Roll forming machine for an indeterminate length metal roof panel

Apparatus for forming a metal roof panel of indeterminate length from a uniform width supply strip of sheet metal having a pair of parallel straight longitudinal edges, said apparatus providing a path for said sheet metal strip and comprising:

• a stamping station effective to form linear impressions in the sheet metal strip, each of the linear impressions having its lateral extent limited such that on said sheet metal strip there is at least one longitudinal strip parallel to said longitudinal edges in which there are none of said linear impressions;
• and
• a series of spaced forming stations located in the path of said sheet metal strip following said stamping station, each of said forming stations having upper and lower driven shaping rollers between which said sheet metal strip is passed so as to impart a desired shape to the sheet metal strip which is uniform along the length of the sheet metal strip after it exits the apparatus, said series of spaced forming stations being effective to bend said sheet metal strip in opposite directions at substantially right angles along at least one pair of straight lines parallel to said longitudinal edges so as to form at least one Z-shaped bend parallel to said longitudinal edges, each of said at least one pair of straight lines lying within a respective one of said at least one longitudinal strip, the spacing between any adjacent Z-shaped bends and between each of said longitudinal edges and the Z-shaped bend adjacent said each longitudinal edge being substantially equal so as to divide said sheet metal strip into at least two longitudinal rows.