Patent Application
20180116178
The present disclosure relates to an absorbent article for pet animals such as dogs and cats that are used to absorb and contain body waste from the pet animals.
Conventionally, absorbent articles are known including a diaper for applying on a pet animals including dogs. For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a diaper of pull-on type for a dog having a ventral region, a dorsal region, an intermediate region extending between the ventral and dorsal regions, a liquid-permeable interior sheet layer, a liquid impermeable exterior sheet layer, and an absorbent core interposed between the interior and exterior sheet layers, wherein lateral edges of the ventral region and lateral edges of the dorsal regions are respectively connected to each other to define a waist-hole and a pair of leg holes.
Moreover, for example, Patent Literature 2 discloses a diaper of open-type for a dog having a liquid-permeable interior sheet layer, a liquid-impermeable exterior sheet layer, and an absorbent core interposed between the interior and exterior sheet layers, wherein the diaper is applied on a dog with the article secured around the dog's body.
PTL 1: JP2012-205561 A
PTL 2: JP2013-9657 A
The diaper for a dog disclosed in PTL 1 is mainly directed to use for a female dog. Since the diaper has a pull-on type, the diaper is applied on a dog in standing posture by slipping the dog's both rear legs through a pair of leg holes almost at the same time while slipping the dog' s hindquarters through the waist hole, and whereby the diaper makes it possible to cover the dog's hindquarters to absorb and contain body waste from the dog.
The diaper for a dog disclosed in PTL 2 is mainly directed to use for a male dog. The diaper is applied on the dog's hindquarters by engaging both end portions thereof to each other with the dog's hindquarters encircled with the diaper, and whereby the diaper makes it possible to prevent body waste from the dog from leaking out.
However, dogs dislike to have their legs lifted by a handler while moving the dog's legs in supine posture or in standing posture when applying the diaper on the dogs. This makes it difficult it for a handler to apply the diaper on the dogs.
In particular, the rear legs of dogs respectively have the rearward protruding or bending heels positioning higher than the insteps of the rear legs. This makes it difficult for a handler to slip the rear legs through a pair of leg holes of the diaper.
An object of the present invention is to provide an improved absorbent article for pet animals that is applied thereon by a relative easy handling procedure.
To achieve the object, the present invention is featured in the following aspect:
An absorbent article has a longitudinal direction, a transverse direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction, a body-facing surface, a non-body-facing surface opposed to the body-facing surface. The article includes a ventral region, a dorsal region, an intermediate region extending in the longitudinal direction between the ventral region and the dorsal region, and an absorbent core extending from the intermediate region to the ventral region.
The absorbent article further has a first side edge portion and a second side edge portion respectively extending in the longitudinal direction. The intermediate region has a tail hole through which a tail of the pet animal is slipped. The absorbent core is spaced apart from the tail hole toward the ventral region. The first side edge portion has both side edge portions of the ventral and dorsal regions coupled to each other along a side seam made on the first side edge portion. The second side edge portion is provided with a coupling means for detachably coupling both side edge portions of the ventral and dorsal regions to each other.
The absorbent article for pet animals may include the following embodiments.
(1) The coupling means includes a fastening tab.
(2) The fastening tab is provided on the ventral region.
(3) The ventral region is contractibly provided with first elastic elements extending in the transverse direction.
(4) The ventral region has a proximal edge straightly extending in the transverse direction, and the intermediate region has both side edges straightly extending in the longitudinal direction.
(5) The article further includes a ventral panel forming the ventral region, a dorsal panel forming the dorsal region, and an absorbent panel including the absorbent core and extending in the longitudinal direction between the ventral panel and the dorsal panel.
(6) A dimension of the ventral panel in the longitudinal direction is smaller than a dimension of the absorbent panel in the transverse direction.
(7) The ventral region has an inelastic region in which the absorbent core is present and the first elastic elements are not present.
(8) The first side edge portion is provided with a fastening means for fastening together part of the ventral region and part of the dorsal region with the ventral and dorsal regions coupled to each other
(9) The absorbent panel is contractibly provided with a second elastic element extending in the longitudinal direction along each of both side edges of the absorbent core.
With the absorbent article for pet animals according to the embodiments of the present invention, both side edge portions forming the first side edge portion is pre-coupled along the side seam to thereby define a leg hole through which one rear leg of the pet animal is slipped, while both side edge portions forming the second side edge portion are possible to be coupled each other by the coupling means so that the leg hole to encircle to the other rear leg of the pet animal may be defined when the absorbent article is applied on the pet animal. This makes it possible to apply the absorbent article on the pet animal smoothly even when the pet animal is in standing posture.
The embodiment (1) described above makes it possible to easily do the handling procedure for coupling the ventral region to the dorsal region when applying the absorbent article on the pet animal because the coupling means includes the fastening tab.
The embodiment (2) described above makes it possible to stably engage the ventral region with the dorsal region with the fastening tab in the process of handling for applying compared with when the fastening means is provided on the dorsal region because the coupling means is provided on the ventral region.
The embodiment (3) described above makes it possible to fit the ventral region to the pet animal's body because the first elastic elements extending in the transverse direction are provided on the ventral region.
The embodiment (4) described above makes it possible to inhibit the groins of the pet animal from coming in contact with the absorbent article when the pet animal walks because the proximal edge of the ventral region straightly extending in the transverse direction and both side edges of the intermediate region straightly extending in the longitudinal direction and their edges cross each other at the upper edges of the leg holes.
The embodiment (5) described above makes it possible to fit the peripheral edges of both leg holes to the groins of the pet animal, respectively, because the absorbent article includes the absorbent panel between the ventral and dorsal regions and the second elastic elements lying in the absorbent panel and being stretchable/contractable in the longitudinal direction without being influenced by a contractible force of the first elastic elements.
The embodiment (6) described above does not make it difficult for the pet animal to move the rear legs due to the groins of the rear legs coming in contact with the ventral region, because a dimension in the transverse direction of the ventral region is smaller than a dimension in the transverse direction of the absorbent panel.
The embodiment (7) described above makes it possible to inhibit the occurrence of gathers such as lowering the absorption performance of the absorbent core because the ventral region has the inelastic region in which a contractible force of the first elastic elements does not exert and the absorbent core is present.
The embodiment (8) described above makes it possible to pull together both side edge portions of the ventral and dorsal region forming the first side edge portion, similarly to the second side edge portion, because the first side edge portion is provided with the fastening means.
The embodiment (9) described above makes it possible to prevent the leakage of body waste from both side edge portions of the absorbent panel to the pet animal's body because the second elastic elements are provided along both side edges of the absorbent core.
The drawings illustrate specific embodiments of the present invention including optional and preferred embodiments as well as essential features of the invention. It should be noted here that there are shown a dog as an example of pet animals and a diaper as an example of absorbent articles.
The embodiments described below relate to a diaper as an example of absorbent articles as illustrated in
With reference to
The diaper 10 includes a annular waist panel 11, an absorbent panel 12 attached to the body-facing surface of the waist panel 11, a ventral region 13, a dorsal region 14 and an intermediate region 15 extending in the longitudinal direction Y between the ventral and dorsal regions 13 and 14. The waist panel 11 includes a ventral panel 16 forming the ventral region 13 and a dorsal panel 17 forming the dorsal region 14.
The ventral and dorsal panels 16 and 17 respectively cross the absorbent panel 12 and have a transversely long rectangle defined by proximal edges 16a and 17a extending in the transverse direction X, distal edges 16b and 17b opposed to the proximal edges 16a and 17a in the longitudinal direction Y and extending in the transverse direction X, and both side edges 16c and 16d, 17c and 17d extending in the longitudinal direction Y between proximal edges 16a and 16b, 17a and 17b. Aside edge portion 18A of the ventral region 13 and a side edge 19A of the dorsal region 14 are pre-coupled to each other along a side seam 20 continual in the longitudinal direction Y. The side seam 20 is made by well-kwown bonding means, for example, thermal welding techniques including heat embossing/debossing and ultrasonic processing.
On the other hand, a side edge portion 18B of the ventral region 13 and a side edge portion 19B of the dorsal region 14 are not pre-coupled to each other, but the side edge portion 18B of the ventral region 13 is provided with a coupling means including a fastening tab 70. The absorbent article 10 has a first side edge portion 31 that the side edge portion 18A of the ventral region 13 and the side edge 19A of the dorsal region 13 are pre-coupled to each other along the side seam 20, and a second side edge portion 32 that the side edge portion 18B of the ventral region 13 and the side edge portion 19B of the dorsal region 14 is possible to be detachably coupled to each other with the fastening tab 70. With reference to
The ventral panel 16 and the dorsal panel 17 respectively have flexible interior sheet layers 25 and 26 on the side of the body-facing surface and flexible exterior sheet layers 27 and 28 on the side of the non-body-facing surface. The interior and exterior sheet layers 25 and 26, 27 and 28 include a liquid-impermeable SMS (spun-bonded/melt-bonded/spun-bonded) fibrous nonwoven fabric, a spun-bonded fibrous nonwoven fabric, or a laminated sheet layer of them, each having a mass per unit area of 15 g/m2 to 30 g/m2. The sheet layers 25 and 26, 27 and 28 are respectively joined to each other by hot melt adhesive continually applied to an interior surface of one of the sheet layers 25 and 26 and one of the sheet layers 27 and 28 or by thermal welding techniques.
The ventral panel 16 is provided with a plurality of strand-or string-like first elastic elements 41 extending in the transverse direction X in a contractible manner under tension between the interior and exterior sheet layers 25 and 27, thereby being elasticized at least in the transverse direction X. It should be noted here that the interior and exterior sheets 25, 27 may be joined only by hot melt adhesive applied to the entire peripheries of the first elastic elements.
The first elastic elements 41 includes a plurality of distal elastic elements 41A extending in the transverse direction X along the distal edge 17a of the ventral panel 16, and a plurality of proximal elastic elements 41B extending in the transverse direction X adjacently to the distal elastic elements 41A and along the proximal edge 16a of the ventral panel 16. The proximal elastic elements 41B is not overlapped with an absorbent core 60 (described later) contained in the absorbent panel 12 in a planar view (i.e., in the thickness direction) wherein the proximal elastic elements 41B extend from respective side edges 16c and 16d of the ventral panel 16 to the vicinities of respective side edges 60c and 60d of the absorbent core 60. In this way, the ventral panel 16 has an elastic region in which a contractible force of the proximal elastic elements 41B directly exerts and an inelastic region in which the contractile force of the proximal elastic elements 41B does not exert and the absorbent core 60 is present. Since the contractible force of the proximal elastic elements 41B does not exert the absorbent core 60 in the inelastic region, folds or gathers such as lowering the absorption performance of the absorbent core 60 should not occur thereon.
The absorbent panel 12 is formed in a longitudinally long rectangle having a front end portion 12A fixed on the body-facing surface of the ventral panel 16, a rear end portion 12B fixed on the body-facing surface of the dorsal region 17 and an intermediate portion 12C extending in the longitudinal direction Y between the front and rear end portions 12A and 12B. The absorbent panel 12 includes a flexible cover sheet layer 50, an absorbent core 60 put on the body-facing surface of the cover sheet layer 50, a liquid-permeable flexible bodyside liner 61 covering at least an absorbing surface of the absorbent core 60, and a flexible liquid-barrier sheet layer 62. In the present embodiment, although the absorbent article 10 is constructed of three separate panels 12, 16 and 17, it may be constructed of a singly and integrally formed annular panel having regions corresponding to the ventral and dorsal regions 13 and 14, or a singly and integrally formed panel having regions corresponding to the ventral, dorsal and intermediate regions 13, 14 and 15.
The absorbent core 60 is contoured by both end edges 60a and 60b and both concave side edges 60a and 60b, and constructed of a mixture of superabsorbent polymer (SAP) particles having a water-absorption capacity at least 10 times as high as its own mass, wood pulp fluff and optionally a small amount of thermoplastic fibers. The absorbent core 60 may be wrapped with a wrapping sheet layer (not shown) made of a hydrophilic, liquid-diffusive fibrous nonwoven fabric or tissue paper layer, which may be joined to at least one of the bodyside liner 61 and the liquid-barrier sheet layer 62 with hot melt adhesive.
The cover sheet layer 50 has an intermediate portion 51 on which the absorbent core 60 is put and both side portions 52. Both side portions 52 are respectively folded inward in the transverse direction X and has both end portions secured to the intermediate portion 51, proximal portions 55 secured to the intermediate portion 51 and the liquid-barrier sheet layer 62 while extending in the longitudinal direction Y between both the end portions, and distal portions 56 lying inside the proximal portions 55. The distal portions 56 each may be lain outside the proximal portions 55 without folding the cover sheet layer inward, as necessary. The distal portions 56 each have distal edge sleeves 56a in which elastic elements 58 each are provided in a contractible manner under tension. The distal portions 58 can be spaced away from the flexible bodyside liner 61 toward the body of a dog, and whereby formed are leakage-barrier cuffs to prevent the dog' s body waste from leaking out.
With reference to
With reference to
The engaging portion 73 is releasably engageable with the exterior sheet layer 28 of a fibrous nonwoven fabric defining an exterior surface of the dorsal region 14. A landing sheet layer having multiple loops of well-known mechanical fasteners may be disposed on a predetermined zone of the exterior surface of the dorsal region 14 to stably engage the distal portion 72 with the predetermined zone. When the exterior sheet layer 28 is composed of a plurality of layers and the outermost layer thereof is formed of a plastic film, an adhesive zone may be applied on the interior surface of the distal portion 72 of the fastening tab 70 instead of the hooks so as to detachably adhere the adhesive zone on the plastic film. The proximal portion 71 of the fastening tab 70 may be secured between portions of the interior and exterior sheets layers 25 and 27 forming the side edge portion 18B of the ventral region 13, or on the exterior surface of the side edge portion 18B instead of the interior surface thereof. A grasping portion at the outer side of the fastening tab 70 has preferably a suitable size that is easy to be grasped by a handler such that the fingers of the handler do not come in contact the engaging portion 73 when the grasping portion is grasped by the handler. The fastening tab 70 may be two or more and have a size such that extends along the almost entire length in the longitudinal direction Y of the side edge portion 18B. Moreover, the fastening tab 70 may be elastically stretchable and contractible, or in a state folded in a plurality of layers so as to be extendable, or in a state that the distal portion 72 is dividable in a plurality of pieces on which the engaging portion 73 are respectively provided.
With reference to
With reference to
For conventional diapers for mainly female dogs of a type in which both side edge portions of the ventral region and both side edge portions of the dorsal region are respectively coupled to each other by a coupling means including a fastening tab attached to one of the ventral and dorsal regions, when the diaper is applied on the dog in standing posture, the respective both side edge portions needs to be coupled to each other almost at the same time to properly apply the diaper on the dog. If the dog is forcibly put in supine posture to stably apply the diaper on the dog, the dog may make the movements such as thrashing about or striking out the rear legs while disliking such supine posture. This makes it difficult to apply the diaper on the dog in a smooth manner.
For conventional diapers for mainly female dogs of a type in which both side edge portions of the ventral region and both side edge portions of the dorsal region are respectively coupled to each other by the side seams made along the side edge portions, when the diaper is applied on the dog in standing posture, both rear legs of the dog having the heels positioning higher than the insteps make it difficult to smoothly slip the rear legs through the leg holes of the diaper. If the diaper is forcibly lifted to slip the legs through the leg holes, the leg holes may be torn because of being caught by the heels. When the diaper is applied on the dog in supine posture, the dog dislikes not only assuming such a posture, but also having the rear legs caught by a handler. This makes it difficult to smoothly apply the diaper on the dog. Unlike the human body, the dog's rear legs are orthogonal to the dog' s body in any of a standing posture and a supine posture, so that the handler needs to apply the diaper on the dog while lifting the rear legs in a direction orthogonal to the legs. In such handling to apply the diaper on the dog, portions of the diaper to be caught by the handler needs to be changed, which is quite troublesome to the handler.
With reference to
In such a series of the handling procedures, since the second side edge portion 32 is in the open state, one of the rear legs 7 is easily slipped through the leg hole on the first side edge portion 31 side, and also when the coupling of the second side edge portion 32 is handled, the diaper 10 should not be off from the body of the dog 5 by sliding down or dropping even if the dog 5 makes the movements such as the dog 5 dislikes to have the rear legs 7 caught by a handler. This allows the handler to handle so that the diaper 10 may be applied on the dog 5 smoothly.
With reference again to
The fastening tab 70 is attached to the ventral region 13 in the present embodiment. With reference to
The basic structure of the diaper 10 according to a second embodiment of the present invention is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment of the present invention. Accordingly, for the second embodiment, only the structure of a diaper different from the diaper 10 according to the first embodiment is hereinafter described.
A diaper 10 according to the second embodiment, in addition to the fastening tab 70 attached to the side edge portion 18B of the ventral region 13, a fastening tab 90 is attached to the side edge portion 18A of the ventral region 13. The fastening tab 90 has a proximal portion 91 on the side edge portion 18A, a distal portion 92 extending outward in the transverse direction X from the side edge 16d of the ventral region 13, and an engaging portion 93 provided on the interior surface of the distal portion 92. The fastening tab 90 has a grasping portion adjacent to the engaging portion 93.
With reference to
Moreover, the attachment of the fastening tab 90 to the first side edge portion 31 makes it possible to adjust a size of the entirety of the diaper 10, for example, the diaper 10 makes it possible to apply the diaper 10 on the dog 5 in a state fitting the diaper 10 even to the relatively slim body of the dog 5. The fastening tab 90 may be attached to the side edge portion 19A of the dorsal region 14 instead of the side edge portion 18A of the ventral region 13. Here a plurality of the fastening tabs 90 as well as a single of the fastening tab 90 may be provided.
The structure elements of the diaper 10 are not limited to those described in the specification but other various types of materials widely used in the relevant technical field may be used without limitation unless otherwise stated. As used herein, the term such as “first” and “second” of the present specification and claims are used merely distinguish the similar elements, similar positions or other matters.
5 pet animal (dog)
6 tail
10 absorbent article (diaper)
12 absorbent panel
13 ventral region
14 dorsal region
15 intermediate region
16 ventral panel
16
a proximal edge of ventral region
16
b distal edge of ventral region
17 dorsal panel
18A one side edge portion of ventral region
18B other side edge potion of ventral region
19A one side edge portion of dorsal region
19B other side edge portion of dorsal region
20 side seam
31 first side edge portion
32 second side edge portion
41 first elastic elements
42 second elastic elements
60 absorbent core
70 fastening tab
90 fastening tab
X transverse direction
Y longitudinal direction
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-105735 | May 2015 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2016/054813 | 2/19/2016 | WO | 00 |
