Yarn winding apparatus and method

A yarn winding apparatus for winding a continuously advancing yarn into a yarn package, comprising

• a bobbin tube mounting device which comprises a holder for rotatably supporting a bobbin tube and which includes a pair of rotatably supported clamping plates for clamping the bobbin tube therebetween,
• a device for rotating the bobbin tube and the clamping plates,
• at least one of said clamping plates including a front peripheral edge facing the tube and which has a catching slot and a catching nose extending from the catching slot in the intended direction of rotation of the one clamping plate, and a circumferentially extending clamping slot, and a recess undercutting the catching slot and the catching nose so that the recess defines a guiding surface which communicates with the front peripheral edge, with the guiding surface extending away from said catching nose in a direction opposite to the intended direction of rotation to a lead in plane which intersects the clamping slot,
• wherein each of said clamping plates includes a centering extension that extends into the bobbin tube, wherein the clamping slot is formed between the adjacent end edge of the bobbin tube and a recess formed in the centering extension of the one clamping plate, and wherein the guiding surface extends helically toward the adjacent end edge of the bobbin tube,
• whereby, upon rotation of the bobbin tube and the clamping plates in the intended direction of rotation, a yarn positioned to engage the front peripheral edge of the one clamping plate will drop into the catching slot and be looped about and caught by the catching nose, and the yarn will then be guided by the guiding surface into the clamping slot.