Air-jet loom

Last updated

An air-jet loom is a shuttleless loom that uses a jet of air to propel the weft yarn through the warp shed. [1] It is one of two types of fluid-jet looms, the other being a water-jet loom, which was developed previously. [1] Fluid-jet looms can operate at a faster speed than predecessor looms such as rapier looms, but they are not as common. [1] The machinery used in fluid-jet weaving consists of a main nozzle, auxiliary nozzles or relay nozzles, and a profile reed.

Contents

Air-jet looms are capable of producing standard household and apparel fabrics for items such as shirts, denim, sheets, towels, and sports apparel, as well as industrial products such as printed circuit board cloths. [2] Heavier yarns are more suitable for air-jet looms than lighter yarns. Air-jet looms are capable of weaving plaids, as well as dobby and jacquard fabrics. [3]

Method

In an air-jet loom, yarn is pulled from the supply package, and the measuring disc removes a length of yarn of the width of fabric being woven. A clamp holds the yarn and an auxiliary air nozzle forms it into the shape of a hairpin. The main nozzle blows the yarn, the clamp opens, and the yarn is carried through the shed. At the end of the insertion cycle, the clamp closes, the yarn is beaten in and cut, and the shed is closed. [3] The jets are electronically controlled, with an integrated database. [4]

Research has been done to analyze factors that contribute to compressed air use, a major source of energy consumption, in air-jet looms. [5]

History and production

The air-jet loom was invented in Czechoslovakia in the 20th century and was later refined by Swiss, Dutch, and Japanese companies. [3]

Companies that produce air-jet looms include Toyota Industries [6] and Tsudakoma, [7] both based in Japan; RIFA (PICKWELL in India), based in China; Picanol, [8] based in Belgium; Dornier, [9] based in Germany; and RIFA, [10] based in China; and Itema, [11] based in Italy.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacquard machine</span> Control device attached to weaving looms

The Jacquard machine is a device fitted to a loom that simplifies the process of manufacturing textiles with such complex patterns as brocade, damask and matelassé. The resulting ensemble of the loom and Jacquard machine is then called a Jacquard loom. The machine was patented by Joseph Marie Jacquard in 1804, based on earlier inventions by the Frenchmen Basile Bouchon (1725), Jean Baptiste Falcon (1728), and Jacques Vaucanson (1740). The machine was controlled by a "chain of cards"; a number of punched cards laced together into a continuous sequence. Multiple rows of holes were punched on each card, with one complete card corresponding to one row of the design.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loom</span> Device for weaving textiles

A loom is a device used to weave cloth and tapestry. The basic purpose of any loom is to hold the warp threads under tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads. The precise shape of the loom and its mechanics may vary, but the basic function is the same.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weaving</span> Technology for the production of textiles

Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft, woof, or filling. The method in which these threads are interwoven affects the characteristics of the cloth. Cloth is usually woven on a loom, a device that holds the warp threads in place while filling threads are woven through them. A fabric band that meets this definition of cloth can also be made using other methods, including tablet weaving, back strap loom, or other techniques that can be done without looms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Power loom</span> Mechanised loom powered by a line shaft

A power loom is a mechanized loom, and was one of the key developments in the industrialization of weaving during the early Industrial Revolution. The first power loom was designed and patented in 1785 by Edmund Cartwright. It was refined over the next 47 years until a design by the Howard and Bullough company made the operation completely automatic. This device was designed in 1834 by James Bullough and William Kenworthy, and was named the Lancashire loom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warp and weft</span> Two constituent threads of woven cloth

Warp and weft are the two basic components used in weaving to turn thread or yarn into fabric. The lengthwise or longitudinal warp yarns are held stationary in tension on a frame or loom while the transverse weft is drawn through and inserted over and under the warp. A single thread of the weft crossing the warp is called a pick. Terms vary. Each individual warp thread in a fabric is called a warp end or end.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damask</span> Reversible figured woven fabric

Damask is a reversible patterned fabric of silk, wool, linen, cotton, or synthetic fibers, with a pattern formed by weaving. Damasks are woven with one warp yarn and one weft yarn, usually with the pattern in warp-faced satin weave and the ground in weft-faced or sateen weave. Twill damasks include a twill-woven ground or pattern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irish linen</span>

Irish linen is the name given to linen produced in Ireland. Linen is cloth woven from, or yarn spun from, flax fibre, which was grown in Ireland for many years before advanced agricultural methods and more suitable climate led to the concentration of quality flax cultivation in northern Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piqué (weaving)</span> Woven fabric with a raised rib

Piqué, or marcella, refers to a weaving style, normally used with cotton yarn, which is characterized by raised parallel cords or geometric designs in the fabric. Piqué fabrics vary from semi-sheer dimity to heavy weight waffle cloth. Twilled cotton and corded cotton are close relatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Textile industry</span> Industry related to design, production and distribution of textiles.

The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production and distribution of textiles: yarn, cloth and clothing. The raw material may be natural, or synthetic using products of the chemical industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Textile manufacturing</span> The industry which produces textiles

Textile manufacturing is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods such as clothing, household items, upholstery and various industrial products.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Selvage</span> Narrow edge of a woven fabric parallel to its length

A selvage or selvedge is a "self-finished" edge of a piece of fabric which keeps it from unraveling and fraying. The term "self-finished" means that the edge does not require additional finishing work, such as hem or bias tape, to prevent fraying.

The manufacture of textiles is one of the oldest of human technologies. To make textiles, the first requirement is a source of fiber from which a yarn can be made, primarily by spinning. The yarn is processed by knitting or weaving, which turns yarn into cloth. The machine used for weaving is the loom. For decoration, the process of colouring yarn or the finished material is dyeing. For more information of the various steps, see textile manufacturing.

The Hattersley loom was developed by George Hattersley and Sons of Keighley, West Yorkshire, England. The company had been started by Richard Hattersley after 1784, with his son, George Hattersley, later entering the business alongside him. The company developed a number of innovative looms, of which the Hattersley Standard Loom – developed in 1921 – was a great success.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bradford Industrial Museum</span> Industrial museum, Mill museum, Textile museum, in Eccleshill, Bradford

Bradford Industrial Museum, established 1974 in Moorside Mills, Eccleshill, Bradford, United Kingdom, specializes in relics of local industry, especially printing and textile machinery, kept in working condition for regular demonstrations to the public. There is a Horse Emporium in the old canteen block plus a shop in the mill, and entry is free of charge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geo. Hattersley</span>

Geo. Hattersley was a textile machinery manufacturer from Keighley, West Yorkshire in England, founded in 1789 and responsible for the Hattersley Standard Loom and other types of looms.

Textile Engineering College, Chittagong is a college in Bangladesh, offering bachelor's degree in textile engineering. It is situated by the side of old Dhaka Trunk road which passes through Zorargonj, Mirsharai, Chittagong. It is one of the seven constituent textile engineering colleges of Bangladesh University of Textiles, which are collectively funded by the Department of Textiles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rapier loom</span> Shuttleless weaving loom

A rapier loom is a shuttleless weaving loom in which the filling yarn is carried through the shed of warp yarns to the other side of the loom by finger-like carriers called rapiers.

Bahauddin Zakariya University College of Textile Engineering, also known as BZU college of textile engineering, is an institute in southern Punjab, which provides engineering degrees in the field of textile. It is situated on 6-km Khanewal road in Multan, Pakistan.

<i>Game of Thrones Tapestry</i>

The Game of Thrones Tapestry is a hand-crafted tapestry, woven by hand on a jacquard loom, with additional embroidery. The tapestry tells the entire story of the television show, Game of Thrones. It consists of seven 11-metre-long panels and one 10.5-metre panel. The eight panels depict scenes from each episode and include images of crew at work. The tapestry was commissioned by HBO and Tourism Ireland, the tourism bureau of Northern Ireland where HBO filmed much of the series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swivel weave</span> Decorative weave

The swivel weave is a weaving technique that incorporates a decorative element into the fabric by using small shuttles that insert additional weft thread around selected warp threads, while the main weft thread forms the fabric's structure. This method differs from the plain weave, which lacks this decorative aspect.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Britannica Academic". academic.eb.com. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  2. "Toyota Industries' Air-Jet Looms Undergoing Evolution Together with Customers Worldwide" (PDF). Toyota Industries annual reports. 2014. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 Sayed, Mohammed Abu (August 2014). "Operation principle of an air jet loom". Textile Apex. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  4. Rouette, Hans-Karl (2001). "Air-jet weaving machines". Encyclopedia of Textile Finishing. Woodhead. p. 48. ISBN   978-1-84-569415-9.
  5. Jabbar, Abdul (September 1, 2014). "Statistical Model for Predicting Compressed Air Consumption on Air-Jet Looms". Journal of Engineered Fabrics & Fibers. 9 (3). doi:10.1177/155892501400900306. S2CID   41913882.
  6. "Textile Machinery - TOYOTA INDUSTRIES CORPORATION". www.toyota-industries.com. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  7. "TSUDAKOMA HOME PAGE". www.tsudakoma.co.jp. Archived from the original on 2016-10-03. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  8. "OMNIplus Summum airjet weaving machine". Picanol. Archived from the original on 2016-10-02. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  9. "A1 Air-jet weaving machine — Lindauer DORNIER GmbH". www.lindauerdornier.com. Archived from the original on 2016-10-01. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  10. "RFJA20 Air Jet Loom, Electronic Jacquard Loom Manufacturer, RIFA Weaving Loom". rifa-texmachine.com. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  11. "Itema America, Inc. | Headquartered in Spartanburg SC". www.itema-americas.com. Retrieved 2016-09-29.

Further reading