PTE 308 WEAVING MECHANISM Introduction Fabric construction depends on the arrangement of yam or fibres within a fabric. When yarns are crossed over and under each other such arrangement is called interlacing. If the yarns are interlaced at right angle to each other a woven fabric is formed. Weaving therefore is a process of interlacing of yarns at right angle to each other to form a fabri .. Two set of yarns are usually required — the warp (ends) and the welt (filling) yarns. Weaving can then bé said to be the interlacing of the warp andl wept yarns at right angle of each, other to form a fabri ' “The warp yarns run length wise in the fabric parallel to the fabric selvedge while the well yarn run cross wise inthe fabri n every woven fabric, the warp and weft yarn are interlaced at right angle to each other. However, the pattern of the interlacing may differ, The different interlacing pattern give rise to about eleven types of woven fabr 5 — plain-woven, (will, satin, leno, erepe woven, dobby, jacquard, - pique, surface-figure, pile woven and double-woven, Drawing - In _— Warp yarns are usually sized before they are used for weaving in order for the yarn to withstand the tension and abrasion in the loom (weaving machine). After sizing and drying, warp yarns are wound on a beam known as weavers beam so that a continuous length of fabric can be woven. ‘The weavers beam is mounted on the uot and each warp yarn is threaded through its own drop wine, heddle eye and reed dent. This is done in preparation for weaving.a. Drop wire b, Healds ©. Reed ‘The process of passing the yarns through the drop wire, heald eyes, and reed is called drawing- in. It can be time consuming when done manually but machines have been developed to accomplish this delicate task. The healed consist of two horizontal staves with many cords, each containing an eye, connecting the two together. The healds are responsible for separat the ‘warp sheet for shed formation during weaving. While the reeds holds the yarns at uniform ‘spacing and also responsible for beating-up the weft yarn. Mechanism ‘The mechanisms of a power-driven loom receive their motion from shafts that traverse from side to side in the loom and are driven from a motor. ‘The three weaving mechanisms are: 1. Primary motions: Shedding, picking and beating -up 2. Secondary motions: Cloth control(or take-up) motion and warp control (or let-oft) motion 3. Auxiliary motions: warp protector, welt stop motion, warp stop motion (Found in automatic loom) and temples tes oer SRP AT tS NE ~ =A Chess sections THELUGH The Loom Dintecs fawn sawit - 7 riven Sle Fig 2. Non - ConstrdoralPrimary motions: These are the motions that must take place in order to interlace the warp and ‘welt yarns to produce fabric on any type of weaving machine- conventional or non-conventional. ‘These are: a. Shedding. b. Picking ce. Beati up the separating of the warp yarns which run length wise the fabric into two a, Shedding: Thi layers to form a tunnel known as the shed. It is achieved by the lowering and lifting of one or more heald shafts (hamesses) to separate the warp yarns. ‘The order of lifting the harnesses determines the interlacing of the welt. Drawing-in through the healds is therefore very important as it is lifting and lowering of healds that produces the different types of woven fabric. Design for a fabric is made on paper as shown in fig. 4 which shows the of drawing in the ways yarns through the heald, the order of lifting and lowering of healds and the possible number of healds required to achieved the design. von TuREAgs tens) @. Tw Wanve (Brees ot ened weep repens Fig ‘Theoretically, only two heald shafts are required to produce a plain woven fabrie, the odd ends being drawn through the eyes of the heald on one heald shaft and even ends being drawn throughthe eyes of the other heald shaft. However, in practice four heald shaft will be used in order to prevent overcrowding of the heald, Order of heald lifting reverses pick after pick ‘The plain cloth possesses strength, good weaving properties and a fairly even surface on both sides of the fabries. The twill weave produces « pronounced diagonal line and a softer fabric than the plain, Four heald shafts are required to weave twill cloth, While in pl n weave you cannot distinguish from or back, twill weave gives a distinguishable difference between the front and back (khaki). The lifting and lowering of the healds is controlled by tappets or cams. Tappet Shedding ‘There are three major types of shedding mechanism namely tappet, dobby and jacquard. In the simplest form of tappet-shedding motion, the shedding cams or tappets are mounted on the bottom shaft and the motion is suitable only for weaves repeating on two picks, such as plain, weft-rib or hair cord weave. Repeat can be extended up to eight or ten picks by mounting the tappets on a countershaft driven by gears from the bottom shaft at the appropriate speed. A very _large proportion of woven fabrics can be woven on tappet looms. We have two types of tappet shedding viz. positive and negative. Positive tappet shedding implies that the heald shafts are both raised and lowered by the cams or crank and lever system of the shedding mechar sm, Negative shedding means that the heald shafts are either raised or lowered by the mechanism (tappet) but are returned by the action of some external device such as springs. ‘Tappet shedding is simple, inexpensive, easy to maintain and reliable. It imposes no limitation on Joom speeds. However, it is limited to 8 or 10 shafts and 8 or 10 picks/repeat. It is also inconvenient for frequent pattern changes. b. Pick 1g: This is the passing of the weft yarn, which (raverse across the fabrie through the shed, The main functions of any picking mechanism are: i, To deliver the shuttle along the correct flight path ancl ii, To project the shuttle at a predetermined velocityFrom Fig. 3, we note that the crack shaft driven by the motor makes one revolution pet pick, ‘The io of ratio of the teeth of the gear wheels connecting this shaft to the bottom shaft is always 2:1 (e.g. 40:20, 4 + and 60:30), Such that the bottom shaft will make one revolution every two Picks, There are two picking mechanism on a loom, one on at each side operating alternately and so complete theit circle once every two picks. The cams that activate them are mounted on the bottom shaft of the loom and set at 180° to one another. The picking stick and the picker mounted near its top projects the shuttle across the loom through the shed formed by the lowering and lifting of the harnesses. The Motion of the Heald, Siey, and Shuttlo Ue. re Patil ik Fig. 5 a. Picking Stick b. shuttle ‘The shuttle in Fig. 5 is a rectangular piece of wood, tapered at each end to a point so that entry into a partly opened shed is easier and more accurate. The shuttle carries the package known as the pim which contains the weft yarn, The bristles in the shuttle controls the yarn at it unwinds from the pir. The pitn is held steady during weaving by a clamp in the shuttle and the weft yarns are delivered through the shuttle eye at a controlled weaving tension. ¢. Beating-up: This is the pushing of the pushing of the newly inserted length of weft, known int known as the fell, ‘The sley must as the pick, into the already woven fabrics at a reciprocate for the reed to push the weft into the fell of the cloth, A connecting rod (crackarm) is connected to the back of each of the two sley swords by a pin (sword pin) justbelow the level of the raceboard, and its other end fastens round the bend in the crankshaft, which is known as the crank. As the crankshaft rotates, the crankarm and thus the top end of the sley are made to reciprocate with a movement that approximates to single harmonic motion. Loom Speed and Tuning ‘The three primary motions of weaving must occur in a given sequence but their precise timing in imings of most of the events in loom cycle relation to one another is extremely important. The tit are governed by the positions of the reed and the sley. In the study of weaving principles itis shafi from which the reed better to state timings in relation to the angular position of the crank and sley derive their motion. Therefore, timing ean be stated in degrees. See Fig 6 with the direction of rotation of the crankshaft also stated or shown, Sworn rot] [jf Canssm | { lp | tap su i cy) net or 1 J i dy 1 can) ‘ Crannsnalt ! i i |-—1—— Sloy sword H | ' 90 H i i °. Hi 180° } i ! 270 J_——— Rocking shat Fig.6 Loom-timingA simple numerical relation between the speed at which a loom runs, the distance the shuttle travels to pass through the shed, the degrees of crankshaft rotation available for its passage and the average velocity of the shuttle during passage 1s stated below. The distance the shuttle travels is equal to the width of the warp in the reed plus the effective length of the shuttle (shuttle length depends on the type and width of loom). Wire R = width ofthe warp in the reed in sm Le effective length of the shuttle m V= average velocity of the shuttle in m/s = loom speed in picks/min = degree of crankshaft rotation available for shuttle passage t (ime in seconds available for its passage S= distance shuttle travels in m ‘Then =- eqnt -- eqn2 ¢ ve Therefore P= ZYeay picks/min— — — eqn3 eg. if the maximum tolerable value for the average shuttle speed in a loom with effective reed space of 1.15m is 13.75mis, and 135” of crank shaft rotation can be allowed for the passage of the shuttle of effective length 0.30m, What is the maximum permissible loom speed? = 213 picks /minPower Required for Picking ‘There are two main type i ‘ain types of mechanism for imparting motion to a shuttle or weft carrier. These are; a. Mechanisms that generate energy when it is required by using a cam to displace the picker against the inertial resistance offered by the shuffle b. Mechanisms that generate and store energy in a spring or torsion rod and release it suddenly when required. The energy usually expended in accelerating the shuttle is equal to its kinetic energy when it lives the picker so that Energy/pick =" j eqn4 Where m= mass of the shuttle in kg, V = max velocity in mis 1£P is the loom speed in picks/min then Power for picking =" x Ex Fs kw u.-eqnS However, since shuttle speed increases with loom speed for a given width of loom, it is important to include the effect of the loom speed. Let R= useful reed space in em L = length of shuttle in em (excluding its tappet ends) 6 = degree of crank shaft rotation ‘d= distance moved by shuttle inm V = average speed of shuttle during its passage through the shed eqn6ws eqn? ‘Therefore Work doney mv? 36mp*(atty?x 10+ pick == = tampnstyi 10+ a a egn8 mv? 1 ome? carey 10% Hence power for picking =" kw Fy we ing xox _ amp (aru 10°S, a kw eqn9 E.g. consider a cotton of rayon loom of 110cm reed space, running at 216 picks/min, with a shuttle of mass 450g and length 28cm. Assume the passage of the shuttle to occupy 135°. What is the power for picking. aw x oaseizetx 1302s 10"+ Work done/pick = 22 45s =z = 39.51 Tas" sosixzie 1 sgsixzie y 1 000 Power for picking = o.14zkw Shuttle flight controV/cheeking ‘The shuttle enters the shuttle box or it emerges from the shed with a velocity only slightly less than its velocity on leaving the picker. It must be checked or brought 10 rest smoothly over a distance les than that over which it was accelerated. The energy that has to be dissipated during shuttle checking is the kinetic energy of the shuttle which is proportional vo the square of its velocity Shuttle checking is hence a vital factor in the design of high speed loom and itis one of the main factors that limit speeds. Checking mechanism ‘As the shuttle end enters the shuttle box, the shuttle contacts and begins to displace the swell. ‘The swell is usually at the back of the shuttle box (though sometimes itis at the front). The swell performs the following function, (a) it operates the fast reed-warp protector motion, which 10events a shuttle trap if aa aha aia i shuttle does not artive ot is delayed and (b) it helps to reduce the eee le. As the shuttle displaces the swell, its inner end moves a finger, which ” rote protector motion. The finger which is usually spring loaded, together with the inertia of the movi ing parts, causes the swell to resist displacement thereby slo down. The shuttle fi 2 the shuttle jown, The shuttl Ty iy Peery Finally comes to rest as it strikes the picker and is almost immediately pushed out by the picking mechanism for another weft insertion (pick). See fig 7 Auxi i ry ‘Stop-rod finger pressure shuttle ees Box front Fig.7 Note that the mass as the shuttle and its content decreases as the pli weaves off, The checking force which must remain constant becomes more effective at such point since the speed with whieh the shuttle strikes the picker decreases. I is important to ensure that the res position of the shuttle does not vary unduly and this ean be achieved by designing the loom 10 allow the shuttle 5 initial velocity up to the end of its travel. retain an appreciable part of Example question: Suppose the mass of the shuttle and its contents is 0.51kg when the pir is full and 0.48kg when itis nearly empty. Ifthe shutle is required to have an impact speed of not tess than 4.5mv/s at any time while the loom is functioning corretly with a calculated speed of 13.75m/s when it strikes the swell. What is the shuttle's uniform retardation if it was retarded uniformly over a distance of 0.20m up to impact with the picker? Also what is its retardation and impact velocity when pir is full and when it is nearly empty? What force produces the retardation when pien is full? u@ seo es 10 Where v = initial velocity impact velocity uniform retardation = distance retardation occurs 13.75? — 4.5? 2s 2x02 = 422m/s* mow veo eqUAL Equation 11 shows that retardation is inversely proportional to the mass being retarded. (b) Hence when pien is full = 422 O48 = 397m/s* a= 422% 553 ‘m/s When pien is nearly empty a=422x (©) + U when pirn is full 13.75? -U? =2x 397 x 0.20 U =5.5m/s U when pirn is nearly empty 13,75? - U2 = 2x 448.x 0.20 2m/s (@) The uniform force acting parallel to the axis of the shuttle that will produce the required : retardations is, Other loom motion 1. Warp control (Let-off motion): This motion delivers warp to the weaving area of at the required rate and at a suitable constant tension by unwinding it from the weavers beam 2. Cloth control (take-up): This motion withdraws fabric from the weaving area at the constant rate that will give the required pick spacing and then winds it onto a roller (cloth roller) 3, Wrap protector motion: This motion will stop the loom to prevent excessive damage (0 the warp yarn, cloth and reed if shuttle fails to complete its traverse. Warp stop motion ~ this will stop the loom immediately a warp yarn breaks du i weaving. This mechanism is activated by the drop wires. 4, Welt stop motion: This motion stops the loom immediately the welt yarn breaks. Weft stop motion use the principle ofa feeler (called a fork) to detect the presence ofthe yarn ‘This fork is held clear a knock off mechanism only if tis supported by a thread. Bee ee meme eee ' 8 Principles of Weaving having more than one shuttle-box in a unit atthe end of the sley. The shut in cach shuttle-box may contain a weft of different colour or character, and the appropriate shutle-box is positioned opposite the raceboard just before inser- ton of the pick. 1.8 Classification of Vveaving Machinery So far, only looms using 2 weft-carrying shuttle have been considered. These looms have a wide degree of versatility and fall into four main classes: (a) hand looms: still used in relatively large quantities for the produc- tion of all types of fabrics in the less-developed countries, but also used in the United Kingdom for the production of certain classic brocades, tapestzies, and tweeds; (b) non-automatic power looms: these machines are being used in ever- decreasing numbers, especially in the developed countries, but they seem likely to telain a certain usefulness in the production of specialist fabrics, such as industrial fabrics woven from heavy coarse wefts on wide looms; (¢) conventional automatic looms: machines that have gained world wide popularity because of their advantages of versatility and relative cheapness; and (d) cireular looms: timited in their applications (je., tubular fabrics for hose popes and sacks), but they do achieve the ideal of high weft:insertion rates from relatively low shuttle speeds because insertion of the weft is continvous. ‘The inherent probiems of pirn-winding for shuttle looms and the dynamic problems created by the picking ‘and checking mechanisms in these looms have Pneouraged loom makers to investigate and develop various alternative means of weft insertion: (©) single or multiple grippers or projectiles; ) gripper heads mounted on rapiers, wich may be rigid or exible; (g) needles; (h) fluid jets of air or water; and (various other methods. Of the many various types of gripper-shuttle loom developed, the multiple. gripper Sulzer weaving machine was the frst, and to date it is the only loom of its typeto become widely established. Initially, it was suitable for only a limited range of relatively plain fabrics, produced from spun yarns. Over the years, it has been developed to weave dobby, jacquard, and terry fabrics, from continuous-filament as well as spun yarns, and with up to six different colours of welt It is probably the most versatile of the unconventional looms and has a Combination of width and high speed that gives it very high productivity Although many loom makers have in the past attempted to develop single- gripper looms, thet efforts now seein to have been discontinued, probablyAn Outline of the Weaving Process 9 because their only advantages ‘appear t i ; Ser a ora ae Ma a ace Tothanisms and only share the advantage of random welt selection from stationary supply packages at the side of the loom with multiple-gripper and rapier looms. The one area in which they may be used to advantage is the weaving of very coarse soft-spun wefts, for which maximum weft velocities may cause welt breaks in rapier looms or the drag on the carrier may create problems in projecting the grippers at the required velocity in a multiple: gripper loom. Their apparent trend towards obsolescence precludes further mention in this book. Rapier looms are made in a variety of types. The rapiers may f exe coer he fll width ofthe warp, in which case they manna construction, or alternatively two rapiers may enter the shed from opposite sides of the loom and transfer the weft from one rapier head to the other at a point near the centre of the loom. In the latter case, the rapiers may be either Tigid or flexible. The future of this method of weft insertion would appear to lie mainly in the field of multi-colour work, since their rates of weft insertion are generally only comparable with those of conventional automatic looms. Tt Should also be remembered that only 50% of the rapier movement is utilized in weft insertion, and, for single-rapier looms, this wasted movement is also a time loss. ‘Needle insertion is used primarily in the weaving of Axminster carpets and for the production of certain narrow fabrics, such as tapes, but, since the weft is threaded through the eye of the needle, each pick is a double one, and this severely restricts the potential of this method in other applications. ‘The techaique of inserting weft in a fluid jet achieves weft-insertion rates comparable with those achieved by the Sulzer weaving machine, but there are sradth limitations. Water-jet looms have been shown to be most economical for producing certain types of plain continuous-Rlament fabric, especially when they are produced from hydrophobic synthetic-ibre yarns. Air-jet looms are more popular for the weaving of plain cotton-type fabries, although they are not entirely unsuitable for continuous-filament yarns. Various other methods of weft insertion have been proposed from time to time, One or two are currently being developed, and of these probably the most aetvaneed is the Riiti TWR ripple-shedding loom, which achieves high weft- insertion rates from low projectile speeds. The:system is similar in principle to that used in eireular looms, but the loom is fat, and each of several weft Carriers, which are traversing the loom successively at the same time, is Supplied with one pre-measured pick length for each traverse of the loom. Peace mone of the shutleless looms is as versatile as a conventional automatic loom, itis evident that their success must rest on other criteria. They tend to have two main advantages when compared with the conventional shut- tle loom in that they will have a higher production rate and also that a given production rate wil require less labour, although the advantage of & free choice of weft selection in certain types of loom is not insignificant. The productivity of aloom is most conveniently expressed as its rate of weft insertion (Le the number of metres of welt inserted per minute when the loom10 Principles of Weaving runs without stopping). A high rate of weft insertion can be achieved either by using very wide looms or by a high rate of pick insertion, or by a combination of both, Sulzer weaving machines, for example, are wide, and, for cotton-type fabrics, the normal width of machine allows the production of fabric up to 330 em wide (machines of 389 and 541 cm are also available but have been in- troduced mainly with the tufted-carpet-backing trade in mind). The machine runs at approximately twice the speed of a conventional loom of the same width, which explains its high rate of weft insertion. The width of air- and water-jet looms is strictly limited, and their high productivity results from the high speeds of which they are capable, All three types of loom show a saving in space as compared with a conventional loom of the same width. There is an even greater saving in space per unit output. The saving in labour already referred to results partly from the direct supply of weft from a large stationary package and partly froma lower yarn-breakage rate associated with the method of weft insertion. Overcoming the technical problems essential to the success of anew method of weft insertion is not enough. The economics of production, which include in- itial cost, maintenance, depreciation, and labour costs, must be competitive. It is usually found that a new method of weft insertion is most competitive over a limited range of fabric types and constructions. This can only be determined after large-scale production trials, and the process of establishing new methods is therefore slow and potentially very costly. : ™38 Principles of Weaving 2.8 The Geometry of the Warp Shed 2.8.1 The Size of the Shed ‘The width and depth of the shuttle are determined by the diameter of the weft ackage it is required to hold. In considering the size of shed required for a given size of shuttle, the important dimension is the depth of the shed at the vat wall of the shuttle. This is C in Fig. 2.12, in which is the width of the shuttle, B the distance from the cloth fell to the reed, and D the depth of the hed at the reed, During the passage of the shuttle, B and D both vary because Fig. 2.12 The geometry of the shed of the motion of the reed, and D will also vary owing to movement ofthe heald crete unless the passage of the shutle coincides with the period of dwell in Fig. 2-13, the depth ofthe shed at the front ofthe shuttle is plotted against - the angular position of the crankshaft for a particular loom’. Curve B, which is d with the heald shafts set to cross at O°. If we symmetrical, was obtaine Syrime that the shuttle enters the shed at 110° and leaves it at 240*, the depth atthe shed at the front of the shuttle as it enters and leaves the shed will Be as given in Table 2.6. th of Shed (em) Entering Leaving 244 0.94 2:36 2.54 ‘The depth of the shed at the front of the shuttle, expressed as a fraction of the reference height of the front wall of the shuttle, is called the bending factor or inte! factor, It indicates the extent to which the warp threads are deflected, if at all, by the shuttle. A bending factor of less than 1 -Oimplies deflexion. If we take the height of the front wall of the shuttle in the loom to which Fig, 2.13 relates to be 2-8 emythe bending factors will be as.given in Table 27 : The two extreme cases are illustrated in Fig. 2.14, in which the dotted lines represent the position the top shed would occupy if it were not deflected by theand Shuttle 39 Bonding Factors Entering Leaving |_ 0.87 0.34 0.84 0.90 shuttle. te this particular case there would be some deflexion of the warp by the sae Jt entering and leaving with both shed-timings. The amount of bending, parton is quite small except when the shuttle is leaving with the healds set '9 toe er SOL The question arses as to how much bending can be tolerated. Referring to Fig, 213, we ee that for both curves bending occurs as the shuttle - Fao Height of, 5 _ shuttle 25 2.0 15) Depth of Shed at Front of Shi 10 0-8 shuttle! [enters 80 120 160 200 240 280 ‘Angular Position of Crankshaft Fig. 2.13. Shed-depth curves40 Principles of Weaving enters only between 110 and 120°. For curve B (healds cross at 0°), the depth of the shed is greater than the height of the shuttle between about 120 and 230°. ‘A small amount of bending occurs between 230 and 240° as the shuttle leaves. ‘These conditions would be acceptable even in weaving low-twist continuous- filament yarns. If need be, a slight increase in the depth of the shed would eliminate bending altogether. Curve A represents conditions that could not be tolerated in weaving continuous-filament yarns but are quite common in weaving cotton yarns. 7 Bending factor 0:90 Bending factor 0-34 2.14 The deflexion of the warp There is no more bending as the shuttle enters than with curve B, but the shuttle deflects the warp from about 195° until it leaves the shed at 240°. By the time it leaves, the bending factor is 0-34 as shown in Fig. 2.148, and it is clear that there must be quite severe rubbing of the warp by the shuttle during the latter part of its passage through the shed. This can usually be tolerated in weaving, spun yarns in order to secure the benefits already mentioned, namely, better warp cover and more effective pick-packing. 2.8.2 The Warp Line It is usual to set the heald shafts so that, when the sley is at 180°, the bottom warp sheet (AD in’ Fig. 2.15) is in contact with the raceboard, which is the name for the upper face of the sley.*The lift of the heald shafts is then adjusted to give some clearance between the upper part of the shed and the top of the front wall of the shuttle. The ‘normal’ position of the backrest would then be with its top on the dotted line AC, which bisects angle BAD. The lengths ofhe depth nd 230°, ¢ leaves. tinuous- d would weaving 1 yarns. huttle ime it r that aving better tom s the usted f the hs of The Motion of the Healds, Sley, and Shuttle a Fig. 2.16 The warp line ABC and ADC are then equal, and the tensions in the yarns inthe top and bot- tom sheets will also be equal. Note that the line AC is not necessarily horizon- it usually inclines downwards towards the rear, as shown in Fig. 2.15. known from experience that itis possible to obtain a closer it (ie, a tighter packing of the picks) if the backrest is raised above its ‘normal” position as at E in Fig. 2.15, provided that the shedding is timed so that the healds cross well before beat-up. The yarns ABE in the upper shed are now shorter and therefore at less tension than yarns ADE in the lower shed. In effect, the upper shed is slack and the lower one tight. The situation at the cloth fell at the instant of beat-up is then approximately as shown in Fig. 2.164. The pick just inserted (numbered 4) is forced downwards because, since we have stipulated that the heald shafts cross well before beat-up, the ends that pass over it are now in the bottom shed and are therefore tight. Conversely, the preceding pick (numbered 3) is forced upwards, but to aless extent. It may also be that picks further from the fell are affected in the same way, but to a much smaller extent. When the next pick (5), which is not shown, is inserted and the shed has changed again, pick (4) will assume the position occupied by pick (3) in Fig. 2.16A, and pick (3) will assume the position occupied by pick (2). Every time beat-up occurs, there is a vertical displacement of the picks near the fell of the cloth. The precise effect of this movement is not known, but itis known that Slack Tight Fig, 2.16 Cloth formation=e 42 Principles of Weaving the final pick-spacing is not established until the picks have mo some little distance from the cloth fell, Itis, however, clear trom Tn. jeathet picks (3) and (4) can be placed closer together than would be possible if they Were in the same horizontal plane, An alternative to adjusting the height of the backrest is to adjust the height of the cloth fell. This is not generally practicable in shuttle looms (although facilities are often provided), since it will either raise the bottom warp sheet off the raceboard and thus interfere with the flight of the shuttle or else cause it to * press heavily on the raceboard, which is detrimental to the warp. The weft-inserting device in shuttleless looms (e.g., rapier or projectile) does not ride on the raceboard, and in these looms the height of the fell can be adjusted without affecting weft insertion, The distance from the healds to the fell is much less than the distance from the healds to the backrest, so a given movement of the fell produces the same effect as a much greater movement of the backrest. The arrangements for altering the height of the fell on the Sulzer weaving machine are shown in Fig. 2.4. ‘Another effect of timing shedding so that the heald shafts cross well before - beat-up is illustrated in Fig. 2.162, which shows a pick in the course of beating- up. The heald shafts have already crossed, and this will tend to prevent the pick from springing back from the fell as the reed recedes and thus help in obtaining close pick-packing. There must be substantial friction between the warp and the pick being beaten-up in Fig. 2.16B, and this may help to redistribute the warp threads more evenly. Furthermore, if the backrest is above its normal position, alternate warp threads will be relatively slack and therefore freer to Prove laterally to achieve a more uniform spacing. It seems likely that the com- bination of these two effects is responsible for the improvement in warp cover that occurs when the backrest is raised and the tappets are set so that the healds cross well before beat-up. 'We can now appreciate why the shed-timing represented by Fig. 2.11B, used in conjunction with a raised backrest, is very common in cotton-weaving. It offers advantages in widely different circumstances. In weaving closely setcloths ‘as different as typewriter ribbon, poplin, and canvas, it helps to achieve close pick-spacing, although in these cloths its effect on warp cover is unlikely to be important because the warp cover factors are high enough to ensure good cover anyway, In weaving more openly set plain cloths, pick-packing is not a problem, but warp cover is, and here again the combination of early shedding and a raised backrest is likely to be beneficial.iti 222 The Motion of the Healds, Stey, and Shuttle a APPENDIX The Picking Mechanisi a8 a Simple Elastic System A2.1 General Analysis If the picking mechanism behaves as a simple elastic system, it can be represented by a mass in series with a spring. In Fig, 2,17, the mass M, which rests on a smooth, horizontal surface, represents the shuttle, and the spring represents the elasticity of the picking mechanism, Fig. 2.174 represents the Fig. 2.17 An elastic model of the picking mechanism situation at the start of picking. In Fig. 2.178, the free end of the spring has been moved through a distance corresponding to the nominal movement of the picker at e given instant during picking, and the mass M has moved a distance corresponding to the actual movement of the picker at that instant. Let: ‘4 =the rigidity of the mechanism (i.e, force/unit extension), =the nominal movement, and i x= the actual movement, from which: = the actual velocity, and 5 =the actual acceleration at a given instant. ‘The force accelerating mass M is the tension in the spring, which is equal to the product of its rigidity and its extension, force’= As x); force = mass x acceleration, | |4a Principles of Weaving $0: M& = Ms — x) (A2.1) or: 8 x a (A2.2) For a given mechanism, A and AM will tend to be constant and may be regarded as constant for the purpose of this elementary treatment. For con Venience in subsequent mathematical argument, Thomas and Vincent! write Ya = nb and call a the alacrity of the system. ‘We thus have: ' alacrity = (WM = n, and Equation (A2.2) becomes: =ns-2. (A2.3) ‘At this stage, we may note the following poin.s: (a) no assumption has been made about the form of the nominal move. ment, so Equation (A2.3) should be true for any form of nominal movement, uniform or non-uniform; and () the force accelerating the mass Af is produced by stretching the spring; it follows that acceleration will be delayed and that the ac tual movement will lag behind the nominal movement. The above equations show the relations between the nominal and actual movements of the picker, so they can be used to predict the actual movement that will result from a given nominal movement in a system with a known, con- stant alacrity. A2.2. Straight-line Nominal Movement The picking cams of many looms are: designed to give a straight-line nominal movement, the displacement of the picker being proportional to the angular movement of the crankshaft. In this case: s= pb, where p is a constant of proportionality, and is the angular movement of the crankshaft, Thus, for a constant loom speed, the nominal velocity is constant, and, if wis the constant angular velocity of the crankshaft and @ is the angle turned after a time 7, then 6 = wf, and: 5 = pol (aa) the nominal velocity being given by: dy Substit ‘The so Differ: and maxit The Tt maxia 45 The Motion of the Healds, Sley, and Shuttle Substituting Equation (A2.4) in (A2.3) gives: (a2) Rane = npot. The solution of this differential equation is: sin nt (A2.6) x=po|t Differentiation of this expression gives: = pa(1 — cos n/) wn and $= pon sin nt. (A2.8) “The maximum value of & will oceur when cos nt = —1 and nt = 7 This maximum value, which will occur after a time ¢ = 21/ny will be: Xax = 2p ‘The maximum actual velocity is twice the constant no! The maximum value of ¥ will occur when sin 1! = maximum value, which will occur after a time ¢= x/2ns, Kear = Pon. (A2.9) minal velocity. Land nt = 7/2. This will be: (A2.10) ‘The maximum acceleration occurs at half the time required to produce the maximum velocity, that is, halfway through the effective stroke of the picker. i ! ‘Note that the time to reach maximum velocity and acceleration is deter- mined by the alacrity of the system, a more rigid system giving a shorter time. In addition, the maximum velocity is proportional to the loom speed, and the maximum acceleration is proportional to both the loom speed and the alacrity. i ‘The distance moved when + becomes a maximum (i.¢., the effective stroke of | the picker) is given by substitution of ¢ = z/n in Equation (A2.6), from which the effective stroke L is given by: and, because (A2.11)faba Kay is credited with inventing the flying shuctle in “3733, thereby paving the way for development of me- anically powered weaving, Instead of a person insert- the shuttle into the shed and pulling it through, the le was hit by @ maller-like device at one edge of the with suficien force to send it through the shed to TCE Fae in and sent back through the Shed. John Kay's invention was no: successful until the ‘um ofthe cencury because there was insufficient yarn to “Sopport “faster” weaving. Edmund Cartwright made the st practzal power loom in 1787 ba: was not able to jve many operational problems. Richard Robercs, an “gsceptional machinery maker, used patented ideas of “Hillam Horrocks and others to produce 2 power loom {ee oustanding that i became th protorype of all f~ Shuttle power looms sibsequently built. Before the end ‘Gol the 18th century, patterning devices (dobbies, Jac- “guard, and drop boxes) were added, and the power loom became as versatile as the most elaborate band loom. © Just prior to the rurm of he century, automatic de- Svies were added to stop the loom when the supply of {fling yarn contained on the bobbin (pirn) within the SS shurale was about ro be depleted, Thereafter, automatic shurde-replenishment was accomplished. The mos: su- “eessul method was to drive the bobbin out the end of the shurcle and replace ic with « fresh bobbin (pirn) P45 tingle action performed so quickly tha’ she loom din: = aeed to be stopped. The rate of produccion of fabric was thus substantially increased, the cost of production de- J srased because the amount of labor was reduced, and : the quality of fzbric was not diminishea. By 1850, 90% fall looms in North America were automatic looms. 37 = No significant improvements were made in weaving 4 or the next 100 years. However, increasing concern for = safer work environment as well as developments in f- and yarn technology demanded changes in weaving tuehnology. The shuttle was the target of modification F dforts, The excruciating noise produced when the fly shuttle, an object weighing several pounds, was hie for ‘ach insertion of a filing yarn needed to be dramatically seduced. Moreover, the abrasion of the shuttle on the E warp vary + IN gy tes af Bea faliee from tew fibers and yarns. Finally, the speed with which the shuttle was sent back and forth was limited to about 200, picks per minuce. (Weaving rates are usually specified as Picks per minute. A pick is a filing yarn.) The greatest -advantage of conventional looms is their ability vo weave widest variety of woven-fabric structures with the Widest sar.cty of yarns. Shuttleless Looms In shuttlelese weaving, the continuous supply of filing yarn in a shuttle is replaced by 2 discrete length of yarn taken from an external supply package. The discrete length of yarn is passed through the shed at the appro- priate time in the weaving cycle (Figure 26.16). For many years, weavers refused to entertain the idea of shuttleless weaving. They objected to the “new” sel- vvage edge, 2 fringed edge that puckered more than conventional selvages, which they thought consumers would not accepr. In the 1950s, Sulzer Brothers in Switzerland made 2 major breakthrough by showing ————_— FIGURE 26.16 Types of shutticless weaving provECTRE ‘A smal mata pret cates te pick mncugh te seo Sway package RAPER ong thn ea) ey the pktnvaugh he shes Fane Lg — ‘Sole rapier Yarrhas been ranelerres ole iit rapier ‘crepe nade ‘Double oie rapier: ‘tof alr orate carts the sick troup ne sec