This mechanism is probably one of the most important weaving innovations as Jacquard shedding made possible the automatic production of unlimited varieties of complex pattern weaving. Multiple rows of holes were punched on each card, with one complete card corresponding to one row of the design.īoth the Jacquard process and the necessary loom attachment are named after their inventor.
The machine was controlled by a 'chain of cards' a number of punched cards laced together into a continuous sequence. The machine was patented by Joseph Marie Jacquard in 1804, based on earlier inventions by the Frenchmen Basile Bouchon (1725), Jean Baptiste Falcon (1728), and Jacques Vaucanson (1740). The resulting ensemble of the loom and Jacquard machine is then called a Jacquard loom. The Jacquard machine ( French: ) is a device fitted to a loom that simplifies the process of manufacturing textiles with such complex patterns as brocade, damask and matelassé. It is in the collection of the Science Museum in London, England. Charles Babbage owned one of these portraits it inspired him in using perforated cards in his Analytical Engine. This portrait of Jacquard was woven in silk on a Jacquard loom and required 24,000 punched cards to create (1839).
