The Procter Gamble Company

Bruce F Perry

Ronald Bosman Visscher

William I Mullane, Jr

William H Goodman, Jr

Gary G Trout

An absorbent article such as a sanitary napkin having an improved topsheet that provides improved skin comfort as well as superior fluid handling characteristics. Such absorbent articles comprise a liquid pervious topsheet, a liquid impervious backsheet, and an absorbent core positioned between the topsheet and the backsheet. The topsheet has a central zone and an outer zone extending laterally outwardly from and contiguous with the central zone. The topsheet comprises an outer portion located substantially in the outer zone and a central portion located substantially in the central zone. The outer portion includes a microapertured polymeric web which exhibits a soft and silky tactile impression. The central portion includes a macroscopically-expanded, apertured formed-film for the transmission of bodily fluids deposited on the topsheet.

Absorbent article with multi-functional topsheet

A polymeric multilayer film having a high percentage of fillers to increase the opacity of the film is disclosed. The fillers are concentrated in a separate filler containing layer having about 20 to about 60 weight percent fillers uniformly dispersed therein and about 30 to about 70 percent of the thickness of the total multilayer film. The filler containing layer is coextruded with the outer layers comprising the balance of the thickness of the multilayer film. The multilayer film has at least 15 weight percent fillers.

Multilayer film exhibiting an opaque appearance

A soft, silky, cloth-like polymeric web exhibiting either patterns of microapertured or microbubbled surface aberrations, said webs further including a contrasting visually discernible pattern which imparts an embossed appearance to at least one surface thereof. Such polymeric webs may be either fluid-pervious or fluid-impervious, as desired, depending upon the particular end use. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the visually discernible pattern comprises a regularly repeating pattern which imparts an improved aesthetic appearance to the webs. Method and apparatus for producing such polymeric webs are also disclosed.

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Cincinnati, OH, United States of America

Bruce F Perry