Patent ID: 8171766

Claim:
A pass through inline seam rollformer comprising: a feed, a head assembly, a cradle, a frame, and one or more actuators; and said feed capable of feeding one or more sheet materials toward said head assembly; and said head assembly having one or more first tooling rollers with one or more first circumferential grooves or profiles capable of forming a first seam or a first profile upon a leading edge of one or more of the sheet materials; and said head assembly having one or more second tooling rollers having one or more second circumferential grooves or profiles capable of forming a second seam or a second profile upon a trailing edge of one or more of the sheet materials; and one or more motors rotationally coupled with said first or said second tooling rollers whereby a rotation is imparted to one or more of said first and said second tooling rollers; and said cradle having one or more rails or guideways upon which said head assembly moveably sits or rides and positioned to allow a lateral movement or travel of said head assembly across the leading edge and the trailing edge of the sheet material when said feed stops the leading edge and the trailing edge of the sheet material to a position that said first and said second tooling rollers may engage the leading or the trailing edge when forming the seam or the profile on the leading and the trailing edge; and said cradle configured to allow movement of said head outside of a pass line of the sheet material, the pass line represented by the sheet material; and said cradle moveably mated with said frame and raisable or retractable relative to said frame whereby said head assembly is raisable or retractable relative to the pass line of the sheet material; and said one or more actuators connected between said frame and said cradle whereby said cradle is raisable or retractable relative to said frame and the pass line.