Nonwoven Hook-and-Loop Fastener for Hygiene Products
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing hook-and-loop fasteners for hygiene products, such as baby diapers, require inexpensive, soft, and durable materials that can withstand limited openings and closings without the need for lamination, while also allowing for easy printing and maintaining high gripping efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A non-woven fabric made of entangled thermoplastic filaments with specific thickness, weight, and aperture characteristics, which provides excellent grip, resistance, and is suitable for direct printing, eliminating the need for lamination and offering cost-effectiveness compared to knitted or woven textiles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a non-woven fabric is used as the female part of a hook-and-loop fastener, then cost is reduced and softness is improved, but gripping efficiency may be compromised compared to traditional knitted or woven textiles
Solution Approach 1:
The non-woven fabric is designed with controlled porosity (3 to 80 apertures per cm²) that allows hooks to penetrate and engage with the filament network. The aperture size and distribution are optimized to maintain gripping efficiency while using a cheaper non-woven structure instead of traditional knitted or woven textiles.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes multiple parameters of the non-woven fabric including thickness (0.1 to 2.0 mm), weight (10 to 100 g/m²), aperture number (3 to 80 per cm²), and filament diameter (5 to 50 microns) to achieve the desired balance between cost, softness, and gripping efficiency for hygiene applications with limited opening/closing cycles.
2Strength
If lamination is applied to the non-woven fabric to improve durability, then resistance to opening/closing is enhanced, but the softness and printability are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The non-woven fabric is designed for hygiene applications with limited use over time (typically 3 openings/closings before disposal). The material is optimized for this short service life without requiring durable lamination, maintaining softness and printability while providing sufficient resistance for the intended number of operations.
3Weight of moving object
If the non-woven fabric is made thinner to reduce cost and improve comfort, then softness and cost are improved, but structural integrity and gripping capability are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent defines optimal parameter ranges including thickness (0.1 to 2.0 mm) and weight (10 to 100 g/m²) that balance softness, cost, and structural integrity. The aperture density (3 to 80 per cm²) and filament characteristics are coordinated with thickness to maintain gripping capability across the acceptable weight range.
Solution Approach 2:
The non-woven fabric combines thermoplastic filaments with specific structural characteristics (entanglement without fusion points) to create a composite structure that achieves adequate strength and gripping capability at reduced weights compared to traditional textile-based fasteners.
4Reliability
If traditional knitted or woven textiles are used for the female part, then gripping efficiency is maintained, but cost increases and printability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The non-woven fabric incorporates controlled porosity with apertures that facilitate hook engagement, enabling gripping efficiency comparable to traditional textiles. This porous structure is achieved through a simpler, more cost-effective non-woven manufacturing process that also allows direct printing on the reverse side.
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
The non-woven fabric achieves superior shear and peeling forces, is soft to the touch, and allows for decorative printing on the reverse side, reducing production costs and enhancing the performance and aesthetics of hygiene products like baby diapers.
Implementation Method 1
a non-woven fabric made up of continuous filaments of thermoplastic materials... the cohesion of which is only given by the entanglement of the filaments, which has no point of fusion or sticking of the filaments to each other
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
The invention relates to the use of a nonwoven (25) as the female part of a hook-and-loop fastener, said nonwoven being provided with openings on the lateral walls thereof, on which the entangled filaments are intact.