Patent Application
20110015600
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to reusable diapers with a focus on making them both more cost-effective and environmentally-friendly for both manufacturers and consumers. It also addresses fitting adjustments for personal comfort.
2. General Background
There has been a long debate over the merits of reusable versus disposable diapers. Reusable diaper support groups claim that they save the environment by reducing solid fill and favoring cottons (or other natural fiber products) over the plastics typically used by disposable diapers. They can be potentially used by multiple children within the same family, reducing waste still further. Disposable diaper support groups claim that they save the environment by reducing the energy required in washing and drying, and the reduced use of fertilizers and pesticides needed to grow cotton (or other natural fibers) needed to make reusable diapers.
This invention addresses the perceived weaknesses of the reusable diapers by both filling the need for a lower-cost reusable diaper manufacturing process with less environmental impact, and filling the need for a reusable diaper with a shorter and less expensive washing/drying cycle with less energy consumption.
The current shape and complexity of reusable diapers requires human operators on sewing machines resulting in very high manufacturing cost and nigh impossibility of automation. Some disposable diaper supporters claim that the energy required to produce a single disposable diaper is less than the energy to wash and dry a reusable diaper twenty times. If true, clearly this is not really the way to save energy. This invention reduce the energy required to wash and dry a diaper, and paves the way to bringing the production cost of a single reusable diaper down much closer to the cost of a single disposable diaper.
Most current reusable diapers and reusable diaper covers have a waterproof layer usually coated on top of cotton or a natural fiber like bamboo or hemp. Besides (normally) requiring chemicals to grow the relevant plants, the resulting combination takes more energy to dry than synthetic fibers like microfiber, polyester, etc., and by virtue of the synthetic waterproof layer tends to lose most of the desired properties of the natural fiber (like airiness and absorbency) anyway.
Each of the types of reusable diapers currently used have problems. The all-in-one pocket style and fitted shape insert style diapers consume a great deal of energy to wash and dry. The pre-fold style diapers take quite a bit of time to fold prior to use. This invention addresses both of these problems.
None of the current fitted reusable diapers have a fold lock to prevent waste from running down due to an extended period lying down in bed like this invention does.
Most of the fitted reusable diapers feature elastic bands to perform some automatic fitting, but none allow the consumer additional adjustment to individual body proportions like this invention does. Current reusable diapers have the same thickness of absorbent material at the waste and crotch; this is not really necessary for comfort or absorbing ability and wastes energy washing and drying. This invention makes it easy to add absorbent material to areas that need it at the expense of those areas that do not.
3. Prior Art
As already discussed, none of the current reusable diapers adequately balance manufacturing expense, washing and drying expense, environmental impact, ease-of-use, and wearer comfort. Many patents cover individual aspects in a different manner from this invention. Some noteworthy ones include the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,548,604 (Ellsworth) focuses on wearer comfort and is fabricated from a double layer of cloth, having an elastic member attached to the outer edge and arranged metal snaps to adjust to different sized wearers. This design is difficult to fabricate. It also takes more time and energy to dry. As U.S. Pat. No. 5,185,011 (Strasser) provides multiple layers sewn together it is again hard to dry.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,681,581 (Coates) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,623,467 (Charles-Lundaahl) utilize a folded rectangular sheet. Obviously a rectangular sheet is easy and quick to dry but it needs extra time to fold and prepare before use. Charles-Lundaahl's folding method is especially difficult and hard to follow with many steps.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,601 (Brain) defines an open plastic pair of pants to hold a liner. It provides easy access for changing but it is impractical to produce as it needs a human to perform each task. Likewise U.S. Pat. No. 6,579,273 (Dupuy) with its hourglass shape and multiple snaps will not work well with continuos feeds making it expensive to produce.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,331 (Forester) provides an environmentally sound absorbent insert with a continuous feed process that uses paper and/or biodegradable material. It is better for environment than disposable diapers but due to its use of paper material has a much shorter usable life than this invention.
This invention provides a reusable diaper design that saves energy and time in a washing and drying cycle by employing a single layer waist band diaper pouch and a non-folded multiple layer diaper insert that may be opened like a book when drying.
This invention also provides a reusable diaper design optimized to minimize waste material in a production process that can be readily adapted to a continuous feed process.
Finally, this invention provides a reusable diaper design that improves upon the comfort of existing reusable diapers by allowing for personal fitting adjustments, reducing leaks while the wearer is lying down, simplifying fastening with direction-neutral One-Wrap technology fasteners, and enhancing tummy support.
For a further understanding of the invention, references should be made to the detailed descriptions provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which, like parts are given like reference numerals, and wherein:
a, b, c, d are views of diaper insert embodiment;
a, b, c, d, e are views of diaper pouch embodiment;
a, b, c are views of the process of making reusable diaper pouches via a continuous feed process.
a, b, c, d, e, f, g are views of the process of making reusable diaper inserts via a continuous feed process.
The diaper insert as illustrated in
The diaper pouch as illustrated in
The tummy support band 30 lines up between the front corner flaps 20a, 20b.
The diaper pouch as illustrated in
The diaper pouch and insert as illustrated in
The pouch and insert diaper as illustrated in
a shows the process of making reusable diaper pouches via a continuous feed process. Rolls of pocket panel 10R, cover panel 11R, pre-assembled stopper and cord 35aR and 35bR are fed continuously at the same time and rate; rolls of tummy support band 30R and fold lock panel 15R are fed continuously at the same time and rate, while corner flaps are placed in between the roll of pocket panel 10R and the roll of cover panel 11R. The fixtures 50a, 50b, 50c, 50d will perform attaching lines 75a, 75b, 75c and tummy support band accordingly. The knife 90a will cut rolls of pocket panel 10R, cover panel 11R, pre-assembled stopper and cord 35aR and 35bR. The knives 90b, 90c will cut rolls of tummy support band 30R and fold lock panel 15R accordingly. Speed of knives go up and down so as to synchronize with the speed of roll feeding.
a shows the process of making a reusable diaper insert via a continuous feed process. Multiple rolls of difference size insert panel feed in with difference rate as figure show four rolls 60aR, 60bR, 60cR, 60dR, its will be cut to difference length by knives 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d accordingly Speed of knives go up and down so as to synchronize with the speed of rolls feeding.
