New users - methods of splicing
It is possible to join yarns together in a number of ways. Historically, the knot was the preferred method; different knot formations were developed to meet the needs of different textile applications. However, the shortcomings of the knot have always been apparent.From the 1970s on, the limitations of the knot became pressing, as textile processes became less labour intensive. Splicers were developed. These took a number of forms, including:
Fusion splicers;
These tools joined yarns - frequently monofilaments - by heat welding. The technique was limited to thermoplastics, and therefore had little general relevance.
Wrapper splicers;
These tools have been in production for some time, and remain of importance for specialised applications. Wrapping splicers are available in a number of forms, frequently belt-fitted. The splicer contains a small bobbin of fibre, whose colour is matched as well as possible to the yarns which are being joined. The two yarns are laid side-by-side in the splicer. A small electric motor - usually battery-driven - swiftly wraps the stored fibre many times round the yarns, binding them together.
The wrapper splicer has its limitations, especially when colour matching is important, but it is very useful for joining those products which have proved impossible to join with a traditional splicer. The splicer is used frequently for fancy yarns, asbestos yarns, and some glass yarns.
Pneumatic splicers
Pneumatic splicers have proved the most useful form of joining tool since they were introduced in the 1970s, and now dominate the market. On this web site, we shall deal only with pneumatic splicers.
Pneumatic splicers were actually invented in the 1960s, in the Experimental Engineering department of British Nylon Spinners UK. The first patent for a practical yarn splicer was filed by Kurt Iwnicki, of BNS. (Iwnicki, K., 1964. Process and apparatus for Joining Yarns or Tows, Patent No. GB956992.). They were first exploited commercially in the 1970s. Splicers have undergone many modifications and improvements since their introduction, but the general principles of their operation have remained fairly constant.