Patent ID: 7377914

Claim:
A disposable diaper having a front waist region having a front waist edge, a back waist region having a back waist edge, and a crotch region between the waist regions, a lateral axis, and a longitudinal axis, and comprising: an absorbent assembly having an interior surface, an exterior surface, laterally opposing longitudinally extending side edges, and laterally opposing longitudinally extending side flaps, each side flap having longitudinally opposing ends and a longitudinally extending proximal edge, each side flap being attached adjacent to its ends to the interior surface of the absorbent assembly and having a longitudinally extending elastic gathering member attached adjacent to its proximal edge such that when allowed to relax, the elastic gathering member contracts and lifts the proximal edge away from the interior surface of the absorbent assembly, thereby raising the side flap to form a side barrier, the absorbent assembly comprising a lower covering sheet disposed exteriorly of an absorbent core, the lower covering sheet being attached in a cruciform attachment pattern having a longitudinally extending portion and a laterally extending portion intersecting in the crotch region, the longitudinally extending portion having a smaller lateral extent than the laterally extending portion and the laterally extending portion having a smaller longitudinal extent than the longitudinally extending portion, such that quadrantal portions of the lower covering sheet lying outside the cruciform attachment pattern are unrestrained by attachment to any other element of the absorbent assembly; and two laterally opposing longitudinally extending backsheet strips attached to the exterior surface of the absorbent assembly and extending laterally beyond the side edges of the absorbent assembly, laterally opposing portions of the backsheet strips in the crotch region being folded laterally inward and overlapping the respective side flaps, the laterally inwardly folded portions extending longitudinally from the lateral axis toward the waist edges and ending longitudinally proximally of the waist edges, the disposable diaper thereby being laterally narrower in the crotch region than at the waist edges and having an overall shape of an hourglass.