Kimberly-clark Worldwide, Inc.

David Michael Matela

Tamara Lee Mace

Michael Allen Daley

Michael Tod Morman

Lawrence Howell Sawyer

Yvette Lynn Hammonds

Prasad Shrikrishna Potnis

Nancy Donaldson Kollin

Randall James Palmer

Laura Jane Walker

Gregory Marc Lefkowitz

David Martin Jackson

Eugenio Go Varona

Sylvia Bandy Little

Arthur Edward Garavaglia

Jaime Braverman

David Charles Potts

Margaret Gwyn Latimer

Rebecca Lyn Dilnik

Gregory Todd Sudduth

Sjon-Paul Lee Conyer

Bruce Wilfuhr Achter

Ann Marie Giencke

Peiguang Zhou

Cristian M Neculescu

Heather Anne Sorebo

Susan Elaine Shawver

George Ikuya Nukuto

Kevin Peter McGrath

Joseph DiPalma

Michael Donald Sperl

Kuo-Shu Edward Chang

Alice Susan Gordon

James Russell Fitts, Jr

Charles John Morell

Charles Wilson Colman

Alan Edward Wright

MeeWha Lee

Valerie Victoria Finch

Ronald Lee Edens

Connie Lynn Hetzler

Wanda Walton Jackson

Bryon Paul Day

Michael William Veith

Allan James Krueger

Andrew Michael Lake

Matthew Boyd Lake

Rodney Lawrence Abba

Jayne B Nelson

Jeffrey Michael Willis

Thomas William VanDenBogart

Andrew Scott Burnes

Leslie Warren Collier, Iv

Roland Columbus Smith, Jr

Karen Lynn English

Amy Michele Achter

Dmitry Yavich

Janice G Nielsen

Monica Graciela Varriale

Hristo Angelov Hristov

Thomas Patrick Jorgenson

Kristin Ann Goerg-Wood

Reginald Smith

Raymond Jeffrey May

Timothy James Peters

Peter Robert Elliker

Barbara Jean Burns

Alexander M Schmidt-Foerst

Robert A Drew

Laura Braunecker

Alexander Schmidt-Foerst

Cynthia Marie Phillips

Monica Lynn Bontrager

Ward Elwood, Jr

Anthony N Fedel

Michael Brent Kottek

Charles John Chappell

Bernard J Bangert

Ann Margaret Vanevenhoven

Gregory Tod Sudduth

Rasha Wafik Zaki Guirguis

Sharon Rymer

Kevin Wilson Wood

James Allyn Spiers

Sarah Elizabeth Long-Radloff

Todd Gregory Sudduth

A disposable air filter that includes: (a) air filtration media; (b) a substantially planar air filter frame providing three-dimensional support for the air filtration media; and (c) an inter-filter gap filler disposed along substantially the entire length of at least one side of an opposed pair of the first or second sides and integrated into the air filter frame is disclosed. The integral inter-filter gap filler reduces gaps between adjacent air filters disposed in a filter track of an air filter bank.

Air filter with integral inter-filter gap filler

An elastomeric film includes a first layer co-extruded with a second layer. The first layer includes a single-site catalyzed ethylene-alpha olefin copolymer having a density of about 0.860 to about 0.900 grams per centimeter. The second layer includes a styrene copolymer selected from styrene-butadiene-styrene, styrene-isoprene-styrene, styrene-ethylene/butylene-styrene, styrene-ethylene/propylene-styrene, or styrene-(ethylene/propylene)-styrene-(ethylene/propylene). The first layer may optionally include filler particles. An extensible laminate including the elastomeric film is also disclosed.

Elastomeric film and laminates thereof

Stretchable film laminates including a layer of elastomeric openwork, such as a plurality of elastic strands or an elastomeric mesh structure. The stretchable film laminates may include a film layer bonded to the layer of elastomeric openwork, with the film layer having cross-directional stretch and the laminate having a multi-phase stretchability profile. The stretchable film laminates may be made by extruding a film from a die, stretching the film, forming and stretching a layer of elastomeric openwork, conveying the stretched elastomeric openwork onto the film while the film is stretched, and passing the film and the elastomeric openwork through a nip. The invention also includes a machine capable of producing machine-direction, cross-direction, and biaxial stretch materials. The machine includes at least one extruder, at least one filament die and at least one film die both attached to the extruder(s), and at least one nip downstream of the extruder(s).

Stretchable film laminates and methods and apparatus for making stretchable film laminates

An extensible laminate having improved set and hysteresis is disclosed. The extensible laminate includes an extensible nonwoven web laminated to an elastomeric sheet that have been mechanically stretched in the cross direction after lamination. A method for making the extensible laminate includes laminating an extensible nonwoven web to an elastomeric sheet to form a laminate and mechanically stretching the laminate in a cross direction by at least about 50 percent.

Extensible laminate having improved stretch properties and method for making same

There is provided a resilient, three dimensional material having fibrous texture and appearance and capable of fluid handling. It consists of a top surface and a bottom surface wherein fiber-like elements typically extend from one surface to the other forming flat to undulating surfaces characterized by a multiplicity of interconnected fluid passageways. Deformed, discontinuous film-like or encapsulated regions connect fiber-like elements and stabilize the material. The material of this invention is unique based on the three principle characteristics which are communicated in this application: 1) f(&#x3c8;)&#x3c;0.87, 2) SA/VV&#x3c;186 cm/cm, and 3) caliper&#x3c;0.150 inches. This material is useful for a number of purposes, such as for use as a liner for personal care products like diapers, absorbent underpants, swim wear, feminine hygiene products, adult incontinence products and the like. The properties of the material may be tailored within the ranges of this invention to deliver optimal material performance for use in specific personal care products.

Creped materials

There is provided an absorbent system that not only takes in fluid, but then transfers that fluid further beneath the first composite. This is achieved in this invention through paired permeability, capillarity, and void volume of the first and second composites. The invention is an absorbent system composed of at least two absorbent composites that have complementary structural/surface energy characteristics. Such an absorbent system has a first absorbent Composite A which has a first permeability, a first capillarity, and a first void volume and at least one second absorbent Composite B which has a second capillarity and a second porosity multiplied by second thickness. The first absorbent Composite A is in liquid communication or contact with at least one second absorbent Composite B, such that the first absorbent Composite A, and the second absorbent Composite B have a fluid partitioning amount in Composite A, a third triple intake time (IT3) and a rewet value.

Personal care products having reduced leakage

There is provided an intake/retention/transfer material for personal care products like feminine hygiene products, which is a heterogeneous composite containing between 5 and 25 weight percent of a superabsorbent or gelling material and having a density less than 0.17 g/cc. A more particular embodiment contains less than 20 weight percent and a still more particular embodiment contains 15 weight percent or less of a superabsorbent or gelling material. Also provided are absorbent articles which contain the class of intake/transfer materials mentioned above along with additional absorbent layers such that the absorption of a menses simulant provides fluid partitioning of less than 72% of fluid in the intake/transfer/retention composite. Additionally said composite should have retention capacity values greater than 2.7 g/g.

Personal care product with fluid partitioning

A personal care absorbent article having a fluid intake/distribution layer, a fluid transfer delay layer disposed beneath said fluid intake/distribution layer, said fluid transfer delay layer enabling the transfer of fluid from the fluid intake/distribution layer(s) to a pad layer disposed beneath the fluid transfer delay layer while still allowing fluid distribution by the fluid intake/distribution layer along the machine direction of the article resulting in saturation levels of less than or equal to about 0.86 g/g/in of fluid in the intake/distribution layer(s) and/or essentially equal to or greater than 0.06 g/g/in. of fluid in the pad layer.

Transfer delay for increased access fluff capacity

There is provided a fluid management material for personal care products which distributes artificial menses according to the gush/distribution test taught herein such that it has a distribution ratio of at least about 0.06. Its preferred that the fluid management material be part of an absorbent materials system having a first fibrous layer, a middle layer adjacent the first layer having hydrophilic oriented surface fibers, and a second fibrous layer adjacent the middle layer. In a personal care product configuration the oriented surface fibers result in a distribution ratio of at least 0.06 where the distribution ratio is a ratio of average of the mass of two end zones of a product divided by the mass of the center zone.

Materials for fluid management in personal care products

Stabilized absorbent material and systems for personal care products having controlled placement of visco-elastic fluids

There is provided an intake/distribution layer for personal care products which is a co-apertured distribution layer and a transfer delay layer between them. The co-apertured distribution and transfer delay layer can serve to store liquid and release it to an absorbent core in a personal care product at a rate at which the core can absorb. This ability to accept irregular and large flow rates makes the layer of this invention particularly well suited for &ldquo;gush&rdquo; management. The distribution layer is preferably an airlaid fabric and the transfer delay layer is preferably a spunbond fabric and they are co-apertured using a pin density of preferably about 2.5 pins/cm .

Intake/distribution material for personal care products

Sanitary pad for variable flow management

Growing community of inventors

Alpharetta, GA, United States of America

David Michael Matela