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Methods for laundering delicate garments in a washing machineRelated Patent Categories: Bleaching And Dyeing; Fluid Treatment And Chemical Modification Of Textiles And Fibers, Fluid Treatment (manipulative), Manipulation Of Liquid, Agitating Immersed Material And LiquidMethods for laundering delicate garments in a washing machine description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070118998, Methods for laundering delicate garments in a washing machine. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/107,586, filed Mar. 27, 2002; which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/648,219, filed Aug. 25, 2000; which is a continuation-in-part of PCT application PCT/US00/27005, filed Sep. 29, 2000; which is a continuation-in-part of PCT applications PCT/US99/24937 and PCT/US99/24938, both filed Oct. 22, 1999; which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Nos. 60/105,539, filed Oct. 24, 1998; and 60/157,082 and 60/157,399, both filed Oct. 1, 1999. TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] The present invention relates to products and processes for laundering delicate or dry-clean only garments in a washing machine. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] By definition, the term "dry cleaning" has been used to describe processes for cleaning textiles using non-aqueous solvents. Dry cleaning is an old art with solvent cleaning first being recorded in the United Kingdom in the 1860s. Typically, dry cleaning processes are used with delicate fabrics such as wool and silk which are subject to shrinkage in aqueous laundering baths, or which are judged to be too valuable or delicate to be subjected to aqueous laundering processes. Such garments usually have a tag affixed to them either identifying the garment as "dry clean only" or providing some other appropriate laundering tocsin. For the last fifty years, the most widely-used non-aqueous solvent of choice for commercial dry-cleaning has been perchloroethylene. [0004] While perchloroethylene is superior to the non-aqueous solvents that it replaced, it has several disadvantages. In particular perchloroethylene has been identified as a hazardous air pollutant by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and has been long associated with nervous-system and kidney disorders among industrial workers. In 1995, the Environmental Protection Agency classified perchloroethylene as a "probable human carcinogen." Perchloroethylene's potential carcinogenic effects are not limited solely to industrial workers or those who operate perchloroethylene-based dry clean processes: a recent study of commercial dry cleaners in New York revealed that many of these cleaners used such high amounts of perchloroethylene to clean garments, that customers who wore freshly dry-cleaned garments could inhale enough perchloroethylene to incur a slightly increased risk of cancer. As a consequence of the hazardous nature of perchloroethylene, dry cleaning processes utilizing perchloroethylene must be done at commercial establishments. Not only is this both inconvenient and expensive, but it can expose delicate and often expensive garments to dry-cleaning processes of inconsistent quality and garment care. Many consumers who have taken their goods to a commercial dry-cleaner have reported them being damaged either by excessive shrinking, discoloration or tearing. The use of perchloroethylene in commercial dry-cleaning establishments also tends to leave a "chemical" smell on clothing that consumers find unsatisfactory. [0005] Moreover, while solvent-based dry cleaning processes are quite effective for removing oily soils and stains, they are not optimal for removing particulates such as clay soils, and may require special treatment conditions to remove proteinaceous stains. [0006] Given the foregoing, there is a continuing need for a method or process that provides excellent cleaning benefits on a variety of stains and soiling conditions and imparts a "fresh" and "clean" scent to delicate or dry-clean only goods without the use of hazardous or harmful chemicals and which provides excellent cleaning benefits on a variety of stains and soiling conditions. Accordingly, it is a feature of the present invention to provide a process for cleaning delicate or dry-clean only garments that uses non-toxic and non-hazardous chemicals to provide superior cleaning benefits on a wide variety of soils and stains. Such a method or process should also be relatively convenient and inexpensive and be without the possible garment damage and adverse "chemical" scent that is sometimes the result of commercial dry-cleaning. [0007] Ideally, particulates and proteinaceous stains, as well as oily soils and stains, are removed from fabrics using detersive ingredients and under operating conditions which are more akin to aqueous laundering processes than to conventional dry cleaning. Such aqueous laundry processes also consistently impart a "freshness" or "clean" scent to fabric, rather than the "chemical" smell that is often found when perchloroethylene or other non-aqueous solvents are used. [0008] Perhaps the most widely practiced aqueous laundering process is that which the consumer performs when she or he immerses a garment into an aqueous laundry detergent solution in a conventional home washing machine. Such a process has long been shown to provide excellent performance for both stain removal and overall garment cleaning and can be performed without using hazardous or toxic chemicals. Moreover, the use of an aqueous laundering process in a conventional washing machine is considerably more convenient and inexpensive than virtually any other laundering method. [0009] Nonetheless, such processes can produce unacceptable results when applied to a broad range of delicate or dry-clean only garments, such as those made from wool. Wool, is made up of fibers which can interlock with one another by a series of "scales". Generally, these interlocking scales cannot move past one another and as a result wool is a relatively strong textile. However, when wool becomes wet or moistened, the fibers move together, and the wool garment shrinks. This shrinkage cannot be undone because these "scales" can only move past one another in a preferred direction. Sufficient force cannot be exerted to move them in the direction opposite to the preferred direction to undo the shrinkage. Thus when the wool garment is removed from the aqueous laundry process, shrinkage has occurred and the garment is irreversibly damaged. Similarly, rayon, when saturated with water, becomes extremely weak and the subsequent agitation and abrasion that it experiences in a typical aqueous laundry process is likely not only to cause severe damage to the garment but also to leave it extremely wrinkled. Similarly, delicate fabrics like silk will not only be severely wrinkled but also may lose their desirable soft feel. [0010] Garments such as silks are also vulnerable not only to the mechanical agitation of a conventional washing machine but are also particularly vulnerable to the typical laundry detergents because such detergents may contain ingredients that are too harsh for such delicate fabrics. It is thus desirable to provide an aqueous laundering process adapted for use in a conventional washing machine that is not harmful to garments made from fabrics such as wool, leather, suede, rayon, silk, acrylics, triacetates, fine cottons and blends of these aforementioned materials. [0011] Therefore, a need exists for a process for laundering delicate or dry-clean only garments in a washing machine without the deleterious consequences described above. A need also exists for a convenient, inexpensive, and efficacious way to clean delicate and dry-clean only garments in the home. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0012] The present invention solves the long-standing need for an inexpensive and convenient process of cleaning dry-clean only and other delicate garments in an aqueous laundering process, such as a conventional home washing machine. Processes (or systems) and kits for performing these processes have been found by which delicate and dry-clean only garments can be cleaned and freshened in an aqueous laundering process without damaging the garments. The processes of the present invention are intended to provide at least equivalent cleaning of garments when compared to a commercial dry-cleaning establishment using perchloroethylene but without the use of hazardous chemicals or the deposition of chemical malodors on the garments. [0013] The system uses cleaning compositions which are modified to be mild on delicate garments. In addition, in one non-limiting embodiment, the system uses a garment container which is preferably in the form of a flexible, pervious wrap. When a garment is secured within this container, the garment is buffered and cushioned from the force and stress caused by the washing machine agitator. The garment container also helps to minimize shrinkage of the garment. Without wishing to be bound to any particular theory, it is believed that garment shrinkage is minimized because the wrap maintains the garments in an unbunched condition, which can be thought of conceptually maintaining tension on the garments. The present invention may also utilize a wash pretreatment applicator which is used to distribute or spread a wash pretreatment composition across the surface of a stain. Several non-limiting examples of the various components of this system will now be described generally. [0014] The cleaning compositions (e.g., detergent compositions), as discussed above, are modified to be mild on delicate garments. The cleaning compositions can be used for various purposes in the system, and can be used at different stages of the washing process. The purposes for the cleaning compositions, and the stages at which they are introduced include, but are not limited to as: a pretreatment step, including, but not limited to for treatment of stains; during the wash cycle as a main wash composition; and as a conditioner, such as a rinse cycle conditioner. The cleaning compositions can be introduced into the system individually, or in any suitable combinations. Suitable combinations include, but are not limited to: a combination in which the same composition is used for pretreatment and for cleaning in the main wash, with or without a separate conditioner; and, a separate pretreatment composition and a combination wash/conditioner composition. [0015] The cleaning compositions may be in any suitable form, such as in the form of a liquid, a gel, a foam or mousse, a viscous liquid, a dry or wet impregnated sheet, or in less preferred embodiments, a powder. The cleaning compositions can be introduced into the washing process in any suitable manner. The following are some non-limiting manners in which the cleaning compositions can be introduced into the washing process. In one embodiment, the cleaning composition can be poured into the washing machine in the same manner as conventional detergents. In other embodiments, the compositions can be applied to the garments to be cleaned. The compositions can be applied directly to the garments to be cleaned, or indirectly to the garments, such as applying the compositions to another article that comes into close proximity or contact with the garments. For example, in one embodiment, the composition can be applied to an article, such as a dosing pad, which is placed inside of the flexible wrap container, and the flexible wrap container with the article inside can be placed in the washing machine together. There are a non-limiting number of variations of these embodiments. For example, the composition can be applied to a dosing pad, and the dosing pad can either be part of the flexible wrap container, or be placed in the flexible wrap container with the garments to be cleaned. [0016] In one non-limiting embodiment of the system, a first composition, preferably a detergent composition, is used to pre-treat stains and to enhance cleaning efficacy on stains. The system may provide an applicator and, optionally a special stain-absorbent pad which the consumer may use to pretreat a stain before the garment is placed in the washing machine. In addition, the system makes use of a second composition, preferably a detergent composition which is a combination of both a cleaning composition and a conditioner to improve color fidelity, provide anti-wrinkling benefits and reduce fabric abrasion as well as providing other fabric care benefits. In one embodiment of such a system, the pretreatment composition comprises an anionic surfactant, a nonionic surfactant, and a solvatrope for improving the stability of the pretreatment composition under freezing/thawing conditions. The combination washing/conditioning composition in this embodiment comprises an anionic surfactant, a quaternary ammonium surfactant, a silicone softening agent, and optionally an emulsifier. Preferably, the anionic surfactant to quaternary ammonium surfactant weight ratio is from about 2:1 to about 6:1. [0017] The garment container, such as the flexible wrap container is designed to contain and protect delicate or dry-clean only clothes from being subjected to the agitation action of a washing machine. In one non-limiting embodiment, the basic part of the flexible wrap container is a flexible rectangular panel constructed of an open weave material, such as polyester or nylon material, either of which may be coated, such as with an acrylic coating. The garment container preferably resists shrinkage of the garments contained therein such that the garments have a shrinkage ratio (% dimensional change) of less than or equal to about 15% (e.g., between about 0% and about 15%) over five wash cycles. The garment container preferably has a wetting effectiveness of the garments contained therein of between about 90% and about 100%, more preferably at least about 95%, and most preferably 100%. [0018] In a preferred embodiment, the flexible wrap container additionally comprises a first and second flap attached along the right edge of the panel and along the left edge of the panel, respectively. The flaps may overlap each other to provide increased garment containment during use. The flexible wrap container may be provided with closure devices, such as one or more straps. If straps are provided, each strap is preferably equipped with a pair of fasteners. When the wrap is folded up according to the directions of use, the strap or straps may be tightened around the wrap and one or more fasteners engaged to hold the strap or straps in place so that the bag is secured and will not open up under normal agitation conditions. Other preferred flexible wrap containers are provided with a tapering top portion to which is attached at least one of the previously described straps to further aid in containment of the garment. In a version of these embodiments, optionally at least two and preferably four snaps are located near the edge of one of the panel's sides or ends. These snaps may be used for attaching the flexible wrap container to another identical flexible wrap container to increase the capacity of the flexible wrap container, or to permit larger size garments to be placed therein. [0019] The wash pretreatment applicator can be of any suitable configuration. Several preferred wash pretreatment applicators are disclosed. In one non-limiting embodiment, the wash pretreatment applicator is a substantially cylindrical tube having a closed end portion with numerous bristles adapted to fit on a wearer's finger and apply a cleaning composition to a stain covering a localized area of a delicate or dry-clean only garment. In another non-limiting embodiment, the wash pretreatment applicator comprises a pressure operated applicator. The pressure operated applicator preferably comprises a dabbing-type applicator comprising an applicator pad, a valve, and a container for the wash pretreatment composition. In a preferred version of this embodiment, the applicator pad is a novel structure comprising multiple layers of a net material. [0020] The present invention also provides a kit for laundering delicate or dry-clean only garments in a washing machine, such as a conventional home washing machine. The kit comes with a flexible wrap container, one or more cleaning compositions, and instructions for using the container to launder garments in a washing machine. The process of the present invention can also be used in other types of washing machines, including commercial washing machines. The instructions provided are enclosed with or on a container enclosing the kit. Continue reading about Methods for laundering delicate garments in a washing machine... 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