It is difficult to keep a book on mechanisms up to date, and it is for this reason that the authors describe principles in preference to machine detail. This approach allows the reader to become aware of the fundamentals of various mechanisms found in a wide range of looms currently used in industry. Extensive use is made of line diagrams for ease of understanding and reproduction, particularly by students.

An outline of the weaving process introduces the book, and this is followed by a study of the interrelationship between the movement and the timing of the primary motions of the loom. The main mechanism of looms are then dealt with in the following chapters, consideration being given to mechanical and mathematical theories,

The principles of the newer methods of weft insertion receive a collective treatment, and this is followed by a chapter on cloth formation and warp and cloth control.

The later chapters are devoted to stop motions, weft-patterning, weft replenishment, and loom drives.