Method and apparatus for fabric production

A method of manufacturing a fabric comprising:

• reciprocating a weft carrier laying a set having a number of weft yarns in a lateral, weftwise, direction across a weftspace between two sets of weft retainers and moving said weft carrier in a longitudinal, warpwise, direction relatively to the weft retainers at at least one end of its weftspace traverse to lay the set of weft yarns across the weftspace at each lateral traverse, causing said weft carrier to hook each weft yarn around at least two weft retainers at at least one side of the weftspace, the relative warpwise movement between said weft carrier and said weft retainers being such that at each traverse of said weft carrier, after a first traverse, some, but not all, of the laid weft yarns are interdigitated with weft yarns previously laid by the weft carrier or another weft carrier, the remaining weft yarns laid at that traverse being spaced from each other to permit a further set of weft yarns to be interdigitated with them on a subsequent traverse of the or another weft carrier, wherein the relative longitudinal motion of said weft carrier causes such interdigitation of the weft yarns that at each traverse of said weft carrier, after a first traverse, the weft yarns which are interdigitated with previously laid weft yarns are so interdigitated with the spaced apart weft yarns laid on the immediately preceding traverse of the weft carrier, that a complete array of weft yarns is produced by the weft carrier.