Sanitary Tissue Sheet Refills with Nested Folding and Banding
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for a sanitary tissue product that addresses the issues of hygiene, convenience, and space constraints in bathrooms, as cloth towels are prone to bacterial growth and paper towel rolls are not commonly used due to aesthetic, fitting, and waste concerns.
Innovation Solution
Packaged sanitary tissue product sheets configured for easy dispensing, with subsets surrounded by bands to fit various dispensers, and options including folded and interleaved stacks or rolls with perforations, ensuring efficient use and minimizing waste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If cloth towels are used for hand drying, then convenience and reusability are improved, but bacterial growth and hygiene issues worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs disposable paper towels that are discarded after single use, eliminating the bacterial growth problem inherent in reusable cloth towels while maintaining the convenience of hand drying. Each sheet is designed for one-time use and then discarded, ensuring hygiene without requiring washing or maintenance.
Solution Approach 2:
The system facilitates discarding used paper towels in designated receptacles and recovering the receptacles for emptying and reuse. This circular approach maintains hygiene by regularly removing contaminated materials while keeping the dispensing system in place for continuous use.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If paper towel rolls are used in the bathroom, then hygiene is improved, but aesthetic fit and space requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The paper towel product is segmented into individual sheets rather than a continuous roll, allowing each sheet to be dispensed separately. This segmentation enables the product to fit into various dispenser types and bathroom spaces while maintaining hygiene benefits of disposable paper towels.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from the traditional horizontal roll format to a vertical stack format, changing the dimensional orientation of the paper towel product. This dimensional change allows the product to fit into different bathroom spaces and dispenser configurations, improving aesthetic versatility while maintaining hygiene.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If paper towel rolls are used, then hygiene is improved, but counter space requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple paper towel sheets are nested within each other in a compact vertical stack, with each sheet folded to fit within the dimensions of the stack. This nesting arrangement minimizes the counter space required while maintaining the hygiene benefits of disposable paper towels.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the spatial orientation from horizontal roll expansion to vertical stack compression, reducing the horizontal counter space footprint while maintaining adequate supply of paper towels for hygiene purposes.
4Ease of operation
If whole rolls of paper towels are placed near the sink, then accessibility is improved, but wetting and waste worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The paper towel supply is segmented into individual sheets that are dispensed one at a time through a dispenser positioned near the sink. This segmentation prevents the entire supply from being exposed to water, reducing wetting waste while maintaining easy accessibility for users.
Solution Approach 2:
The dispenser extracts and delivers individual sheets to the user, separating the accessible portion from the protected supply. This extraction mechanism allows users to access paper towels conveniently while the remaining stack remains protected from water exposure.
5Ease of operation
If users touch the roll or dispenser to dispense paper towels, then ease of use is improved, but contamination worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The dispenser is designed to automatically deliver paper towels to users without requiring direct contact with the dispensing mechanism. Users can obtain paper towels through contactless or minimal-contact methods, maintaining ease of use while preventing contamination of the dispenser and surrounding areas.
6Ease of operation
If excessive amounts of paper towels are used, then ease of use is improved, but waste worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The individual sheet format and dispenser design encourage users to take only the amount needed rather than pulling excessive amounts. The dispensing mechanism is calibrated to deliver appropriate portions, reducing waste while maintaining ease of use for hand drying.
Data Source
AI summary
Packages or arrays comprising a plurality of sanitary tissue product sheets. One or more subsets of the plurality of sanitary tissue product sheets may be surrounded by a band. Each subset may be sized to provide a suitable refill for a dispenser. The sanitary tissue product sheets may be bi-folded and a free end of a first sanitary tissue product sheet of the sanitary tissue product sheets may be nested within a bifold of a second sanitary tissue product sheet of the sanitary tissue product sheets. The package or array may include in an outer container, such as a cardboard box or a plastic film.