U.S. Patent No.: 8,217,217 B2 

Inventor(s): Joseph Raymond Diehl, Hamilton, Ohio, U.S.; Donald Carroll Roe, West Chester, Ohio, U.S.; and Patrick Jay Allen, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. 

Company: The Procter & Gamble Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.

Issued: 7/10/12

Description:
A patent was issued for a disposable absorbent article or receiving and containing bodily exudates including urine from a wearer, the disposable absorbent article comprising; an outer cover adapted to fit about a portion of the wearer; a fluid permeable topsheet onto and through which the urine is received; an absorbent structure disposed adjacent at least a portion of the outer cover; and a dehydration indicator adapted to measure a urine ionic strength correlated to a specific gravity of the wearer’s urine and provide a visible signal when the urine ionic strength reaches a value corresponding to a predetermined threshold of the specific gravity, the dehydration indicator comprising a chemical indicating composition providing a visible signal indicative of a level of dehydration in response to an ionic strength of urine exuded into the disposable absorbent article by a wearer, wherein the chemical indicating composition is covered on a wearer-facing surface by a semipermeable membrane formed of cellulose acetate, cellulose diacetate, cellulose triacetate, agar acetate, beta glucan acetate, polymeric epoxides, semipermeable polyurethanes, or semipermeable polyglycolic acid.