Drafting

Drafting system
• 3over 3 arrangement of rollers
• Two drafting zones
• Bottom rollers fluted
• Top rollers synthetic rubber Back roller
covered
28 2 28
• Draft limits Front 5
Maximum : 20- 22 roller Condens
28 er 25
Conde
Minimum : 5-6 25 nser

High draft : Lot of drafting irregularity Bottom apron

Low draft : High drafting force due to 2mm
large mass of fibre 2mm

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 Apron drafting
Elements of drafting system
• Drafting rollers
• Bottom rollers made of steel
• Top rollers synthetic rubber covered)
• Aprons
• Cradle
• Nose bar
• Condenser
• Spacer
• Weighting system

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 Aprons
Tensioning device
• Aprons are used to guide the fibres in the
drafting zone
• The aprons are made of synthetic rubber or
leather of 1mm in thickness .
Nose bar • The top apron extends over the drafting
Tension zone and held taut by tensioning device .
Pulley
• The bottom apron runs over smooth guide
bar ( nose bar ). The lower part of bottom
apron runs over a pulley.

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Cradle
• The extension of the aprons within the draft
zone is known as cradle length ( a) .

Cradle Fibre length (mm)

length (a) Cotton Synthetic

40 36 33
43 33 50
50 - 60

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• The top rollers and aprons get their drive from bottom rollers.
• The middle bottom roller drives
• bottom apron and
• top roller along with its apron due to frictional contact between them.

• Rollers are pressed against each other at 100-250N force to guide

fibres
• Aprons are also pressed against each other

• Top rollers weighing:

• spring pressure
• Pneumatic pressure

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Spacing between top & bottom aprons
• Fibre guidance depends upon this pressure and
spacing between the aprons
• The pressure should be moderate.
X Roving
• Too much pressure
• extremely high drafting force leading to uneven drafting
and fibre breakage.
• Too less pressure
Bottom apron • inadequate guidance.

• Spacing should be adapted to fibre volume present

between the aprons

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 Apron pressure control
• The gap (X) between two aprons is adjusted by
spacers ( clip M) of variable height
• These are inserted between the nose bar of lower
apron and the cradle edge of top apron
• The pressure between aprons is adjusted by
inserting small clips known as “ spacers”.
• Spacers of various sizes are available to suit the
different fibre volume.
X Roving
• These are inserted between the nose bar of
bottom apron and cradle edge of top apron.

Bottom apron

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 X Roving

Bottom apron

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Roller Pressure adjustment
• The set load stage can be
read on the pressure adjusting
cam in the form of
• numbers or
• color markings
Lever of the top weighting arm

2 Adjusting key 3 Pressure

adjusting cam

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 Fibre guidance by condenser
Drafted fibres tends to spread out . Condenser
Consequence : fly liberation & unevenness
They need to be brought back and hence
condensers.
• Three condensers
• Rear condenser (13)
• break draft condenser (14), and
• main draft condenser (15)

• The rear and back zone condensers have reciprocating

motion to spread out wear of top roller surfaces.

• The main zone condenser floats in draft field

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 Condenser Break draft
condenser

Rear condenser

Reference values for the break draft condenser

a (mm) b (mm) Color
10 12 14 3 3 3 green yellow red (standard)

Reference values for the rear condenser

a (mm) b (mm) Color Main draft zone condenser
12 3 transparent
16 3 red (standard)
20 5 yellow
28 5 green
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Roller overhang
• The front roller overhang over bottom roller is 6 – 8mm . It is done
to accommodate 3mm condenser.
• The middle top apron roller is given 2mm back overhang from its
bottom roller to ensure satisfactory movement of bottom and top
aprons.

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 Drafting Front
roller
6-8
mm
Back roller

28
28 25 28
• It is essentially a two zone drafting
system consisting of 3 over 3 or 4 over Roving
4 drafting rollers. 28
30 25 28

Bottom
apron
• In the case of 4 over 4 rollers , a
neutral zone ( draft ≈ 1) separates the 49 /60/76mm 60 - 90mm
front and back zone. Middle
Front zone Back zone
zone

• The mass of fibre to be drafted being

large , inter fibre friction produces
large drag between fibres during
drafting.
4 over 4 drafting system

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 Significance of back Front
6-8
mm
Back roller

zone draft roller

28
28 25 28

Roving
• No effective control to be exerted in back zone . 28
30 25 28
• Purpose of the draft: To straighten out fibres in Bottom
sliver so as to ensure an even flow of slightly apron

tensioned well parallelized fibres into the main

49 /60/76mm 60 - 90mm
draft zone.
• Total draft = 10 -12 ( usually)
This is achieved by
• Wide back zone setting • Back zone draft = 1.2 – 1.4
• Low rear zone draft
• ( 1.05 – 1.15 for cotton, and
• 1.1 – 1.3 for synthetic). Most of the drafting is
performed in front zone

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Significance of setting Front
6-8
mm
Back roller

roller
28
28 25 28

• Setting Roving
• Front zone : Fibre length +3mm - 5 mm 28
30 25 28

• Back zone : Fibre length + 10mm - 16 mm Bottom

apron
• Front zone setting must be of adequate
width to permit an undisturbed drafting 49 /60/76mm 60 - 90mm
operation. Otherwise, the drag may
become too strong to overcome by the
drawing force of the front pair of rollers
leading to undrafted portions.

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 6-8 mm Back
roller
Front
roller
2828 25 28

Roving

28 28
30 25

Bottom apron

49 /60/76mm 60 - 90mm

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Drive to drafting rollers

Back roller

Middle roller

Front roller

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End

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