MXPA97000856A - Absorbent articles that have side elements of interior clothing, laterally separated, with extens capacity zone - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to absorbent articles (20) such as sanitary napkins, calf liners, and incontinence pads, having side wrapping elements (50) for bending around the side edges of the wearer's undergarment, each lateral side of the article. The components are designed to automatically wrap the sides of the wearer's undergarments, when the undergarments are pulled up, having areas of extension capacity. Importantly, the extension capacity zones (56) are spaced at an optimum lateral distance for improved comfort, independent of the type of underwear worn by the wearer.

Description

ABSORBENT ITEMS THAT HAVE SIDE ELEMENTS OF WRAPPING OF INTERIOR GARMENTS. LATERALLY SEPARATE. WITH EXTENSION CAPACITY AREA FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to absorbent articles such as sanitary napkins, linings and incontinence pads and pads having side wrapping elements for bending around the side edges of the wearer's undergarment on each side of the article. The components are designed to automatically wrap the sides of an undergarment of the wearer when the undergarment is pulled up, having zones of extension capacity. Importantly, the zones of extension capacity are separated at an optimum lateral distance to improve comfort, regardless of the type of user of the undergarment.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Absorbent articles such as sanitary napkins, pantiliners, and incontinence pads are devices that are typically used in the crotch region of an undergarment. These devices are designed to absorb and contain liquids and other discharges of the human body and, to avoid staining the body and clothing. The sanitary napkins are of a type of absorbent article worn by the woman in a pair of panties that is normally placed between the legs of the wearer, adjacent to the perineal area of the body. [0002] Sanitary napkins, in particular with wrapping side elements, also frequently referred to as lateral wings or fins, are disclosed in the literature. Generally when sanitary napkins with lateral wings are provided, the lateral wings extend laterally from an absorbent central means and are intended to fold around the edges of the wearer's panties in the crotch region. Commonly, the lateral fins are provided with a means of attachment to either secure them to the underside of the wearer's panties or to the opposite lateral fin. The lateral fins are particularly effective to prevent exudates from staining the edges of the wearer's panties. Sanitary napkins having wing or side flaps of various types are described in U.S. Patent No. 4,687,748, entitled "Towel-sanitary towel", U.S. Patent No. 4,608,047 entitled "Towel Binding Means". Sanitary ", U.S. Patent No. 4,589,876, entitled" Sanitary Towel "and its reexamined Patent Bl, 4, 589, 876, and U.S. Patent No. 4,285,343 entitled" Sanitary Towel ". Sanitary towels that have wings are commonly seen as providing good protection against staining. However, some women find that the application of sanitary napkins that have side flaps is inconvenient for several reasons. For example, some women have found it difficult to attach the lateral fins to the bottom of the crotch of their panties. This is due to factors such as difficulties in bending the lateral fins appropriately in place and sticking them to the sanitary napkin. As a result, some women still prefer a sanitary napkin without side flaps. In addition, some women who generally prefer a sanitary towel. with lateral fins, occasionally (such as during the low flow period), prefer a sanitary pad without side flaps. Therefore, there is a need for a sanitary napkin that provides an alternative to sanitary napkins having conventional side flaps, while still providing similar protection. Several variations of sanitary napkins that have conventional side wings have been suggested. For example, U.S. Patent No. 4,911,701 discloses a sanitary napkin having elastic threads to provide a more convex shape to the body-facing portion of the central absorbent and to enable adhesive-free placement of the lateral wings in the panties. United States Patent No. 4No. 940,462 describes a sanitary towel with longitudinally expandable fins. The fins are designed to fold over the outside of the wearer's panties and to expand or conform to the contour of the pantyhose. Additional improvements have been described in the United States Application NO. 08/124180 of September 17, 1993 and United States Application 08/277733 of July 20, 1994. It has now been found that the folding of the lateral fins around the undergarments by means of extensible portions, as suggested by the reference of the technical application cited last (Application of the United States No. 08/277733), it can also be improved by the realization or development of comfort and the perception of comfort. Undergarments that have a particularly high leg cut as discussed in detail below, have recently become popular to a general public, but are already used by a considerable fraction of women, particularly in Europe. Women who wear these undergarments and utilize sanitary napkins with side flaps having stretchable portions may experience an excess of material from the stretchable portions that huddle within the undergarment or protrude out of the underwear elastics. For these women, this may cause a perceived lack of comfort impression and may possibly still originate physical irritations. Therefore, it is important for undergarments the elevated leg cut that the stretchable portions on the side flaps on the laterally opposite sides can not be grouped within the undergarment during use. At the same time, absor articles should not deteriorate despite any previously satisfied performance aspects, which are relevant for users, including those who prefer low-cut undergarments. In this way, there is a need for an absor article, such as the sanitary napkin that is provided with an alternative for conventional side flaps that provide all aspects of operation (stain protection, easy to handle, etc.) of the side flaps of the state of the art having extendable portions and which can conveniently, and efficiently, solve the problems outlined above. It is another object of the present invention to provide an absor article, such as a sanitary napkin, which is capable of wrapping around the sides of the wearer's pantyhose and remaining in place, without providing the side flaps with panty bras in the pants. the same, and without the need to fix separate elastic threads to the sanitary napkin.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an absorbent article, such as a sanitary napkin. The sanitary napkin of the present invention has a pair of side wrapping elements (or "undergarment cover components") that provide protection to the wearer's panties to reduce lateral staining (i.e., spotting of the edges). of the crotch of the panties), without the use of conventional fins. The sanitary napkin comprises a main body portion comprising a liquid-permeable topsheet, a liquid-impermeable backsheet attached to the topsheet, and an absorbent core positioned between the topsheet and the backsheet. The side wrapping elements are either integrally formed with the main body portion or attached to the garment facing side of the main body portion inward of the longitudinal side edges thereof. The side wrapping elements comprise a pair of flexible elements that extend beyond the lateral crotch portions of the wearer's undergarment. The lateral wrapping elements are each provided with at least one zone of extension capacity, preferably two separate areas of extension capacity, which are symmetrically placed with respect to the longitudinal centerline of the absorbent article. The zones of extension capacity are regions of the lateral wrapping elements that have a larger scale of extension than the adjacent regions of the wrapping sides. The zone of extension capacity have laterally more internal points that are located more closely or closely to the longitudinal center line. These laterally innermost points have a distance to the longitudinal center line of at least 40 mm, preferably from 40 mm to 60 mm. Although not wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that this placement of the area of extension capacity (far apart) of the longitudinal center line of the absorbent article) ensures the desired improvement in comfort according to the present invention for garment interiors that have a high cut leg design. In this interior towel design, the required amount of extension capabilities is not greater than when you attach interiors that have a low leg cut design. Therefore, if extension capacity zones are designed to accommodate maximum extension capacity requirements, there will be some excess materials in high leg cut undergarments. This excess material can easily get out of the elastic of the undergarment or huddle, and promote the perceived and real irritations to the user. In the elevated leg cut underwear. the zones of extension capacity according to the present invention will come to rest with their internal edges in the proximity or closeness to the crotch side portions of the wearer's undergarment, that is, the zones will be mainly outside the region of Crotch of the undergarment, when the article is first placed on the undergarment. By folding the side flaps downward, for example when the undergarment is lifted into place, the extension areas are placed below the undergarment from a user's point of view. In this way the material in the area of extension capacity that is not stretched and potentially stacked will thus do so outside the undergarment, that is, not in contact with the skin of the wearer. Therefore this can not cause real skin irritations. At the same time, the perceived irritation is avoided because when the garment is pulled downwards (for example to check the placement of the sanitary napkin) the user can not see any clutter of material in the area of extension capacity., because they are hidden below the crotch portion of the undergarment. For under-leg undergarments, the area of extension capacity according to the present invention will come to rest extending laterally over the crotch edge portion of the wearer's undergarment, i.e. the zones will be essentially centered around the leg. the crotch edges of the undergarment. For undergarments having a particularly wide crotch width, the zones may still be mainly inwardly of the crotch edge of the undergarment. By folding the side flaps downwards, for example when the undergarment is lifted into place, the area of extension capacity is placed inside the garment and around the crotch edge of the undergarment. However, for these under-leg undergarments and in this position, the stretchable areas are almost fully extended, and therefore no crowding or broadening occurs while retaining the benefits of the lateral fins with extensible zones. If the lateral wrapping elements are formed integrally with the main body portion of the absorbent article, the cutting regions are formed by extending around the intersection between the perimeter of the wrapping side elements and the lateral longitudinal edge of the main body portion. , wherein the lateral wrapping elements extend beyond the longitudinal side edge of the main body portion. For these integral side wrapping element designs it is preferable that at least one symmetric pair of zones of extension capacity extend towards said cutting regions, i.e. each extending zone extends through the longitudinal edge of the main body portion. .

Alternately, for the lateral wrapping elements that are provided as separate elements and which are attached to said side facing the garment (and which are disengaged outward from where they meet) the distance between the points laterally more internal of the area of extension capacity and the longitudinal center line is preferably in the range of 40 mm to 50 mm. Generally, the zone of extension capacity may be primarily extendable in the longitudinal direction or primarily in the transverse direction, or in any direction that falls between them. For integrally formed side wrapping elements, the zone of extension capacity is more preferably extensible in a direction which follows as closely as possible the external adjacent perimeter of the absorbent article. Preferably, the zone of extension capacity is provided with corrugations having fold lines. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the side wrapping elements comprise at least one zone of extension capacity on each side of the transverse centerline of the wrapping side elements and a hardener, less extensible to the intermediate region throughout. of the transverse center line of the wrapping side elements. Preferably, the longitudinal distance between the areas of extension capacity on opposite sides of the transverse centerline of the wrapping side elements is between 20 mm and 100 mm. In this embodiment, the side wrapping elements have an improved resistance to bending, wrinkling and other types of transverse deformation that a similar wrapping side member would have if it were made of the same material and were provided with an extension capacity along its length. total length. The hardener, located in the less extensible intermediate region along the transverse centerline of the wrapping side elements, provides the wrapping side elements with improved resistance to bending and wrinkling. This helps the wrapping side elements to bend over the elasticized sides of the wearer's panties, and not wrinkling when the thighs of the wearer apply compression forces on the absorbent article. The fact that the side wrapping elements have strength and zones of extension capacity separated according to the invention, allows the lateral wrapping elements to automatically twist around the edge portions of the crotch of the wearer's undergarment towards the underside of the undergarment and to remain thus folded over the crotch edge, when the absorbent article of an undergarment is placed and the undergarment is pulled up adjacent to the wearer's body. The zones of extension capacity and the hardened intermediate region further improve the mechanism to control the manner and location of the fold of the lateral wrapping elements. The sanitary napkins of the present invention provide an alternative for conventional sanitary napkins having side flaps. In one embodiment, the lateral wrapping elements do not require action by the user to bend them under their panties or to attach them to the panties. The side wrapping elements remain in place enough to cover the side edges of the wearer's panties without sticking them under the wearer's panties. In an alternate embodiment, particularly for side wrapping elements extending outside the main body portion, the sanitary napkin may be provided with a fastener such as a pressure sensitive adhesive. The adhesive fastener can be provided on the garment-facing side of the main body portion and also extend on the garment-facing side of the wrapping side elements. In this modality, particularly in the crotch regions of the narrow pantyhose, the sheath wrapping elements may fold around the lateral edge of the crotch of the wearer's panties in such a way that the portions of the wrapping side elements still overlap. This forms a novel structure tightens the side edge of the panty between the folded portion of the wrapping side elements.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a top plan view of the sanitary napkin of the present invention. Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the sanitary napkin shown in Figure 1. Figure 3 shows a high cut leg undergarment when worn. Figure 4 shows the high-cut leg undergarment of Figure 3, cut into the hips and stretched evenly. Figure 5 shows a lower leg undergarment when worn. Figure 6 shows a lower leg undergarment of Figure 5, cut at the hips and stretched uniformly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Figures 1 and 2 show a preferred embodiment of a disposable absorbent article of the present invention. The present invention relates to absorbent articles, such as sanitary napkins. More particularly, the present invention relates to sanitary napkins having a main body portion 21 and a pair of side wrapping elements 50 that wrap around the sides of the wearer's panties, when the user places the sanitary napkin on her panties and Pull your pants up. The sanitary napkin 20 has two surfaces, a surface that contacts the body, permeable to liquid, or "body surface" 23 and a liquid impervious surface. The sanitary napkin 20 is shown in Figure 1 as seen from its body surface 23. The body surface 23 is intended to be used adjacent to the wearer's body. The garment surface of the sanitary napkin 20 is shown, in Figure 2, on the opposite side and is intended to be placed adjacent to the wearer's undergarment when the sanitary napkin 20 is used. The sanitary napkin 20 has two lines central, a longitudinal center line L and a transverse center line T. The term longitudinal, as used herein, refers to a line, axis or direction in the plane of the sanitary napkin 20 which is generally aligned with (e.g. , approximately parallel to a vertical plane that divides the user standing in body halves, left and right, when using the sanitary napkin 20. The terms "transverse" or "lateral" used herein, are interchangeable, and refer to to a line axis or direction that falls within the plane of the sanitary napkin 20 which is generally perpendicular to the longitudinal direction Figure 1 shows a main portion of body 21 of the towel 20, the main body portion comprises the portion of the sanitary napkin without the side wrapping elements. The main body portion 21 has two separate apart longitudinal edges 22. A detailed description of a sanitary napkin and its main body portion is contained in U.S. Patent 4,690,680. The main body portion 21 of the sanitary napkin 20 can be of any thickness, including relatively thick, relatively thin or even very thin. The embodiment of the sanitary napkin 20 shown in Figures 1 and 2 is intended to be an example of a relatively thin sanitary napkin, preferably an "ultra-thin" sanitary napkin. An "ultra-thin" sanitary napkin 20 as described in U.S. Patents 4,950,264 and 5,009,653, preferably has a caliper of less than about 3 mm. Figure 1 or 2 show the individual components of the main body portion 21 of the sanitary napkin 20 of the present invention. The main body portion 21 of the sanitary napkin generally comprises at least 3 primary components. These include a liquid-permeable top sheet 38 a liquid-impermeable backsheet 40, and an absorbent core 42 positioned between the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 40. There are also occasions, however, when one or more preferably of these components, such as the backsheet and the topsheet, can be replaced by a component that serves as part of the side wrapping elements 50 described below. The topsheet, backsheet, and absorbent core can be assembled in a variety of configurations known in the art (including so-called "sandwich" products and "tube" products). Several preferred sanitary napkin configurations are generally described in U.S. Patent 4,321,924"Limited Disposable Absorbent Article"; U.S. Patent 4,425,130"Composite sanitary towel", U.S. Patent 4,950,264"Flexible, thin sanitary towel"; U.S. Patent 5,308,346"Elastic sanitary towel"; U.S. Patent Application No. 08/096/121, entitled "Absorbent articles having underpants components that naturally surround the sides of the panty", filed July 22, 1993; and U.S. Patent Application No. 08 / 124,180, entitled "Absorbent articles having underwear components comprising weft stretchable materials exhibiting similar elastic behavior, filed on September 17, 1993. The main portion of body 21 of the sanitary napkin may be comprised of one or more extensible teile components such as sanitary napkins, and the like described in PCT Publication Nos. WO 93/01785 and 93/01786, Figures 1 and 2 show a preferred embodiment of the sanitary napkin 20 assembled in an interleaved construction, wherein the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 40 have length and width dimensions generally greater than those of the absorbent core 42. The topsheet 38 and the backsheet 40 extend further beyond the edges of the absorbent core 42 for thereby forming portions of the periphery 26. The sanitary napkin 20 of the present invention This embodiment comprises a pair of side wrapping elements 50 extending laterally outwardly beyond the longitudinal side edges 22 of the main body portion 21. In order to keep the absorbent core in position and provide structural integrity to the main portion. of body, the top sheet is attached to the backsheet in any usual manner along its periphery. In Figures 1 and 2, pleating of the upper sheet to the posterior sheet is achieved. The side wrapping elements 50 may be of any suitable size and shape. The side wrapping elements 50 of the present invention may have any dimension and characteristics set forth for the pad cover components in the aforementioned U.S. Patent Applications Serial No. 08 / 096,121 and 08 / 124,180 and in particular Patent Application Serial No. (Case 5354). The side wrapping elements 50 can, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, be integral with the main body portion 21. Alternatively the wrapping side elements 50 can, however, be attached to the main body portion 21 of any suitable way. As used herein, the term "attached" encompasses configurations in which one element is directly secured to another element by attaching the element directly to another element; configurations in which the element is indirectly secured to another element by fixing the element to member or intermediate members that are instead fixed to another element; and configurations in which one element is integral with another element, that is, one element is essentially part of the other element. In this way, the side wrapping elements 50 can be integral extensions of the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 40 of the main body portion 21, as shown in Figures 1 and 2. In other embodiments, instead of being integral, the fin side elements 50 may comprise a single or more separate components that are attached to the garment side of the absorbent article. In the preferred embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, the side wrapping elements 50 each comprise a web of material having 2 extension capacity zones 56 therein. The extension capacity of all extension capacity zones 56 in the side wrapping elements 50, may be in the same direction. Alternatively, one or more of the extension capacity zones 50 may be extendable in a different direction. Also, the extension capacity in each zone 56 may vary if desired. The extension capacity zones 56 are preferably capable of ranging between about 20 and about 90%, more preferably between about 50% and about 80%, and most preferably between about 70% and about 80% under the associated forces when using the Sanitary tolla in a pair of panties. The extension capacity zones 56 are also preferably extendable without being elastic. In addition, any inherent elasticity in the zones of extension capacity 56 (ie, any tendency of the material comprising the area of extension capacity to return to its original dimension), is generally relatively low to nonexistent. Figures 1 and 2 show the preferred locations for the extension capacity zone 56, and the manner in which they are determined. In a particularly preferred embodiment according to the present invention, the longitudinal centerline of a sanitary napkin and the transverse central line of the sanitary napkin are simultaneously lines of symmetry for all components of the absorbent article. Therefore, the determination of the locations of extension capacity zones is only described with reference to one of the zones. The innermost point of an area of extension capacity can be found by moving a theoretical line parallel to the longitudinal centerline to the zone of extension capacity until the first theoretical line touches the area of extension capacity. Then, the distance between this theoretical line that touches a zone of extension capacity and the longitudinal centerline is measured. For each zone of extension capacity, this distance must be 40 mm or greater, preferably from 40 mm to 60 mm. In the preferred embodiment of Figures 1 and 2, the longitudinal side edges 22 of the main body portion of the article have two points "P" intersecting the perimeter of the side wrapping element on each side of the longitudinal center line. Around each intersecting point "P", a cutting region that incorporates parts of the main body portion of the absorbent article also extends as part of the wrapping side elements. It is preferred that the area of extension capacity extend into the cutting region, such that at least part of the area of extension extends from the lateral wrapping elements on the main body portion in the area of the body. cutting region, but not toward the region of the absorbent core 42. The determination of the locations of the extension capacity zone as described above remains unchanged for these preferred embodiments. The side wrapping elements 50, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, preferably also have a trapezoidally formed intermediate region or zone 58 located between the extension capacity zone 56. The intermediate region 58 comprises a portion of the distant edges 54. of the wrapping side elements. This intermediate region 58 is more rigid (i.e., more resistant to bending) than the areas of extension capacity 56. The intermediate region 58 may also be less extensible than the parts of the lateral wrapping elements comprising the zone of capacity of extension 56. The intermediate region 58 provides the lateral wrapping elements 50 with greater resistance to bending and folding, in such a way that the lateral wrapping elements, will bend over the elastic of the panty, instead of folding, when they are subjected under compression by the wearer's thighs. The stiffer middle region 58 also helps to prevent the elastic covering of the pantyhose when the wearer pulls her panties down to check the staining of the sanitary napkin, and then pull your panties back up. The stiffer material ensures that the side wrapping elements do not bend up over the top of the main body portion, and remain in the same plane as the main body portion of the sanitary napkin, where the weakest material would be pushed up during the movement associated with pulling the panties down, and could tend to bend up on the top sheet when the panties are pulled back up. By pulling the panties and sanitary towel back, the weaker material may also not be trapped by the wearer's thighs and go back into place. The side wrapping elements 50 must provide sufficient resistance to bending and folding such that they will bend rather than bend during use, and automatically wrap the edges of the wearer's panties. The side wrapping elements 50 can be made from any of the materials used in the construction of the main body portion 21 of the sanitary napkin. The side wrapping elements 50 in the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, preferably comprise a laminate of two materials such as the upper sheet material and the back sheet. The separately joined wrapping side elements can be made in the same manner or from a different laminate, for example, from a soft, extensible cover material, such as a spunbond non-woven web, longitudinally extensible, or an extensible formed film. , soft and, an optional intermediate layer extendable such as a three-dimensional formed film, and a backing impermeable to the extensible liquid such as a backsheet material of polyethylene film. Suitable materials for the wrapping side elements include those used to provide the topsheet, the backsheet, and the optional intermediate layers. In this context, suitable nonwoven webs include a product known as spunbonded PE, which can be obtained from Polybond, Incorporated of Waynesboro, VA and a product known as COROLIND PE, which can be obtained from Corovin GMBH of Germany. A variation of a three-dimensional formed film known as DRIWEAVE can be used as an extensible intermediate layer or as a top sheet material. DRI-WEAVE is used as a top sheet in sanitary napkins manufactured by The Procter &; Gamble Company, Cincinnati, Ohio under U.S. Patent Nos. 4,342,314 and 4,463, 045. The three-dimensional film has a stamped thickness of between 0.38 mm to 0.89 mm, and for use on the side wrapping elements punched or not perforated As it is the case of the upper sheet material DRI-WEAVE for wrapping side elements, integral, the top sheet of DRI-WEAVE can be formed in such a way that the openings are close outside the longitudinal side of the film forming the side of the upper sheet of the wrapping side elements.

The material of the polyethylene backsheet is a film comprised of LLDPE which preferably has a gauge of 0.001 mm 0.04 mm. A useful polyethylene film is known as # P18-1401 and is obtained from Clopay Corporation of Cincinnati, Ohio. This polyethylene film can be joined to form the Laminar unit of the wrapping side elements together with the nonwoven web and / or the film formed by any suitable method such as by a spiral application of adhesives or horseshoe coating, or can be welded or excluded jointly. The composite laminar unit preferably has a caliper of between 0.13 - 1.5 mm, and is capable of ranging between about 25 - 80% without tearing. The particular laminar unit is chosen to provide a smooth surface that makes contact with the body, of good extension capacity in the zone of extension capacity when the zone of extension capacity is formed therein, a good resistance to bending and wrinkling, and a liquid impermeable barrier. The side wrapping elements 50 can be provided with zones of extension 56 in a non-limited number in different ways. The side wrapping elements 50 can, for example, comprise a substantially extensible material which is provided with extensible regions for the area of extension capacity. The extensible regions can be created in any suitable manner, including but not limited to mechanical stretching, corrugation, ring rolling, heating and deformation, subjecting the portions of the side elements 50 to compression between coupling plates, and the like. In another embodiment, the different regions of the side wrapping elements can be provided by forming the side wrapping elements away from the material having different extension capacities. For example, the side wrapping elements 50 may be comprised of a laminar unit of an extensible material and a non-extensible material. In such embodiment, non-extensible material can be provided in the configuration of the wrapping side elements. The non-extensible material may have cut holes where the area of extension capacity is located. This non-extensible material can then be laminated to the extensible material to form a lateral wrapping element with extension zone where the holes of the non-extensible material were cut. The embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2 have zones of extension 56 formed by ring-rolling (or precorrugado), two regions of the side wrapping elements. Suitable methods for ring rolling are described in U.S. Patent No. 4,107,364, U.S. Patent 4,834,741, U.S. Patent 5,143,679 issued U.S. Patent 5,156,793, and U.S. Patent 5,167,897. The lateral elements of. Wrap 50 may be provided with ring-rolled corrugations having fold line 60 that are angled away from longitudinal center line L. Fold line 60 may form any angle with the longitudinal center line. The fold line 60 as shown in Figure 1 forms an angle A with the longitudinal center line L. The angle A in the embodiment shown is 30 degrees. The general location of the extension capacity zones 56 in the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2 is preferred for several reasons. The fact that the extension capacity zone 56 are separated apart and separated by the hardened intermediate region 58 provides improved resistance to bending and creasing, and greater control over how to bend it around the edges of the wearer's panties. The side elements of the casing 50 will typically bend in the areas of expandability 56 and the intermediate region 58. This makes the lateral wrapping elements more robust and capable of greater safe folding than if the side wrapping elements were made fully extensible. and / or were made of materials that have the same rigidity over their total area. Another reason that the extension capacity zones shown in Figures 1 and 2 are preferred, it is seen when considering the different dimensions found in the undergarments. In this respect, high leg cut undergarments and low leg cut undergarments can be distinguished. Figure 3 shows an example of a high leg cut undergarment when worn, and Figure 4 shows the high leg cut undergarment of Figure 3 when it is cut away from the hip of the undergarment and stretched uniformly Figure 5 shows an under-cut leg under garment when worn, and Figure 6 shows the same under-leg undergarment of Figure 5 when cut separately from the hip of the undergarment and stretched evenly. From both Figures 4 and 6 it can be seen that the wide crotch portion 102 of the undergarment is a critical differentiation between both styles of undergarments. It has been found that although in the high-leg cut undergarments they have a crotch width of, for example, 74 mm. , under leg cut undergarments having a crotch width 102 of, for example, 118 mm. In addition to the particular shape of folding along the central portion of the leg opening 104 of the undergarment, it is more gradual for lower leg undergarments than for high leg undergarments. These effects of the crotch width that have to be arranged by the expandability of the extensible area of the side wrapping elements.

When a sanitary towel is placed in the crotch region of a high-cut leg undergarment (which has now become popular with sanitary napkin users) one can see that if the sanitary napkin has too small a distance between the extension capacity zone and the longitudinal centreline, a substantial fraction of the capacity zone Extension will be placed inside the undergarment from a user's point of view. However, due to the shape of the high leg cut undergarment, this extensible material will not be stretched to a full extent and will therefore remain in a corrugated or folded state within the undergarment. Apparently this problem can not happen in lower leg undergarments because the sanitary napkins that have a small distance between the zone of extension capacity and the longitudinal centerline will be striated out uniformly around the lateral edge of the leg. the undergarment due to the particular shape of the side edge of the lower leg undergarment and the wider crotch width. The sanitary napkins according to the present invention solve the problem caused by the particular shape of the high-leg cut undergarment, while maintaining the development as desired by the users of the under-leg underwear. In particular, for high leg cut undergarments the area of extension capacity will be a large extension folded around the crotch edge of the undergarment such that any remaining corrugation or crease will fall out of the undergarment from the point of view of the users. The increased stretch required by the under-leg underwear can, however, at the same time be supported by sanitary napkins according to the present invention. The place of extension capacity with respect to the crotch edge of the undergarment is only relevant if a part of the extensible area within the undergarment remains unstretched. The garment surface of the sanitary napkin 20 may include, and preferably includes fasteners for securing the sanitary napkin to the wearer's undergarment. Figure 2 shows the central pad holder 44 which is adapted to secure the portion of the sanitary towel that covers the main body portion 21 to the crotch region of an undergarment. Any of the types of fasteners known in the art can be used. The fasteners comprising adhesives have been found to work well for this purpose with pressure sensitive adhesives being preferred. Before the sanitary napkin 20 is in use, if an adhesive fastener is used, the adhesive is typically covered with a removable cover strip or removable liner in order to prevent the adhesive from sticking to a different surface of the portion. crotch of the panties before use. Suitable release liners are disclosed in U.S. Patent 4,917,697. Figure 2 shows a preferred rule using a pair of longitudinally oriented, or spaced apart, strips or areas of adhesives that are centered around the longitudinal centerline L. In addition, also centered around the longitudinal centerline L are surfaces, strips or adhesive areas 48 on the side wrapping elements. These may be provided with the same or preferable with a stronger, alternating adhesive material, and are also covered by removable liners before use. The sanitary napkin 20 of the present invention for example can be used by removing any removable liner and subsequently placing the sanitary napkin 20 in a pantyhose, such that the adhesive 44 and another fastener 48 makes contact with the panty and keeps the sanitary napkin in position within the pantyhose during use. The wrapping side elements 50 will automatically wrap around the sides of the wearer's panties by the simple action of the user pulling up the panties or by being subtly pulled around the crotch edge of the undergarment by the wearer. The side wrapping elements 50 then assume a position of use. The operation of the side wrapping elements 50 is distinguishable in several aspects from those of lateral fins. First, placing a sanitary napkin having conventional fins on a pair of panties and pulling up the panties will not consistently provide the sustained automatic bending aspect of the present invention. There are several for this, conventional fins are not provided with resistance to bending and wrinkling in such a way that they will tend to wrinkle in use, particularly when the wearer's thighs exert compressive forces on the fins. Also the conventional fins are not provided with zones of extension capacity, so these will generally not wrap around and conform to the panties. In those cases where the conventional fins have zone of extension capacity they will fold around the panties, these may have excess extensible fin material that can be perceived as being or currently being uncomfortable for the wearer. The side wrapping elements of the present invention, on the other hand, bend around the edges (which contain elastic) of the panties, but avoid the problems associated with the excess fin material.

Alternate Modes Numerous alternate embodiments of the present invention are possible. For example, the side wrapping elements are preferably mirror images of each other, and are symmetrical about the longitudinal center line. However, it should be understood that the shape and location of the lateral wrapping elements described herein are those of a preferred embodiment, and other modalities are also possible. For example, although the side wrapping elements 50 are shown to extend symmetrically from each longitudinal edge of the main body portion, there may be a side wrapping element that extends more than the other. In addition, the side wrapping elements 50 may be misaligned along the longitudinal centerline more toward one end edge of the main body portion than the other. The terms "pant lining" refers to absorbent articles that are less bulky than sanitary napkins that are generally worn by a woman between her menstrual periods. Suitable eiborbent articles in the form of protective pantyhose may be provided with lateral wrapping elements described herein as described in U.S. Patent No. 4,738,676 entitled "Pantiprotector". The term "incontinence article" refers to pads, undergarments (pads held in place by a suspension system of the same type, such as a belt or the like), inserts for absorbent articles, capacity enhancers for absorbent articles, trusses, night pillows and the like, even if they are used by adults, children or crawling babies. Suitable incontinence articles that may be provided with wrapping side elements described herein are described in U.S. Patent Nos. 5,300,054 and 5,304,161.

Claims (10)

1. An absorbent article for use in a wearer's undergarment having a crotch region with a pair of side edges, said absorbent article having a longitudinal centerline extending parallel to a longitudinal direction, said absorbent article comprising: a main portion of body comprising an absorbent core, said main body portion having a side facing the body, a side facing the garment, and a pair of longitudinal side edges; and a pair of envelope wrapping elements to fold around the side edges of the wearer's undergarment, said wrapping side elements being attached to said main body portion and extending laterally outwardly beyond the longitudinal side edges of said body. main body portion; and said lateral wrapping elements, comprise at least one area of extension capacity, each of which are symmetrically placed with respect to said longitudinal centerline and said zone of extension capacity have laterally more internal points, said points laterally more internal being those points in said zones of extension capacity that are located closer to said longitudinal central line; and said absorbent article being characterized in that said laterally more internal points have a distance to said longitudinal central line of at least 40 mm.

2. An absorbent article according to claim 1, further characterized in that said laterally innermost points have a distance to said longitudinal central line of 40 mm to 60 mm.

3. An absorbent article according to claim 1 or 2 further characterized in that said zones of extension capacity are either extensible in a primary manner in the longitudinal direction or primarily extensible in the transverse direction. An absorbent article according to claim 1 or 2, further characterized in that said zones of extension capacity are extensible in a direction between the longitudinal direction and the transverse direction. An absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that said lateral wrapping elements have a transverse center line perpendicular to said longitudinal center line of the absorbent article, and said lateral wrapping elements comprise at least two areas of extension capacity on the opposite sides of said transverse central line and, an intermediate region positioned between said zones of extension capacity, said intermediate region containing said transverse central line, preferably the longitudinal distance between said zones of extension capacity on the opposite sides of said transverse central line is between 20 mm. and 100 mm. 6. An absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that at least one zone of extension capacity is provided with corrugations having fold lines therein. An absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that said lateral wrapping elements are integral with said main body portion, and form a cutting region extending around the intersection between the perimeter of said elements. wrapping sides and the longitudinal side edge of said main body portion, wherein said lateral wrapping elements extend beyond said longitudinal laminar edge of said main body portion. An absorbent article according to claim 7, further characterized in that at least one symmetrical pair of zones of extension capacity extend towards said cutting region. 9. An absorbent article according to any of claims 1 to 6, further characterized in that said lateretic wrapping elements are provided as separate elements that are attached to the garment-facing side of said main body portion inwardly of the longitudinal side edges of said main body portion, and said lateral wrapping elements they are disunited from that side that gives the garment outward from where they are attached. An absorbent article according to claim 9, further characterized in that said distance between said laterally more internal points of said extension capacity zones and said longitudinal centerline is from 40 mm to 50 mm.