Sanitary Napkin Discontinuous Adhesive Pattern for Material Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need to reduce the environmental impact of absorbent articles such as sanitary napkins, adult incontinence pads, and pantyliners while maintaining their performance, specifically by minimizing material usage without compromising their functionality.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a sanitary napkin with a discontinuous adhesive pattern on the backsheet, featuring adhesive-free areas between adhesive regions, allowing the wings to be folded onto the backsheet, thereby reducing the size of the release paper required for packaging and conserving material. This pattern includes a first area of adhesive in the front portion, a second area in the rear portion, and a third area on the wings, with an adhesive-free area extending longitudinally or transversally between them.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If adhesive is applied continuously on the backsheet to ensure secure fastening, then the fastening reliability is improved, but the material consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The adhesive layer is segmented into multiple discrete zones (first adhesive zone in front portion, second adhesive zone in rear portion, third adhesive zone on wings) separated by adhesive-free areas. This segmentation maintains fastening reliability at critical locations while significantly reducing overall adhesive material consumption compared to continuous application.
Solution Approach 2:
Adhesive is applied selectively with different properties in different regions: the adhesive zones provide strong bonding where needed (front portion, rear portion, wings) while the adhesive-free areas provide flexibility and foldability in the central portion. This local differentiation optimizes both fastening reliability and material efficiency.
2Reliability
If adhesive is applied on the backsheet to secure the sanitary napkin, then the fastening performance is improved, but the packaging material requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The adhesive pattern is segmented into distinct zones that correspond to specific functional areas. The adhesive-free central portion allows the wings to be folded without adhesive interference, enabling a more compact packaged configuration that reduces packaging material requirements while maintaining fastening performance at the adhesive zones.
Solution Approach 2:
The adhesive pattern transitions from a two-dimensional continuous layer to a distributed set of one-dimensional zones along the longitudinal axis. This dimensional transformation creates adhesive-free spaces that enable three-dimensional folding of the wings, reducing the packaged volume and material requirements.
3Reliability
If the wings are kept extended to provide adequate coverage, then the protective function is improved, but the packaging size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The adhesive pattern is segmented into discrete zones including the wings, with adhesive-free areas in the central portion. This segmentation allows the wings to be folded onto the backsheet in a compact configuration for packaging, while maintaining adequate protective coverage when the sanitary napkin is in use.
Solution Approach 2:
The wings are designed to be foldable rather than fixed in an extended state. The adhesive-free central portion enables dynamic folding of the wings during packaging, reducing volume, while the adhesive zones ensure the wings remain functional and positioned correctly during use to provide protective coverage.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach saves raw material by allowing the wings to be folded onto the backsheet without adhesive interference, enabling a single sheet of release paper to cover all adhesive areas, reducing packaging dimensions and environmental impact while ensuring secure fastening to the undergarment.
Implementation Method 1
a layer of adhesive is arranged on one side of the backsheet so that the article can be secured onto said garment
Data Source
AI summary
The invention pertains to sanitary napkin (10) comprising:a topsheet (14),a backsheet (16),an absorbent core (12) arranged between said topsheet (14) and backsheet (16),two wings (24),the sanitary napkin (10) extending in longitudinal, transversal and vertical directions (L,T,V), the sanitary napkin (1) being divided with respect to the longitudinal direction, into a front portion (F), a rear portion (R) and a central portion (C) arranged between said front and rear portions, the central portion (C) being defined by the length of the wings (24) taken in the point in which they extend from the longitudinal sides (32) of the sanitary napkin (10) in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis (y-y),wherein a layer of adhesive (20) is arranged on the side of the backsheet (16) opposite to the absorbent core (12).According to the invention, said layer of adhesive (20) is arranged on the backsheet (16) in a discontinuous pattern, said pattern of adhesive comprising:a first area of adhesive (40) arranged in the front portion (F),a second area of adhesive (42) arranged in the rear portion (R);a third area of adhesive (45) being arranged on the wings (24);wherein said pattern of adhesive comprises an adhesive-free area (46) between the first area of adhesive (40) and the second area of adhesive (42), said adhesive-free area (46) longitudinally extending on a length that is greater than or equal to the length of the third area of adhesive (45) with respect to the longitudinal direction (L).