Four-spindle continuous spinning machine

Made by
Università di Firenze, Facoltà di Ingegneria, Dipartimento di Meccanica e Tecnologie industriali

2004

Among the solutions for mechanizing the spinning process, Leonardo conceived a multiple-spindle spinning machine, capable of twisting the thread and at the same time wrapping it on the bobbin, a system that anticipated the one introduced in England during the Industrial Revolution.

The machine is equipped with a series of mechanisms that transform circular motion into rectilinear alternating motion. The flyer-driven spindle performs a back-and-forth movement that ensures an automatic and uniform distribution of the spun thread on the bobbin, and a rotary motion that ensures that the thread is twisted.

The innovation can be seen in the back-and-forth movement of the spindle, which avoids interruption of the work due to manual passage of the thread from one hook of the flyer to another, allowing the spinners to have both hands free to perform other operations.