JPH0374106B2 - - Google Patents

Description

Description The present invention is aimed at a disposable sanitary article for absorbing body fluids for infants or adults, and in particular to propose new means and devices for ensuring the retention of said article by the user by means of a detachable belt. shall be.

Generally, articles of this type consist of a foamed cellulose absorbent fabric incorporating a powder that absorbs several times its own weight in body fluids, mostly on demand, with a sheet permeable to body fluids on one surface, at least in the central part. formed of a laminated structure in which the sheets are covered in contact with the user's skin and covered on the opposite side by a polyethylene film, both sheets being partially or completely welded together along their edges. Consists of absorbent pads. moreover,
Fixing means are provided at the level of the torso zone to ensure retention of the article by the user.

The zone of the article that is brought into contact with the abdomen and back of the user when the article is in place is referred to as the "torso zone."

Of the numerous fastening means already proposed (safety pins, buttons and buttonholes, hooks), adhesives and especially pressure-sensitive adhesives are the most commonly used.

However, adhesive fixation systems, once in place, are ``recoverable'' unless complex construction fasteners consisting of multiple superimposed layers, such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,951,149, are employed. ``There are flaws that are not covered.'' These fasteners are, on the one hand, extremely cumbersome and, on the other hand, extremely difficult to produce industrially due to the variable quality of the adhesives that have to be applied successively on different supports.

In the present application, the fastening means are of the type of "buckle grips" well known under the trademark "Velcro".

In many documents, the fixing means is “Velcro” (R)
Disposable articles constituted by belts have already been described.

British Patent No. 1428572 discloses infant clothing,
Absorbent pads are provided on the inner side of the garment and the outer edge of one of the torso bands is folded over the other torso band around the infant's abdomen, maintained by a "Velcro" (R) band provided on both torso bands. has been done. Similar devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat.
A similar explanation is given in No. 3141461 (FIG. 11).

In Patent No. 4402690, the edge of one inner body band is provided with a stopper member "Velcro" (R),
A device is described in which the edge of the other outer waistband is provided with a complementary stop.

A number of products of the versatile type described in these documents all have four large sized "Velcro" (R), two on the inside and two on the outside, by replacement.
There is a defect that requires the presence of a member. A device of this type used in a single-use article, such as the article that is the subject of the present invention, would add considerably to manufacturing costs. In fact, these members are troublesome, but nevertheless, their dimensions cannot be sufficiently limited, it is necessary to ensure sufficient adjustment margin, and furthermore, they must be placed on both sides. This fact complicates the manufacturing equipment, and this equipment
It must consist of one and therefore double material storage location on each side of the advancing belt.

The same accusation can be made for the article described in US Pat. No. 3,359,980. The article includes two "Velcro" (R) bands at the edges of the inner surface of one of the waistbands and a complementary "Velcro" band approximately the entire width of the outer surface of the other waistband.

In order to eliminate these major defects, it has been proposed to join the edge of the rear waist band of the diaper to the edge of the front band of the diaper provided on the abdomen of the user by two detachable half-belts, as described above. Both half-belts are secured to each other by two complementary "Velcro" members and to their edges by grip clips, respectively. This article is described in US Pat. No. 4,158,906. Besides the danger and discomfort that can result in sharp edges for infants or even adults, this system has another major drawback. If two edges are fixed on each side to the rear zone of this article, the traction forces applied at this level will tend to tear the edges of the diaper: a feature that further ensures comfort for the user. The sheet covering the absorbent pad is thin and can be easily deformed and torn. The fixing method proposed by this patent can therefore only be used with major drawbacks for disposable articles. In addition, the front portion may slip if not maintained in position.

According to PCT Patent No. 83/104163, a diaper is likewise known which consists of a front part with connection points through which the textile material passes, the rear part of which is fixed to the rear opposite upper edges of the diaper. comprising two half-lengths of fibrous material such that the diaper is maintained in place by passing the two half-lengths through their joining points and tying the fibrous material around the user's abdomen. That's what I do.

This diaper has some defects. In practice, their connection points particularly complicate the manufacture of this diaper. Furthermore, these attachment points must be provided with other attachment points unless the user is restricted to adjusting the diaper to a single position. In the case of infants, threading the fibrous material through the bonding points is dangerous for the mother as it requires the use of both hands and this tends to cause the infant to squirm.

The advantages of the invention to be described below lie first and foremost in the simplicity and efficiency of the proposed fastening method. Additionally, the present invention has significant economic benefits because the removable belt can be reused for a large number of articles. Additionally, the industrial manufacture of this article is simplified.

According to the invention: (a) consisting of two torso zones and a groin zone, the outer surface being a sheet impermeable to body fluids, such as a polyethylene sheet, and the inner surface being a sheet permeable to body fluids at least at the level of the central zone; the sheets are partially or completely welded to each other along their longitudinal edges, and a first stop member is secured to the end of each longitudinal edge on the outer surface at the level of the waist band. (b) a generally rectangular absorbent pad (b) characterized by a disposable sanitary article consisting of a releasably assembled fastening means consisting of a belt provided at each end with a second complementary fastening member of the first fastening member; The location is as follows. That is, at least one zone of the belt in contact with another outer body zone and/or said outer body zone is configured to have a sufficient coefficient of friction so that when the article is in position, the article This is achieved, on the one hand, by the cooperation of the second stop element and the first stop element, and, on the other hand, by the superimposed friction between the waist band and the belt band.

As used herein, the terms "vertical" and "lateral"
is defined for this article without considering the effective widths and lengths of the different bands. The edges forming part of the longitudinal edges of this article are therefore referred to as longitudinal edges.

The term "inner" refers to the surface that is directed towards the skin of use. The user can be an infant or an adult suffering from incontinence. However, it has been found that the article according to the invention is particularly advantageous in the case of infants.

The sheet permeable to body fluids, at least in the central zone, can be primarily a nonwoven sheet. Under this non-woven fabric, applicant's company's PCT
As explained in the application of patent no. 83/03051,
It is also possible to provide two impermeable half-bands, leaving a central opening.

The stops provided at the waistband and at the ends of the belt are of the buckle or grip type. This device is well known under the trademark "Velcro"(R). However, it is abundantly clear that the invention is not strictly limited to this type of element. The present invention generally consists of all stop members that, when secured, have a high resistance to shear forces and a low resistance to peeling.

If the first stop member is “with buckles”, the second stop members provided at both ends of the belt are “with grips”.
It is. Similarly, if the first stop member is "with a grip", the second stop member is "with a buckle". The above solution is preferred in the case of the present invention.

These stop members are designed to allow adjustment of the positioning and thus excellent accommodation for the user.

More preferably, the first stop member is provided at a distance from the upper lateral edge of the waistband, so that said edge can be folded inwardly to improve the seal around the waist. .

In order to ensure an excellent sealing property of this article to be worn, for example, the applicant's company's French patent no.
As described in No. 2011778, there are two elastic strips at the level of the crotch and a first stop member on the outside of those elastic strips (see imaginary extension) and lateral to the ends of this article. provided on both sides of the longitudinal surface defined by the edges.

The frictional force of the stop member must be sufficiently large to prevent the belt from slipping on the outer surface of the waistband. This can be achieved in several ways.

The belt itself can be non-slip and is advantageously made of a longitudinally oriented fiber material composed in part of rubber threads, which are preferably twisted together.

Friction can likewise be obtained by suitably treating the outer surface of the waistband in contact with the belt and/or the zone of the belt in contact with this waistband with the aid of anti-slip products. Among the anti-slip products available are coachable anti-slip products. This coating can be continuous or discontinuous in areas or lines. This second technique is preferred. These anti-slip products can be applied primarily at the longitudinal ends of the belt and/or at the waist zone in contact with the belt. Another advantageous variant, which may or may not be combined with the previous one, consists in applying the anti-slip product along the longitudinal line with a belt.

Among the products that may be coated, mention may be made of hot curable and low tack adhesives such as acrylic emulsions. Preference is, however, given to products known by the term "hotmelt" (in English) that are non-pressure sensitive, cold curable and "hot melt".

A means of obtaining similarly high friction and improving the mutual retention of the belt and its contacting outer trunk zone consists in providing them with complementary stop members.

Preferably, the stop or stops provided in the outer body zone then in contact with the belt are the same as the stop elements provided in the other body zones.
This gives rise to the advantage of being able to use a belt consisting of a band covered on all sides with a complementary stop. Preferably, the stops provided on the belt are provided with buckles, while the stops provided on the waist band are provided with grips. This belt thus has no hooking means to secure the belt to the baby's clothing. An advantageous implementation consists in providing two stop elements in the waistband in contact with the belt, so that if these elements are placed symmetrically with respect to the longitudinal axis of the diaper, a very effective retention of the waistband is achieved. can get.

To further improve this retention, the flaps at the ends of the waistband in contact with the belt can be treated with an adhesive coating having low or no resistance to peeling, such as a hot-cure adhesive. It is appropriate to recall that once the present sanitary article is worn on the user's body, these end flaps are covered by corresponding end flaps of another waistband.

Preferably, the belt is extensible, so as to further improve the fixation of the torso bands it contacts.
Advantageously, the maximum elongation of this belt is greater than 3%. The belt may be constructed from vinyl ethylene acetate copolymer, but preferably from a longitudinally extensible fibrous material confined within a hard plastic lattice. This construction provides the belt with excellent longitudinal extensibility and nearly zero transverse extensibility.
Moreover, the protrusions formed by the fiber material against the outer polyethylene of the waistband allow a high coefficient of friction to be obtained.

The invention will be best understood with reference to specific embodiments illustrated by the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the inner surface of the diaper with the belt removed.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the diaper shown in FIG. 1 taken along line A-A.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the diaper with the belt partially attached.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the diaper with the belt attached.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an apparatus for testing the efficiency of anti-slip treatments.

6 to 9 show diapers according to four variations of the embodiment.

Diaper 1 is the applicant's French patent no.
Created with information from application No. 8203409.
The diaper is approximately rectangular and consists of two waist zones 2 and 4 and a crotch zone 3 with rounded edges or trapezoidal recesses.

The diaper is optionally composed of an absorbent pad 5 formed by expanded cellulose filled with a "superabsorbent" powder, as described in US Pat. No. 4,043,952, for example. It is advantageous to

The pad 5 is formed of several successive layers leaving a central groove as described in the application FR 8317723 and is wrapped with a sheet 7 of soft tissue. The outer surface of the pad is covered with a liquid-impermeable sheet 6, such as polyethylene, and the inner surface is covered with a non-woven fabric 17, cut to form a central window 9 that allows urine to penetrate. It is partially covered with two impermeable half-sheets 8 such as. absorption pad 5
In the crotch zone 3 between those two sheets 6 and 8, which are welded to each other along the edges on both sides, there are two elastic strips which ensure an excellent seal when the diaper is applied to the user. 10 is fixed in an extended state.

At the level of the rear zone 4, on the outer side, adjacent to the longitudinal edge and at a distance of about 5 cm from the upper transverse edge, two "Velcro" buckled stops 11 made of polyamide are positioned. These stop members 11 are placed on either side of the surface defined by their elastic strips 10 (see imaginary extension) and the lateral edges of the article and facilitate the positioning of the belt 12 as described below. It is wide enough (2 to 5 cm from the side) to allow for adjustment.

The belt 12 is made of a rigid strip 15 of plastic material such as Lycra®, e.g. polyamide.
It is preferably formed of an elastic woven band formed of longitudinally extensible fibrous material 14 disposed within.

Two complementary "Velcro" (R) "clip" stops 16 of the "buckle" stop 11 are fastened to both ends of the belt 12 by means known per se.

When wearing a diaper, the first complementary stopper member 1
6 are fixed with stop elements 11, and the rear waistband 4 is then folded over in such a way that the part lying adjacent to the longitudinal edge covers the edge of another front waistband 2. The second complementary stop member 16 is then secured with the first stop member 11 such that the belt is placed on the abdomen of the user.

It is also conceivable to arrange the sanitary article such that the belt is placed at the level of the user's waist.

The numbers below are shown as an example of the diaper dimensions (in cm) for infants. Width of the trunk band 31 Length 54 Distance of the first stop member to the upper transverse edge 5 Distance of the first stop member to the longitudinal edge 1 Length of the belt 28 Maximum elongation of the belt 67% According to the invention, the contact surfaces In order to obtain a high coefficient of friction between the belts, the surfaces of at least one of these contact zones are treated so that an anti-slip agent is incorporated into the material of the contact surface member, for example a rubber thread which is twisted in combination with the fibers of the belt.

The efficiency of the treatment applied to the belt is tested, on the one hand, with a device which makes it possible to simulate the forces exerted by a worn diaper, and on the other hand, directly on an infant in a infant bed.

The apparatus for conducting these tests is shown in FIG.

The polyethylene sheet 100 is glued with a curved movable metal surface that is connected to the dynamometer. Two fixing parts with eccentric locking parts keep the elastic belt 101 in contact with the polyethylene. Belt: 30%
, and then towed 10 times at a travel speed of 150 mm/mm.

The following will be measured:

- Average maximum force Fm (in Newtons) - i.e. the limit maximum force at which the belt will not slip on the polyethylene sheet.

- Maximum energy Em (in joules) measured by integral.
The value of the measured energy is quite large, since when the belt begins to slip, the energy consumed is different depending on whether the belt "jumps" or, on the contrary, slides gradually. This measurement therefore concerns the coefficient of friction.

1st example Product “Hotmelt” and “Belicol” with belt
4 g/m of 17H228''(R) was applied in a line.

Deposition was carried out by spraying polyamide strips along four longitudinal straight lines, two at a time symmetrically to the longitudinal axis of the belt and adjacent to the longitudinal edges. The two outer coatings were each placed approximately 5 mm from each longitudinal edge.

After the hot melt products were cured, testing was conducted according to the procedure described above.

The following results were obtained. Namely: Fm 21.6N Em 2.8J A test conducted in an infant crib on 60 infants each weighing 12-18 Kg showed complete maintenance.

Second Example The same amount of acrylic emulsion "Acronal 14D" (R) was applied by spraying with a belt according to the procedure of the first example.

The following results were obtained. Thus, tests on the Fm 7.4N Em 1.13J bed, although acceptable and possible, showed less satisfactory retention than for hot melt products.

3rd example Belt is a hot melt product manufactured by RMC Berricks Co., Ltd. 73121Y (R)
1.2 g/m was coated in a line.

The deposit is applied by spraying in several motions with polyamide strips along four longitudinal straight lines, two symmetrically with respect to the longitudinal axis of the belt, and placed adjacent to the longitudinal edges. Ta. The two outer deposits were each placed approximately 5 mm from the longitudinal edge.

After curing, the hot melt product was tested according to the procedure described above.

The following results were obtained. ie Fm 18.7N Em 2.2J Tests carried out in bed on infants weighing 2 to 8 kg each showed complete maintenance.

Example 4 Before the production of the belt, rubber threads were twisted into the textile material Lykla®.

The following results were obtained. That is, Fm 29.5N Em 2.0J Sleeper tests showed perfect retention of the belt.

Figures 6 to 9 relate to an embodiment of the invention which ensures a high friction effect by means of a stop of the same type as the first and second stop members.

In FIG. 6 this diaper is shown from the side of the outer surface, and elements similar to those in FIGS. 1 and 2 have been given the same reference symbols. In this example the pad 5 consists of two lateral parts 5a which overlap the baby's thighs.

In the outer front zone 2, according to the axis of symmetry of the diaper and at the level of the part corresponding to the lateral end of the pad, a gripping stop 21 is provided.

The belt 12 has a zone 13 in contact with the front zone 2
A fastening member 22 with a buckle is attached to one of both sides of the belt.
It is formed of a band made of elastic fabric with.
Two gripping stops 16 are fastened to the ends of this belt by means known per se. Therefore, when this diaper is applied to an infant,
The fact that the belt itself is constituted by one stop element makes it possible to securely and quickly place the diaper and to maintain the front waistband effectively.

The diaper shown in FIG. 7 is the same as the diaper described above, except as regards the nature of the stop members. That is, - the stop members 11 provided in the rear waistband are provided with grips, while the stop members 16' at both ends of the belt 12 are provided with buckles. In this case the belt and its ends are formed by a single elastic band with a buckle.

Furthermore, the flaps at both lateral ends of the front waist band 2 are
Along the straight line 17 it is treated with an adhesive having a low resistance to peeling, such as a hot-curing adhesive called "hotmelt" in English, so that the front torso zone is maintained when the diaper is applied. to further improve it.

The diaper shown in No. 8 is the same as the diaper described for No. 7 except as regards the number of stop members. That is to say - instead of a single stop element provided in the central front zone there are two stop elements 31 which are identical, but at the same level relative to the absorbent pad, in the longitudinal direction of the diaper. On both sides of the shaft, always in the middle part of the pad:
This arrangement also ensures excellent stability of the front torso zone.

When this diaper is applied, one of the ends 16' of the belt 12 is fixed with a stop element 11', and then the front band is folded over, so that another stop element 1
1' and two stopper members 31 to fix the belt 12.

The diaper shown in FIG. 9 is a modification of the diaper shown in FIG. 8, except for the structure of the belt.

This last one consists of two identical parts 19, 20 cut from a buckled elastic band. When a diaper is applied, both ends of the half-belt 19 are connected to stop members 11' and 31 placed on the same side of the diaper.
and both ends of the half-belt 20 are secured with stop members 11', 31 placed on opposite sides of the diaper.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. (a) A double body whose outer side is covered with a sheet 6 impermeable to body fluids, such as a polyethylene sheet, and whose inner side is covered with a sheet 8 permeable to body fluids at least at the level of the central zone 9. two torso zones 2 and 4 and a crotch zone 3, both sheets of which are partially or completely welded to each other along their edges and adjacent to each longitudinal edge on the outer side at the level of the torso zone 4. The first stopper member 1 is fixed by
(b) a belt 1 comprising at each end a second stop member 16, 16' complementary to the first stop member 11, 11';
2, a detachably combined fixing means, and a disposable sanitary article 1 consisting of: 2, in which the other outer zone 4 and/or at least the belt 13 in contact with this outer zone have a sufficient coefficient of friction; so that when the article is in position, the body zone 4 and said zone 13 of the belt are held together by the cooperation of the first and second stop elements on the one hand and by friction on the other hand.
A disposable sanitary article characterized in that it is made to be maintained in layers. 2. The first stop member 11 provided on the outer surface of the waist band 4 is “with a buckle” and the second stop member 16 is
The article according to claim 1, characterized in that it is "with a grip". 3 Stop elements 11, 11' are provided at a distance from the upper lateral edges of the shell band 4, so that when the article is in position they are directed inwards to improve the sealing around the shell. Disposable article according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it is foldable. 4 Two elastic strips 10 are fixed on both sides of the absorbent pad 5 in the groin zone 3, and the first stop members 11, 11' are attached to the elastic strips 10 (see imaginary extension)
Disposable article according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it is provided outside the surface defined by the lateral edges of the ends of the article. 5. The disposable article according to claim 1, characterized in that the belt 12 is stretchable. 6. Disposable article according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the belt 12 is formed from a longitudinally oriented fiber material 14, for example made up of twisted rubber threads. 7 The longitudinal fiber material is a hard plastic grid 15
7. A disposable article according to claim 6, characterized in that it is confined by a. 8. Claims 1 to 5 characterized in that the outer body zone in contact with the belt and/or the zone 13 in contact with this body zone is at least partially treated with an anti-slip agent. Disposable sanitary articles as described in item 1. 9. Article according to claim 8, characterized in that the anti-slip product is deposited by coating. 10. The article of claim 9, wherein the anti-slip product is non-pressure sensitive, meltable and cold curable. 11. Article according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the coating is discontinuous by planes or lines. 12. Article according to one of claims 9 to 11, characterized in that an anti-slip product is deposited adjacent to the longitudinal edge of the belt and/or the outer body zone in contact with this belt. 13. Article according to claim 1, characterized in that the anti-slip product is based on rubber thread. 14. Disposable article according to one of claims 8 to 12, characterized in that the anti-slip product is deposited along a longitudinal straight line with a belt. 15. The disposable article of claim 14, wherein the anti-slip product is extensible. 16 Patent characterized in that the zone 13 of the belt in contact with the outer waistband is provided with at least one stop element 22 and the outer waistband 2 is provided with at least one complementary stop element 21 of said element 22 A disposable sanitary article according to any one of claims 1 to 5. 17. Sanitary article according to claim 16, characterized in that the stop or stops (21) are identical to the stops (11, 11') provided in the further waistband (4). 18. The sanitary article according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that it is equipped with a buckle of one or more fastening members provided on a belt. 19 The two fastening members 13 are in contact with the belt. Sanitary article according to one of claims 16 to 18, characterized in that it is present in the waistband 2. 20 A plurality of fastening elements 31 are present on both sides and symmetrically with respect to the longitudinal axis of the diaper. 21. The sanitary article according to claim 19, characterized in that the belt 12 is composed of two identical members 19, 20. 22. A sanitary article according to claim 1, characterized in that both lateral flaps of the waistband 2 in contact with the belt are coated with an adhesive coating having zero or very low peel resistance. Goods.