Needle Loom Design and Needle Board Configuration
topic
Needlepunch loom boards carry arrays of felting needles at densities of 2000 to 10000 needles per square metre of board area, reciprocating at 500 to 3000 strokes per minute with stroke depths of 10 to 40 millimetres penetrating the web on the downstroke while stripper plates prevent web lift on the upstroke, with board needle density, stroke frequency, and machine advance per stroke controlling the needling density in punches per square centimetre received by the web.
Role
Performs the mechanical entanglement of fibres through reciprocating needle penetration that converts a loose fibre web into a coherent needlepunched nonwoven, with needling density being the primary process parameter controlling the degree of fibre entanglement and resulting fabric strength, with higher needling density increasing strength and density while reducing fabric thickness and air permeability.