AU2007201737B2 - An apparatus and method for weathering of metal roof sheets used in roof construction - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus and method for weathering of metal roof sheets used in roof construction. Particularly applicable to roll-formed roofing sheets the apparatus and 5 method form a protrusion in each valley of a corrugated roof sheet along one end thereof, for the purpose of preventing water flow there through when the roof sheet has been installed. The weathering is achieved by using a suitably shaped stump assembly that impacts upon the end of the sheet causing it to bend upwards and rearwards. -Q Q $ ~~-0 C"'9 IC, .1t 00l oo/ Cr

Description

12512AU ORIGINAL Complete Specification Applicant Fielders Australia Pty Ltd Title: An apparatus and method for weathering of metal roof sheets used in roof construction Address for Service: LESICAR PERRIN, 49 Wright Street. Adelaide, South Australia 5000, Australia The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to melus: I An apparatus and method for weathering of metal roof sheets used in roof construction FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for weathering of 5 metal roof sheets used in roof construction and, in particular, to an apparatus and method for forming a protrusion in each valley of a corrugated roof cladding element along one end thereof, for the purpose of preventing water flow therethrough when the roof sheet has been installed. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 10 Corrugated galvanised iron and steel elements, in the following also calleil panels and sheets, have been widely used in Australia for roofing since about 1850. The conventional methods and apparatus used for manufacturing and installing such elements are generally known and do not significantly differ throughout the building industry. 15 Profiled roofing is typically formed by the rolling of sheet metal into the form of a required roof profile. The metal is fed through a roll-forming assembly which typically includes a series of rollers spaced apart in a production line. The rollers each comprise two forming wheels positioned one above the other such that each of the rollers is progressively shaped to the required profile of roofing. These corrugated 20 roofing panels are then typically cut to size and stored for transportation. The present applicant is the owner of various patent applications relating to apparatus and methods for manufacturing such roof cladding elements, including elements having angled edges. The contents of these applications are incorporated by reference berlin. Typically, after the corrugated roof cladding elements have been cut to size, 25 they are transported to a house and installed. A pitched roof generally comprises a plurality of such elements, a capping along the top apex of the roof where the pitched cladding sheets meet, and a gutter along the lower edge of the roof sheets to allow for water drainage. The capping over the peak of the roof is traditionally fixed to the roof cladding sheets by the use of screws or nails and is not generally sealed.

2 During periods of wind and rain, water can be blown upwards along the valleys of the corrugations, and between the gap foned by the corrugated roof sheet and the roof capping. Water entering this gap may enter the roof space or get trapped and pool in this gap, at times causing extensive damage and generally reducing the 5 lifespan of the roof. In the case of some low pitched moves, bitumen, tar or other alternative sealing agents are used to seal the capping to the metal roof sheet and prohibit water from entering underneath the capping. This solution is not always practical and is particularly unappealing in visible locations. 10 In the case of conventional pitched roofs, roof installers currently bend the capping end of the corrugated roof sheets at each valley using pliers, effectively forming crude protrusions. Although more effective than not having any protrusions, this technique has some drawbacks, including the possibility of damaging the metal roof sheet, reducing its aesthetic appeal, and an inability to maintain a consistent sized 15 protrusion in the valleys of the corrugations. The inconsistently formed protrusions may lead to areas for water being retained and possible further damage to the roof sheet. Crude protrusions may also not be effective in preventing the flow of water there through, and so water may often enter the roof space in any event. It is therefore an object of the present invention to overcome the 20 aforementioned problems and to provide the public with a useful alternative. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore in one form of the invention there is proposed an apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests, the apparatus including: 25 a support means adapted to receive the longitudinal strip of material; and at least one abutment surface adapted to form upward protrusions in the valleys of the longitudinal, corrugated strip of material, along at least one end. Preferably the abutment surface is in the form of at least one fixed stump wherein the longitudinal end of the corrugated strip of material is made to move 3 toward the fixed stump a predetermined distance to thereby form said protrusions in valleys thereof In preference the longitudinal strip of material is controllably fed through said apparatus in a substantially horizontal plane, and said fixed stump is at least 5 temporarily located in the path of the moving strip of material in a substantially vertical configuration. Alternatively the abutment surface is in the form of at least one ejecting stump wherein said longitudinal strip of material is fixed, and said ejecting stunp is made to move towards the longitudinal end of the corrugated strip of material to thereby form 10 said protrusions in valleys thereof. In preference the longitudinal strip of material is controllably fed through said apparatus in a substantially horizontal plane, and made to stop in a position wherein the longitudinal end of the corrugated strip of material is positioned at least temporarily in the path of the ejecting stump adapted to move substantially vertically 15 with respect thereto. In preference said assembly includes a plurality of stumps positioned to forma a protrusion in each of the valleys of the longitudinal, corrugated strip of material. Advantageously said longitudinal, corrugated strip of material is sheet metal. Preferably said apparatus includes a means for cutting said longitudinal, 20 corrugated strip of material prior to weathering. Alternatively, when using said ejecting stump, said apparatus includes a means of cutting said longitudinal, corrugated strip of material post weathering. In preference said cutting means is in the form of at least one blade assembly, said blade assembly having upper and lower blades adapted to receive said strip 25 theretbrough. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate several implementations of the invention and, together 4 with the description, serve to explain the advantages and principles of the invention. In the drawings: Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view of a corrugated roof cladding element, with the addition of a series of protrusions in the 5 valleys of the corrugations on one end of the element, in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2a-2c illustrate the progressive formation of a protrusion in a corrugated roof cladding element in accordance with a first aspect of the present invention; 10 Figure 3a-3c illustrate the progressive fbrnation of a protrusion in a corrugated roof cladding element in accordance with a second aspect of the present invention; Figure 4 illustrates an enlarged perspective view of the protrusions in the cladding element of Figure 1; 15 Figure 5 illustrates a perspective view of an assembled metal roof with capping and guttering, including protrusions in the valleys of the corrugations at one end of the roof cladding elements; Figures 6 illustrates a side view of a variable angle cutting apparatus incorporating the apparatus shown in Figures 3a-3c, at the 20 moment when the variable angle cutting apparatus receives a corrugated roof cladding element; Figure 7 illustrates the variable angle cutting apparatus of Figure 6, at the moment when the apparatus of Figures 3a-3c forms a protrusion in the corrugated roof cladding element; and 25 Figure 8 illustrates a top view of the variable angle cutting apparatus of Figures 6-7. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 5 The following detailed description of the invention refers to the accompanying drawings. Although the description includes exemplary embodiments, other embodiments are possible, and changes maybe made to the embodiments described without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 5 The present invention is primarily directed towards the formation of protrusions in the valleys of one edge of a corrugated roof cladding element, the roof cladding elements being typically of the profiled sheet metal type. The protrusion is added for the purpose of preventing upward water flow once the cladding element is installed, that is, preventing water from entering the roof space beneath the roof 10 capping. Illustrated in Figure 1 is a corrugated metal roof sheet 10, which is generally constructed of sheet metal, including a series of protrusions 12 in the valleys along one edge thereof. Tbe present invention relates to an apparatus and method for forming the series of protrusions 12. The corrugated metal roof sheet 10 consists of a 15 metal strip profiled in the longitudinal direction such that the metal strip is given a corrugated cross-section. This corrugation is formed by an arrangement of rollers (not shown) which give the metal a symmetrical wave like shape, including a series of valleys 14 and crests 16. The way in which the profile is formed on the metal sheet 10 is briefly described in the preamble of the invention and the roll-forming process is 20 generally well known. Figures 2a-2c illustrate one process of forming the protrusions 12 in the valley 14 of the corrugated metal roof sheet 10. The representations do not show all of the components involved in the formation process, they simply show the main components to demonstrate the way in which the protrusions 12 are formed. A 25 corrugated metal roof sheet 10 is fed through a series of rollers 18 until it eventually approaches a fixed stump 20 adapted to form the protrusion 12. The fixed stump 20 includes a diagonal surface 22 on its upper end such that when the end of the roof sheet moves against the surface, which is positioned in its path, the valley 14 folds upwardly at substantially the same angle as the diagonal surface 22. 30 Figure 2c displays the protrusion 12 fully formed by the fixed stump 20. It is to be understood that all of the valleys 14 of the corrugated metal roof sheet 12 need to have protrusions, thus a plurality of fixed stumps are required and should be 6 arranged in a straight line and separated in accordance with the location of each valley 14 in the metal sheet. If the stump 20 was permanently fixed, those skilled in the art would realise that the roof sheet would be unable to move along its intended path after the 5 protrusion 12 is formed. Accordingly, the fixed stump 20 may be made to move into position as the corrugated roof sheet is received within the apparatus, remain fixed during the protrusion forming process, and then be made to shift back to its original position to allow for the roof sheet to continue moving in the same direction. Alternatively, there may be further rollers (not shown) positioned perpendicularly to 10 rollers 18, so that once the protrusions are formed, the roof sheet can be rolled off for bundling in a direction perpendicularly to that from which it was received. In such circumstances, the stump 20 could be permanently fixed. An alternate embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figures 3a-3c, in which the fixed stump 20 is replaced with an ejecting stump 24. The ejecting stump 15 24 has the ability to move vertically relative to the horizontal metal roof sheet 10 to thereby create the protrusion 12. A metal roof sheet 10 passes through the rollers 18 until the end of the roof sheet is positioned just above the ejecting stump 24, as shown in Figure 3a. The ejecting stump 24 is then configured to move upwardly and thereby press against the underside of the valley 14 to form the protrusion 12 as shown in 20 Figure 3c, and then move back to its original position. Thus, rather than the metal sheet moving into a fixed stump 20, the metal roof sheet remains fixed while the stump 24 is made to move. Again, a plurality of ejecting stumps 24 would be required to ensure that protrusions 12 are frned in all of the valleys 14 of the roof sheet 10. 25 Figure 4 shows an enlarged view of the protrusions 12. It can be seen that the end of the valley is raised enough so as to prevent the flow of water. When using conventional methods of forming the protrusions, for example using pliers, portions of the valley edge are often not raised enough and therefore do not make effective water barriers. Crude protrusions are often formed due to tradesman error or lack of 30 concentration. Those skilled in the art would further realise that manually forming the 7 protrusions is quite a labour intensive and therefore time-consuming and expensive task. Illustrated in Figure 5 is a perspective view of a metal roof 26, including corrugated metal roof sheets 10 having protrusions 12 at their upper ends. The metal 5 roof 12 further includes a capping 28 which lines the apex of the roof, and gutters 30 on the lower end of the metal roof sheets. In the drawing, the capping 28 is raised to show the protrusions 12 at the upper end of each metal sheet 10, above which the capping 28 would normally be fixed. In this drawing, it can be appreciated that without the protrusions lining the upper edge of the metal roof sheets, rain water could 10 easily be blown up the roof sheet valleys and into the roof. There exist various apparatus for forming and cutting metal roof sheets prior to installation, and it is to be understood that the weathering apparatus described above may be easily fitted to such equipment so that cutting and weathering may be performed in the same roll-forming process. One such apparatus is that which is 15 disclosed in the present applicant's Australian patent application no. 2004203534, which teaches an apparatus and method for manufacturing roof cladding elements. The apparatus is a variable angle cutting assembly 32 and is shown, by way of example, in Figures 6-8. The ejecting stump 24 of Figures 3a-3c is incorporated into the assembly 32, however, it is to be understood that the assembly 32 could 20 alternatively use the fixed stump 20 of Figures 2a-2c. The variable angle cutting assembly 32 includes cutting blade pairs 34 and 36, and 38 and 40, each pair adapted to be controllably selected depending on the angle of cut required. In preference, eacb cutting blade pair is corrugated and includes corrugations of different wave length so that one pair of blades is adapted to cut metal 25 roof sheets at a greater angle range than the other pair. Rollers 18 are also illustrated for the purpose of guiding and supporting the metal sheet. The other components belonging to the variable angle cutting assembly will not be described further in that they simply contribute to the movement of the blades and the rotation of the apparatus, not to the formation of the weathering protrusions 12. 30 Figure 6 illustrates the assembly after just having received a corrugated metal roof sheet 10 through its rollers 18, whilst Figure 7 illustrates the assembly 32 having 8 a corrugated metal roof sheet 10 in position to have protrusions 12 formed in the valleys along its leading edge. The assembly is positioned to make a straight cut along metal sheet. Once the sheet has been cut, the ejecting stumps 24 are adapted to push against 5 the ends of each valley 14 as previously described. The upper cutting blades 34 and 38 can be used to prevent upward movement of the metal sheet 10 during this process, or alternatively, any other abutment surface could potentially be used. For example, after being cut, there could be moveable abutment stumps (not shown) which first lower and contact the peaks 16 of the roof sheet 10 before the ejecting stumps 24 10 move upwardly to form the protrusions 12. Further, the ejecting stumps 24 could equally well be located on the opposite side of the assembly to form the protrusions prior to cutting. Figure 8 illustrates a top view of the assembly 32 when positioned at a 45 degree angle to the roll-forming path. Thus, the cutting assembly 32 is positioned to 15 cut the sheet 10 at an angle of 45 degrees. It is to be understood that although the line of stumps 24 is adapted to rotate together with the blade assemblies, the stumps are configured so that the protrusions are not formed on an angle bit are still formed so that they are opposed to the longitudinal direction of each valley. More specifically, the position of the line of stumps 24 is variable and rotates with the assembly, but the 20 actual direction of the stumps remains the same. It is to be understood that such an assembly could include more than one line of stumps such that a particular line is selectable in a similar manner to the cutting blade pairs. For example, one line of stumps could be configured to form protrusions suitable for straight cuts, whereas a second line of stumps could be configured to form 25 protrusions suitable for angled cuts, or for a specific range of angled cuts. It is to be stressed that not all components used in the apparatus of the present invention for forming the protrusions were explicitly referred to or described herein. For example, upward and downward motion of the ejecting stump 24 is preferably achieved through use of a hydraulic cylinder but this component was not described. 30 Further, various control means and associated software are required to ensure the 9 smooth and efficient feed through, cutting and weathering of the metal roof sheet. These have not been described either. Further advantages and improvements may very well be made to the present invention without deviating from its scope. Although the invention has been shown 5 and described in what is conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is recognized that departures may be therefrom within the scope and spirit of the invention, which is not to be limited to the details disclosed herein but is to be accorded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent devices and apparatuses.

Claims (14)

1. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests, the apparatus including: 5 a support means adapted to receive the longitudinal strip of material; and at least one abutment surface adapted to fonm upward protrusions in the valleys of the longitudinal, corrugated strip ofmaterial, along at least one end.

2. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having 10 valleys and crests as in claim 1 wherein the abutment surface is in the form of at least one fixed stump wherein the longitudinal end of the corrugated strip of material is made to move toward the fixed stump a predetermined distance to thereby form said protrusions in valleys thereof. 15

3. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests as in claim I or claim 2 wherein the longitudinal strip of material is controllably fed through the apparatus in a substantially horizontal plane, and said fixed stump is at least temporarily located in the path of the moving strip of material in a substantially upright configuration. 20

4. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests as in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the abutment surface is in the form of at least one ejecting stump wherein said longitudinal strip of material is fixed, and said ejecting stump is made to move towards the 25 longitudinal end of the corrugated strip of material to thereby form said protrusions in valleys thereof

5. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests as in claim 4 wherein the longitudinal strip of material is 30 controllably fed through said apparatus in a substantially horizontal plane, and made to stop in a position wherein the longitudinal end of the corrugated strip of material is positioned at least temporarily in the path of the ejecting stump adapted to move substantially vertically with respect thereto. 11

6. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests as in any one of the above claims wherein the assembly includes a plurality of stumps positioned to form a protrusion in each of the valleys of the longitudinal, corrugated strip of material. 5

7. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests as in any one of the above claims wherein said material is sheet metal. 10

8. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests as in any one of the above claims, the apparatus including a cutting means for cutting said longitudinal, corrugated strip of material prior to weathering. 15

9. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests as in claims 4 or 5 wherein the apparatus includes a cutting means for cutting said longitudinal, corrugated strip of material post weathering. 20

10. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests as in any one of the above claims wherein the cutting means is in the form of at least one blade assembly, said blade assembly having upper and lower blades adapted to receive said strip there through. 25

11. A method of weathering a corrugated strip of material using an apparatus as described in any one of the above claims.

12. A method of producing a weathered corrugated strip of material including the steps of: 30 (a) roll-forming sheet metal into a desired corrugated shape having a plurality of crests and valleys, (b) moving the roll formed sheet into position wherein the open end lies above and adjacent to a series of stump assemblies position underneath the valleys of said roll-formed sheet, 12 (c) causing said stump assemblies to impact upon the valleys thereby deforming them to result in an angle of less then 180 degrees between the sheet and the deformed valleys. 5

13. An apparatus for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys and crests substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings.

14. A for weathering a longitudinal, corrugated strip of material having valleys 10 and crests substantially as hereinbefore described.