Projectile Gripper Design and Weft Clamping
topic
Projectile grippers are precision-machined metal carriers of 40 to 90 grams with spring-loaded jaw mechanisms that grip the weft yarn end presented by the threading device before picking, hold the yarn during the 250 millisecond insertion flight across the fabric width, and release the weft at the receiving selvedge when the selvedge clamping device takes over, with jaw spring force calibrated to grip without damaging delicate weft yarns.
Role
Enables reliable weft yarn transport across the full machine width without yarn slippage or breakage through the gripper jaw design that must simultaneously provide secure grip during the high-acceleration launch phase and clean release at the far selvedge, with gripper jaw spring calibration for each weft yarn type being a critical maintenance task that governs weft insertion reliability.