Patent GB-1144469-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to sanitary napkin covers
IPC: A61F13/15
Filed: 1966-04-21
Abstract: 1,144,469. Catamenial appliances. JOHNSON & JOHNSON. 21 April, 1966 [22 April, 1965], No. 17515/66. Heading A5R. In a sanitary napkin comprising an absorbent core and an elongated cover of liquidpervious foldable material enclosing the core and extending beyond the ends of the core to provide napkin attachment tabs, at least six (preferably from eight to twenty) randomlyspaced longitudinally-extending pleats are formed in one or each tab, each pleat comprising at least two plies of superimposed cover material, which plies are pressed together in intimate adhering relationship with each other. The depth of the pleats preferably progressively increases on passing from the or each end of the core to the free end of the or each tab. As illustrated in Figure 1, sanitary napkin 10 comprises a rectangular core 12 enclosed within a cover 14, the longitudinal side edge portions of which overlap on one major surface of the core. The core is made of absorbent material, for example cotton, comminuted wood pulp fibre or paper, and may include a fluid-impermeable barrier 13, for example a plastics film. The cover extends beyond each end 28 of the core to form a tab 18 in which is formed the plurality of pleats 20. The tabs either may have the same length or may differ in length. The tabs of the napkin cover may be pleated by apparatus which is illustrated in plan view in Figure 4. Cover material in the form of a continuous tubular sheath 19 which contains absorbent cores 12 at spaced intervals travels along table 38 under plate 40 to pass between cam members 32 and 32<SP>1</SP>, which rotate at equal speeds in opposite directions on respective vertical shafts 30 and 30<SP>1</SP>. The peripheral curved surfaces of the cam members are parallel to each other, the width of the curved surface of each cam member being equal to the thickness of an absorbent core. The cam members are profiled with respective radially-projecting semicircular lobes 34 and 34<SP>1</SP>, so that portions of the sheath which contain cores are not compressed, but portions of the sheath which do not contain cores are compressed and narrowed down, thereby to provide such portions of the sheath with randomly-spaced pleats. The pleats may be made permanent by passing the assembly of sheath and cores between unprofiled upper pressing roller 42 and profiled lower pressing roller 44, the surface of which is provided with pockets 46 separated by non-pocketed surface regions 48, which pockets and regions are adapted to correspond, respectively, to portions of the sheath which do and which do not contain cores. After pressing, the sheath is severed between adjacent cores to provide individual napkins. The number of the pleats and the extent of impleation may be varied by alteration either of the distance A between the pressing rollers and the vertical cam shafts, for example by means of adjusting screws 50 and 50<SP>1</SP> cooperating with shaft mounting member 52, or by the distance B between the vertical cam shafts, for example by adjustment of one shaft relative to the other shaft, or of the size of the lobes of the cam members.