Diaper with split puff bonded facing

Claim 1

A multi-layer diaper comprising: a water-repellent backing member; an absorbent batt positioned on one face of said backing member; and a facing layer in juxtaposed relationship with respect to said batt and said backing member, said facing layer comprising a non-woven fibrous web including a randomly arranged, binder-stabilized, cellular, fibrous structure, said structure including chambers within the interior portion of the web surrounded by fiber strata more dense than the density within said chambers, and a binder interconnecting the fibers of said web, said binder being provided in sufficient quantity to prevent said fiber strata from collapsing, there being a density gradient between the opposite faces of said fibrous structure, the structure being more dense at one face than at the opposite face and having smaller chambers at one face than at the opposite face.

Claim 12

The method of making a diaper comprising the steps of impregnating a nonwoven web of discrete fibers with a volatile liquid containing a binder capable of stabilizing said fibers as an interconnected web, rapidly vaporizing said volatile liquid by applying heat substantially to an internal portion of said impregnated web at a rate sufficient to cause expanding vaporized liquid to form liquid membranes within said web and to exert expensive forces on said liquid membranes between said fibers and to thereby separate portions of mid web and produce a puffed web portion, setting the binder material while said fibers are in the puffed condition to secure said fibers to one another at interconnections therebetween and thereby to produce a stabilized puffed web with a structure including chambers within the interior of the web surrounded by more dense fiber strata; and thereafter splitting said web into at least two thickness portions, bringing one face of one of said thickness portions into face to face contact with one face of an absorbent batt with areas of said thickness portion overlapping the edges of said batt, bringing an opposite face of said batt and said overlapping areas of said thickness portion into contact with an impervious flexible layer, and adhering said impervious flexible layer to said opposite face of said batt and to said overlapping areas of said thickness portion.

Claim 13

The method of making a diaper comprising the steps of impregnating a nonwoven web of discrete fibers with a volatile liquid containing a binder capable of stabilizing said fibers as an interconnected web, rapidly vaporizing said volatile liquid by applying heat substantially to an internal portion of said impregnated web at a rate sufficient to cause expanding vaporized liquid to form liquid membranes within said web and to exert expensive forces on said liquid membranes between said fibers and to thereby separate portions of mid web and produce a puffed web portion, setting the binder material while said fibers are in the puffed condition to secure said fibers to one another at interconnections therebetween and thereby to produce a stabilized puffed web with a structure including chambers within the interior of the web surrounded by more dense fiber strata; and thereafter splitting said web into at least two thickness portions, bringing one face of one of said thickness portions into face to face contact with one face of an absorbent batt with areas of said thickness portion overlapping the edges of said batt, bringing an opposite face of said batt and said overlapping areas of said thickness portion into contact with an impervious flexible layer, and adhering said impervious flexible layer to said opposite face of said batt and to said overlapping areas of said thickness portion.