Absorbent article

摘要

An absorbent pad 1 such as an incontinence pad consists of a liquid-impermeable backing sheet 3 on which islands 4 of absorbent material are arranged at a distance from each other. A liquid-permeable cover sheet 7 has pockets 5 in which the islands 4 of absorbent material are arranged. The cover sheet is secured, either by adhesive bonding or by heat-sealing, directly to the liquid- impermeable backing sheet 3 along lines which separate the islands of absorbent material and the pockets which contain them. The pad is formed by arranging a band of cover sheet material on a rotating multi-perforated drum and by forming pockets in the cover sheet, either mechanically or by drawing hot air in through the holes in the drum in the case of thermally deformable material such as polypropylene fibres. The drum then rotates past a pocket-filling station where absorbent material such as cellulose fluff is drawn into the pockets by vacuum from inside the drum. The backing sheet is then laid on the assembly of cover sheet and absorbent material and is firmly bonded on lines of cover sheet material between the pockets which are free from absorbent material and lie over the bridges which separate the holes through the drum. The whole arrangement is then removed from the drum and cut to size. <IMAGE>