369,659. Circular loom with weft supplied to dummy shuttles. BRITISH CELANESE, Ltd., 22, Hanover Square, London, DICKIE, W. A., and HALE, F. C.. of British Celanese, Spondon, near Derby. Dec. 20, 1930, No. 38433. [Classes 142 (ii) and 142 (iii).] A circular loom is provided with means for inserting into the warp shed lengths of weft drawn from a stationary supply, means for presenting weft to the inserting means, and means adapted to sever weft lengths from the supply. The weft may be drawn directly from the supply by the weft carrier or it may be drawn out into loops sufficient for one or two picks before being engaged by the carrier, the loop forming mechanism being preferably of the type described in Specification 346,850. The weft may be inserted by one or more carriers operated in the manner described in Specification 369,574 and a suction trapping device of the kind described in Specification 360,818 may be provided to maintain the weft thread in tension during the beat-up. Letting-off warps; take-up motions.-The warp threads 20, Fig. 1, are drawn from a beam 21, passed through a spacing comb 25, healds 28, 29 and reed 30, the fabric subsequently formed being passed over a spreading ring 32 and connected to a take-up roller 33 which is driven from the main shaft 46 of the loom. Healds ; shedding mechanism.-The healds 28, 29 are spaced by means of reeds 38 and are loaded with weights 36, 37, each heald or set of healds being attached to a member 39 or 40 driven to produce the shedding of the warps by means of cams 41, 42 mounted on a cam plate 43, the latter being driven by gear 45 on the shaft 46. Reeds; beat-up motions.-The reed 30 is made in sections separated by gaps 61, Fig. 2, and actuated in turn to effect the beat-up, each section receiving the requisite vertical movements from racks 64 on levers 65 which are pivotally mounted near the central column 52 of the loom and are oscillated bv cams 70, 71. Dummy shuttles. A weft carrier or dummy shuttle 80, Fig. 3, is provided with a spring- loaded trap 81 adapted to be opened automatically, to release weft at the end of each pick, by a small projection 83 which is engaged and pressed down by the top of the shuttle box-one of which is mounted in each of the gaps 61. Runners 84 are provided along the length of the shuttle to ensure smooth running and a groove is cut in the side to accommodate the weft. A strip of frictional material is also provided on the bottom of the shuttle for engagement with the shuttle propelling means. An alternative form of shuttle for use with a loop drawing device is shown at Fig. 21, a short weft engaging horn 212 being provided at its rear end. Tensioning and cutting weft in shed. The end of the weft thread is trapped and cut, after it has been picked through the shed and released from the shuttle, by a suction trapping device of the kind described in Specification 360,818, with modifications to suit the vertical movement of the reed. Shuttle propelling means. The weft carrier. or carriers are preferably propelled through the shed by the mechanism described in Specification 369,574, a driving impulse being imparted to the carrier at one or more gaps in the warps so that it moves through the shed by virtue of its momentum. Weft supplying, cutting, guiding, &c. A weft carrying finger 131, Figs. 11 and 12, mounted adjacent each shuttle box upon a rod 132 which is reciprocated by levers 134, 135, 136 and a cam 138 on the cam plate 43, is moved inwardly across the nose of the shuttle 80 in such a manner as to open the weft trap 81, the continued movement of the finger permitting the trap to close under the action of its spring. As the finger 131 moves inwardly it engages and transfers into the trap 81, the weft extending from the supply 162 to a trapping device 151 on the shuttle box, a cam 149 subsequently acting through levers 147, 146, 145 to give a partial rotation to the rod 132 and tilt the finger 131 out of the path of the shuttle. As the shuttle is being picked through the shed the weft is drawn through the open jaws of the trapper 151 and a second trapper 152, which is mounted to rise and fall with the reed, both trappers being closed, when the pick is laid, by a lever 155 which is actuated by a cam 159 on the main cam plate. The trapper 151 is provided with a knife which, after a preliminary gripping, cuts the weft extending to the trapper 182 and permits the weft to be held by the latter as it is carried to the beat-up point. Supplying measured lengths of weft to weft carriers. In another form of weft presenting means embodying a loop forming mechanism similar to that described in Specification 346,850, the weft thread is drawn into a loop sufficient for one pick by a travelling peg 167, Fig. 16, carried by an endless chain 168 driven by means of gears from the main shaft 46 of the loom. When the bright of the loop is released the trapper 164 releases one end and a depresser 174 brings the weft into engagement with the shuttle, the second trapper 165 subsequently cutting the weft extending to the fabric but retaining the end of the weft coming from the supply. A weft stop-motion may be provided at one or more points around the periphery of the loom in order to stop the loom on breakage or exhaustion of the weft supply.