The Flying Shuttle 1733: John Kay

Words: 694
Pages: 3
Open Document
The Flying Shuttle 1733 - John Kay
Flying shuttle, Machine that represented an important step toward automatic weaving. It was invented by John Kay in 1733. In previous looms, the shuttle was thrown, or passed, through the threads by hand, and wide fabrics required two weavers seated side by side passing the shuttle between them. Kay mounted his shuttle on wheels in a track and used paddles to shoot the shuttle from side to side when the weaver jerked a cord. Using the flying shuttle, one weaver could weave fabrics of any width more quickly than two could before.
Textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution in Britain was centred in south Lancashire and the towns on both sides of the Pennines. In Germany it was concentrated in the Wupper …show more content…
The machinery was housed in water-powered mills on streams. The need for more power stimulated the production of steam-powered beam engines, and rotated mill engines transmitting the power to line shafts on each floor of the mill. Surplus power capacity encouraged the construction of more sophisticated power looms working in weaving sheds. The scale of production in the mill towns round Manchester created a need for a commercial structure; for a cotton exchange and warehousing. The technology was used in woollen and worsted mills in the West Riding of Yorkshire and …show more content…
These innovations transformed the textile industry in Great Britain. All were attacked as threats to the livelihood of spinners and weavers, and Kay's patent was largely ignored. It is often incorrectly written that Kay was attacked and fled to France, but in fact he simply moved there to attempt to rent out his looms, a business model that had failed him in England. The flying shuttle itself produced a new source of injuries; if deflected from its path, it could be shot clear of the machine, potentially striking workers. Turn of the century injury reports abound with instances in which eyes were lost or other injuries sustained and, in several instances (for example, an extended exchange in 1901), the British House of Commons was moved to take up the issue of installing guards and other contrivances to reduce these
Show More

Related Documents: The Flying Shuttle 1733: John Kay

The Industrial Revolution Essay

developed in 1733, which was around the time the Industrial Revolution started. These newly created machines had a major impact on the economy and the quality of life for many people in Brittan at the time. The Industrial Revolution has made the world a better place. The machines that were created, made clothes cheaper to make and sell, provided people with jobs and also made the workplace a safer, more desirable place to work. The very first textile machine was made by Mr John Kay; he called…

Words 652 - Pages 3

Industrial Revolution Essay

problems among consumers. This is when people found the solution to manufacture textiles with machinery, due to the fact that it was much more efficient and less costly. Manufacturing and urbanization begins! John Kay invented the first Flying Shuttle, and improvement to looms, in 1733. This large machine enabled weavers to weave faster and was able to be operated by only one weaver, compared to the much larger loom, which required two weavers. More textiles being produced meant more profit for…

Words 605 - Pages 3

Industrial Revolution Research Paper

their children would have no education and would work sun up to sun down on the farm, before the invention of machines this kind of labor was needed to provide enough food for the whole family along with clothes and a home. Until John Kay invented the flying shuttle in 1733 and James Hargreaves the spinning jenny 31 years later, the making of yarn and the weaving of cloth had been much the same for thousands of years. That was just the beginning for the Industrial Revolution It grew more powerful…

Words 1051 - Pages 5

Industrial Revolution Essay

Process which created steel The Textile Industry Textiles- cloths or fabrics First Industry to be industrialized Great Britain learned a lot about textiles form India and China. The Birth and Growth of the Textile Industry John Kay (English)- Flying Shuttle 1733 (Hand operated machine which increases the speed of weaving) James Hargreaves (English)—Spinning Jenny, 1765 (Home Based machine that spun thread 8 times faster than when spun by hand.) Richard Arkwright (English)- Water Frame, 1769…

Words 994 - Pages 4

Topic 1 Outlines Essay

examples of changes in technical and institutional arrangements by which output is produced? Change to settled agriculture – Neolithic transition  technical/institutional Breakdown of manorial system  institutional change Invention of flying shuttle by John Kay in 1733 1. Can we have economic growth without economic development? 2. What comes first in spurring on economic development – the economic growth or the structural change? 3. The link between economic growth and economic…

Words 952 - Pages 4

Essay about Topic 201 20Outlines 20

examples of changes in technical and institutional arrangements by which output is produced? Change to settled agriculture – Neolithic transition  technical/institutional Breakdown of manorial system  institutional change Invention of flying shuttle by John Kay in 1733 1. Can we have economic growth without economic development? Yes, output can increase simply by increasing the inputs in production, eg. Agricultural economies increase simply by a growing population expanding and bringing more…

Words 1749 - Pages 7