Donald Carroll Roe, West Chester, OH; and Michael Dale Trennepohl, Cincinnati, OH. Assigned to The Procter & Gamble Company, Cincinnati, OH.
Filed: 6/29/11
Issued: 1/26/16
An absorbent article comprising: a rear waist portion; a front waist portion opposite the rear waist portion; a crotch portion longitudinally connecting the rear waist portion and the front waist portion, wherein each of the rear waist portion and the front waist portion comprise a central zone centered around a longitudinal centerline, a first outboard zone, and a second outboard zone opposite the first outboard zone, wherein each of the first outboard zone and the second outboard zone extend laterally outboard from the central zone; a first rear ear extending laterally outboard from the central zone, wherein a lateral width of the first rear ear corresponds to the first outboard zone; a second rear ear extending laterally outboard from the central zone and opposite the first rear ear, wherein a lateral width of the second rear ear corresponds to the second outboard zone; a waistband disposed in the rear waist portion, wherein the waistband extends from the first outboard zone, across the central zone, and into the second outboard zone, wherein a first portion of the waistband is disposed on the first rear ear and a second portion of the waistband is disposed on the second rear ear, and a third portion of the waistband is disposed on the central zone; wherein a third lateral width of the third portion of the waistband disposed in the central zone corresponds to a narrowest width of the absorbent article across the crotch portion; wherein the first portion of the waistband disposed in the first outboard zone has a first lateral width that corresponds to the lateral width of the first rear ear and the second portion of the waistband disposed in the second outboard zone has a second lateral width that corresponds to the lateral width of the second rear ear; wherein each of the first lateral width and the second lateral width is less than the third lateral width; wherein the third portion of the waistband, the second portion of the waistband, and the first portion of the waistband each has an applied elongation, and the applied elongation of the third portion is greater than the applied elongation of at least one of the first portion and the second portion.