Patent Application
20050015067
The present invention relates to a practical absorptive product of individual-packaging form that curbs the generation of garbage to the utmost, the method of producing the same, the method of handling the same and the underpants using the same.
As for the ordinary products being manufactured, and provided to the consumers after the distribution phase, the packaging form with a wrapping that enables each of the said products to be handled as an independent article is called the “individual-packaging”. The commonplace individually packaged products in the area of the absorptive products are for women, such as the sanitary napkins, the inner bags for panties, and the light-case continence pads. Aside from the above, the disposable panties for traveling are also becoming popularized.
The following can be listed as the function commonly required for these individually packaged absorptive products:
For example, in the case of the individually packaged sanitary napkins, to make it more convenient to take the product out of the individual-packaging pouch, the so-called one-way-wrap or one-step-wrap, with which the entire sanitary napkin can be extremely easily taken out of the individual-packaging pouch by simply pulling the release tape bonded to the individual-packaging pouch, is becoming mainstream. When an individually packaged sanitary napkin like these is used, the sanitary napkin is taken out of the individual-packaging pouch, and placed in place on the underpants. The individual-packaging pouch may be discarded then, or it may be used to wrap the used napkin before wrapping it further with tissue paper and throwing it into the sanitary bin.
In the case of the conventional absorptive product of individual-packaging with improved convenience, especially in the case of the sanitary napkin, because it is necessary to detachably retain united the individual-packaging pouch and the absorptive product with a peel-off sheet made of material such as silicon-coated paper and specially-treated film, there is a problem of expensive cost for individual-packaging and the constant generation of refuse, such as the individual-packaging pouches and peel-off sheets.
It is possible for the individual-packaging pouch, used for individually packaged sanitary napkins, to be discarded right after the sanitary napkin is taken out of it, resulting in the waste of resources, despite the fact that its individual-packaging pouch was originally developed for it to be used as a pouch in which to wrap the used napkin for disposal. Furthermore, if the individual-packaging pouch, after the sanitary napkin is taken out of it, is kept to be used as a pouch for wrapping and discarding the used napkin, it must be carried about in the pochette or handbag until the next replacement of the napkin and that is extremely bothersome.
At the same time, it is pointed out that applying the individually packaged absorptive product with the said (1) through (4) functions to the baby diapers and continence pads of large absorption capacity or adult urine pads, and further to adult diapers, is difficult in terms of cost justification and tractability at the time of disposal.
An object of the present invention is to provide a practical absorptive product of individual-packaging form that curbs the generation of refuse to the utmost, the method of producing the same, the method of handling the same, and the inner bag used therefor, the method of producing the same and the underpants using the same, which are applicable to matters such as baby diapers, continence pads of large absorption capacity, adult urine pads, and adult diapers.
Preferred forms of the above-described invention are given below.
(1) The absorptive product of the present invention comprises an individual-packaging sheet, an absorptive body placed on this individual-packaging sheet, a trap sheet forming, together with the said individual-packaging sheet, a flexible trap portion in which at least one end of this absorptive body is held, and a joining tape attached on this trap sheet and/or at the other end of the said individual-packaging sheet to detachably join the other end of the said individual-packaging sheet and one end of this individual-packaging sheet or the said trap sheet, in such a manner that the other end of the said individual-packaging sheet overlaps the said trap sheet.
(2) The method of producing the absorptive product of the present invention is the method of producing the absorptive product comprising the trap sheet that has a penis-guiding section to guide the penis into the trap portion, the flexible liquid-impermeable inner bag that is incorporated in the trap portion and holds at least one end of the absorptive body, and the openings that are formed in the trap portion to allow parts of the folded portion of the inner bag to evaginate, and the method involves a step to form a pair of cross-directional straight-line crena along both side edges of the single sheet material to make an opening on each side of this single sheet material, a step to fold the said single sheet material in the width direction in such a manner to include the said pair of crena in the folded portion, and a step to form the trap portion by joining the folded portion that overlaps each other along the cross-sectional side edges of the said single sheet material.
(3) The method of handling the absorptive product of the present invention comprises a step to open the portion on the said other end of the said individual-packaging sheet by peeling off the said joining tape, a step to use the said absorptive product in this opened state, and a step, after use, to join, using the said joining tape, the said other end of the said individual-packaging sheet and one end of this individual-packaging sheet or the said trap sheet, by overlapping the said other end of the said individual-packaging sheet with the said trap sheet.
(4) The inner bag of the present invention is a flexible liquid-impermeable inner bag that is incorporated in the trap portion of the absorptive product of the present invention and holds at least one end of the absorptive body, and it has a folded portion to allow evagination, comprising the first pair of folded portion, one each on the right and left, formed by folding the right side and left side of the rectangular sheet toward the center, the second folded portion formed by folding the bottom end of the said sheet upward, the third folded portion formed by folding the top end of this second folded portion downward, and the hanger tape each of whose both ends is joined to the center of this third folded portion and the center of the top part of the said sheet.
(5) The method of producing the inner bag of the present invention consists of a step to form the first folded portion by folding both the right and left sides of the rectangular sheet toward the center, a step to form the second folded portion by folding the bottom end of the said sheet upward, a step to form the third folded portion by folding once again the top portion of the said second folded portion downward, and a step to join each of the both ends of the hanger tape to the center of the said third folded portion and the center of the top part of the said sheet.
(6) The underpants of the present invention have a part to which the absorptive product of the present invention or the absorptive product produced by the method of the present invention is fit, in such a manner that it is detachable.
(7) The underpants of the present invention comprise the absorptive product of the present invention or the absorptive product produced by the method of the present invention, and the part to which this absorptive product is fit, in such a manner that it is detachable.
In accordance with the absorptive product of the present invention, because it comprises an individual-packaging sheet, an absorptive body placed on this individual-packaging sheet, a trap sheet forming, together with the individual-packaging sheet, a flexible trap portion in which at least one end of this absorptive body is held, and a joining tape attached on this trap sheet and/or at the other end of the individual-packaging sheet to detachably join the other end of the individual-packaging sheet and one end of this individual-packaging sheet or the trap sheet, in such a manner that the other end of the individual-packaging sheet overlaps the trap sheet, by joining, after use, with the joining tape, the other end of the individual-packaging sheet and one end of this individual-packaging sheet or the said trap sheet, having the other end of the individual-packaging sheet and the trap sheet overlapping with each other, disposal of the used absorptive product while maintaining its sealed state is possible. Also, in case the absorptive body cannot absorb a great amount of liquid instantaneously, due to the liquid-impermeability of the trap portion, it is possible to temporarily hold the liquid within the trap portion, and eventually make the absorptive body retain a great amount of liquid.
Where at least the portion of the individual-packaging sheet, with which the absorptive body is overlapped, has a liquid-impermeable property, problems such as oozing out through the individual-packaging sheet of the liquid retained in the absorptive body can be prevented.
Where the absorptive body has a folded portion extending in a width-wise direction within the trap portion, because it increases the planar dimension of the absorptive body present within the trap portion, even in case a great amount of liquid is discharged into the trap portion in a short time, overflowing of the liquid to outside this trap portion can be controlled.
Where the absorptive body has a second folded portion extending in a longitudinal direction on each cross-directional side edge, it is possible to further increase the volume of liquid absorbed and retained by the absorptive body.
Where a dislocation prevention member is further provided between the individual-packaging sheet and the absorptive body, to prevent the absorptive body from dislocating against the individual-packaging sheet, it is possible to prevent the absorptive body from dislocating against the individual-packaging sheet.
Where the trap sheet has a penis-guiding section to guide the penis into the trap portion, it will make the absorptive product suitable for a men's continence pad.
Where a flexible liquid-impermeable inner bag is provided that is incorporated in the trap portion and holds at least one end of the absorptive body, it will be possible to give liquid-permeability to the individual-packaging sheet and the trap sheet and a comfortable fit will be obtained.
Where the inner bag has a folded portion whose outer margin, in the folded state, is held in the trap portion, and especially in case where the openings are further provided to allow parts of the folded portion of the inner bag to evaginate, even if the absorptive body cannot absorb all of a great amount of liquid and thus it is temporarily accumulated inside the inner bag, the inner bag's folded portion will expand and evaginate out of the trap portion through the openings, and thus such problems as an overflow of the liquid from the inner bag can be prevented.
Where the individual-packaging sheet and the trap sheet are made of the same sheet material, these can be easily produced with a single sheet of material.
Where the other end of the trap sheet has liquid-permeability, especially if it further has a guiding section, joined to the portion of trap sheet where it has liquid-permeability, facing the female wearer's urinary meatus to guide the urine to the absorptive body in a dispersed state, it will make the absorptive product suited for a women's continence pad.
Where a pair of elastic members are further provided along the right and left side edges of the individual-packaging sheet, joined in the stretched state to both the right and left side edges of the individual-packaging sheet, when the absorptive product is in use, its close fit to the skin can be improved.
Where the absorptive body has a non-woven substrate in a sheet form and there are multiple liquid-absorbing portions coated on this non-woven substrate at prescribed intervals, especially when the absorptive body contains 60 weight % or more of SAP, the volume can be made compact, to less than ⅓ compared to such conventional products as thin-type diapers, making possible the provision of the various types of absorptive products for children and adults.
Where the absorptive body has a hydrodisintegrative characteristic, disposal as it is, without any kinds of special treatment, will be possible.
Where the individual-packaging sheet makes up the absorptive product's liquid impermeable barrier material, the leak prevention function and other special individual packaging materials for the absorptive body can be omitted, and furthermore, it becomes possible for an inexpensive film material to make up the individual-packaging sheet, and thus its production cost can be greatly reduced. Furthermore, no individual-packaging materials will have to be prepared, making it possible to reduce the amount of garbage to be disposed.
In accordance with the method of producing the absorptive product of the present invention, the absorptive product of the present invention can be easily and rationally produced because a pair of cross-directional straight-line crena are formed along both side edges of the single sheet material, to make an opening on each side of this single sheet material, and the single sheet material is folded in the width-wise direction in such a manner as to include the pair of crena in the folded portion, to form the trap portion by joining the folded portion that overlaps each other along the cross-sectional side edges of the single sheet material.
In accordance with the method of handling the absorptive product of the present invention, because the portion on the other end of the individual-packaging sheet is opened by peeling off the joining tape, the absorptive product is used in this opened state, and, after use, the other end of the individual-packaging sheet and one end of this individual-packaging sheet or the trap sheet, by overlapping the other end of the individual-packaging sheet with the trap sheet, are joined with the joining tape, especially in the case where it is discarded after use in the state as the other end of the individual-packaging sheet and one end of this individual-packaging sheet or the trap sheet are joined, the sealed state of the used absorptive product can be maintained, thus the disposal in the preferable hygienic condition for the user as well as for the environment becomes possible, resulting in making it an absorptive product with an extremely high level of convenience.
In accordance with the inner bag of the present invention, it is possible to ensure the formation of the portions that are allowed to evaginate, without making a complicated accordion structure, but by simply folding the rectangular film and by joining with the hanger tape at the predetermined locations.
In accordance with the method of producing the inner bag of the present invention, it is possible to produce the inner bag extremely easily and at low cost, by simply folding the rectangular film and by joining with the hanger tape at the predetermined locations.
In accordance with the underpants of the present invention, putting on and taking off of the absorptive product to and from the underpants can be easily done, because there is a part to which the absorptive product of the present invention is fit, in such a manner that it is detachable.
In accordance with the underpants of the present invention, it is possible to remove the used absorptive product from the underpants and fit the new absorptive product to the underpants, because there are the absorptive product of the present invention, or the absorptive product produced by the method of the present invention, and the part to which this absorptive product is fit, in such a manner that it is detachable.
Where the part to fit is provided inside the underpants, it is possible to prevent such problems as the absorptive product's being dislocated from the underpants' prescribed location while in use.
Where the joining tape of the absorptive product is further equipped with joining portions that enable detachable joining, it is possible to more reliably prevent such problems as the absorptive product's being dislocated from the underpants' prescribed location while in use.
Where the joining portion is provided outside the underpants, because the joining portion does not touch the wearer's skin directly, a comfortable fit is obtained.
Where the underpants are of the plain knit product, a close fit of the absorptive product to the wearer's skin can be ensured.
In the absorptive product of the present invention, the portion of the individual-packaging sheet where the absorptive body is overlapped may have a liquid-impermeable property.
The absorptive body may have either the folded portion within the trap portion extending in a width direction, or the second folded portion extending in a longitudinal direction on each of the cross-sectional side edges.
A dislocation prevention member may be further provided between the individual-packaging sheet and the absorptive body to prevent the absorptive body from dislocating against the individual-packaging sheet.
The trap sheet may have a penis-guiding section to guide the penis into the trap portion, and a flexible liquid-impermeable inner bag that is incorporated in the trap portion and holds the absorptive body may be further provided. This inner bag may have a folded portion whose outer margin, in the folded state, is held in the trap portion. In this case, openings may be provided to allow parts of the folded portion of the inner bag to evaginate. Furthermore, the individual-packaging sheet and the trap sheet may be made of the identical sheet material.
The other end of the trap sheet may have liquid-permeability. In this case, it may further have a guiding member, joined to the portion of trap sheet where it has liquid-permeability, facing the female wearer's urinary meatus to guide the urine to the absorptive body in a dispersed state.
A pair of elastic members may be further provided along the right and left side edges of the individual-packaging sheet, joined in the stretched state to both the right and left side edges of the individual-packaging sheet.
The absorptive body may have a non-woven substrate in a sheet form and there may be multiple liquid-absorbing portions coated on this non-woven substrate at prescribed intervals, and the absorptive body may contain 60 weight % or more of SAP.
The absorptive body may have a hydrodisintegrative characteristic.
The individual-packaging sheet may make up the absorptive product's individual-packaging material.
In accordance with the method of handling the absorptive product of the present invention, the step to discard after use in the state as the other end of the individual-packaging sheet and one end of this individual-packaging sheet or the trap sheet are joined may be further provided.
A part to fit may be provided inside the underpants of the present invention.
The joining tape of the absorptive product may be further equipped with the joining portions that enable detachable joining.
The joining portion may be provided outside the underpants.
The underpants may be a plain knit product.
The examples of the absorptive product, the method of producing the same, and the method of handling the same, as well as the underpants using the same, in accordance with the present invention will be explained in further detail with reference to
An external appearance of the first example is shown in
The trap portion (13) formed by the individual-packaging sheet (11) and the trap sheet (14) holds at least one end of the absorptive body (12), and depending on the type of use, the trap portion (13) may be in one case maintained in a sealed condition to protect itself from liquid leakage and in the other case may allow liquid permeation by concomitantly using the liquid-impermeable inner bag which will be discussed later.
As a type of use for which the trap portion (13) needs to be kept in the sealed state, in other words, in the liquid-impermeable state, the first example to be cited may be the case in which the absorptive body (12) to be held in the trap portion (13) is not covered with a heavy-duty retention sheet such as the top sheet and the back sheet, and the absorptive material such as SAP or pulp is only wrapped with thin covering material such as tissue paper. In this case, because it is necessary to prevent liquid leakage from the absorptive material, a liquid-impermeable characteristic is given to the trap portion (13). The second example is the case where it is used for the purpose of urine treatment especially targeted to men.
As a type of use for which the trap portion (13) needs to be kept in the sealed state, in other words, in the liquid-impermeable state, the first example to be cited may be the case in which the absorptive body (12) to be held in the trap portion (13) is not covered with a heavy-duty retention sheet such as the top sheet and the back sheet, and the absorptive material such as SAP or pulp is only wrapped with thin covering material such as tissue paper. In this case, because it is necessary to prevent liquid leakage from the absorptive material, a liquid-impermeable characteristic is given to the trap portion (13). The second example is the case where it is used with the purpose of urine treatment especially targeted to men. SAP is able to retain a large amount of liquid, but at the same time it has the characteristic of slowly absorbing the liquid, and when the absorptive body (12) that contains a high ratio of SAP with these characteristics is used, SAP's speed of absorbing urine cannot keep up with the speed of urinary drainage, thus requiring a measure to prevent the absorptive body (12) from leaking the urine which is more than it can absorb. In a case like this, the liquid-impermeable trap portion (13) can be made to function as a flexible container to temporarily hold urine.
As a type of use for which the trap portion (13), especially the trap sheet (14), is made to have liquid-permeability, the first example is the case where the liquid-impermeable inner bag is concomitantly used with it, and this inner bag is held in the trap portion (13). In this case, because the trap portion (13) has no other functions but to hold the inner bag, it is possible to use a highly-porous or mesh-type trap sheet (14), as well as to construct the trap sheet (14) with such materials as hydrophilic non-woven fabric. The second example is the case where it is used as a female urine pad. In this case also, at least one end (the bottom end) of the trap sheet (14) needs to be made liquid-impermeable to prevent the absorptive body (12) from leaking the urine which is more than it can absorb.
Both the individual-packaging sheet (11) and the trap sheet (14) of the present example are made of a liquid-impermeable and flexible PE sheet or a laminated sheet of PE film and non-woven fabric, and the trap portion (13) with an opening at the other end (top end) of the trap sheet (14) can be formed by overlapping the trap sheet (14) with the individual-packaging sheet (11) at one longitudinal end of the latter and making the heat-sealed portion (16) by heat-bonding the outer peripheral edges of the individual-packaging sheet (11) where the trap sheet (14) overlaps it.
Where a single synthetic film material is used for both the individual-packaging sheet (11) and the trap sheet (14), it is also possible to form the individual-packaging sheet (11) and the trap sheet (14) so that they have a trap portion (13), by folding a long sheet and heat-bonding both cross-sectional side edges of this long sheet's folded portion.
The other end of the absorptive body (12) of the present example is exposed through the opening (17) of the trap portion (13) and extended to the other end of the individual-packaging sheet (11). In the unused individually-packaged state shown in
By using a liquid-impermeable individual-packaging sheet (11), the absorptive body (12) can be constructed with nothing more than just the ordinary absorptive materials that primarily use such absorptive materials as SAP and wood pulp and a surface covering sheet such as a liquid permeable top sheet or tissue paper to be used to wrap them and to face the individual-packaging sheet (11). Simplification of the structure of the absorptive body (12) as found in this case not only allows simplification of the design of the absorptive product P and cost reduction, but also offers a great advantage in relation to user-friendliness in waste disposal.
For the compact construction of the absorptive product P, and further for the hygienic treatment of urine, it is preferable that the absorptive body (12) is extremely thin and has excellent morphological stability both before and after absorption, so that at least one end of it is smoothly and stably held inside the trap portion (13) and its shape is stably maintained after the swelling caused by liquid absorption. From this standpoint, the absorptive body (12) used in the present invention should have much a higher SAP content ratio than the SAP/pulp ratio seen in ordinary disposable diapers and sanitary napkins, and further, it is preferable that an absorptive body in a sheet-form that can stably maintain its shape, such as the one described in the Japan Patent Application Laid-open Hei 11-34200, is used.
In order not to spoil expandability of the absorptive body in a sheet-form (12S), it is preferable that no surface-covering sheet such as non-woven fabric, tissue paper, or highly-porous film is used for this absorptive body in a sheet-form (12S) and that at least one end of it is held in the trap portion (13). As required, however, it can also be folded in a certain configuration and then a part of it can be inserted in the trap portion (13). For instance, as shown in
By adopting a so-called flushable material, which can be flushed away in the toilet, for the base sheet (18), and by adopting a bio-degradable amino-acid SAP, it will be possible, as required, to remove the used absorptive body (12) from the trap portion (13) and then safely dispose of it by flushing it away in the toilet.
The anchoring end of the joining tape (15) is integrally joined to the center of the other end of the individual-packaging sheet (11), and the adhesive, not shown in the figures, is applied to the other end, which is detachably joined to the trap sheet (14). The adhesive is not applied on the very end edge of the joining tape (15) of the present example, for the sake of ease in peeling-off the joining tape (15), by pinching this end with the fingers. The functions of this joining tape (15) are, firstly to maintain the individual-packaging sheet (11) of the absorptive product P in the folded state as shown in
In case a function of fixing the location of the absorptive product P on the underpants is given to the joining tape (15), increasing the width of the joining tape (15) or using multiple joining tapes (15) with some space in between, as shown in
It is preferable that the joining tape (15) of the present invention has a stable re-joining capability, to enable re-joining, after the absorptive product P is used, of the individual-packaging sheet (11), folded as shown in
In case the depth of the trap portion (13) is shallow in comparison to the length of the absorptive body (12), in order to prevent dislocation of the absorptive body (12) against the individual-packaging sheet (11), a dislocation-prevention member (22) is provided between the individual-packaging sheet (11) and the absorptive body (12). In the present example, a hot-melt adhesive is used as the dislocation-prevention member, but because the absorptive body (12) does not have to be permanently fixed to the individual-packaging sheet (11), it is also possible to allow the absorptive body to be removed from the individual-packaging sheet (11) by using the adhesive or the hook and loop fastener. Nothing more than just the prevention of dislocation by friction, using the anti-slip material as the dislocation-prevention member (22), also has some effect. The location, shape and the number of this dislocation-prevention member (22) to be used can be chosen randomly.
In order to bend the absorptive product P to fit the wearer's contour, it is also effective to deform the absorptive product P with the contractile force of the elastic member that is joined, in the stretched state by about, for instance, 20%, to both side edges in width-wise direction of the individual-packaging sheet (11). The other example of the absorptive product P in its opened state is shown in
Where there is no external force applied to the absorptive product P, the elastic member (23) acts to make the width-wise side edges of the individual-packaging sheet (11) contract in a longitudinal direction against the other parts. Due to this, when it is put on the wearer's body, both of the width-wise side edges of the absorptive product P are deformed to closely fit the body, preventing the leakage of urine from the width-wise side edges.
The absorptive product P of the present invention has the above-mentioned examples as its basic components, and the desirable type of use can be obtained by adding or changing the functions, depending on the use. The absorptive product P of the present invention will be sequentially explained per limited use, but as for the functional elements identical to those of the examples already treated, they will only be marked with identical codes and the redundant explanations will be omitted.
The example shown in
The example shown in
The external appearance of the inner bag (28) of this present example is shown in
The external appearance of the absorptive body (12) of the present example, which is held in the inner bag (28), is shown in
The individual-packaging sheet (11) and the trap sheet (14) of this absorptive product P use, as shown in
While the above-mentioned absorptive product P can be used as it is by combing it with the conventional disposal diaper or underpants including shorts and pants, the dedicated underpants with a part that can hold this absorptive product P in the prescribed location are also a preferable mode for carrying out the present invention.
The enlarged view of the structure of the absorptive product P's joining tape (15) which is suitable for the joining point (33) on these underpants (31) is shown in
The underpants (31) of the present example shown in
The underpants (31) in the example shown in
The underpants (31) in the example shown in
The underpants (31) in the example shown in
The underpants (31) in the example shown in
The underpants (31) in the example shown in
As shown in
As described above, the structure and configuration of the part used to put the absorptive product on may be selected according to the type of use and other conditions. And at the same time, the joining points (33) placed on the front body outside the underpants (31) may also be changed depending on the configuration of the joining tape (15).
An experiment to verify the absorption effectiveness by actually putting on the absorptive product P (urine pad) shown in
The estimated absorbed volume of the entire absorptive body (12), therefore, is 400 ml and the estimated retention 260 ml.
The underpants (31) shown in
In accordance with the individually packaged absorptive product of the present invention and the underpants using the same, as well as inventions incidental to these, the generation of refuse can be curbed greatly. Because the absorptive product can maintain a sealed state after use, disposal in a hygienic manner, preferable for both the user and the environment, is possible. The absorptive product of the present invention, therefore, is extremely advantageous and has a great deal of potential in industry.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001382171 | Dec 2001 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP02/13078 | 12/13/2002 | WO |
