JP2004305766A - Absorbent article - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an absorbent article capable of responding to high speed production and having excellent product performance. <P>SOLUTION: The absorbency article are formed by laminating and connecting an absorbency main body 3 accommodating and holding excrement and a fluid impermeable outer layer portion 2 having elastic portions around the legs and/or the torso of a wearer. The above absorbent main body 3 comprises an absorbent body 20 and a top sheet member 21 wrapping the absorbent body 20 in its widthwise direction, and the both end portions of the above absorbent main body 3 in its lengthwise direction are covered with at least the water repellent extending portions of the above outer layer portion 2. Thereby, the both end portions of the above absorbent main body 3 and the above outer layer portion 2 are integrated, the above top sheet member 21 has a central nonwoven fabric 23 disposed in the central portion in the widthwise direction extending over whole length thereof in its lengthwise direction and has water repellent nonwoven fabrics 22A, 22B connected to both the end thereof, and the length of the top sheet member 21 is equal to or somewhat longer than that of the above absorbent body 20, and its width is three times or less wider than that of the above absorbent body 20. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an absorbent article used for infants, adults and incontinent persons, for example, a disposable diaper, and more particularly to a disposable diaper having an opening for a waist and an opening for a leg, and a method for manufacturing the same. About.

  Conventional disposable diapers include, for example, a diaper including a liquid-permeable top sheet, a liquid-impermeable back sheet, and an absorber positioned between these two sheets, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 52-40267. Constituting a stretchable elastic member on the side flap of the diaper to form a gather, and by attaching fasteners to both side edges of the side flap so that the side flap can be stretched and fitted, A so-called flat type diaper intended to improve leakproofness is generally used. In recent years, this flat type diaper has a barrier cuff provided inside leg gathers as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-250201, and further disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-182402. As described above, there has been known one in which a flap portion around an absorber is made water-repellent to enhance a leak-proof effect.

  Such a flat diaper is continuously manufactured as a strip-shaped diaper web, and most of the so-called diaper webs have a longitudinal direction coincident with a flow direction of the diaper web, as seen in Japanese Patent Publication No. 57-26219. It is processed by the method of "vertical flow."

  This is because a problem in manufacturing a disposable diaper is a reduction in the width of the web caused by stretching the gathers at predetermined intervals in a direction perpendicular to the flow direction of the diaper web. Further, the step of stretching the elastic member in the orthogonal direction is also one of the factors that hinder high-speed production, and if the elongation rate is increased, the productivity deteriorates. The shrinking of the width of the web causes a reduction in the processing accuracy of the product in the step of disposing the fastening tape in the diaper web state, the round cutting step of the leg portion, and the folding step.

  Here, the stretch rate of the commercially available flat-type disposable diaper waist gather is about 130 to 150%, whereas the stretch rate of the leg gather is about 200%. Therefore, it is wise to process the waist gather having a small elongation ratio, that is, a small stretching stress and a small width shrinkage, in a direction perpendicular to the flow direction (the method of “longitudinal flow”). This is because the web shrinkage cannot be a major problem during processing at a waist gather elongation rate that is commercially available.

  Recently, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 57-77304, the abdominal region and the dorsal region of a pair of left and right side flaps are joined and fixed to each other to form a pair of leg openings and one waist opening. A pants-type disposable diaper having a portion formed (hereinafter referred to as a pants-type diaper) has been proposed. The pants-type diaper has a leg opening and a waist opening formed to be stretchable, and is configured to fit a wearer's body shape. Such pants-type diapers can usually be worn by the wearer in a standing position, and are useful for toilet training for promoting `` diaper separation '' for infants, or for incontinent persons or adults. Have been.

  Pants-type diapers are more difficult to produce at high speed than flat-type diapers. This is because the pants-type diaper has the function of increasing the elongation rate of gathers arranged adjacent to the opening, in order to enhance the fit and the fit of the opening, as well as complicating the processing steps. , It must be bigger than a flat type diaper. The stretch rate of the waist gather must be 50% or more larger than that of the flat type diaper, and the stretch rate of the leg gather needs to be around 200%. This is not to say that, as in a flat type diaper, either elastic stress is small and the step of stretching the elastic member does not pose a manufacturing problem. Therefore, the expansion and contraction stress of the elastic member for waist gathers or leg gathers acts in a direction orthogonal to the flow direction of the diaper web, and causes the diaper web to shrink in width according to the expansion and contraction stress. Holding and bonding the elastic member against the expansion and contraction stress of the elastic member and maintaining the width of the diaper web are problems in pants-type diaper processing.

  Some proposals have also been made regarding a method for producing such a pants-type diaper, and the pants-type diaper is continuously produced as a belt-like web like the flat type. These are basically the "cross-flow" method in which the longitudinal direction of the absorber is perpendicular to the flow direction of the web, as disclosed in JP-A-57-77304 and JP-A-1-292102. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. Hei 2-34364, "longitudinal flow" method in which the longitudinal direction of the absorber is the flow direction of the web, and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. Hei 3-195555 and Hei 3-205053. The flow direction of the diaper main body including the absorber, which is found in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 3-231660, is made to coincide with the longitudinal direction of the absorbent body, while the flow direction of the waist band is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the absorbent body. , The diaper main body is turned 90 ° in the horizontal direction and mounted on the above-mentioned band-shaped body, as represented by the “vertical-lateral flow” method.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 52-40267 JP-A-62-250201 JP-A-63-182402 JP-B-57-26219 JP-A-57-77304 JP-A-1-292102 JP-A-2-4364 JP-A-3-195555 JP-A-3-205053 JP-A-3-231660

The problem with the aforementioned processing method is as follows.
(1) The method of `` longitudinal flow '' Since the pants-type diaper manufactured by this method has a flat diaper with a stretchable side panel attached to the diaper body, the processing of the diaper body is the same as that of the flat type Could be speeded up.

  However, in order to develop elasticity in the waist side portion of the pants, elastic side panels to be arranged are indispensable as pants-type diapers, but are expensive and unsuitable as disposable products. Further, the gather formed adjacent to the opening is not continuous over the circumference of the opening, so that a gap is formed between the wearer and the pants-type diaper, and excrement often leaks.

(2) Method of "cross-flow" In cross-flow, the waist gathers are joined in the flow direction, so they are not affected by the stretching stress. Can be reduced as compared with the case where the leg gathers are intermittently arranged in the vertical direction.

  However, it is needless to say that it is effective to dispose a three-dimensional barrier cuff in the disposable diaper to prevent leakage from the crotch of the wearer, but in the case of cross-flow, an elastic member is arranged at its free end. It was difficult to attach a three-dimensional barrier cuff.

(3) Method of “vertical-horizontal flow” Vertical-horizontal flow is a method that incorporates both good vertical flow and good horizontal flow. That is, an elastic member having a high elongation rate is stretched in the longitudinal direction in parallel to the flow direction, and the formed longitudinally-flowed article is turned over by 90 ° in the horizontal direction, and the elastic member is stretched in the transverse direction. A high-speed production was aimed at by forming a set web and integrating them.

However, the reversal object according to the prior art has not been improved to improve high-speed productivity.
That is, in the case of "vertical-horizontal flow" as disclosed in JP-A-5-31135, a diaper main body including a top sheet and a back sheet formed by vertical flow, and an absorber disposed between these two sheets. Is inverted. In the object to be inverted in this proposal, the flaps extend around the absorber in the diaper main body, so that it is not easy to handle the flap portion of the diaper main body after the individual diaper is divided, and the diaper main body is attached to the back web. When it was bonded, it had to be broken or turned up. This is also due to the fact that there was no method for applying an adhesive with the same size as the diaper body. Further, it has been extremely difficult to reverse-transfer a diaper body having the same length as the pitch of the back web without any gap.

  In the case of "vertical-horizontal flow" disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 5-31136, a three-dimensional barrier cuff formed of an elastic member and a breathable nonwoven fabric is inverted. Since the three-dimensional barrier cuff is made of a breathable nonwoven fabric, it is extremely difficult in high-speed production to hold and invert the three-dimensional barrier cuff in a stretchable state after cutting the breathable member.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an absorbent article which can cope with high-speed production and has excellent product performance, and a method for easily and continuously producing the absorbent article.

  The present inventors have conducted various studies on the configuration of an absorbent article (particularly, a disposable diaper) and its productivity. As a result, the absorbent article was designed so that the contraction force of the elastic member is supported by the rigidity of the absorber. It has been found that the above-mentioned object can be achieved by configuring and adopting the "vertical-lateral flow" or "vertical-vertical flow" manufacturing method.

The present invention has been made based on the above findings,
An absorbent article obtained by laminating and joining an absorbent main body that accommodates and holds excrement and a liquid-impermeable outer layer that is elasticized around a leg and / or a waist of a wearer,
The absorbent body includes an absorbent body and a top sheet member that wraps the absorbent body in a width direction thereof, and both ends of the absorbent body in the longitudinal direction are at least water-repellent extending portions of the outer layer part. Are covered by the projecting portion, whereby the both end portions of the absorbent main body and the outer layer portion are integrated,
In the top sheet member, a central nonwoven fabric is disposed at a central portion in the width direction over the entire length of the top sheet member, and water repellent side nonwoven fabrics are joined to both sides. An absorbent article characterized by being equal to or slightly longer than the length of the body, and having a width that is larger than the width of the absorber and not more than three times.

Further, the present invention, as a preferred method of manufacturing the absorbent article of the present invention described above,
a) a step of continuously manufacturing an absorber with its length direction as a flow direction (longitudinal flow);
b) a step of continuously unwinding the central nonwoven fabric and the side nonwoven fabric constituting the top sheet member, with the length direction in the product form as a flow direction (longitudinal flow);
c) a step of dividing the side non-woven fabric into two to form two side non-woven fabrics;
d) positioning the two side non-woven fabrics with respect to the central non-woven fabric such that one side edge portion is laminated on each of both side edges of the central non-woven fabric;
e) joining the two side non-woven fabrics and the central non-woven fabric at the laminated portion to form a top sheet member wider than the width of the absorber;
f) winding the absorber with the top sheet member to form a continuous longitudinally flowing absorbent main body web;
g) continuously unwinding the outer layer nonwoven fabric, the film and the cover nonwoven fabric constituting the outer layer portion with the width direction in the product form as the flow direction (lateral flow);
h) laminating an outer layer nonwoven fabric, a film and a cover nonwoven fabric, and interposing an elastic member for elasticizing the outer layer portion in the outer layer portion to form a continuous laterally flowing outer layer portion web.
i) dividing the absorbent body web into individual absorbent bodies and arranging them at predetermined intervals;
j) a step of applying an adhesive for joining the absorbent main body and the outer layer portion web to a portion of the individual absorbent main body or the outer layer portion web where the absorbent main portion is to be joined;
k) The individual absorbent bodies arranged at predetermined intervals are inverted by 90 ° in the horizontal direction, and are bonded to the outer layer web at another predetermined interval via the above-mentioned adhesive to form a cross-flow diaper web. Process and
1) a step of providing leg openings at predetermined intervals in the diaper web where the absorbent body is not arranged;
m) Two diaper webs parallel to each other in the direction of flow such that both sides parallel to the direction of flow of the diaper web coincide with each other, and the side on which the absorbent body is not disposed forms the outer surface of the diaper web. A process of folding into
n) joining the overlapped outer layer portions to each other at a position where the leg opening in the folded diaper web is arranged;
o) a step of obtaining individual pants-type diapers by cutting a portion of the diaper web adjacent to the joined portion, to provide an absorbent article manufacturing method. .

Further, the present invention, as another preferred method of manufacturing the absorbent article of the present invention described above,
a) a step of continuously manufacturing an absorber with its length direction as a flow direction (longitudinal flow);
b) a step of continuously unwinding the central nonwoven fabric and the side nonwoven fabric constituting the top sheet member, with the length direction in the product form as a flow direction (longitudinal flow);
c) a step of dividing the side non-woven fabric into two to form two side non-woven fabrics;
d) positioning the two side non-woven fabrics with respect to the central non-woven fabric such that one side edge portion is laminated on each of both side edges of the central non-woven fabric;
e) joining the two side non-woven fabrics and the central non-woven fabric at the laminated portion to form a top sheet member wider than the width of the absorber;
f) winding the absorber with the top sheet member to form a continuous longitudinally flowing absorbent main body web;
g) a step of continuously unwinding at least the film and the cover non-woven fabric constituting the outer layer portion with the length direction in the product form as a flow direction (longitudinal flow);
h) laminating the film and the cover non-woven fabric while stretching an elastic member forming at least leg gather between the film and the cover non-woven fabric to form a continuous longitudinally flowing outer layer web; Furthermore,
i) dividing the absorbent body web into individual absorbent bodies and arranging them at predetermined intervals;
j) a step of applying an adhesive for joining the absorbent main body and the outer layer portion web to a portion of the individual absorbent main body or the outer layer portion web where the absorbent main portion is to be joined;
k) bonding the individual absorbent bodies arranged at predetermined intervals to the outer layer web at predetermined intervals via the adhesive to form a longitudinally flowing diaper web;
l) joining a fastening tape to be used when worn on the diaper web;
m) before or after the step of bonding the tape, providing a pair of leg notches on both sides of the absorbent body in the diaper web;
n) a step of obtaining individual flat diapers by cutting a continuous diaper web at a predetermined length, thereby providing a method for producing an absorbent article.

  The absorbent article of the present invention can cope with high-speed production and has excellent product performance, and according to the production method of the present invention, the absorbent article of the present invention exhibiting the above effects can be easily and continuously produced. Can be manufactured.

According to the absorbent article of the present invention, in the pants-type diaper, it is easy to make the entire periphery of the opening elastic and to arrange the three-dimensional barrier cuff.
In addition, the entire periphery of the absorber can be subjected to a water-repellent treatment, so that there is no possibility of excrement leaking to the outside of the diaper.
Further, since both ends in the longitudinal direction of the absorbent body are separated from both ends in the longitudinal direction of the product, there is no fear of bleeding leakage or polymer leakage during use.

  Further, according to the manufacturing method of the present invention, the absorbent article of the present invention is configured in consideration of the problem of high-speed production with respect to the step of stretching an elastic member to be stretched on the absorbent article and the influence of stretching stress. Therefore, the absorbent article can be manufactured without impairing the productivity.

Hereinafter, first, a pants-type disposable diaper which is one embodiment of the absorbent article of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 to 5 show a pants-type disposable diaper which is one embodiment of the absorbent article of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a developed plan view showing a state where the side seal portion is peeled off and developed, and FIG. FIG. 3 (a) is a plan view showing the absorbent main body of FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 (a) is a plan view showing the absorbent body shown in FIG. X ₁ -X ₁ , X ₂ -X ₂ , X ₃ -X ₃ , and Y ₁ -Y ₁ , Y ₂ -Y ₂ cross-sectional views of FIG. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the top sheet member used in the absorbent main body of FIG. 3 with a part cut away.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the underpants-type disposable diaper 1 of the present embodiment is largely composed of an absorbent main body 3 for containing and holding excrement, and a liquid-impregnated body around the leg and / or waist of the wearer. It is configured by laminating and joining the permeable outer layer portion 2. In FIG. 1, the side seal portions 52 A and 50 A, 52 A and 50 A of the abdominal portion 52 and the back side portion 50 are peeled off and developed. The state is shown.

  Thus, in the pants-type disposable diaper 1 of the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the absorbent main body 3 includes an absorbent body 20 and a top sheet member 21 that wraps the absorbent body 20 in the width direction. And both ends in the length direction of the absorbent main body 3 are covered by at least the water-repellent extending portions 4A and 4B of the outer layer portion 2, whereby both end portions of the absorbent main body 3 are formed. And the outer layer portion 2 are integrated. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the top sheet member 21 has a central nonwoven fabric 23 disposed at the center in the width direction over the entire length thereof, and water-repellent side nonwoven fabrics 22A and 22B on both sides. The length of the top sheet member 21 is equal to or slightly longer than the length of the absorber 20, and the width thereof is larger than the width of the absorber 20 and three times or less. I have.

  The pants-type disposable diaper 1 according to this embodiment will be further described. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the longitudinal end of the absorbent main body 3 constitutes the outer layer 2, and the longitudinal direction of the absorbent main body 3. The outwardly extending portions 4A and 4B of the outer layer nonwoven fabric 4 that are longer than the entire length in the direction are covered by being folded back toward the body surface side of the diaper 1, respectively.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the outer layer 2 includes an outer nonwoven fabric 4 forming the outer surface of the diaper 1 and a waist folded portion 4A, a liquid impermeable film 5, and a cover forming a side in contact with the wearer's skin. It is composed of three sheets of nonwoven fabric 6.

  The outer layer portion 2 is made expandable and contractable by an elastic member disposed therein. The elastic member 7A constituting the abdominal half of the diaper 1 and the elastic member 7B constituting the dorsal half are used to elasticize at least a portion along the leg opening between the film 5 and the cover nonwoven fabric 6. , And each constitutes a leg gather. Elastic members 8A and 8B are arranged between the outer nonwoven fabric 4 and the cover nonwoven fabric 6 so as to make the waist opening elastic, and constitute waist gathers. Further, the elastic members 9A and 9B are arranged between the film 5 and the cover nonwoven fabric 6 similarly to the leg gathers, and constitute waist gathers, respectively. The waist gathers (elastic members 9A and 9B) are effective for maintaining the pants-type diaper in a suitable position and state for the wearer during wearing.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the absorbent main body 3 is placed on the outer layer portion 2 configured as described above, and the extended portions 4A and 4B of the outer layer nonwoven fabric 4 are arranged so that both ends in the longitudinal direction of the absorbent main body 3 are in contact with each other. It is folded back to the body side to cover. The extended portions 4A and 4B of the outer nonwoven fabric 4 are preferably subjected to a water-repellent treatment so that the excrement of the absorbent main body 3 does not leak during wearing. Thereby, the water-repellent treatment over the entire circumference of the excretion point is achieved.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the absorbent body 3 has an absorbent body 20 (see FIG. 4) wrapped in a top sheet member 21 (see FIG. 5). The absorbent main body 3 includes a first three-dimensional (barrier) cuff 24A and a second three-dimensional (barrier) cuff 25A, and the first three-dimensional cuff 24A has a fixed end and a free end with respect to the central nonwoven fabric 23. The first elastic member 24 is provided at the free end, and both ends in the longitudinal direction of the first three-dimensional cuff 24A are fixed to the central nonwoven fabric 23.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the absorber 20 has an hourglass shape that matches the body shape of the wearer. That is, in the absorber 20, the crotch portion 51 of the basically rectangular absorber is cut out. The absorbent 20 is preferably composed mainly of fibrillated pulp and used in combination with a high-molecular water-absorbing polymer, and the periphery thereof is covered with a backing paper. In addition, a mixture obtained by subjecting a mixture of cellulose fiber, thermoplastic resin, and high-molecular water-absorbing polymer to heat treatment is preferable. In the absorbent body 20 in which several layers are stacked, the position of the high-molecular-weight water-absorbing polymer may be any of the upper layer, the middle layer, and the lower layer, and may be mixed with pulp. . In addition, it is preferable that the position of the polymer in the longitudinal direction of the absorber 20 is scattered only at the central portion in the longitudinal direction. The high-molecular water-absorbing polymer preferably has a performance of absorbing and retaining a liquid 20 times or more its own weight, and has a gelling property. As such a high-molecular water-absorbing polymer, starch-acrylic acid ( Salts) graft copolymers, saponified starch-acrylonitrile copolymers, cross-linked sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, acrylic acid (salt) polymers, and the like are preferred.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the top sheet member 21 is formed by joining side non-woven fabrics 22A and 22B and a hydrophilic central non-woven fabric 23 which allows excrement to pass therethrough. The first elastic members 24, 24 forming the first three-dimensional cuffs 24A, 24A and the second elastic members 25, 25 forming the second three-dimensional cuffs 25A, 25A for preventing excretion leakage. It is stretched.

  The first elastic members 24, 24 are stretched at places where the side nonwoven fabrics 22A, 22B are folded and formed into a bag shape, and separate from the central nonwoven fabric 23 when worn to form a three-dimensional weir. Further, the second elastic members 25, 25 are stretched along folding imaginary lines 26, 26 when the absorber 20 is rolled up by the top sheet member 21 in the width direction thereof, and the crotch of the absorbent main body 3 is provided. The side edges in the region are not glued to the outer layer 2. Therefore, the side edge portions form the second three-dimensional cuffs 25A, 25A along the folding virtual lines 26, 26 of the top sheet member 21, and exhibit an effect of preventing leakage. Thus, a triple leak-proof wall is formed by the leg gathers formed by the elastic members 7A and 7B, the first three-dimensional cuffs 24A and 24A, and the second three-dimensional cuffs 25A and 25A.

  As the side nonwoven fabrics 22A and 22B in the top sheet member 21 and the cover nonwoven fabric 6 and the outer layer nonwoven fabric 4 in the outer layer portion 2, a water-repellent nonwoven fabric, a woven fabric, or the like is preferable. A hydrophilic nonwoven fabric, a woven fabric, a porous film and the like are preferred. When the outer nonwoven fabric 4 of the outer layer portion 2 is water repellent and the side nonwoven fabrics 22A and 22B of the top sheet member 21 are water repellent, the entire periphery surrounding the excretion point that is hydrophilic is surrounded by the water repellent material. As a result, the excrement accommodating property of the diaper 1 is improved.

  The elastic members 7A, 7B, 8A, 8B, 9A, 9B, 24, 25 each have elasticity such as thread-like rubber, flat rubber, ribbon-like elastic body, heat-shrinkable material, and water-absorbable shrinkable fiber. There is no particular limitation as long as it has.

  The pants-type diaper 1 shown in FIG. 1 can be configured so that the outer layer nonwoven fabric 4 in the outer layer portion 2 is omitted and the film 5 forms the outer surface of the pants-type diaper 1 for cost reduction. It is preferable to additionally arrange a waist sheet at the waist portion to form a soft waist gather like a cloth without sandwiching the film 5.

Since the pants-type disposable diaper 1 of the present embodiment is configured as described above, it has the following excellent product performance.
First, a triple leak-proof wall gather is arranged at the crotch portion of the product, that is, the entire periphery of the leg opening is made elastic, and the first and second three-dimensional cuffs 24A are provided around the excretion point. And 25A are easy to arrange.

Further, it is easy to perform water-repellent treatment on the entire circumference (the outer nonwoven fabric 4 of the outer layer portion 2 and the side nonwoven fabrics 22A and 22B of the top sheet member 21) surrounding the excretion point when worn, thereby preventing the diaper 1 from leaking. The effect is enhanced and there is no danger of excrement leaking out of the diaper 1.
Furthermore, since both ends in the longitudinal direction of the absorbent body 20 are separated from both ends in the longitudinal direction of the product (diaper 1) (see FIG. 1), there is no fear of leakage or polymer leakage during use.

Next, a flat disposable diaper which is another embodiment of the absorbent article of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a partially cutaway flat-type disposable diaper including an absorbent main body and an outer layer portion.

  In the flat type disposable diaper 101, the outer layer portion 102 is formed by disposing a curved leg gather elastic member 105 and a waist gather elastic member 106 between the film 108 and the cover nonwoven fabric 109. . Absorbent body 103 equivalent to that shown in the pants-type diaper 1 is placed on the outer layer portion 102, and waist barrier sheets 104, 104 are provided so as to cover both longitudinal ends of the absorbent body 103. Are joined, the fastening pieces 107, 107 are joined.

  The flat disposable diaper 101 described above also has the same effect as the pants-type disposable diaper 1 of the above embodiment. In particular, the flat diaper 101 has a water-repellent entire periphery and the absorbent main body. Since the three-dimensional gathers (three-dimensional barrier cuffs) included in the 103 form a pocket structure, the excrement accommodating property is improved as compared with the conventional flat diaper.

Next, a method of manufacturing the absorbent article according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9, one embodiment of the method of manufacturing the pants-type disposable diaper 1 of the above embodiment.
7 to 9 each show a main part of an embodiment of the manufacturing method of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a processing flow of the top sheet member web 201, and FIG. 8 is a processing flow of the outer layer portion web 301. FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a processing flow of the pants-type disposable diaper web 401. In addition, the material to be used is the same as the content described in the above-mentioned product (pants-type disposable diaper 1), and thus description thereof is omitted.

Thus, in the manufacturing method of the present invention, first, as shown in FIG. 7, the top sheet member web 201 is formed by a vertical flow method shown in the following <1> to <9>.
<< 1 >> The continuous side nonwoven fabric web 202 is unwound with the longitudinal direction when placed on the pants-type diaper set as the flow direction (longitudinal flow).
<< 2 >> The side nonwoven fabric web 202 becomes two strips of side nonwoven fabric web 202 through the slitter 205.

<< 3 >> Adjacent to the opposing side edges of the two side nonwoven fabric webs 202, 202, the hot melt type adhesives 211, 211 are intermittently applied by a hot melt type adhesive applicator 206 to form a thread-shaped first nonwoven fabric. (1) The elastic members 203 are adhered in an extended state.
<< 4 >> The side nonwoven fabric webs 202, 202 are folded back so as to wrap around the region where the first elastic members 203, 203 are adhered, and the folded portions are continuously heat-sealed by a sealer 207.

<< 5 >> The two side nonwoven fabric webs 202, 202 on which the first elastic members 203, 203 are stretched are run to predetermined positions through the rolls 208.
<< 6 >> On the other hand, the hydrophilic central nonwoven fabric web 204 is continuously unwound with the longitudinal direction when placed on the pants-type diaper in the flow direction (longitudinal flow).
<< 7 >> A hot-melt adhesive is applied in a pattern by an application device 209 adjacent to both side edges of the central nonwoven fabric web 204. The portions 212, 212 to which the hot melt type adhesive is not intermittently applied in the flow direction are provided to form the first three-dimensional cuff in a state where the first elastic members 203, 203 are contracted.

<< 8 >> The adhesive applied surface of the central nonwoven web 204 merges with the positioned side nonwoven webs 202, 202 to form the top sheet member web 201.
<< 9 >> The central nonwoven web 204 and the side nonwoven webs 202 and 202 are further heat-sealed through the seal roll 210 to complete the top sheet member web 201.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8, the outer layer web 301 is formed by a lateral flow method shown in the following (1) to (8).
(1) The liquid-impermeable film web 302 is continuously unwound with the width direction when placed on the pants-type diaper in the flow direction (lateral flow).
(2) With the continuous elastic members for leg gathers 303, 303 along the film web 302, they are rocked using the rocking guides 304, 304 in a direction orthogonal to the flow direction of the film web 302.

(3) The cover nonwoven fabric 306 having the width direction (lateral flow) when placed on the pants-type diaper is continuously unwound.
(4) In a state where the film web 302 is along the lower side of the elastic members 303 after the swing, a hot melt type adhesive is applied from the upper surface thereof by a coating device 305, and the elastic member 303 is 303 is sandwiched to form a laterally flowing gather sheet web 313.

(5) On the other hand, the outer layer nonwoven fabric web 309 is continuously unwound with the width direction when placed on the pants-type diaper in the flow direction (lateral flow).
(6) After the waist gather elastic members 307 and 307 and the waist gather elastic members 308 and 308 are supplied in an extended state and the hot melt adhesive is applied by the coating devices 310 and 310, the outer nonwoven fabric web is formed. 309.

(7) A hot melt type adhesive is applied to the outer layer nonwoven fabric web 309 on which the elastic members 307, 307 and 308, 308 are stretched, by the applicator 311 at the portion between the waist return lines 312, 312.
(8) The two sheets 313 and 309 are bonded together so that the elastic members 307, 307 and 308, 308 are sandwiched between the film web 302 surface of the gather sheet web 313 and the outer nonwoven fabric web 309 to form a laterally flowing outer layer web 301. I do.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the diaper web 401 is composed of the longitudinally flowing top sheet member web 201 and the laterally flowing outer layer web 301 formed as described above, as shown in FIG.

[1] The continuous top sheet member web 201 formed in the above process is continuously coated with a hot melt type adhesive by a coating device 402. At this time, it is preferable that a second elastic member forming a second three-dimensional cuff is additionally provided.
[2] On the other hand, the hourglass-shaped absorber 403 formed via the fiber stacking device is divided into individual absorbers of a predetermined length and supplied at a predetermined pitch. The absorber 403 is a vertical flow like the top sheet member web 201.

  [3] The absorber 403 is intermittently supplied and adhered to the adhesive applied surface of the top sheet member web 201. For this reason, the length of the absorber is equal to or shorter than the length of the top sheet member, and the width of the top sheet member is larger than the width of the absorber due to the winding process of both sides, and It is preferable that the width is three times or less. At this time, the absorber 403 is located at the center of the top sheet member web 201 in the width direction.

[4] In the winding device 404, the absorber 403 is continuously wound on the top sheet member web 201 by a guide or the like to form an absorbent main body web.
[5] The absorbent body web is passed through a cutting device to the individual absorbent bodies 410, 410,. . And the reversing device 405 makes a 90 ° turn in the horizontal plane. That is, the absorbent body 410 is turned such that its longitudinal direction coincides with the flow direction but its width direction coincides with the flow direction.

  [6] On the other hand, the continuous outer layer web 301 formed in the above process is continuously applied to the outer extending portions 411 and 411 of the outer layer web 301 by the coating device 406, and the absorbent body 410 , 410,. . A hot-melt adhesive is applied in a pattern to the parts to be bonded. The pattern application of the adhesive is performed at a central portion of the adjacent cutting imaginary lines 412 and 412, and the area thereof is smaller than the area of the absorbent main body. This is to prevent the hot melt type adhesive that has come off the absorbent body from touching the wearer's skin.

  [7] Absorbing main bodies 410, 410,... Inverted in the inverting step 405 are placed at predetermined positions on the outer layer web 301 on which the hot melt type adhesive pattern is applied. . Are supplied at predetermined intervals, and the absorbent bodies 410, 410,. . And the outer layer web 301 are joined to form a pants-type diaper web 401.

[8] The pants-type diaper web 401 is stretched in the waist flap winding device 408 such that both longitudinal ends of the absorbent main body 410 are covered with the extended portions 411 and 411 of the outer layer web 301. 411 is wound up and adhered by a guide or the like. Since both ends in the longitudinal direction of the absorbent main body 410 are covered with the outer layer nonwoven web 309 in this way, it is possible to hide a slight adhesion error.
[9] The pants-type diaper web 401 is formed with leg holes (leg openings) 409, 409,. . Is punched out.

Then (not shown)
[10] The pants-type diaper web 401 is folded in two in the flow direction such that both side edges thereof coincide with each other, and the outer nonwoven fabric web 309 forms the outer surface of the diaper web 401.
[11] The leg holes 409, 409,. . Are bonded to each other at the place where is disposed.

[12] Individual pants-type disposable diapers are obtained by cutting a portion (above the cutting phantom lines 412, 412,...) Of the pants-type diaper web 401 adjacent to the joined portion.
One embodiment of the production method of the present invention is to produce a pants-type disposable diaper by the vertical-lateral flow method as described above.

  According to the manufacturing method of the present invention described above, the configuration of the pants-type disposable diaper is based on the consideration of the problem of high-speed production with respect to the stretching step of the elastic member to be stretched on the diaper and the influence of its stretching stress. Thus, the pants-type disposable diaper can be manufactured without impairing the productivity.

That is, since the elastic member is stretched along the flow direction of the web on which the elastic member is stretched, the suitability for processing to the product specifications is not reduced.
In addition, since the object to be reversed (that is, the absorbent body) is limited, high-speed production is excellent. That is, the substantially rectangular object to be inverted has rigid absorbers disposed at four corners thereof, so that the entire surface of the object to be inverted can be supported, and another object to be inverted is selected. Compared to the case, there is no need to worry about breakage of the ears or curling when bonding to the outer layer. In addition, although an elastic member is disposed on the absorbent body, the rigidity of the absorbent body is less likely to be affected by the contraction stress, thereby facilitating handling of each absorbent body.

  In the above-mentioned reversing step, in the conventional method, individual reversing objects were cut on a reversing machine, and 90 ° reversal was performed. Therefore, dimensional restrictions were imposed on the size and the attaching pitch of the reversing object. Had been. However, in the method of the present invention, the cutting is performed separately from the cutting step, and the reversing is performed separately from the reversing step, so that the limitation on the processing size is removed.

Next, another embodiment of the manufacturing method of the present invention will be described for the case of manufacturing the flat type disposable diaper.
As described above, the flat disposable diaper has a configuration in which the absorbent main body and the outer layer are laminated, and is manufactured by the following methods <1> to <5>. (Not shown)

<1> The absorbent main body is formed by the same vertical flow method as in the case of manufacturing the pants-type diaper web 401 described above.
<2> The outer layer web is formed by the same vertical flow method as in the case of manufacturing the pants-type diaper web 401 described above.

<3> The absorbent body is intermittently arranged on the body-side surface of the continuous outer layer web to form a diaper web. (At this time, it is preferable to additionally attach a waist barrier sheet so as to cover both ends in the longitudinal direction of the absorbent main body.)
<4> Cut out the legs of the diaper web and place the fastening tape in place.
<5> Individual flat disposable diapers are obtained by dividing the absorbent body adjacent to the diaper web.
As described above, another embodiment of the production method of the present invention is to produce an absorbent article by a "vertical-longitudinal flow" method in which the absorbent body is not inverted.

  It should be noted that the absorbent article of the present invention and the method for producing the same are not limited to the above Examples and Embodiments, and the absorbent article of the present invention may be variously modified without departing from the spirit of the present invention. The method of the present invention can be implemented in various ways without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, as a hot melt type adhesive coating apparatus in the above manufacturing method, a spiral spray gun suitable for surface coating, a spray gun such as a curtain spray applying a melt blown method, or a die coater also suitable for surface coating Conventionally known ones such as a bead nozzle suitable for linear coating can be used.
In addition, as a joining method of the above-mentioned respective constituent members, a conventionally known method such as ultrasonic wave and pressure bonding can be used in addition to a hot melt adhesive or a heat sealer.

FIG. 1 is a developed plan view showing a state in which a side seal portion of a pants-type disposable diaper, which is one embodiment of the absorbent article of the present invention, is peeled off and developed. FIG. 2 is a developed plan view showing the pants-type disposable diaper shown in FIG. 1 with its outer layer part partially cut away. 3A is a plan view showing the absorbent body of FIG. 1, and FIGS. 3B to 3F are respectively X ₁ -X ₁ , X ₂ -X ₂ , X ₃ -X ₃ , and FIG. a respective cross-sectional view of a _{Y 1 -Y 1, Y 2 -Y} 2. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an absorber used in the absorbent main body of FIG. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a top sheet member used in the absorbent main body of FIG. 3 with a part cut away. FIG. 6 is a partially cutaway plan view showing a flat type disposable diaper as another embodiment of the absorbent article according to the present invention. FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a processing flow of a top sheet web as an intermediate product in the case of manufacturing a pants-type disposable diaper of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a plan view showing a processing flow of an outer layer web which is an intermediate product in the case of manufacturing a pants-type disposable diaper of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a processing flow of a pants-type diaper web which is an intermediate product when producing the pants-type disposable diaper of the present invention.

Explanation of reference numerals

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pants type disposable diaper 2 Outer layer part 3 Absorbent main body 4 Outer nonwoven fabric 5 Film 6 Cover nonwoven fabric 20 Absorber 21 Topsheet member 22A Side nonwoven fabric 22B Side nonwoven fabric 23 Central nonwoven fabric 201 Topsheet member web 301 Outer layer web 401 Diaper web

Claims (7)

An absorbent article obtained by laminating and joining an absorbent main body that accommodates and holds excrement and a liquid-impermeable outer layer that is elasticized around a leg and / or a waist of a wearer,
The absorbent body includes an absorbent body and a top sheet member that wraps the absorbent body in the width direction over the entire length thereof, and both ends of the absorbent body in the longitudinal direction are: The outer layer portion is covered by at least a water-repellent extending portion, whereby both end portions of the absorbent main body and the outer layer portion are integrated,
The top sheet member is formed by disposing a central nonwoven fabric at a central portion in the width direction over the entire length in the length direction, and joining a water-repellent side nonwoven fabric to both sides over the entire length in the length direction. A central nonwoven fabric is arranged on the surface of the absorber, the side nonwoven fabric is arranged from both sides to the back surface of the absorber, and the length of the top sheet member is equal to or longer than the length of the absorber. An absorbent article characterized by being slightly longer and having a width larger than the width of the absorber and not more than three times.   The absorbent article comprises a belly, a crotch, and a back. The waist opening and the pair of leg openings are formed by joining and fixing both side edges of the belly and the back. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein the absorbent article is formed.   The outer layer portion is formed by laminating two or more sheets including at least a liquid-impermeable back sheet, and at least an elastic member around the leg is stretched between the sheets. Item 3. The absorbent article according to item 1 or 2.   The absorbent article according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the absorbent body is formed in an hourglass shape having a narrower central portion in a length direction than both end portions.   The bonding between the absorbent main body and the outer layer portion is based on an adhesive applied to a bonding surface of the absorbent main body, and the adhesive is applied to a smaller area of the absorbent main body than the absorber. The absorbent article according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The outer layer portion includes an outer layer nonwoven fabric forming an outer surface of the diaper and a waist folded portion, and a cover nonwoven fabric forming a side in contact with a wearer's skin,
The side non-woven fabric in the top sheet member and the outer non-woven fabric in the outer layer portion are water-repellent non-woven fabrics, and the central non-woven fabric in the top sheet member is a hydrophilic non-woven fabric, and the entire circumference surrounding a hydrophilic excretion point is The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein the nonwoven fabric is surrounded by the water-repellent side nonwoven fabric and the outer layer nonwoven fabric. The absorbent article according to claim 4, wherein a joint between the central nonwoven fabric and the side nonwoven fabric in the top sheet member is present on the absorber at the abdominal part and the back part. .

Images