System and Method for Multi-Modal Clustering

Improvements in ring spinning machines of the type having spindle rails selectively translatable between an initial position, for the spinning operation, and a second position spaced outwardly from the initial position, in order to provide a very substantial clearance over the spindles for tube doffing and donning operations. The spindle rails can be tightly held against the fixed part of the machine during spinning with the identical linkage device serving for translation of the spindle rails between the initial and outward positions, without any other locking means. A tangential belt spindle drive system is arranged in a manner that there is a transmission path from the motor mounted on the fixed end portion of the machine to the spindles carried on the translatable spindle rails irrespective of the position of the spindle rail and that the spindles are always engaged by the tangential belt, with the result that the spindles will be prevented from rotating during tube exchanging, provided the motor is stopped.