic member in a direction perpendicular to the flow direction of the continuous web has not been established yet, and a decrease in productivity is caused by this. Among them, a pants-type disposable diaper with a belt which does not require a side seal and a method for manufacturing the same are disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 61-502264, but the product has an extremely high belt elongation rate. I had to.

However, Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 58-14 described above.
In the disposable diapers described in Japanese Patent No. 3809 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-207605, since the back sheet constitutes a diaper body including a flap portion, even if the back sheet is a soft nonwoven fabric, it is waterproof. Inferior in performance, a multi-layer laminated structure sheet or a laminated sheet must be provided over the entire back sheet, resulting in a problem of high cost, deterioration of flap texture, and reduction of air permeability. Here, the above-mentioned texture is generally evaluated organoleptically, and refers to softness, appearance, gloss, feel, and the like.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a disposable absorbent article which is inexpensive, has a good flap feel, and has excellent air permeability.

[0009]

According to the present invention, there is provided an absorbent body having a liquid-permeable topsheet, a liquid-impermeable backsheet, and an absorber disposed between the two sheets.
A breathable sheet to which the absorbent body is joined and fixed to a central portion, comprising an outermost layer sheet that surrounds a waist when worn and holds the absorbent body against a wearer, and a longitudinal section of the absorbent body. A pair of first elastic members forming gathers on each of the leg portions are disposed along the direction, and a waist extending outward of the absorbent main body is provided at both end edges in the longitudinal direction of the outermost layer sheet. A flap is provided, a second elastic member is disposed on each of the waist flaps, and the outermost layer sheet has concave notches formed on both sides of the absorbent body. A pair of left and right side flaps extending outward in the width direction of the absorbent main body are provided above and below the constricted portion formed with the third elastic member, respectively. The third elastic member is disposed in the width direction of the collecting main body, and the disposable disposable member is disposed between at least a portion of the side flap except for an end near the constricted portion and the waist flap. The object has been achieved by providing an absorbent article.

[0010] According to the disposable absorbent article of the present invention, the outermost sheet surrounding the waist of the wearer is formed of a breathable material, so that excellent breathability can be obtained. In addition, since the absorbent main body is provided with the liquid-impermeable back sheet, the excrement absorbed by the absorbent main body does not leak. Further, since the outermost layer sheet is formed with porosity, it is easily bent, soft, highly flexible, and excellent in texture. Further, even when an elastic member is arranged on the outermost layer sheet, the absorbent article can be fitted to the wearer exactly.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following examples, disposable diapers for infants will be described as examples of absorbent articles.

A disposable diaper 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention is a so-called underpants-type disposable diaper. As shown in FIG.
And an absorbent main body 3 fixed substantially at the center of the outermost layer sheet 2.

The outermost layer sheet 2 is formed in a substantially quadrangular shape having a size substantially larger than that of the absorbent main body 3, and the absorbent main body 3 is adhered to a substantially central portion in the longitudinal direction. Also,
Concave notches 4 are formed on both sides to which the absorbent main body 3 is adhered, so that a leg opening is formed when a pants type is formed. A pair of left and right side flaps 5, 5, 6, and 6 extend outward from the both sides of the absorbent main body 3 in the width direction from above and below the constricted portion where the concave notch 4 is formed. ing.

A joining portion 7 is provided at each edge of the side flaps 5, 5, 6, and 6, and the upper and lower side flaps 5, 6 are fused to each other at the joining portion 7 to form a pants type. Is formed.

A pair of waist flaps 8 and 9 extending outward from the absorbent main body 3 are provided at the longitudinal edges of the outermost layer sheet 2 so as to form a waist when the pants type is formed. The flaps 8 and 9 form a waist opening.

The waist flaps 8 and 9 are folded lines 10
The end of the absorbent main body 3 is sandwiched by this return, and the absorbent main body 3 is securely held. Further, the second elastic members 12 are disposed on the waist flaps 8 and 9, respectively, and the third elastic members 13 are disposed on the side flaps 5, 5, 6 and 6, to enhance the fit to the wearer when worn, and to shift. The fall is prevented.

When the absorbent main body 3 is adhered to the outermost layer sheet 2, a waist 14 is formed substantially at the center in the longitudinal direction corresponding to the concave notch 4 of the outermost layer sheet 2. The absorbent main body 3 includes a liquid-permeable top sheet 15 that forms a side in contact with the wearer's skin, a liquid-impermeable back sheet 16 corresponding to the top sheet 15, and a top sheet 15 and a back sheet 16. And an absorber 17 interposed therebetween. Further, a pair of left and right body flaps 1 extending outward in the width direction from both side edges of the absorber 17 are provided on the absorbent body 3.
8, 18 and a first elastic member 19 forming a gather on each of the leg portions of the pair of left and right body flaps 18, 18;
19 is provided. The first elastic members 19 and 19 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the absorbent main body 3 and are substantially perpendicular to the second elastic members 12 arranged on the waist flaps 8 and 9.

The top sheet 15 absorbs excrement from the absorber 17.
It is preferable that the liquid-permeable sheet having a feel close to underwear is used as such a liquid-permeable sheet.
For example, a woven fabric, a nonwoven fabric, a porous film and the like are preferable.
In addition, a method of applying a hydrophobic compound such as a silicone-based oil agent or paraffin wax to a peripheral portion of the top sheet 15,
A hydrophilic compound such as an alkyl phosphate ester is applied in advance, and a water-repellent treatment is performed by a method of washing the periphery with warm water, so that leakage due to bleeding of urine or the like at the periphery can be prevented.

The back sheet 16 is made of a thermoplastic resin to which a filler is added and stretched, and is a moisture-permeable liquid-impermeable sheet or a sheet having a feel similar to underwear. A composite material of cloth or the like is used.

The absorbent 17 is preferably composed mainly of fibrillated pulp and used in combination with a polymer water-absorbing polymer. In addition, it is also preferable to heat-treat a mixture of a thermoplastic resin, cellulose fibers and a polymer water-absorbing polymer. The location of the high-molecular-weight water-absorbing polymer may be any of the upper layer, the middle layer, and the lower layer, and may be a mixture with pulp. The high-molecular water-absorbing polymer has a retaining performance of absorbing and holding a liquid 20 times or more its own weight, and is preferably in the form of particles having a gelling property. For example, starch-acrylic acid (salt) graft copolymer, starch-acrylonitrile acid (salt)
Polymers and the like are preferred. The shape is preferably an hourglass shape that matches the body shape of the wearer, but may be rectangular.

The outermost layer sheet 2 is preferably a liquid-impermeable, air-permeable, highly flexible sheet having a feeling similar to underwear, and such a sheet is subjected to a water-repellent treatment. Woven fabrics, non-woven fabrics and the like can be mentioned. It is preferable to prevent leakage due to bleeding of urine or the like.

Although not shown, in a disposable diaper in which the wing-held absorbent main body 3 is integrally joined to the outermost layer sheet 2, if the gathered wing portion is formed without joining, A double flap is formed in the crotch region, and the wing portion of the absorbent main body 3 forms a gather having a three-dimensional shape, and exhibits a leakage preventing effect.

The first, second, and third elastic members 19, 12,
13 is joined to the absorbent main body 3 and the outermost layer sheet 2 in a generally stretched state using means known in the art such as ultrasonic welding, heat welding, and an adhesive. As the material, any material known in the industry such as thread rubber, flat rubber, film-type rubber or tape-like foamed polyurethane can be used, and one or a plurality of materials may be used.
Generally, the arrangement of the left and right side flaps, the pair of upper and lower waist flaps, and the elastic members at the left and right waist side portions is symmetric. Further, the stress at 150% elongation is 70 to 10%.
Those having 0 g are particularly preferred. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the first elastic member 19 may be arranged in a curved line along the concave portion.

Next, a disposable diaper 21 according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. still,
Although illustration and description of the second and third elastic members are omitted in FIG. 2 and the following description, the second and third elastic members are the same elastic members as those in the first embodiment. It is arranged similarly. The disposable diaper 21 of the second embodiment
Is a so-called flat disposable diaper. In the second embodiment, the other schematic configuration is the same as that of the above-described first embodiment. Therefore, the same parts as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and Detailed description is omitted.

The outermost layer sheet 2 is formed in a substantially hourglass shape, and a tape fastener 23 is provided on the back flaps 22 and 22 and is adhered to the abdominal area to be held on the waist of the wearer. It is supposed to.

The absorbent body 3 is extended in a rectangular shape,
The outermost layer sheet 2 extends from the back waist flap 8 to the abdominal waist flap 9. At both end portions 26 in the longitudinal direction of the absorbent main body 3, the end flap 16a of the liquid-impermeable back sheet is folded back,
The leakage of the waste absorbed by the absorber 17 is prevented.
Further, the both edge portions of the absorbent main body 3 are covered by the folded portions 8a and 9a of the waist flaps 8 and 9 so as to be sandwiched by the outermost layer sheet 2, so that the absorbent main body 3 is securely held and excreted. Leakage of objects is prevented. In the absorbent main body 3, an elastic member 19 is stretched on the main body flap 18 so as to form a gather on the leg portion (the concave notch 4).

Next, a preferred embodiment for producing the absorbent article of the present invention will be described. First, the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the first embodiment, the absorbent main body 3 is manufactured by a so-called longitudinal flow method in which the longitudinal direction is arranged parallel to the flow direction.

Although the absorbent body 3 is not shown in FIG. 3, absorbents 17 such as defibrated fibers are sequentially placed on a continuous band-shaped back sheet 16 at regular intervals, and a continuous band And the space between the absorbers 17 is welded. On the other hand, the first elastic member 19 is stretched in the longitudinal direction on the back sheet 16 in advance. In this way, the strip 30 having the continuous absorbent main body 3 is manufactured, and the arrow A in FIG.
As shown by, the absorbent main body 3 is conveyed to the reversing device 31 so as to be continuous in the longitudinal direction.

In front of the reversing device 31, an adhesive coating device 32 is provided.
The adhesive is continuously applied to one surface of the belt-like body 30 so that the adhesive is applied to the entire surface on the 6 side.

After the band 30 of the absorbent main body 3 to which the adhesive is applied is supported by the head of the reversing device 31, it is cut along the imaginary line 34 by the cutting device 33, and the individual absorbent main body 3 is manufactured. Is done. Each of the absorbent bodies 3 is rotated by about 90 ° on the reversing device 31 until reaching the polymerization roll 34 while being supported by the head of the reversing device 31 (reversing step).

The reversing device 31 is provided with arms extending radially around the axis, and a support head at the end of each arm. The support head has an anvil corresponding to the cutting device 33, a suction system, a pin hold, and a mechanical chuck. For example, support means for the absorbent body 3 are provided. In addition, the support head reaches the polymerization roll 34 via the cutting device 33,
A mechanism is provided for transferring the absorbent body 3 while reversing it by 90 °. The separated individual absorbent main bodies 3 are supported by the head, and the elastic members 1 disposed on the absorbent main body 3
9 while being kept flat without being affected by the shrinkage stress of 9;
It will be sent to the polymerization roll 34. During this reversing step, the end flaps 8a and 9a are
(See FIG. 1) It is preferable to incorporate a step of folding back on the upper surface.

On the other hand, the third elastic member 13 in the extended state forms an elastic tape 37 intermittently or continuously joined to the support sheet 36, and the elastic tape 37 is transferred to the intermittent transfer device 3.
Send to 8. On the surface of the intermittent transfer device 38, the stretchable tape 37 supported in an extended state is cut into individual stretchable tapes 40 by a cutter 39 and sent intermittently to a polymerization roll 41. The elastic tape 40 forms a gather at the waist side portion.

On the other hand, the outermost layer sheet band 42 is unwound from the raw material, and the second elastic members 12 are arranged at portions adjacent to the left and right side edges of the outermost layer sheet member 42.
4 is sent to the polymerization roll 41. The second elastic member 12 forms a gather that covers the waist opening.

In the polymerization roll 41, the elastic tape 40 formed in the above step is intermittently arranged on the outermost layer sheet band 42 and integrally joined. At this time, the third elastic member 13 is disposed between the support sheet 36 and the outermost sheet band 42. After that, in a winding step 42, the waist flaps 8 and 9 are formed by coating the waist elastic member 12 by winding the both side edges 43.

Next, in the reversing device 31, about 90 °
The inverted individual absorbent main bodies 3 are overlaid on the outermost layer sheet 2 by the polymerization roll 34 and are integrally joined to the outermost layer sheet 2 with an adhesive (fixing step). At this point, the second extendable and retractable member is in a position parallel and perpendicular to the flow direction.
Then, the disposition of the first elastic members 12 and 19 is completed, and the disposable diaper web 49 is obtained.

Thereafter, a leg hole 46 as the concave notch 4 is formed between the adjacent absorbent bodies 3 by a rotary die cutter 45. As a method of forming the leg holes 46, a method such as water jet or punching may be used in addition to the rotary die cutter method. Next, the disposable diaper web 49 is folded by two folding means 48.
Is folded in half using a center line parallel to the flow direction as a reference line.

The folded disposable diaper web 49 is
The outermost sheets are integrally sealed by ultrasonic welding or the like at a substantially intermediate position between the absorbent bodies 3 and 3 by the sealing device 51 (side seal). This sealing is performed intermittently.

The disposable diaper web 49 having finished the side seal is cut into individual disposable diapers 1 by the final cutter unit 52 (cutting step). The cutting is performed in the side seal portion, and the cut portion becomes the joint 7 (see FIG. 1). Ultrasonic sealing is performed to obtain an appropriate seal strength and seal width so that the seal portion does not peel off immediately after cutting. Thus,
The stretchable complete pants-type disposable diaper 1 is obtained. The state in which the joining portions 7, 7 of the disposable diaper 1 are peeled off and the stretchable portion is stretched and expanded is almost equivalent to the diaper shown in FIG.

Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. This second embodiment is an embodiment of a method for manufacturing a disposable diaper 21 according to the second embodiment, that is, a flat type disposable diaper. Further, in the second embodiment, the absorbent main body 3 is of a vertical flow type in which the absorbent main body 3 flows in parallel to the longitudinal direction.

The band 30 of the absorbent body 3 is not shown in FIG. 4, but absorbents 17 such as defibrated fibers are sequentially placed on a continuous band-shaped back sheet 16 at regular intervals. It is manufactured by covering the top with a continuous band-shaped top sheet 15 and bonding. On the other hand, the first elastic member 19 is stretched in the longitudinal direction on the back sheet 16 in advance. In this way, the belt-shaped body 30 in which the absorbent main body 3 is continuous is manufactured, and the absorbent main body 3 is conveyed to the reversing device 31 so as to be continuous in the longitudinal direction as shown by an arrow B in FIG.

In front of the reversing device 31, an adhesive coating device 32 is provided, and the back sheet 1 of the absorbent main body 3 is provided.
The adhesive is continuously applied to one surface of the belt-like body 30 so that the adhesive is applied to the entire surface on the 6 side.

In the above embodiment, the adhesive is applied entirely to the back sheet 6. However, there is no problem even if the minimum required pattern is applied.
There are bead, coater, spray, transfer, screen, gravure, etc.

Then, cutting is performed along the imaginary line 34 by the cutting device 33, and the individual absorbent main bodies 3 are manufactured. The cut absorbent body 3 is rotated by about 90 ° by the reversing device 31.
After being rotated, it is intermittently fed to the polymerization roll 34.

On the other hand, the outermost sheet band 42 is unwound from a raw material (not shown) and sent to the polymerization roll 34, where the absorbent body 3 and the outermost sheet band 42
Are integrally joined via an adhesive applied to the article body to form a disposable diaper web 49.

An integrated disposable diaper web 49
Next, a leg hole 49 is formed by a rotary die cutter 45 and cut into individual disposable diapers 21 by a final cutter unit 52. Then, the tape fastener 23 is attached to the side flap 22 in the next step.

Next, a third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the third embodiment, an example of a cross-flow method in which the absorbent main body 3 flows in the longitudinal direction perpendicular to the flow direction is shown.

In the third embodiment, the top sheet 55 unwound from the raw material is further placed on the outermost sheet 2 on which the absorbent main body 3 is intermittently arranged by the polymerization roll group 56. They are joined together. Other manufacturing steps are substantially the same as those of the second embodiment. According to the disposable diaper 58 obtained according to the third embodiment,
The topsheet 55 allows the absorbent body 3 to be more securely fixed.

The individual absorbent main bodies 3 separated in the cutting step 33 are supported by the head of the intermittent transfer device 57, and are affected by the contraction stress of the elastic member 19 disposed in the absorbent main body 3 in advance. It is fed to the polymerization roll 34 while maintaining a flat shape. It is preferable to include a step of folding the end flap 16a on the upper surface of the absorber in the intermittent transfer step.

In the disposable diapers 1, 21, and 51 obtained by the methods according to the first, second, and third embodiments described above, the back sheet 16 is disposed only in the portion where the absorber 17 is placed. So the flap is highly flexible,
And rich in breathability.

The use of such a manufacturing method has an advantage that a nonwoven fabric having a sufficient strength can be supplied with respect to a tensile stress applied when a diaper is fixed to a wearer using a tape fastener. As a material used for such a disposable absorbent article, for example, a nonwoven fabric or the like is thin in view of cost. At that time, the nonwoven fabric wrapped in the raw fabric has a strength in the long direction that is 5 to 6 times better than the strength in the short direction. In this manufacturing method, it is possible to arrange the long direction in the direction in which the stress of the tape fastener is applied, and a very rational product design can be achieved.

As described above, according to the manufacturing method according to the above-described embodiment, the elastic members can be easily arranged, and the absorbent article of the present invention can be manufactured without impairing high-speed productivity.

It goes without saying that the above embodiment can be arbitrarily changed and implemented without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, a configuration in which a tearing guide means is disposed adjacent to a side seal portion of the disposable diaper 1 of a complete pants type so that the tearing guide means can be easily peeled off from a wearer. The tear guide means may be a cut-in guide line, a seal portion, or a material that can be easily torn, while having a strength not torn or worn during wearing. .

[0053]

According to the present invention, the cost is low,
It is possible to provide a disposable absorbent article having an excellent flap feel and excellent air permeability.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway plan view of a disposable diaper according to a first embodiment of the present invention in an unfolded state.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway plan view showing a disposable diaper according to a second embodiment of the present invention in an unfolded state.

FIG. 3 is a first view for producing a disposable diaper of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a second view for producing the disposable diaper of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a third view for producing the disposable diaper of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 21; disposable diaper 2; outermost layer sheet 3; absorbent main body 12, 13, 19; elastic member 15; top sheet 16; back sheet 17; absorber 31; reversing device (reversing step) 34; polymerization roll (fixed) Process) 52; cutting device (cutting process)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An absorbent body having a liquid-permeable topsheet, a liquid-impermeable backsheet, and an absorber disposed between the two sheets, and the absorbent body is fixedly joined to a central portion. An outermost layer sheet that surrounds the waist when worn and holds the absorbent body against the wearer when worn, and gathers each of the legs along the longitudinal direction of the absorbent body. A pair of first elastic members are formed, and at both end edges in the longitudinal direction of the outermost layer sheet, there are provided waist flaps extending outward from the absorbent body, respectively. , Each second
An elastic member is arranged, and the outermost layer sheet has concave notches formed on both sides of the absorbent main body, and above and below the constricted portion where the concave notch is formed, Each of the pair of left and right side flaps extending outward in the width direction of the absorbent main body is provided, and a third elastic member is disposed on each of the side flaps in the width direction of the absorbent main body. (3) The disposable absorbent article, wherein at least the elastic member is disposed between a portion of the side flap except for an end near the constricted portion and the waist flap.