Roof panel seaming apparatus with leading guide finger

A seaming apparatus for connecting a pair of adjacent panels having abutting vertical portions, one of the vertical portions being terminated by an outturned female flange portion with a downturned terminal portion forming a U-shaped channel, and the other of the vertical portions being terminated by an inturned male flange portion positioned in the U-shaped channel of the one vertical portion, said seaming apparatus comprising:

• a main support body;
• a drive motor mounted to said main support body;
• an auxiliary support body;
• clamp means operable to selectively move said auxiliary support body linearly toward and away from said main support body between a first position where said auxiliary support body is spaced from said main support body and a second position where said auxiliary support body is closely adjacent said main support body so that said seaming apparatus can straddle said vertical portions;
• at least one primary transfer drive roller mounted for rotation to said main support body;
• a transmission connecting said drive motor to said at least one primary transfer drive roller;
• at least one secondary transfer drive roller mounted for rotation to said auxiliary support body, wherein the periphery of each of said at least one secondary transfer drive roller contacts the periphery of a respective one of said at least one primary transfer drive roller when said auxiliary support body is in said second position;
• a guide finger mounted to a leading end of one of said main and auxiliary support bodies, said guide finger being effective to contact the underside of said male flange portion and maintain a minimum clearance between said male and female flange portions as said male and female flange portions enter said seaming apparatus when said seaming apparatus is moving in a first direction;
• and
• a plurality of roll forming stations supported on said main and auxiliary support bodies with said roll forming stations being operative to bend said downturned terminal portion of said female flange portion against the underside of said inturned male flange portion as said seaming apparatus moves along said pair of adjacent panels so that the inturned male flange portion is captured by the female flange portion.