Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-1-
Title: A ROLL-FORMING MACHINE FOR FORMING SMOOTH CURVES
IN PROFILED PANEL SECTIONS AND METHOD OF FORMING
CURVED PANELS
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to the field of roll forming, and more
particularly to methods and apparatuses for working with roll formed panels.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Roll forming is an industrial process whereby flat sheets of material
can be bent in cross section to attain a corrugated or bent cross sectional
profile in a longitudinal panel. Typically roll forming machines consist of
pairs of opposed rollers that are shaped to introduce the desired cross-
sectional bends into the panel sections. One roller of the roller pair is
usually a driven roller and a series of roller pairs are placed along the
length of the roll forming machine to effect the required bending in the
panel section as it progresses through the roll forming apparatus. Each
roller of the opposed roller pair will have a matching or interfacing set of
rollers to gently bend the panel cross section into the desired final
configuration.
Many configurations of roll forming apparatus exist, and through
the use of various roller shapes the panel profiles can be formed having
various cross sectional profiles including rectangular, angled and even
folded over sections. The range of modern roll forming equipment
permits many panel materials to be rolled formed of many various
thicknesses and compositions.
Metal panels are often used in roll forming and may be for example
roll formed into corrugated panels suitable for use as exterior cladding on
various types of buildings. A trend of modern building architecture is to
include complex curved or rounded surfaces for the buildings, both on the
exterior walls and for the roofs of buildings. Roll formed panel sections
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-2-
are well suited for use as roof or wall panel elements or exterior cladding
elements, but are not easy to curve in longitudinal curves as required for
such modern architecture. Due to the corrugations, panels with complex
cross-sectional profiles are not that easy to bend.
In one form of prior art device a longitudinal curve is formed in a roll
formed panel by using a press break device to create a series of sharp
incremental longitudinal kinks in the roll formed panel. To achieve the
desired overall curve requires imposing a series of individual kinks
spaced along the length of the panel. While this method can be used it
suffers from several disadvantages, including that it is difficult to achieve
the desired profile because the spacing and degree of bend of each
angular increment needs to be precisely determined to achieve a panel
that is appropriately curved according to the desired tolerances. This
type of press break machinery is also heavy machinery located in a
fabrication facility, so any miss fitting panel sections have to be returned
to the fabrication shop for reshaping, or simply discarded, which is
expensive and time consuming. Further the finished product is formed
with many creases and so looks busy and unsightly.
In another form of longitudinal bending machine a panel is rolled
horizontally back and forth within a panel forming machine and one
centre set of roller elements are moved slightly upwardly between each
pass, to gradually form an upward curve in the panel. In this way, after
many passes the panel begins to acquire a curved longitudinal profile.
However, as the panel is held horizontally, the curve forming is working
against gravity. Also, the curve forming takes many passes. Once again
it can be difficult to get the right degree of longitudinal curve and if it is
not
right, it will require a trip back to the fabrication shop to rework the panel
section to develop the proper curve. This device has the advantage of
forming a smooth rather than a creased curve, which can be considered
to be an advantage over the first prior art method discussed above, but it
has the disadvantage of requiring many passes, which is time consuming,
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-3-
expensive and difficult to reliable repeat. Repeating the exact same
degree of curve on a number of panel sections is often required in larger
construction projects.
Lastly, often the building code, architects or engineers require
cladding material for a building be of a complex or built up panel type. In
many cases a panel section specified is formed by welding a roll formed
liner into a roll formed panel section to improve stiffness, strength and
reliability of cladding panel that is to be used as an exterior surface.
Matching separately formed curved panel sections to curved liners has
been difficult to achieve up until the present.
What is desired therefore is a roll forming machine and method for
imposing smooth repeatable longitudinal curves into roll formed panel
sections have complex cross sectional profiles. Most preferable such an
apparatus would be able to produce different degrees of curves in the
panel sections, without affecting the cross sectional profiles and will also
be able to produce curves of both a convex and a concave direction in a
single pass. Also, desirably the roll forming machine will be able to adapt
to and accommodate a wide range of panel profiles from standard to
custom shaped roll formed sections.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, according to the present invention there is provided a
roll forming apparatus for the longitudinal bending of panels having
complex cross sectional profiles. The present invention in one
embodiment includes a hand-operated adjustment to permit the degree of
curve formed in the panel to be varied and provides for a positioning of
the rollers so that the smooth curve can be formed in a single pass. The
present invention can impose either a concave or convex curve, by
simple adjustment of the bending mechanism. The components of the
present invention are arranged to permit the multiple bending
arrangements to be easily and quickly implemented.
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-4-
Thus according to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a
roll-forming machine for forming smooth curves in profiled panel sections,
said roll forming machine comprising:
Opposed pinch pass rollers having a roller profile generally
corresponding to said profiled panel;
A pair of cantilever rollers downstream of said pinch pass rollers,
said cantilever rollers having axes of rotation that are offset relative to
one
another in the direction of travel said profiled panel through said machine
and having a roller profile generally corresponding to said profiled panel;
At least one sweep roller positioned downstream of said cantilever
rollers for bending said panel as said panel passes past said sweep roller
and having a roller profile generally corresponding to said profiled panel;
and
A means to position at least said one sweep roller to control a
degree of bend of said smooth curve formed in said panel by said
machine.
According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a
method of forming a smooth curve in a profiled panel in a roll forming
machine, comprising the steps of:
Providing opposed pinch pass rollers having a roller profile
generally corresponding to said profiled panel; a pair of cantilever rollers
downstream of said pinch pass rollers, said cantilever rollers having axes
of rotation that are offset relative to one another in the direction of travel
said profiled panel through said machine and having a roller profile
generally corresponding to said profiled panel; and at least one sweep
roller positioned downstream of said cantilever rollers for bending said
panel as said panel passes past said sweep roller and having a roller
profile generally corresponding to said profiled panel;
Positioning said sweep roller relative to said cantilever rollers to
impart a smooth curve into said panel; and
Passing said profiled panel through said machine to impart a
smooth longitudinal curve to said panel.
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-5-
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Reference will now be made to preferred embodiments of the
invention by way of example only, in which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of an apparatus according to the
present invention;
Figure 2 is a front view of the apparatus of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a top view of the apparatus of Figures 1 and 2;
Figure 4a is a schematic view of the rollers in a first bending position
to form a convex bend;
Figure 4b is a schematic view of the roller configuration to form a
concave bend;
Figure 5a is a schematic view of the rollers in a second bending
position to form a concave bend;
Figure 5b is a schematic view of the rollers in a second bending
position to form a convex bend;
Figure 6 is an end view of the left side of the apparatus of Figures 1
and 2;
Figure 7 is an end view of the right side of the apparatus of Figures
1 and 2;
Figure 8 is a cross sectional view along lines 6-6 of figure 5; and
Figure 9 is view of the embodiment of figure 1 of the present invention
making curved panels and liners.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
A panel curving apparatus for roll forming smooth longitudinal curves
in profiled panel sections according to the present invention is shown
generally as 10 in Figure 1. The preferred curving apparatus 10 includes
three main sections, namely a first tooling raft 12, a central instrumentation
and control station 14 and a second tooling raft 16. As will be explained in
more detail below the first and second tooling rafts 12, 16 are generally
similar in operation, but may be provided with different roller tooling
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-6-
configurations to facilitate the use of the invention. For example, in one
preferred embodiment the first tooling raft 12 can have rollers 15 that are
suitable for N-Decking type panel material and the second tooling raft can
have rollers 17 that are suitable for a liner panel for the N-Decking panels
of the first tooling raft. It will be noted from Figure 1 that the rollers are
oriented on a generally vertical axis of rotation for example as shown at A
for reasons explained in more detail below.
Although the terms left hand and right hand are used at times in this
specification the present invention is not limited to a particular left handed
or right handed configuration and the terms are used for ease of
understanding only. The term longitudinal is also used an generally means
generally in the direction of travel of a panel through the apparatus 10 of
the
present invention. The term cross sectional direction means a direction
transverse to the longitudinal or feed direction. Thus, a panel having a bent
cross sectional profile may have had many bends formed into it, in the
nature of rectangular or angled ridges or valleys and yet may still lie
substantially flat on a planar surface. A panel having a longitudinal bend or
curve may also have a corrugated cross sectional profile, but includes an
additional curve in the feed direction which means the panel cannot lie
generally flat on a planar surface.
The apparatus 10 includes a central frame 20, which defines a rigid
structure to which each of the tooling rafts 12 and 16 may be releasably
attached by means of bolts or the like. The frame 20 includes base frame
elements 22, with feet 24. The feet preferably include levelling screws 26
to permit the bending apparatus 10 to be levelled as required. A central
rectangular frame 28 is also provided around the station 14, with lifting ears
30. The lifting ears 30 permit the whole apparatus 10 to be lifted at once,
rafts and all, to facilitate the apparatus 10 being transported from location
to location. The central rectangular frame 28 provides a convenient space
to house the instrumentation station 14, which includes instrumentation,
power controls and the like . A controller module 29 is shown in outline in
Figure 1.
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-7-
Turning now to the rafts 12 16, while they are generally similar, the
presence of two rafts permits two separate roller configurations 15,17 to be
used. The rafts 12, 16 include lower raft frames 34, 36 having an end wall
38, 40 and bearing support members 42. In a preferred form of the
invention three pairs of rollers 44 are provided on each of rafts 12 and 16,
each roller pair 44 including a passive or slave roller 50 and a powered or
driven roller 52. Three hydraulic motors 56 are provided on each side to
power the driven roller of each roller pair 44.
The rafts are constructed with upper and lower bearing blocks 58, 60
for the rollers so each roller is axially aligned and held in position. The
bearing blocks 58, 60 are supported on either side by bearing support
members 42. As well, the present invention provides for a means to move
the bearing blocks of at least one roller of each roller pair in a direction
generally transverse to the direction of travel of a panel member through the
roller pair. In a preferred embodiment the position adjustment is carried out
by means of hand wheels 61 which are attached to linkages 62. Worm
gears are used to cause the rotation of the hand wheels to turn threaded
members 63 extending to the bearing blocks 58, 60. In turn the upper and
lower bearing blocks for one roller of each roller pair are connected to the
threaded rods by means of a threaded collar, so turning the threaded rod
causes the bearing blocks, and thus the roller to move along the threaded
rod as the hand wheel is turned. In this way the present invention provides
that the hand wheels can be used to precisely move the upper and lower
roller bearing blocks connected to the threaded members 63 in and out, so
the bearing blocks, and associated rollers, may be set at any desired lateral
position, within the range of travel of the threaded members or rods 63. It
is most preferred to control the movement of the upper and lower bearing
blocks simultaneously so lateral movement of the roller is exactly matched
at the top and bottom to preserve axial alignment. While the mechanical
linkage shown achieves this result, it will be appreciated by those skilled in
the art that individual automatic controls could also be used in place of the
mechanical linkages. Thus, the present invention comprehends that at least
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-8-
one roller of each roller pair can be moved laterally, relative to the
direction
of travel of the material passing through the roller pair, to permit the
rollers
to be positioned precisely as required to impart the desired bend into the
panel material. The present invention also provides position control for the
other roller of each roller pair as explained in more detail below.
Figure 2 shows the apparatus 10 of Figure 1 from the front. In this
view the first tooling raft 12 the central portion 14 and the second tooling
raft
16 are visible. As well the hand wheels 61 are shown, with the linkage
element 62 and the roller bearing support elements 42. Also shown are the
hydraulic motors 56 on one of the rollers visible in the two presented roller
pairs. It will also be noted that the tooling for the roller pair on the first
tooling raft 12 (left side of figure 1 indicated by 70) are different from the
tooling for the roller pair on the second tooling raft 16 (the right side
indicated at 72). This demonstrates the flexible nature of the present
invention in terms of being able to configure the roller tooling to suit
specific
panel profiles.
As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the rollers of the first
and second rafts may need to be changed from time to time. Different panel
configurations will require different roller sets and so the present invention
provides that each of the first and second rafts can be detached from the
frame 20 and lifted by means of the ears 32 off the central frame 50 to
facilitate roller tooling change over. Thus, a replacement raft, pre-installed
with the newly required rollers can be simply dropped into place and secured
to the central frame. In this way the present invention provides an apparatus
that can be quickly changed over from one type of roller configuration to
another. Alternatively, if the roller pairs are made the same, then one can
be in use, while the rollers are being replaced on the other side without
having to stop fabrication.
Figure 3 is a view from above in which again the first tooling raft 12,
the central portion 14 and the second tooling raft 16 are visible. Also shown
are the feet 24 which are located at both the front and the back of the
apparatus 10. Although six feet 24 are shown more or fewer could be used
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-9-
as desired. Figure 3 also clearly shows the roller pairs 44 according to a
preferred embodiment of the present invention. In particular there are , on
the first tooling raft 12, rollers 100 and 102, forming a pair of pinch
rollers,
rollers 104,106 forming a second offset pair of rollers, which maybe referred
to as cantilever rollers and a third pair of rollers 108, 110 forming sweep
rollers. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, more or fewer
rollers could be used, provided that enough rollers are present to curve the
panel section passing through the rollers as explained in more detail below.
However, the configuration of rollers as shown has provided reasonable
results. The second tooling raft 16 in this preferred configuration also
includes three sets of rollers 112 and 114, 116 and 118 and 120 and 122
as shown. While the following discussion will focus on the rollers on the
first tooling raft 12 the same description is applicable to the second tooling
raft 16, as it operates in essentially the same way, but is provided with
different tooling.
As previously stated each of the roller pairs is preferred to include at
least one powered roller, and for this purpose hydraulic motors have
provided adequate results. The first pair of rollers 100, 102 are referred to
as pinch pass rollers. These rollers are preferred to be configured to
generally match the profile of the panel section to be bent in the curve
forming or bending apparatus 10. While in some circumstances it might be
possible to use the pinch pass rollers to help bend and shape the lateral
cross sectional profile of the panel section being curved in the apparatus 10,
this is less preferred than simple using the apparatus 10 to curve already
profiled panel sections. Bending steps to create or change the cross-
sectional profile add expense and complexity to the apparatus 10 and is not
generally desirable. The apparatus 10, due to its simple design and modest
size can be transported and located at, for example a building site, where
it can be used to fabricate curved panel sections on location. In this way the
curves required can be tried and if need be the roller adjusted to suit
anomalies in the building being fitted with the panels. Extra weight and
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-10-
complexity would detract from the ability to easily transport and use the
apparatus and thus, while possible, is not believed desirable.
As will be understood by those skilled in the art the pinch pass rollers
100, 102 are set up bearing on each other enough to be able to grasp and
drive the panel section being curved forward to the other downstream roller
pairs. The middle pair of rollers 104, 106 are the cantilever or offset roller
pair. As can be seen from Figure 3, the vertical axes of rotation of the
rollers
104, 106 are offset relative to one another in the direction of travel of the
panel through the machine. This is illustrated by means of the distance D
between the lines 130 and 132 which are transverse to the feed direction
and centered on the roller axes. The last pair of rollers 108, 110 are the
sweep rollers and at least one of the sweep rollers is used to impart the
bend to the panel member by bending the panel around the cantilever
provided by the offset rollers. This is explained in more detail below.
Figure 4a is a schematic drawing, from above, showing a panel
member 200, being fed in a feed direction 202 through the pinch pass roller
pair 100, 102, then through the offset roller pair 104, 106 and lastly through
the sweeping roller pair 108, 110 and as a result being bent into a convex
bend. In Figure 4a the panel is being seized by the pinch pass rollers 100,
102 and advanced to the offset roller pair. The panel is then fed between
the offset roller pair. In this roller pair the roller 104 is offset behind
the roller
106. The roller 106 acts as the main support roller and the roller 104
maintains the cantilever action on the panel 200. Further along in the
direction of the feed, the roller 110 is the sweep roller and the roller 108
is
a passive roller which is displaced out of contact with the panel member
200. Thus the sweep or bending roller 110 bends the panel 200 around the
offset roller 104, while the panel is held by the combination of the
cantilever
rollers 104, 106 to prevent bowing of the panel which would make control of
the degree of bend in the panel much more difficult.
Figure 4b is a schematic view of the rollers of figure 4a, except that
the panel feed direction has been reversed and the position of the rollers
has been adjusted to suit the change in feed direction. In this case the
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-11-
rollers 108, 110 act as the pinch pass rollers and the offset rollers 104, 106
are applied to the panel in the opposite manner as in Figure 4a. Thus, in
Figure 4b the roller 104 is the support roller and the roller 106 is the
cantilever roller for supporting the panel as it is bent past the primary
sweep
roller 100, which in Figure 4a is roller 110. The roller 102 is allowed to be
displaced out of contact from the panel member 200. As now can be
appreciated, while the roller configuration and feed direction of figure 4a
produces a convex bend the roller configuration and feed direction of figure
4b produces a concave panel member. The panel 200 is flat at 206, but
curved at 208.
The use of the means for adjusting the position of the rollers on the
tooling rafts can now be more fully understood. When seeking to produce
a panel of a certain curve, the rollers can be positioned relative to one
another so as to impart either a convex or concave curve into the panel
member 200. Further the use of the offset roller pair permits the panel to be
held in position to permit control of the plastic or non-elastic deformation
of
the panel member, meaning that the desired curve can be archieved in a
single pass through the apparatus 10. Changes in the degree of curvature
can be effected simply by adjusting the lateral position of one or both of the
sweep roller or the offset roller pair. Further more, once the rollers are set
up, many individual panel sections can be reliably bent into the same degree
of curvature without needing any further adjustments to the position of the
rollers. However, the apparatus 10 permits the curve forming to be finely
adjusted to ensure a close fit can be achieved to the desired installation, at
the job site and before a large number of panel sections are curved. Thus,
the present invention permits the user to bend a panel, fit the panel to the
desired location, note whether any adjustments are required and if so make
such adjustment and retest the fit until the fit is exactly what is desired.
Only
then does the user begin to bend the other panel sections, which will be
reliably produced with the best fitting curvature.
Figure 5a shows an alternate roller configuration for the rollers of the
first tooling raft which can also be used for one pass curving of profiled
panel
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-12-
members. In this configuration the feed direction is the same as in figure 4a,
but due to the roller positions the curve formed is a concave curve rather
than a convex curve as in figure 4a. In the case the rollers 100, 102 form
the pinch pass pair of rollers. Then the offset roller pair of 104, 106 are
positioned so as to permit roller 104 to start sweeping or bending the panel
member 200 around the support roller 106. The final sweep or bending is
accomplished by the secondary weep roller 110, while the roller 108 is
positioned out of contact with the panel member 200.
Figure 5b shows an analogous set up to that of figure 4b in terms of
feed direction, but has the rollers configured to impart a convex bend to the
panel member 200.
The versatility of the present apparatus can now be understood in
that it can impart either convex or concave bends into a panel member,
whether the panel member is fed from one side or the other. This flexibility
of use facilitates the use of the present invention.
Figure 6 is an end view of the apparatus 10 of Figure 1 from the right-
hand side. The second tooling raft 16 is shown and attached by means of
bolts at either side at 210. The panel liner tooling rollers 17 are shown,
with
the central pair of rollers being offset. The means for moving the rollers,
including the hand wheels 61 are also shown.
Figure 7 is a cross sectional view looking up along lines B-B in Figure
6. This view shows more clearly another aspect of the present invention
namely the link plates 300 which extend between the bearing blocks of each
bearing pair. While these are shown with respect to the upper bearing pair,
it will be appreciated that each bearing block of each associated bearing pair
is connected to its opposed bearing block by means of such a link plate 300.
The link plate 300 provides a degree of flexibility in positioning the rollers
of
any given roller pair with respect to each other. As will now be understood
from the discussion of figures 4a, 4b, 5a and 5b, the feed direction can be
varied from left to right and right to left and the curve can be varied from
convex to concave, meaning that sometimes one of the rollers of the roller
pair is best left out of contact with the panel member. The link plates 300
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-13-
are what is used to permit this to be achieved. Essentially the link plate
includes a slot 302 which provides room for the bearing blocks to be
separated from one another, by the length of the slot, when one of the
rollers is to be placed out of contact with the panel member 200. In most
cases the bearing blocks will be pressed together against an end stop or
chock or stop block 310, provided between the frame 311 and the bearing
block 312 so that one of the rollers of the roller pair can be pressed onto
the
other roller. When one of the bearing blocks is backed away or off of the
other, then the link plate permits a greater degree of separation to be
achieved between the bearing blocks of each roller pair so only the rollers
required to do so can be caused to bear against the panel member 200.
Various sizes of chock or stop 310 can be used to precisely position the
roller. While only one is shown in Figure 7, it will be understood that two or
three could be used, one for each bearing block 312, 314, 316.
Figure 8 shows the apparatus 10 in use, with a panel member 400
and a liner panel 410 being bent through the apparatus 10. The feed
direction is shown as 420, and the unbent or straight panel section 430 and
straight liner section passes through the apparatus 10 and acquires the
bend 440, 460 in a single pass. As can be seen, with appropriate
adjustment of the rollers the two bent elements can be made to match
exactly, permitting the one to be fitted and the attached, such as by welding
or the like to the other. In this way a complete cladding element can be
fabricated on the site and to the required specifications. Any discrepancies
can be quickly and easily adjusted for without requiring the parts be returned
to the fabrication shop. The present apparatus can be located at the job site
and is in this sense somewhat portable. Most preferably the present
invention 10 is sized and shaped to fit on a flat bit trailer, and weighs no
more than 15,500 pounds (Ibs)
Figure 8 illustrate a further aspect of the invention, namely the use of
rollers on a vertical rotational axis. As illustrated the panels may be quite
long in overall length and if the rollers were oriented horizontally, the feed
ends of the panel sections would be high in the air making them hard to
CA 02557013 2006-08-23
-14-
handle. Alternatively, if the curve was convex, then the apparatus 10 would
have to be high in the air, making adjusting the controls awkward and the
overall construction and placement of the device more expensive. As can
now be appreciated , by placing the rollers on generally vertical axes of
rotation both the apparatus 10 and both ends of the panel section can
remain on the ground, making the apparatus 10 easy to use and the
resultant curved panels well within reach at all steps of the fabrication.
While various modifications and alterations are discussed above
many additional variations and alterations are comprehended within the
broad scope of the attached claims. Some of these have been discussed
specifically herein and others will be apparent to those skilled in the art.
For
example, while the preferred form of the invention is to include first and
second tooling rafts, the present invention also comprehends providing only
a single tooling raft. Further while the example discussed relates to a form
of N-Decking and a liner panel, the rollertooling can be modified as required
to suit any form of bent panels of the type suitable for passing through a
roll
forming machine. Thus, a wide variety of panel cross sectional shapes and
configurations can be accommodated by the present invention. What is
believed important, without wanting to be limited to any specific theory, is
the
use of offset rollers to permit the deformation or plastic bending to occur
primarily between the offset rollers and the sweep rollers so the degree of
longitudinal curve imported into the panel can be precisely controlled and
repeatedly made.
