Patent ID: 7740030

Claim:
Selvedge forming apparatus for a weaving machine having a beat-up reed movable to and fro to advance each inserted weft thread up to a beat-up line and a selvedge forming device locatable adjacent a selvedge of a fabric being woven on such a weaving machine configured to introduce an end of each weft thread that has been inserted during weaving via a shed into a subsequently formed shed of such weaving machine for being beat-up with the subsequently inserted weft thread, said selvedge forming apparatus comprising: a blowing device having at least one blowing opening adapted to be located close to and downstream of the beat-up line of such weaving machine relative to fabric movement close to a plane of the selvedge with an orientation enabling blowing of an air stream onto the end of the weft thread that has been introduced into the subsequently formed shed but before being beat-up, said orientation resulting in blowing of air in a direction back towards the shed and the reed and opposite to the direction of movement of the fabric being woven, so that the end of the weft thread that has been introduced into the subsequently formed shed is blown towards the subsequently inserted weft thread before beat-up in a direction opposite to the direction of fabric movement.