MXPA98008833A - Adapta sanitary towel - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to absorbent articles, particularly sanitary napkins or panty liners, made to attach to a user's undergarment. These articles are typically attached to the undergarment of a wearer, while the wearer has the undergarment folded down and stretched between the legs. The pants are available in different sizes according to the size of the user of this article. For this, the same user will apply identical absorbent articles to the undergarments of different dimensions and may try to apply the article are to consider such a difference. According to the present invention, the absorbent articles are made adaptable in at least one direction to reduce wrinkles or folds of the absorbent article when applied to the undergarment and to provide more consistently adjusted articles despite the variation in the dimensions of the absorbent article. interlude

Description

ADAPTABLE SANITARY TOWEL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to absorbent articles, particularly sanitary napkins or panty liners, made to be attached to a user's undergarment. These items typically are attached to a wearer's undergarment while the wearer has the undergarment pulled down and stretched between the legs. The undergarment is typically a pair of elastic, self-retractable briefs, of garment or in the form of a garment. The underpants are available in different sizes according to the size of the user of these articles. However, due to differences in fashion, differences in the material of the garment, differences in the desired comfort as well as the need to adapt the single-size undergarment to the physical variation of its user groups, the dimensions of an individual user's undergarment may vary substantially. Therefore, the same user will apply identical absorbent articles to the inner garments of different dimensions and may try to apply the article without considering this difference. According to the present invention, the absorbent articles are made adaptable in at least one direction to reduce wrinkles or folds of the absorbent article when applied to the undergarment and to provide more consistently adjusted articles despite the variation in the dimensions of the absorbent article. underwear.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is known that absorbent articles, which are used in a user's undergarment, can be drastically improved in their placement, structural integrity and special adaptation to the particular conditions of use can be ensured at all times during the use of these products. In this regard many developments have attempted to provide extensible, elastically extensible, highly flexible or more generally deformable absorbent articles, which would help in providing the product with the ability to track movements during the use of a user. Therefore it has been thought in the prior art to use the aforementioned elements to ensure proper fitting of a disposable absorbent article, such as a sanitary napkin or panty lining, to create a product that is comfortable and performs well during the use. Therefore, products that are adapted to follow movement during use have been developed over time. However, the absorbent articles are typically not directly provided in the wear position during use, but are attached to a wearer's undergarment before the undergarment is pulled to its final position of use. Typically, the undergarment is placed in a special frame or application position, to apply the absorbent article, which is not entirely similar to that in which the undergarment will be, once the undergarment has been pulled up. towards the position of use. Typically, sanitary napkins or panty liners are attached to an undergarment while pulling the undergarment down toward the position between a user's legs. Normal undergarments are able to stretch and retract, i.e. stretch elastically in order to provide good comfort and proper fit while the undergarment is placed on and during the use of said undergarment. Therefore, the undergarment in the pulled-down position may be in an extended configuration, when the disposable absorbent article is applied to the undergarment. This can have several effects including the fact that the article wrinkles or unravels, which will cause an unacceptable adjustment already at the beginning of the period of use. Another problem with disposable absorbent articles that are attached to the undergarment is due to the fact that one and the same user typically uses the same absorbent article with different pieces of undergarments. Nevertheless, the different garment pieces, even when worn by the same wearer, have a variety of differentials of shape and size, typically due to fashion, materials, the number of sizes of the particular garment types produced by the garments. suppliers of undergarments, and their respective production variations. Thus, the same user tends to apply the same absorbent article to the undergarments having drastically different dimensions, in particular different widths in the crotch (i.e., the closest distance between the opening of the left leg and the right leg of a leg). underpants). The user will do this normally with the expectation of achieving the same result each time without considering the differences induced by the individual user. It has been considered that a single user will typically attempt to achieve an identically applied appearance of the disposable absorbent article irrespective of variations in his undergarments. For this reason, for undergarments having, for example, a wide crotch width, the respective absorbent article can be stretched more than would be the case for an undergarment having a narrow crotch width. This problem can obviously be addressed by making the absorbent articles extensible. However, the extension capacity, particularly the elastic (ie, refractive) extensibility, will cause the product to be under certain, but increasingly different, stress conditions when it finally ends up in the position of use of the article. Therefore, the products will perform in their main characteristics, that is, absorbency, leakage, or comfort and fit, depending differentially on the differentials of the sizes found in the inner garments of a particular user of these articles. This problem of variation in performance depending on the variation of the size of the garment of the individual wearer, can cause the disposable absorbent article to be unacceptable to the respective user. It is therefore desirable that the absorbent article behaves in a consistent manner, or at least as closely as consistently as possible, through the variations commonly encountered between the different shapes and sizes of the undergarments that can be found in an individual wearer of these items. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide disposable absorbent articles, particularly sanitary napkins or panty liners that can provide good fit after being subjected to the individual application procedure.

It is a particular object of the present invention to provide absorbent articles with a sustainable ability to follow the movements and tensions of the undergarment in order to maintain a close approximation to the wearer than that of the undergarment by itself. It is a particular object of the present invention to provide absorbent articles that are capable of adapting upon initial application occurrence to the different sizes found between different undergarments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an absorbent article that is attached in use to a user's undergarment. The article has a longitudinal axis and a transversal or crossed directional axis and comprises three main elements, mainly an upper sheet for the passage of the liquid, a rear sheet that forms the external surface that is facing the undergarment during use, and a absorbent core interposed between the top sheet and the back sheet. The absorbent article also has a means of fastening the panty, which is provided on the outer surface of the backsheet in order to attach the article to the wearer's undergarment. The article according to the present invention is adaptable in size at least in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis, or parallel to the transverse axis, or a combination thereof. Since the undergarment adoption is particularly important in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the disposable absorbent article, these are preferred embodiments of the present invention. Particularly preferred absorbent articles are sanitary napkins or panty liners having a maximum thickness of less than 5 millimeters, preferably less than 2 millimeters thick. In one embodiment according to the present invention, the total absorbent article comprising the topsheet, the backsheet and the absorbent core, is corrugated or folded with the corrugations or folds being parallel to the transverse axis of the absorbent article. An absorbent article according to the present invention may comprise a release liner that protects the fastening means of the panty before the article is used. It is particularly preferred if this release liner is substantially non-extensible and non-shrinkable, so that the placement on the corrugated or folded absorbent article protects the corrugations or folds during manufacture, packaging the transport of the absorbent article until it is placed in use by delaminating the release liner before mounting the absorbent article in an undergarment. It is also possible that one, several or all of the main elements of the absorbent article (top sheet, backsheet and absorbent core) are elastically extensible beyond the limits of adaptability, while at least the element or element is not elastically extensible. Either they are provided with corrugations or folds substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the product. This will provide the disposable absorbent article with the desired adaptability, while also providing elasticity to the article. Accordingly, it is a particularly preferred embodiment of the present invention when all the main elements of the article, namely the topsheet, the absorbent core and the backsheet, are individually and in their combination elastically extensible parallel to a longitudinal and transverse axis while the entire article is corrugated or folded with the corrugation or folds at least substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the absorbent article. In a particularly preferred embodiment of the present invention, the panty fastening means are provided by pressure sensitive adhesives, which preferably are provided only to the corrugated or folded surface that faces outward of the backsheet, if the article Absorbent was corrugated or folded as a means to make it shrinkable.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention will be described with reference to sanitary napkins or panty liners. However, it is equally well applicable to sanitary napkins or adult incontinence products, which are used in an undergarment and are attached to the undergarment during the use of the absorbent product. The absorbent products according to the present invention typically comprise three main components: A liquid-permeable top sheet, a liquid-impermeable backsheet and an absorbent core. The absorbent core is enclosed by the backsheet and the top sheet and the product is used in such a way that the surface of the top sheet faces towards the user of the absorbent product, while the exposed surface of the back sheet faces towards the undergarment to which it is attached to the product by the fastening means of the pant. Typically this is an adhesive, but it can also be a mechanical fixation. The present invention is interested in the ability to adapt the product. The degree of adaptability is determined by the selection of materials for the components of the product as mentioned above, their respective quantity and the limit at which they have been treated to provide the capacity for adaptation. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that, in order to achieve the ability to adapt according to the present invention, the selection of the type, quantity and treatment of the raw materials has to be balanced with other desired characteristics of the absorbent product, such as, for example, absorbent capacity, absorption speed and surface dryness on the outside of the upper sheet during use, etc. Therefore, the following description of the typical materials of the main components of the absorbent product will make it possible to provide a large number of product variants, which satisfy the requirements according to the present invention. In addition to the adaptability of the absorbent articles according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, they are elastically stretchable.

The term "elastically stretchable" as used herein, means that when the stretching forces are removed, the article will tend to return to its non-stretched or unstretched dimensions or "originals". However, you do not need to return completely to your dimensions without stretching. If the absorbent article is elastically stretchable, it can be stretchable in one or two directions (which are not parallel) within the product plane, that is, parallel to the surface facing the garment. The materials for shrinkable and elastically stretchable articles may be elastically stretchable per se or be treated to provide elastic stretch capacity. In particular, elastic backsheet material, elastic upper sheet material, filamentary materials combined with threads, filaments or elastic webs, as well as gathered, high corroded by ring of the materials can be used in this context. Suitable materials and methods are known in the art and, for example, are disclosed in detail in U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 08/192240 of February 4, 1994, specifically referred to in order to facilitate selection. of the materials if the elastically stretchable absorbent articles are made in accordance with the present invention. In the following, non-limiting embodiments of the main elements of the absorbent product are described, which can be used in the contractable designs and preferably also elastically stretchable or non-stretchable.

Absorbent core The absorbent core typically includes the following components: (a) optionally a primary fluid distribution layer; (b) optionally, preferably a secondary fluid distribution layer; (c) a fluid storage layer; (d) optionally a fibrous layer ("dedusting") which is located below the storage layer; and (e) other optional components. to. Primary layer of fluid distribution An optional component of the absorbent cores according to the present invention is the primary fluid distribution layer. This primary distribution layer is typically below the top sheet and is in fluid communication with it. The top sheet transfers the acquired menstrual fluid to this primary distribution layer for final distribution to the storage layer. This transfers the fluid through the primary distribution layer that occurs not only in the thickness, but also along the length and width of the absorbent product. b. Optional secondary fluid distribution layer Also optional but a preferred component of the absorbent cores according to the present invention is a secondary fluid distribution layer. This secondary distribution layer is typically below the primary distribution layer and is in fluid communication with it. The purpose of this secondary distribution layer is to easily acquire the fluid from the primary distribution layer and transfer it rapidly to the underlying storage layer. This helps to fully utilize the fluid capacity of the underlying storage layer. c. Fluid storage layer Located in fluid communication with, and typically underlying the primary or secondary distribution layers is a fluid storage layer comprising certain gelling absorbent materials and / or other absorbent materials, which can form the material exporter for gelling absorbent materials. The gelling absorbent materials are usually referred to as "Hydrogel" "Superabsorbent" "Hydrocolloid" materials. The gelling absorbent materials are those materials which, upon contact with aqueous fluids, especially aqueous body fluids, imbibe these fluids and thus form the hydrogels. The gelling absorbent materials are typically capable of absorbing large quantities of aqueous body fluids, and are also capable of retaining these absorbed fluids under moderate pressures. These gelling absorbent materials are typically in the form of discrete, non-fibrous particles. The fluid storage layer may comprise only the gelling absorbent materials, or these gelling absorbent materials may be homogeneously or inhomogeneously dispersed in a suitable carrier, or these may comprise only an absorbent carrier material. Suitable carriers include cellulose fibers, in the form of fluff, tissue or paper such as are conventionally used in the absorbent cores.

Modified cellulose fibers such as hardened cellulose fibers can also be used. Synthetic fibers can also be used and include those made of cellulose acetate, polyvinyl fluoride, polyvinylidene chloride, acrylics (such as Orion), polyvinyl acetate, non-soluble polyvinyl alcohol, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyamides (such as nylon), polyesters, two-component fibers, three-component fibers, mixtures thereof and the like. Preferred synthetic fibers have a denier of from about 3 denier per filament to about 25 denier per filament, more preferably from about 5 denier per filament to about 16 denier per filament. Also preferably, the surfaces of the fiber are hydrophilic or are treated to be hydrophilic. The storage layer may also include filling materials, such as perlite, diatomaceous earth, vermiculite, etc., which reduce the problems of rewetting. If it is dispersed in a non-homogeneous way in a carrier, the storage layer can be locally homogeneous, that is, having a distribution gradient in one or several directions within the dimension of the storage layer. The inhomogeneous distribution can also refer to laminates of the carriers that enclose the gelling absorbent materials either partially or totally. If laminates are used they can be formed with or without absorbent gelling particles. In particular, thermally bonded air-laid fibrous sheets or laminates and / or thermally bonded wet laid sheets or laminates have been found useful, especially in the context of panty liners when no gelling absorbent material is used. Preferably, the storage layer comprises from about 15 to 100 percent of the gelling absorbent materials and from 0 to about 85 percent of the carrier. More preferably, the storage layer comprises from about 30 to 100 percent, most preferably from about 60 to 100 percent of the gelling absorbent materials and from 0 to 70 percent, most preferably from 0 to about 40 percent of the carrier . The gelling absorbent materials suitable for use herein will most often comprise a substantially water-insoluble, slightly cross-linked, partially neutralized polymeric gelling material. This material forms a hydrogel upon contact with water. These polymer materials can be prepared from the polymerizable, unsaturated, acid-containing monomers. Suitable unsaturated acidic monomers for use in preparing the polymeric gelling absorbent material used in this invention include those listed in U.S. Patent No. 4,654,039 and reissued as RE 32,649. Preferred monomers include acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, and 2-acrylamido-2-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid. Acrylic acid by itself is especially preferred for the preparation of the polymeric gelling material. The polymeric component formed from the unsaturated, acid-containing monomers can be grafted to other types of polymer portions such as starch or cellulose. Starch-grafted polyacrylate materials of this type are especially preferred. Preferred polymeric gelling absorbent materials that can be prepared from conventional monomer types include starch grafted with hydrolyzed acrylonitrile, polyacrylate grafted starch, polyacrylates, maleic anhydride based copolymers and combinations thereof. Especially preferred are polyacrylates and polyacrylate-grafted starch. Although these gelling absorbent materials are typically in the particulate form, it is also contemplated that the gelling absorbent material may be in the form of macrostructures such as fibers, sheets or strips. d. Optional fibrous layer ("Powder") An optional component for inclusion within the absorbent cores according to the present invention is a fibrous layer adjacent to, and typically underlying the storage layer. This underlying fibrous layer is typically referred to as a "Dust off" layer, since it provides a substrate on which the absorbent gelling material is deposited in the storage layer during the manufacture of the absorbent core. In fact, in those examples where the gelling absorbent material is in the form of laminate or macrostructures such as fibers, sheets or strips, this fibrous "dedusting" layer need not be included. However, because this dedusting layer provides some of the additional fluid handling capabilities such as rapid capillary action of the fluid along the length of the pad, its invention is typically preferred in the absorbent cores according to the present invention. . and. Other optional components The absorbent cores according to the present invention may include other optional components, normally present in the absorbent webs. For example, a reinforcing fabric may be placed within the respective layers, or between the respective layers, of the absorbent cores. These reinforcement canvases should be of such configuration so as not to form interfacial barriers for fluid transfer, especially if they are placed between the respective layers of the absorbent core. Given the structural integrity that normally occurs as a result of thermal bonding, reinforcing canvases are not normally required for absorbent structures according to the present invention. However, if they are used, they have to allow the desired shrinkage capacity. Another component that can be included within the absorbent core according to the invention and preferably is provided close to or as part of the primary or secondary fluid distribution layer, are the odor control agents. These can be selected from activated carbon or coated activated carbon to admit odor, suitable zeolite or clay materials, the absorbent gelling material in combination with certain zeolites that have been found useful are optionally incorporated in the absorbent core. These components can be incorporated in any desired form, but are often included as non-fibrous discrete particles.

Top sheet The top sheet is docile, soft feeling and non-irritating to the user's skin. As indicated above the top sheet material can also be elastically stretchable in one or two directions. In addition, the topsheet is inherently permeable to fluid, allowing fluids (eg, menstruation and / or urine) to easily penetrate through its thickness. A suitable top sheet can be manufactured from a wide range of materials, such as woven and non-woven materials; polymeric materials such as thermoplastic films formed with openings, plastic films with openings, and hydroformed thermoplastic films; porous foams; cross-linked foams; crosslinked thermoplastic films; and thermoplastic canvases. Suitable woven and nonwoven materials may be composed of natural fibers (eg, wood or cotton fibers), synthetic fibers (e.g., polymer fibers such as polyester, polypropylene or polyethylene fibers) or a combination of fibers natural and synthetic Preferred top sheets for use herein, are selected from non-woven top sheets or high bulge and top sheets of film formed with openings. Especially preferred are films formed with openings for the topsheet, because they are permeable to body exudates and not yet absorbent, and have a reduced tendency to allow the fluids to pass back through and rewet the user's skin. . In this way, the surface of the formed film that this contact with the body remains dry, thus reducing the staining of the body and creating a more comfortable feeling for the wearer. Suitable formed films are described in U.S. Patent No. 3,929,135; U.S. Patent No. 4,324,246; U.S. Patent No. 4,342,314; U.S. Patent No. 4,463,045; and United States Patent No. 5,006,394. Top sheets of films formed with particularly preferred micro apertures are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,609,518 and U.S. Patent No. 4,629,643. The preferred top sheet for the present invention is the formed film described in one or more of the above patents and sold in sanitary napkins by The Procter & Gamble Company of Cincinnati, Ohio as "DRI-WEAVE". The upper sheets that do not have a homogeneous distribution of liquid passage, but only a part of the upper sheet comprising passages of liquid are also contemplated by the present invention. Typically, these upper sheets would have the liquid passages oriented such that they result in centrally permeable and peripherally liquid impermeable top sheets. The body surface of the formed film topsheet can be hydrophilic to help transfer liquid through the topsheet faster than if the body surface were not hydrophilic. In a preferred embodiment, surfactant is incorporated into the polymeric materials of the formed film topsheet as described in U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 07 / 794,745, filed on November 19, 1991. alternatively, the body surface of the topsheet can be made hydrophilic by treating it with a surfactant, as described in the above referenced U.S. Patent No. 4,950,254.

Back sheet The backsheet prevents the exudates absorbed and contained within the absorbent core from moistening the articles that come into contact with the sanitary napkin with particular undergarments. The backsheet is preferably impervious to liquids (eg, menstruation and / or urine) and is preferably manufactured from a thin plastic film, although other flexible fluid impervious materials may also be used. The back sheet needs to be docile and easily conform to the outline and general shape of the human body. Also, the backsheet preferably has to have characteristics that allow it to stretch elastically in one or two directions. The backsheet may comprise a nonwoven or woven material, polymeric films such as polyethylene or polypropylene thermoplastic films, or composite materials such as a nonwoven film-coated material. Preferably, the backsheet is a polyethylene film having a thickness of from about 0.012 millimeters to about 0.051 millimeters. Exemplary polyethylene films are manufactured by Clopay Corporation of Cincinnati, Ohio, under the designation P-18-0401, and by Ethyl Corporation, Visqueen, division of Terre Haute, Indiana, under the designation XP-39385. The backsheet is preferably embossed and / or dull finished to provide a more fabric-like appearance. In addition, the backsheet can allow the vapors to escape from the absorbent structure (ie, bereparable) while still preventing exudates from passing through the backsheet. In particular, for pantyhose or sanitary napkins having a low amount of liquid to absorb according to their intended use, it is possible to use hydrophobic polymeric films with openings having directional transport of liquid, such as those disclosed above for the upper sheets, towards the absorbent structure, like the respirable back sheets.

Article adaptability As indicated above, it is desirable to provide articles that are adaptable to various sizes of a user's undergarments for the purpose of allowing consistency of individualized application of a disposable absorbent article, while several pairs of undergarments would require otherwise different sizes of disposable absorbent articles to achieve this result. The intention of adaptability is therefore not directed to the problem that has long caused manufacturers of disposable absorbent articles to offer more than one size of their respective products, even though this can be achieved up to a certain limit based on in the adaptability provided by the preferred embodiments according to the present invention. The adaptability according to the present invention can be provided by creating a series of corrugations or folds in the direction perpendicular to the direction in which the product is desired to be adaptable. For example, a sanitary napkin or panty liner having corrugations or pleats in the longitudinal direction will provide the ability to be stretched in the transverse direction in order to adjust a crotch width of an undergarment upon application of the sanitary napkin or of the protective pantyhose, which is wider than the width of the article in the crotch as delivered to the wearer. These corrugations or folds can also provide the ability to reduce the width of the article in order to result in a normal wearing position in the undergarment. The ability to adapt to the desired limit upon the occurrence of the application can be provided in the longitudinal or transverse direction. This can be employed to provide synergistic effects together with the elastically extensible materials in the construction of the absorbent article. Of course, it is also possible to use the inherent adaptability of the material with the structural contractibility provided by the corrugations or folds. The term "Corrugated or Corrugations" as used herein, designates the existence of a series of continuous changes of the normal direction of a plane of a sheet. The "Normal direction" of a plane is the direction perpendicular to this plane.

Although corrugations are a continuous change of the normal direction in the plane of a sheet, the term "Folds" or "Folding" as used herein, refers to folding along a specific line or, in other words, a sudden change in the normal direction of a sheet plane. You can also use a series of folds to simulate the corrugations and from a theoretical point of view the corrugations are approximated by an infinite number of folds. In particular for pati-protectors, a thermal ring rolling process can be used on the entire product to provide the structural corrugations that allow the product to adapt as desired. This ring rolling at least in a high speed manufacturing operation does not require that the materials be carefully selected by a person skilled in the art, which however is not a problem given the selection of the above material and the ability of desired adaptation in mind. The ring rolling of the individual materials before the combination can also be useful in order to provide products in addition to their adaptability that have improved flexibility and smoothness over the usual products. Ring rolling is described in more detail in U.S. Patent No. 4,107,364, U.S. Patent No. 4,834,741, U.S. Patent No. 5,156,793, U.S. Patent 5,143,679, U.S. Patent No. 5,167,897 and U.S. Patent No. 5,354,400, which give a detailed explanation of how to provide differential extension capacity as well. Corrugated is also well known and will be easily usable by those skilled in the art. The corrugations may be present in both the longitudinal direction and the transverse direction of the absorbent article, however, corrugation techniques have been developed to provide corrugations which are transversely to the direction of transport of the material during the manufacture of an article. Therefore, a ring rolling operation can be considered to provide corrugation in the direction of transport of a material during manufacture, although a corrugation process would typically provide only the corrugation in the perpendicular direction.

However, the term corrugations or folds as used herein refers to the result of ring or corrugated rolling and respective of whether the process was used in the direction of transport of a material during manufacture or perpendicular to it. The required corrugation or folds limit (defined by amplitude and frequency) can be easily defined by simple and simple error to adjust the required adaptation capacity. This will depend on the combined thickness and flexibility of the article. Those skilled in the art also realize that the same corrugation or folds can be provided in such a way that they allow different limits of adaptability, depending on whether they have been crushed again or not. In order to provide the user with an article having a high adaptability gripping, it is necessary to maintain the corrugations formed in the manufacturing during the rest of the manufacturing process, as well as the transport packaging operation towards the product supply locations. and the personnel that manipulates the product before joining it to the undergarment. This can be achieved, for example, by stiffening or freezing the product in its corrugated or folded state by fixing it in that state to a rigid substrate such as, for example, the release paper holding the panty or the means of protection of the panty fastening adhesive if the panty clips are fully included.

The fastening adhesive of the panty The back sheet typically forms the surface facing the garment on which the fastening adhesive of the panty is placed. The fastening means of the panty can be an adhesive and then provide the fastening adhesive of the customary panty.

The panty fastening adhesives may comprise any adhesive or glue used in the art for these purposes, with pressure sensitive adhesives being preferred. Suitable adhesives are Century A-305-IV manufactured by Century Adhesives Corporation, Instant Lock 34-2823 manufactured by National Starch Company, 3 Sigma 3153 manufactured by 3 Sigma, and Fuller H-2238ZP manufactured by H.B. Fuller Co. Suitable adhesive fasteners are also described in U.S. Patent No. 4,917,697. Other suitable panty fastening adhesives are shown in PCT International Patent Publication No. WO 92/04000; WO 93/01783 and WO 93/01785. It should be understood that since it is desired to make the component forming the garment-sanitary surface of the sanitary napkin (and any of the overlapping components) adaptable to the wearer's panties, the particular adhesive needs to sustain this capability. The panty fastening adhesives are preferably applied in intermittent patterns, such as for example intermittent dots, intermittent strips, random filamentary patterns or with design to allow the sanitary towel to contract and / or extend. If the fastening means of the panty is provided by an adhesive, it is in the context of the present invention, important that the surface of the backsheet with the adhesive is not completely provided. In particular, if folds are formed, it is important that only the area pointing away from the back sheet, which finally comes into initial contact with the undergarment when attaching the absorbent article to the undergarment, is provided with the adhesive and not the part of the folds where a surface with adhesive would face another surface with adhesive at risk of the product adhering to itself and being made unsuitable for use. In order to better adjust this adhesive application as the fastening adhesive of the panty, it is possible to apply the adhesive to the protective medium of the fastening adhesive of the panty, such as to the release paper, and transfer it only to the back sheet where the release paper touches the fastening adhesive on the panty. In addition to adhesives, other types of fasteners can be used instead of, or in addition to adhesives. These other types of fasteners are arranged in patterns similar to those of the adhesive. These fasteners include, but are not limited to, conventional VELCRO hook material or similar fasteners. The optional protective side flaps may have optional fasteners on them for additional security. The optional fasteners of the protective side flaps may be any of the types of fasteners described above. The fasteners help the protective side flaps remain in position after they have been wrapped around the edges of the crotch surface of the protective side flaps. The side flap fasteners may be provided in addition to or instead of the pant fastening means described above. Before using the absorbent article, the panty fastening adhesive is typically protected from contamination and from sticking to any surface where it is not desired by means of a protective cover means such as a release paper coated with silicon, a plastic film or any other easily removable cover. The protective cover means may be provided as a single piece or in a multitude of pieces, for example, to cover the individual areas of the adhesive. In particular for the embodiments according to the present invention having corrugations or folds in the backsheet (or in the entire product) it is desirable to provide the panty fastening adhesive only on those portions of the corrugations or folds directed outwardly. of the article (ie, those parts of the back sheet that make contact with the undergarment first during use of the article). On these embodiments, the protective cover means is preferably a non-extensible and non-shrinkable material. The adhesive will then be protected and the article maintained in its corrugated or folded condition until the removal of the cover means. In this context, the aforementioned release papers have been found very useful.

Claims (10)

1. An absorbent article for attaching to a user's undergarment, said article having a longitudinal axis and a transverse axis, comprising an upper sheet having liquid passages; a back sheet having an outer surface which is facing towards the undergarment during use; an absorbent core interposed between the top sheet and the back sheet; a means of fastening the panty, the fastening means of the pantyhose being provided on the external surface of the rear sheet; said absorbent article being characterized in that said article is adaptable in size in at least one direction selected from parallel to the longitudinal axis or parallel to the transverse axis or combinations thereof.

2. An absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein the article is adaptable only in a direction substantially parallel to said longitudinal axis.

3. An absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the article is a panty liner or sanitary napkin and said article has a maximum thickness of less than 5 millimeters, preferably less than 2 millimeters.

An absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the article further comprises a release liner that protects said fastening means from the panty before the article is used, and wherein the upper sheet, the back sheet and the absorbent core is corrugated or folded, the corrugations or folds being parallel to the longitudinal axis.

5. An absorbent article according to claim 4, wherein the release liner is substantially non-extensible and non-shrinkable to maintain the corrugations or folds during manufacture, packaging and transport of said article until use of the article.

An absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein at least one of the topsheet, the backsheet or the absorbent core is elastically extensible and not elastically extensible of said topsheet, said backsheet or said core Absorbent is in a corrugated or folded form with corrugations or folds that are substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis.

An absorbent article according to claim 6, wherein the entire article is elastically extensible beyond the limit of the compliance, preferably each of said top sheet, said core and said back sheet being individually and elastically in their combination extendable, and the entirety of said article is corrugated or folded with the corrugations or folds that are substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis.

8. An absorbent article according to claim 7, wherein the article further comprises a release liner protecting the securing means of the panty before use of the article, wherein the release liner is substantially non-extensible and non-shrinkable for maintain the corrugations or folds during the manufacturing, packing and transportation of the article until the use of said article. The absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the tightening means of the trouser is a pressure sensitive adhesive. An absorbent article according to claim 9, wherein the entire article is corrugated or folded with the pressure sensitive adhesive that is applied to the covers that face outward from the corrugated or folded outer surface of the back sheet .