Making Abdominal Belts
There is a growing demand for webs of various characters for surgical and orthopedic purposes. One of these which calls for special attention is a web used in the manufacture of abdominal belts. The width varies from about four inches, where it is used to support the back, to about six inches at the part which is used for the support of the abdomen.
Such a web is constructed in the regular manner employed on plain webs, except that it is woven in a deep front reed made to taper from top to bottom, from fine to coarse. This reed is arranged in a reed pocket attached to the lay bed, and is designed to slide up and down behind it. Underneath the lay is an adjustable screw mechanism, which is so operated that it can be made to remain stationary for a given length of time, and then gradually work up and down in a given period. This allows a web to be produced with a formation similar to that shown at Fig. 6.
The rubber cords lie close together while weaving the first narrow part, and gradually spread while operating at the wide part, returning to their original position for the other narrow end. If properly constructed the goods will lie perfectly flat at the narrow ends, and the opening up of the cords by the spreading of the reed dents at the wide center will give more freedom to the individual strands of rubber in this section, which will cause the goods to “belly” at this point. This rounding formation especially adapts them for the purposes for which they are intended. Various modifications of the taper web may be made in this manner, but the same general plan is applicable to all.