▪ I. clamping, vbl. n.
(ˈklæmpɪŋ)
[f. clamp v.1 + -ing1.]
a. The action of clamp v.1
| 1751 Chambers Cycl., Clamping. c 1860 H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. 75 A quarter-iron that opens with a hinge to allow the topmast studding-sail booms to be raised or lowered (called clamping). 1881 Times 28 Jan. 3/6 It was officially remarked of this gun—‘Elevating and traversing gear very good; clamping also good’. 1886 All Y.R. Dec. 499 [Cotton manufacture] The operation of clamping, or stretching the cloth to its proper width evenly throughout its whole length. |
b. Electr. A method of adjusting and maintaining the positive or negative limits of a waveform. Freq. attrib., as clamping circuit. Cf. clamp v.1 1 b.
| 1944 J. W. Sherwin in Mass. Inst. Techn., Radiation Lab., Rep. 572 (title) Clamping tubes. 1947 D. G. Fink Radar Engin. xi. 574 A clamping circuit of two triode tubes is connected conductively to the grid of each deflection amplifier tube. The clamping tubes are connected in series. 1947 L. J. Haworth in L. N. Ridenour Radar System Engin. xiii. 504 During each positive excursion of A the resistance extracts a small charge, which is replaced by the diode on the negative excursion. The clamping can be done at the positive extreme by reversing the diode. 1961 G. Millerson Technique Telev. Production iii. 50 Electronic clamping circuits reduce the wide variation in picture tones that an unsteady datum produces. 1962 Simpson & Richards Junction Transistors xvi. 389 Clamping may be defined quite generally as the stabilization of the output voltage or current of a transistor switch by a sudden change of impedance, produced by an additional circuit device at one of the transistor electrodes. |
▪ II. clamping, ppl. a.
(ˈklæmpɪŋ)
[f. as prec. + -ing2.]
That clamps or holds fast together; as in clamping screw, clamping arc. (perh. vbl. n.).
| 1837 Goring & Pritchard Microgr. 8 The clamping screw and the adjusting screw. 1857 Henfrey Elem. Bot. 17 The clamping roots of Ivy-stems. 1867 J. Hogg Microsc. i. ii. 70 The clamping arc, peculiar to Ross's microscopes. |