US 11,686,049 B2
Methods of making soft absorbent sheets and absorbent sheets made by such methods
Daniel Hue Ming Sze, Appleton, WI (US); Xiaolin Fan, Appleton, WI (US); Hung-Liang Chou, Neenah, WI (US); Taiye Philips Oriaran, Appleton, WI (US); Farminder Singh Anand, Appleton, WI (US); Dean Joseph Baumgartner, Bonduel, WI (US); and Joseph Henry Miller, Neenah, WI (US)
Assigned to GPCP IP Holdings LLC, Atlanta, GA (US)
Filed by GPCP IP Holdings LLC, Atlanta, GA (US)
Filed on Feb. 23, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/182,752.
Application 16/051,828 is a division of application No. 15/371,773, filed on Dec. 7, 2016, granted, now 10,138,601, issued on Nov. 27, 2018.
Application 17/182,752 is a continuation of application No. 16/051,828, filed on Aug. 1, 2018, granted, now 10,934,665.
Application 15/371,773 is a continuation in part of application No. 15/175,949, filed on Jun. 7, 2016, granted, now 9,963,831, issued on May 8, 2018.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/172,659, filed on Jun. 8, 2015.
Prior Publication US 2021/0172122 A1, Jun. 10, 2021
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. D21F 7/12 (2006.01); D21H 27/00 (2006.01); D21F 11/00 (2006.01); D21F 11/14 (2006.01); D21H 11/00 (2006.01); D21F 7/08 (2006.01)
CPC D21H 27/005 (2013.01) [D21F 7/08 (2013.01); D21F 7/12 (2013.01); D21F 11/006 (2013.01); D21F 11/14 (2013.01); D21H 11/00 (2013.01); D21H 27/002 (2013.01)] 25 Claims
 
1. A method of making a fabric-creped absorbent cellulosic sheet, the method comprising:
compactively dewatering a papermaking furnish to form a web of cellulosic fibers;
creping the web under pressure in a creping nip defined between a transfer surface and a structuring fabric, the structuring fabric including (i) knuckles formed on warp yarns of the structuring fabric and (ii) pocket regions formed between the knuckles, with the knuckles being positioned along lines that are angled relative to a machine direction (MD) of travel of the fabric, wherein the angle of the lines relative to the machine direction is between 100 and 30°; and
drying the web to form the absorbent cellulosic sheet, wherein the absorbent cellulosic sheet includes a plurality of projected regions projecting from the absorbent sheet, the projected regions being formed in folds that are curved relative to a machine direction of the absorbent sheet, with ends of the curved folds being positioned on opposite sides of the projected regions such that one of the ends of each of the curved folds is positioned downstream from other ends of the curved folds in the machine direction of the absorbent cellulosic sheet, and
wherein, in the absorbent cellulosic sheet, apexes of the curved folds are positioned downstream in the machine direction of the absorbent cellulosic sheet, connecting regions connect the projected regions of the absorbent cellulosic sheet, and each of the projected regions includes a plurality of the curved folds.