Tabbed easy sliding interfolded dispenser napkins

Abstract

A stacked dispenser-napkin composition having a plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins; each dispenser napkin being embossed and having a male side of the emboss and a female side of the emboss; each dispenser napkin having a first, second, third, and fourth panel, the four panels being defined by a first fold and a second fold; each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; each dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; the combined areas of each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being greater than the combined areas of the dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels; each dispenser napkin having a tab portion, the tab portion being the portions of the first and second panel areas that are not covered by the third and fourth panel areas when the first and second panels are folded onto the third and fourth panels via the first fold; the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins being arranged within the stack such that the positions of the respective tab portions on adjacent dispenser napkins alternate between two opposing sides of the stack; and the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins being arranged within the stack such that the position of a stacked dispenser napkin's male side of its emboss is in contact with an adjacent dispenser napkin's female side of its emboss.

Claims

1. A stacked dispenser-napkin composition comprising: a plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins; each dispenser napkin being embossed and having a male side of the emboss and a female side of the emboss; each dispenser napkin having a first, second, third, and fourth panel, the four panels being defined by a first fold and a second fold; each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; each dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; the combined areas of each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being greater than the combined areas of the dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels; each dispenser napkin having a tab portion, the tab portion being the portions of the first and second panel areas that are not covered by the third and fourth panel areas when the first and second panels are folded onto the third and fourth panels via the first fold; the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins being arranged within the stack such that the positions of the respective tab portions on adjacent dispenser napkins alternate between two opposing sides of the stack; and the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins being arranged within the stack such that the position of a stacked dispenser napkin's male side of its emboss is in contact with an adjacent dispenser napkin's female side of its emboss.

2. The composition of claim 1, wherein substantially all of the stacked dispenser napkins each have their respective male side of the emboss in contact with an adjacent dispenser napkin's female side of the emboss.

3. The stacked dispenser-napkin composition of claim 1, wherein for each of the stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins, the combined areas of the first and second panels is greater than the combined areas of the third and fourth panels by 2-5%.

4. The stacked dispenser-napkin composition of claim 1, wherein the tab portion of each of the stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins has an area ranging from 2-50% of its respective dispenser napkin.

5. The composition of claim 1, wherein the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins are made with paper having a basis weight of 8.5 to 30 lb/3000 ft.sup.2.

6. The stacked-napkin composition of claim 1, wherein for each of the stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins, the combined areas of each napkin's four panels is approximately 108 inches.sup.2.

7. The stacked-napkin composition of claim 1, wherein each napkin has a first-side width ranging from 5 inches to 20 inches and a second-side length ranging from 6 inches to 24 inches.

8. The stacked-napkin composition of claim 1, wherein each napkin has a first-side width of approximately 8.50 inches and a second-side length of approximately 12.75 inches.

9. The stacked-napkin composition of claim 1, wherein each dispenser napkin has a tab portion that makes up about 2% of the dispenser napkin's area.

10. The stacked-napkin composition of claim 1, wherein each dispenser napkin has a tab portion that makes up about 2-5% of the dispenser napkin's area.

11. The stacked-napkin composition of claim 1, wherein each dispenser napkin has a tab portion that makes up about 5-10% of the dispenser napkin's area.

12. A stacked dispenser-napkin composition comprising: a plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins; each dispenser napkin being embossed and having a male side of the emboss and a female side of the emboss; each dispenser napkin having a first, second, third, and fourth panel, the four panels being defined by a first fold and a second fold; each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; each dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; the combined areas of each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being greater than the combined areas of the dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels; and each dispenser napkin having a tab portion, the tab portion being the portions of the first and second panel areas that are not covered by the third and fourth panel areas when the first and second panels are folded onto the third and fourth panels via the first fold; the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins being arranged within the stack such that the positions of the respective tab portions on adjacent dispenser napkins alternate between two opposing sides of the stack.

13. A stacked dispenser-napkin composition comprising: a plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins; each dispenser napkin being embossed and having a male side of the emboss and a female side of the emboss; each dispenser napkin having a first, second, third, and fourth panel, the four panels being defined by a first fold and a second fold; each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; each dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; the combined areas of each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being greater than the combined areas of the dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels; and the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins being arranged within the stack such that the position of a stacked dispenser napkin's male side of its emboss is in contact with an adjacent dispenser napkin's female side of its emboss.

14. A stacked dispenser-napkin composition comprising: a plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins; each dispenser napkin being embossed and having a male side of the emboss and a female side of the emboss; each dispenser napkin having a first, second, third, and fourth panel, the four panels being defined by a first fold and a second fold; each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; each dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels being adjacent to each other and having respective areas that are substantially equal; the combined areas of each dispenser napkin's first and second panels being greater than the combined areas of the dispenser napkin's third and fourth panels; each dispenser napkin having a tab portion, the tab portion being the portions of the first and second panel areas that are not covered by the third and fourth panel areas when the first and second panels are folded onto the third and fourth panels via the first fold; the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins being arranged within the stack such that the positions of the respective tab portions on adjacent dispenser napkins alternate between two opposing sides of the stack; and the plurality of stacked and interfolded dispenser napkins being arranged within the stack such that the position of a stacked dispenser napkin's female side of its emboss is in contact with an adjacent dispenser napkin's female side of its emboss.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

(1) FIG. 1 shows a side view of two dispenser napkins 10 stacked using the interfolded system 20.

(2) FIG. 2 shows a side-perspective view of two dispenser napkins 10 stacked using the interfolded system 20.

(3) FIG. 3 shows a non-folded napkin 10.

(4) FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of a napkin 10 being folded in a first direction.

(5) FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of a napkin 10 that was folded in a first direction being folded again in a second direction.

(6) FIG. 6-a shows a perspective view of a dispenser napkin 10 that is being front folded so that the tab portion is in the front of the napkin.

(7) FIG. 6-b shows a perspective view of a dispenser napkin 10 that is being rear folded so that the tab portion is in the back of the napkin 10.

(8) FIG. 7 is shows a top view of the dimensions of a folded napkin 10 having a tab portion 80 in the front.

(9) FIG. 8 shows a side view of a prior-art arrangement of stacked dispenser napkins 10 having all of the dispenser-napkin tab portions 80 on the same side of the stack.

(10) FIG. 9 shows a side view of an embodiment.

(11) FIG. 10 shows a side view of an embodiment.

(12) FIG. 11 shows an exploded view of an embodiment.

(13) FIG. 12 shows an unfolded four-panel dispenser napkin 10.

(14) FIG. 13 shows a side view of an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(15) Generally shown are embodiments directed to a stacked dispenser-napkin composition, wherein the dispenser napkins 10 are stacked according to the interfolded system 20 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and wherein the dispenser napkins 10 are both i) embossed, and ii) have tab portions 80. More specifically, embodiments are directed to stacked-napkin compositions that: i) have tab-portion 80 positions on adjacent dispenser napkins 10 that alternate between two opposing sides of the stack as shown in FIGS. 9, 10, and 13; and ii) are arranged such that the male side of the emboss 40 of a dispenser napkin 10 within the stack is in contact with the female side of the emboss 60 of adjacent dispenser napkins 10 as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. In embodiments, an “adjacent dispenser napkin” can also be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art as “the next napkin to be dispensed from the interfolded dispenser-napkin stack.”

(16) In FIGS. 8-11 and 13, a relatively thicker solid line figuratively represents a stacked dispenser napkin's male side of the emboss 40 that is in contact with an adjacent dispenser napkin 10; a relatively thicker dashed line figuratively represents a stacked dispenser napkin's female side of the emboss 60 that is in contact with an adjacent dispenser napkin 10; and a relatively thin solid line at the side of a figure represents a tab portion 80 of a stacked dispenser napkin 10.

(17) Alternate embodiments are directed to stacked dispenser-napkin compositions that: i) have tab-portion 80 positions on adjacent dispenser napkins 10 that alternate between two opposing sides of the stack as shown in FIGS. 9, 10, and 13; and ii) are arranged such that the female side of the emboss 60 of a dispenser napkin 10 within the stack is in contact with the female side of the emboss 60 of an adjacent dispenser napkin 10 as shown in FIG. 13.

(18) FIG. 9 shows a side view of a stacked dispenser-napkin embodiment wherein the tab-portion 80 positions on adjacent dispenser napkins 10 alternate between two opposing sides of the stack; and each napkin's male side of the emboss 40 is in contact with the male side of the emboss 40 of an adjacent dispenser napkin 10 within the stack.

(19) FIG. 10 shows a side view of a stacked dispenser-napkin embodiment wherein the tab-portion 80 positions on adjacent dispenser napkins 10 alternate between two opposing sides of the stack; and each napkin's male side of the emboss 40 is in contact with the female side of the emboss 60 of an adjacent dispenser napkin 10 within the stack.

(20) FIG. 11 shows an exploded view of two adjacent dispenser napkins 10 within a stack, wherein one dispenser napkin's female side of its emboss 60 is in contact with an adjacent dispenser napkin's male side of its emboss 40.

(21) FIG. 12 shows a dispenser-napkin embodiment that can be used in the stacked dispenser-napkin embodiments. “L” represents the dispenser napkin's length; “W” represents the dispenser napkins width; the dispenser napkin 10 has four panels respectively identified as panels 1, 2, 3, and 4; and the width of panels 1 and 3 are respectively depicted as 1 and 3.

(22) FIG. 13 shows a side view of a stacked dispenser-napkin embodiment wherein the tab-portion 80 positions on adjacent dispenser napkins 10 alternate between two opposing sides of the stack; and each napkin's female side of the emboss 60 is in contact with the female side of the emboss 60 of adjacent dispenser napkins 10 within the stack.

(23) Stacked-napkin embodiments can have any number of dispenser napkins within the stack. As a non-limiting example, a stacked-napkin embodiment has 500 dispenser napkins within the stack. In another non-limiting example, a stacked-napkin embodiment has 1000 dispenser napkins within the stack.

(24) Stacked-napkin embodiments are stacked according to the interfolded arrangement shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

(25) Stacked-napkin embodiments have four-panel dispenser napkins with tab portions. A folding method for manufacturing a four-panel napkin with tab portions is well known to someone of ordinary skill in the art and can be determined without exercising undue experimentation. FIGS. 3-7 show folding techniques that can be used to manufacture four-panel dispenser napkins 10 with tab portions 80. In an embodiment, the area of a stacked dispenser napkin's tab portion makes up about 2-5% of the dispenser napkin's total area. In other embodiments, the area of a stacked dispenser napkin's tab portion makes up about 5-10% of the dispenser napkin's total area. In still other embodiments, the area of a stacked dispenser napkin's tab portion makes up about 5-20% of the dispenser napkin's total area. Furthermore, in additional embodiments, a stacked dispenser napkin's tab-portion area makes up about 2-50% of a dispenser napkin's total area.

(26) In at least some dispenser-napkin stack embodiments, and as shown in FIG. 12, each napkin's dispenser-napkin panels 1 and 2 have respective areas that are equal to each other, while at the same time, dispenser-napkin panels 3 and 4 have respective areas that are equal to each other; furthermore as shown in FIG. 12, each of the respective areas of dispenser-napkin panels 1 and 2 are greater than the respective areas of dispenser-napkin panels 3 and 4. In embodiments, the combined areas of panels 1 and 2 is greater than the combined areas of panels 3 and 4 by 2-5%. In embodiments, each of the stacked dispenser napkins have an area of approximately 108 inches. In embodiments, each of the stacked dispenser napkins have a first-side width ranging from approximately 5 inches to 20 inches and a second-side length ranging from approximately 6 inches to 24 inches. In embodiments, each of the stacked dispenser napkins have a first-side width of approximately 8.50 inches and a second-side length of approximately 12.75 inches.

(27) In other dispenser-napkin stack embodiments, the four dispenser-napkin panels respectively have four different areas.

(28) Stacked-napkin embodiments have alternating tab 80 positions within the stack as shown in FIGS. 9, 10, and 13.

(29) Stacked dispenser-napkin embodiments are arranged such that the male side of the emboss 40 of a napkin 10 within the stack is in contact with the female side of the emboss 60 arrangement of adjacent dispenser napkins 10, or vice versa, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. In an embodiment, at least two dispenser napkins are arranged in this manner within the stack, and in other embodiments, substantially all of the dispenser napkins are arranged in this manner.

(30) In other embodiments, dispenser-napkin embodiments are arranged such that the male side of the emboss 40 of a napkin 10 within the stack is in contact with the male side of the emboss 40 arrangement of adjacent dispenser napkins 10 as shown in FIG. 9. In an embodiment, at least two dispenser napkins are arranged in this manner within the stack, and in other embodiments, substantially all of the dispenser napkins are arranged in this manner within the stack.

(31) In other embodiments, dispenser-napkin embodiments are arranged such that the female side of the emboss 60 of a napkin 10 within the stack is in contact with the female side of the emboss 60 arrangement of adjacent dispenser napkins 10 as shown in FIG. 13. In an embodiment, at least two dispenser napkins are arranged in this manner within the stack, and in other embodiments, substantially all of the dispenser napkins are arranged in this manner.

(32) Stacked dispenser-napkin embodiments have dispenser napkins that have any known length, width, or area.

(33) Stacked dispenser-napkin embodiments have paper dispenser napkins or dispenser napkins manufactured from any other known material for making dispenser napkins. In embodiments, the stacked dispenser napkins are made with paper having a basis weight of 8.5-30 lb/3000 ft.sup.2.

(34) In embodiments, dispenser towels can be stacked in the same manner as any of the stacked dispenser-napkin embodiments taught herein.

(35) All described embodiments can be employed alone or in combination with one or more described embodiments. Persons of ordinary skill in the art can stack the dispenser napkins as described above without having to exercise undue experimentation.