US Patent No.: 8,622,983 B2
Inventor(s): Todd W. Wilkes, Appleton, WI, US; Lacey L. Poole, Appleton, WI, US; Joseph A. Mlinar, Appleton, WI, US; Marlene R. Dins, Appleton, WI, US; Russell E. Thorson, Appleton, WI, US; and Brian K. Rhodes, Larsen, WI, US
Company: Kimberly-Clark Worldwide, Inc., Neenah, WI, US
Filed: 12/31/09
Issued: 1/7/14

A method to incorporate leg elastic members into pant-like disposable absorbent garments, the method comprising: supplying an elastomeric film laminate first body panel web and an elastomeric film laminate second body panel web, both webs traveling in a machine direction, the first body panel web being spaced from the second body panel web in a cross-machine direction, the elastomeric film laminate first body panel web and the elastomeric film laminate second body panel web each comprising an elastomeric film layer and at least one nonwoven layer; supplying a continuous first leg elastic member and a continuous second leg elastic member, both leg elastic members traveling in the machine direction; attaching the first leg elastic member to the first body panel web and attaching the second leg elastic member to the second body panel web; supplying a continuous leg elastic covering web traveling in the machine direction; and attaching the leg elastic covering web to both the first body panel web and the second body panel web so as to sandwich the first leg elastic member between the first body panel web and the leg elastic covering web and so as to sandwich the second leg elastic member between the second body panel web and the leg elastic covering web, thereby creating a composite web; wherein a cross-machine direction width of the composite web is greater than a cross-machine direction width of the leg elastic covering web.