CA1158855A

CA1158855A - Rolls for use in corrugated fibreboard production system

Info

Publication number: CA1158855A
Application number: CA000342629A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Masateru Tokuno
Original assignee: Rengo Co Ltd
Current assignee: Rengo Co Ltd
Priority date: 1979-01-16
Filing date: 1979-12-27
Publication date: 1983-12-20
Also published as: FR2446888B1; ATA21880A; GB2039342A; AU535563B2; AT380830B; SE8000327L; IT8019224A0; NL179033B; CH637175A5; SE444137B; IT1129518B; DE3000508C2; DE3000508A1; GB2039342B; NL8000208A; AU5461480A; NZ192564A; FR2446888A1; NL179033C

Abstract

Abstract of the Disclosure Rolls having an elasticity on their outer periphery are proposed for use in corrugated fibreboard producing and processing machines. Tubes or tubular sheet adapted to be inflated with gas, elastic cords or strings, elastic tubular sheet, or tubular sheet with air bubbles thereon or therein are used to at least partially cover the outer surface Or the rolls, thus giving the rolls an elasticity.

Description

~ he present invention relates to improvements in rolls for use in corrugated fibreboard production and processing machines.
The roll according to the present invention is intended for use as a rider roll in the glueing part of a corrugating machine, a weight roll in its heating part, a feed roll arranged before a rotary cutter, and a feed roll in corrugated fibreboard processing machines such as a printer, a folder-gluer and a rotary die cutter.
Generallg, single-faced or double-faced corrugated flbreboards are liable to have their corrugations crushed or deformed when nipped between rolls. This tendenc~ is marked particularlg when the liner used is thin.
In the corrugated fibreboard industry, it has heretofore been a large problem to prevent such a deformation of the corrugations, thereb~ maintaining the thickness of corrugated fibreboard which is its life.
At the glueing part of a corrugating machine for producing corrugated fibreboa~ds, a glue roll is provided to apply glue to the peaks of the corrugations of a single-faced corrugated fibreboard web fed from the preceding station. Over the glue roll is arranged a heavg rider roll made of steel. ~he rider roll having its shaft supported b~ a lever is usually set to lightlg press the web against the glue roll to prevent poor glueing due to uneven application of glue.
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~ he rider roll presses the web from its liner side. In addition to unevenness due to some irregularity in the flute height (what is called "high-low") formed during the corrugating process, the liner surface is not even but tends to be lower at the portions facing the bottoms of the corrugations than at the portions facing their peaks. Further, the conventional rider roll contacts the web substantially on a line or tangentiall~. ~herefore, the rider roll is usually set so as for its bottom to contact the lower portions of the liner or set at an even lower position for secure glueing. ~he lever mechanism supporting the rider roll is provided with a stopper to prevent the rider roll from lowering from its preset position.
~he lever allows upward movement of the rider roll but which is too heav~ to be moved upwardly. Because the arrangement is such as mentioned above, the corrugations are deformed more or less when the corrugated fibreboard web is nipped between the glue roll and the rider roll.
Also, with the conventional rider roll made of steel, since it has to be set so as to lightl~ press the web, there is a tendency that.more than necessary amount of glue is applied to thelpeaks of the corrugations.
~his means bad economy and that the single-faced web absorbs an excessive amount of moisture.
Excessive absorption of moisture is undesirable for the following reasons. Firstl~, the corrugated fibreboard web would soften so much owing to excess moisture that it would become more liable to have their corrugations deformed when passed between the rolls .

_ 3 _ at the succeeding steps.
Secondly, the web would have to absorb more amount of heat at the heating part which comes next to the glueing part. ~his means more or loss of heat energy.
Also, the web would have to sta~ at the heating part for a longer time. ~his decreases the machine speed and thus the production per unit time. ~urthermore, the pressure applied to the web against the heating plates has to be increased for better heat absorption.
~his also makes the web more liable to have their corrugations deformed.
~ hirdl~, excessive amount of moisture makes the corrugated fibreboard web more liaOle to warp, which might cause machine trouble and produce defective web.
Whenever the liner used changes, the clearance between the glue roll and the rider roll has to be readjusted. ~his adjustment is ver~ troublesome and require high degree of skill. Readjustment of the clearance is also required when the t~pe of corrugation or flute changes. ~herefore, a particular set of a rider roll and a glue roll having the clearance preadjusted is usually prepared for each t~pe of flute.
At the heating part of the corrugating machine, a lot of weight rolls made of steel are arranged to press the corrugated fibreboard web against the heating plates through a cotton belt for-better heat conduction.
Each weight roll has its shaft supported by a lever or a wedge adapted to allow adjustment of the pressure applied to the web.
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- l lsssss ~ he larger the pressure applied by the weight rolls to the web is, the better glueing and the higher machine speed can be expected, but the greater the possibility of causing the deformation of the corrugations would be. Since the weight rolls press the web through the cotton belt on a line or tangentially, the pressure applied to the web is considerably large even though the web is pressed not directly but through the cotton belt.
When the joints of the cotton belt where the belt sections are joined as by lacing and its bulging portions where some foreign matter is attached pass under the weight rolls, the rolls will skip, thus appl~ing excessive pressure to the web and causing the de~ormation of its corrugations.
- At the heating part, too, the clearance between the weight rolls and the heating plates has to be readausted according to the flute type, material, etc.
of the corrugated fibreboard web.
~ he deformation of the corrugations is most likely to occur at the processes where the web contains a relativel~ large amount of mois~ure, i.e. at the glueing part and the heating parit.
Next, a pair of feed rolls made of steel are arranged upstream of a rotary cutter of the corrugating machine to feed the corrugated fibreboard web toward the rotary cutter. ~he feed rolls are rotated at a slightly higher speed than the feed speed of the web to feed the web without letting it accumulate before the rotary cutter. ~hus, the web is fed to the '-- - , .

rotary cutter while being slightly pulled by the feed rolls.
With the conventional steel ~eed roll, the upper and lower feed rolls contact the corrugated fibreboard web substantially tangentially on a transverse line.
~herefore, in order to feed the web while slightly pulling it, the pair of the feed rolls have to nip the web with a considerable pressure, thus causing the deformation of the corrugated fibreboard web.
Pairs of steel feed rolls are also used in other corrugated fibreboard processing machines such as a printer, a fplder-gluer and a rotary die cutter. O~
these machines, too, the deformatlon of the corrugations can occur owing to nip force applied by the feed rolls.
Also, it can occur at auxiliary feed rolls and processing rolls provided in such processing machines.
An object of the present invention is to provide rolls for use in corrugated fibreboard production and processing machines having an elasticit~ on their outer periphery to prevent the deformation of the corrugations without the need of frequent readjustment of the clearance between the rolls according to the change of the material, flute type, etc.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken with reference to the accompànying drawings, in which: ~
~ ig. 1 is a schematic view showing how the roll according to the present invention are to be used in the glueing part and the heating part of-a corrugating '~ ,.

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machine;
Fig. 2 is a schematic view showing how it is to be used at the succeeding part of the corrugating machine;
FiEs. 3 to 18 are partly cutawa~ views of various embodiments of the present invention; -Fig. 19 is a sectional view of a variant of the embodiment of ~ig. 18; and .
Fig. 20 is.a sectional view of another variant . .
of the embodiment of Fig. 18.
In the drawings, like or the same reference ~umbers are used to designate like or corresponding parts throughout.
~ ig. 1 shows a glueing part A and a heating part B of a corrugating machine where the rolls 1 according to this invention are used as rider rolls and weight rolls, respectively.
~ he glueing part A consists generally of a glue pan 2, a glue roll 3 partiall~ immersed in the glue in the glue pan 2, a dootor roll 4 for adjusting the amount of the glue applied to the glue roll, and a rider roll 5 which rotates in contact with the glue roll 3 with a single-faced corrugated fibreboard web S nipped therebetween to be glued~
A liner ~ is adhered on to the web thus glued and the double-faced web S' is then dried at the heating part B where it is pressed b~ the weight rolls 6 against the heating plates 7 through a cotton belt 8.
.. . ~ig..2 shows a part of;the.corrugating machine where the double-faced corrugated fibreboard web S' ... . .

l 158855 passes through a slitter-scorer C and is fed by a pair of feed rolls 9, 10 to a rotar~ cutter D. The lower feed roll 10 may be replaced with a guide plate.
~he upper feed roll 9 is usually set to rotate at a slightly higher speed than the speed of the web to pull it.
Although in the example of ~ig. 2 the roll 1 according to this invention is used only for the upper feed roll 9, it may be used for both of the feed rolls or for the lower feed roll 10.
Various embodiments of the roll according to this invention shall be described with reference to Figs.
3 to 20.
~ he first group of the embodiments illustrated in ~igs. 3 to 7 are roll~ which include a roll body covered with one or more tubes which are made of natural or synthetic rubbér or a synthetic resin material having flexibilit~ but not having gas permeability, said tubes being adapted to be inflated by forcing gas thereinto to give the roll elasticity.
Referring first to Fig. 3, the roll 1 comprises a roll body 11 and two tubes 12 s~irall~ wound around the roll body, said roll body having a gas supply passage 13 for forcing gas such as air into the tubes 12. Each tube end ma~ be connected to the passage 13 by means of a ioint which serves also as means for securing the tube. ~he tube may be secured by any other means such as adhesives and adhesive tapes.
Gas ma~ be forced into the tube through a hose (not shown) connected to the gas supply passage 13 , '`

, . , through a rotary joint.
~ he roll body 11 is provided with a spiral groove 15 in its outer periphery to partiall~ receive the tubes 12 for secure mounting of the tubes into which air has been forced.
~ he embodiment of Fig. 3 is adapted to wind two tubes 12 spirally around the roll bod~ in the opposite directions, starting from the center toward each end, to prevent the web from running out of true.
The embodiment of Fig. 4 is substantially the same as the embodiment of Fig. 3 except that a single tube 12 is spirally wound around the roll body in the spiral groove 15 in a single direction. In case the ~peed of the roll 1 is high or its width is relatively small, the web would not run out of true even if the tube is wound around the roll body in a single direction as in this embodiment.
~ he embodiment o$ Fig. 5 comprises a roll body 11 provided with a plurality of annular grooves 15 in its outer periphery and as many annular tubes 12 mounted in said annular grooves.
In the embodiments of Figs. 3, 4 and 5, gas may be supplied through a gas supplylport 14 having a plug which will be described later with reference to Figs.
6 and 7. In this case, the passage 13 and the rotary joint are-not needed, of course.
~ he embodiment of Fig. 6 comprises the roll body 11 and a plurality of tubes 12 mounted on the roll body parallel with one another and with the axis of the roll bod~, each of said tubes being provided with . ~

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1 15885~

a gas supply port 14 having a plug.
In the embodiment of Fig. 7, a plurality of tubes 12 are mounted on the roll body 11 at an angle with respect to the axis of the roll body.
The embodiments of ~igs. 4 - 7 may be provided with the gas supply passage 13, the grooves 15, joints for connecting the tubes 12 with the gas supply passage 13, and a rotary joint for connecting a hose with the gas supply passage as the necessit~ arises, though some of them are not show~ in the drawings.
Instead of supplging gas through a plugged gas supply port 14, gas may be injected into the tube with an injector or a s~ringe if the wall thickness and material of the tube 12 are such as to insure gas-tightness after the inaector has been removed from the tube.
In the embodiments of Figs. 3 to 7, the distance between the adjacent tube sections æhould be such as not to interfere with normal feeding of the corrugated fibreboard web.
Next, the second group of the embodiments will be described with reference to ~igs. 8 to 11. The~
have one or more tubular sheets put on the roll body and secured thereto at each end, gas being forced i~to a space formed between the tubular sheet and the outer peripher~ of the roll body, thereby giving the roll surface an elasticity. The tubular sheet is made of a material having flexibility but no gas permeabilit~, such as natural or synthetic rubber or a synthetic resin material.

I` ~ 158855 The embodiment of Fig. 8 comprises the roll body 11, a tubular sheet 16 mounted on the roll body, and bands 17 for securing the tubular sheet to the roll body at each end thereof.
The band may be replaced with adhesive or adhesive tape. Air is forced into a space formed between the tubular sheet 16 and the roll body 11 through the gas supply passages 13 axially and radially formed in ~e roll body. The tubular sheet is provided on its inner wall with annular ribs 21 as seal means to separate the above-mentioned space~ into a plurality of sections. This separation is done to prevent the tubular sheet 16 from bulging in the form of a barrel when gas is blown into the space.
The embodiment of Fig. 9 comprises the roll body 11, a plurality of relatively narrow tubular sheets 16' mounted on the roll body, seal means such as bands 17 for securing the tubular sheets at each end thereof and making gas-tight the spaces formed between the roll body and the tubular sheets.
Gas is blown into the spaces through the gas supply passage 13 formed in the roll body 11.
~eferring to Fig. 21 which is an enlarged sectional view of the embodiment of Fig. 9, a steel wire 32 is embedded in the top wall of each tubular sheet 16' to keep it flat and parallel to the axis of the roll, preventing it from partially bulging like a barrel when gas is blown into the tubular sheet.
As illustrated, the end wall of the tubular sheet 16' should preferably be not straight but curved to make it more flexible so that the end wall will yield to and absorb any irregularities on the surface of the running web and a change in the thickness of the web with the top wall of the tubular sheet 16' kept parallel to the axis of the roll. The features of the tubular sheet as mentioned above serve to prevent partial abrasion L~

or damage of the tubular sheet and the non-uniformity of the peripheral speed of the tubular sheet.
If the distance between the inflated portions of the tubular sheets 16' is too wide for smooth feeding of the cor-rugated fibreboard web, separate elastic members (not shown) may be mounted between the adjacent tubular sheets 16' to fill up "valleys" formed therebetween.
The embodiment of Fig. 10 comprises the roll body 11, a tubular sheet 16 mounted on the roll body, clamping bands 17 for securing said tubular sheet to the roll body at each end thereof, and seal means comprising a plurality of strings 18 annularly wound around the tubular sheet at suitable spacings to separate the space formed between the tubular sheet and the roll body into a plurality of gas-tight sections. The embodiment of Fig. 10 is similar to that of Fig. 9 except that a single tubular sheet is used and that strings 18 are used as seal means instead of wider bands 17.
The embodiment of Fig. 11 is almost the same as that of Fig. 10 except that a single string 18 is spirally wound around the tubular sheet 16.
In the embodiments of Figs. 8 to 11, too, gas supply passages formed in the roll body, a rotary joint for connecting a gas supply hose with the gas supply passage, and a gas supply port for forcing gas directly into each section (instead of the gas supply passage and rotary joint) may be provided as required, though some of them are not shown in the drawings.
In the embodiments of Figs. 8 to 11, a stop valve or the like may be provided for each section of the space between the roll body and the tubular sheet to prevent the leakage of gas from any broken portion of the tubular sheet.

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In the embodiments of Figs. 3-11, tubes or tubular sheets are adapted to be inflated by forcing gas such as air thereinto as described above. The pressure of gas sealed there-in is usually above the atmospheric pressure, but, if the material of the tube or tubular sheets permits, it may be substantially equal to atmospheric pressure. In other words, gas such as air may be merely sealed in the tube or tubular sheet. Furthermore, one or both ends of the tube or tubular sheets may not be sealed, but be open. Also, the material of the tube or tubular sheet may be permeable to gas.
The third group of the embodiments will be described with reference to Fig. 12. In this group, a tubular sheet of a synthetic resin material having a multiplicity of air bubbles on or in it is mounted on the roll body. In other words, the tubular sheet used has an elasticity in itself.

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The embodiment of Fig. 12 comprises the roll bod~
11 and a tubular sheet 19 having a multiplicity of independent air bubbles 20 on it and mounted on the roll body to enclose its outer periphery and secured to the roll body at its each end by means of bands, strings, tapes or the like.
~ his type of tubular sheet may be replaced with a porous one having a multiplicity of continuous air bubbles in it like a sponge.
The fourth group of the embodiments will be described with reference to Figs. 13 to 17. ~hey have a roll body whose outer periphery is enclosed by at least one elastic member having intrisically an elasticity.
~ he embodiment of ~ig. 13 comprises the roll body 11 and two elastic members 22 in the form of strings spirally wound around the roll body. ~he elastic members may be fastened to the roll body 11 by means of adhesive, adhesive tapes or any other suitable fasteners.
Preferably, the roll bod~ 11 should be provided with spiral grooves 15 80 as to partially receive the elastic members 22. This assures stable support of the elastic members on the roll body. In the embodiment of Fig. 13, two elastic members'are wound spirally in the opposite directions, starting from the roll center, to prevent the corrugated flbreboard web from running out of true.
~ he embodiment of Fig. 14 is substantially the same as that of Fig. 13 except that a single elastic member 22 is spirally wound in one direction. In case the roll speed is high or the roll is narrow, ~ 158855 the fibreboard web would not run out of true even if the elastic member is wound in a single direction.
In the embodiment of Fig. 15, a plurality of annular elastic members 22 are mounted in annular grooves 13 formed in the outer periphery of the roll body 11 at suitable spacings.
In the embodiment of Fig. 16, a plurality of elastic members 22 are mounted on the roll body 11 so as to extend parallel with the axis of the roll body and with one another.
Grooves 15 are formed in the outer periphery of the roll body 11 for stable support of the elastic members.
The embodiment of Fig. 17 differs from that of Fig.
16 only in that the elastic members 22 are mounted on the roll body 11 at an angle with respect to the axis of the roll body.
In any of the embodiments of Figs. 13 to 17, the distance between the elastic members 22 should not be so large as to interfere with smooth feeding or passage of the corrugated fibreboard web. In any of the embodiments, the elastic members may be fastened by adhesives, adhesive tapes or any other suitable fasteners.
In the embodiments of Figs. 13 to 17, the elastic member 22 is in the form of a cord or string having a circular or rectangular cross-section. Therefore, this group of embod-iments are advantageous in greater elasticity of the elastic member and lesser amount of the material used.
In the embodiments of Figs. 5, 6, 10, 15 and 16, as well as in Fig. 9, if the distance between the inflated portions of the tubes 12, tubular sheets 16 or 16' or elastic members 22 is too wide for smooth feeding of the corrugated web, elastic spacer members 30 may be mounted between the tubes, tubular sheets or elastic members to fill up the "valleys'l formed therebetween, as illustrated in Fig. 21. The elastic spacer members serve to ensure satisfactory feeding of the web as well as more secure nip of the web between the rolls or between the roll and the guide. The elastic spacer members have substantially the same outer diameter as the tubular sheet 16' and have a suitable degree of elasticity so that when pressed by the running web, it will deform as much as the tubular sheet 16' does, thus keeping the same outer dia-meter as the tubular sheet. Although the elastic spacermember is illustrated in connection with the embodiment of Fig. 9 only, it may be used on the embodiments of Figs. 5, 6, 10, 15 and 16.
The embodiment of Fig. 18 comprises the roll body . - - . :

11 and a tubular elastic member 23 mounted on the roll body to enclose its outer periphery and fastened to the roll body by means of bands, adhesive tapes or other means. Since the elastic member is in the form of a sheet, this embodiment is more advantageous in that the contact with the web will be on a larger area.
If it is to be secured to the roll body 11 by means of adhesive, the elastic tubular member 23 may be advantageously provlded with an adhesive layer 24 on its inner surface as illustrated in Fig. 19.
~ he roll of ~ig. 20 is the embodiment of ~ig. 18 having the tubular elastic member 23 provided with a lining Iayer 25 on its outer surface to increase the strength, abrasion resistance and ease of cleaning of foreign matter clinging to its surface. ~he ease of cleaning is needed particularl~ for the rider roll which is liable to be soiled with splashed glue. ~his lining i8 required particularly if the elastic member 23 is made of foamed plastic.
~ he tube 12, tubular sheets 16, 16', 19, elastic member 22 and tubular elastic member 23 ma~ be made of natural rubber, or synthetic Pubber such as etylene vinyl acetate (EVA), butadiene rubber (BR), stylene butadiene rubber (SBR) or acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), or synthetic resin such as urethane or polyethylene, or any combi~ation thereof. Preferably, they should have a good formability, processability, elasticity, heat resistance, ease of cleaning of foreign matter, and abrasion resistance. ~hey may be constructed of either a single layer or two or more la~ers made of .

the same or different materials. ~hey may also be reinforced b~ interweaving the material with cloth or the like in the layer or between the layers to increase the strength. Particularl~ the tubular sheets 16 and 16' may be interweaved with steel wires to maintain them in good shape for normal feeding of the web.
The lining 25 may be of synthetic resin such as polyester, nylon and silicon resin.
Natural rubber has a greater elasticit~ than synthetic rubber because of lower hardness, but synthetic rubber is better than natural rubber in abrasion resistance and heat resistance.
The advantages and effects of the roll in accordance with the present invention will be described below.
Firstly, if it is used as a rider roll at the glueing part of a corrugating machine where the single-faced corrugated fibreboard web S passes between the glue roll 3 and the rider roll 5 (~ig. 1) to apply glue to the peaks of its corrugations, the roll 1 contacts the web not on a line but on a surface because of its elasticity so that.the pressure applied to a unit area of the web S willlbe less than with the conventional steel roll. Since the roll 1 has some elasticity on its outer periphery, it can absorb shock, unevenness of the liner side of the web or some change in the thickness of the web. ~his advantage is marked particularly with the embodiments using gas to give elasticity to the roll so long as the pressure of gas forced is suitable. ~he nip pressure 1~ . ' _ ~ _ .. . .
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can be easily adjusted by adjusting the pressure of gas supplied which can be seen on a meter.
In contrast to the conventional steel rider ~oll which cannot absorb such changes or shock, the roll according to this invention ensures that the web is pressed by the roll with a pressure sufficient to assure the application of an appropriate amount of glue but not so excessive as to deform the corrugations.
~his helps to minimize the possibîlit~ of producing defective webs such as corrugation-deformed webs or poorl~ glued or warp webs and increase the production.
Further, the adjustment of clearance between the rolls according to the change of mater1al, flute type, etc.
is not needed any more. This is particularly true for the embodiments using gas to give elasticity to the rolls.
If the roll in accordance with the present invention is used as a weight roll at the heating part of a corrugating machine, too, the roll 1 contacts the web not on a line but on a surface 90 that the pressure applied to a unit area of the web will be much less than with the conventional steel roll even though the total nip pressure remains the same. ~his makes it possible to increase the pressure to the corrugated fibreboard web without the fear of deforming the corrugations, resulting in better heat transfer efficiency, higher machine speed and larger production per unit time. Further, because the roll according to this invention can absorb any irregularity on the surface of the cotton belt at the laced portions and any other _ ~_ t I58855 bulging portions, it eliminates tke need of readjusting the position of the weight rolls according to change in the material, flute t~pe, etc.
Similarly, if the roll according to this invention is used as feed rolls upstream of the rotar~ cutter D (~ig. 2), the web is contacted by the upper and lower rolls on a surface, not on a line, so that the possibility of causing the deformation of the corrugations is extremely reduced. Since the contact area between the roll and the web increases, larger frictional force required to feed the web can be obtained. This decreases the nip force required for the rolls, thus decreasing the possibilit~ of deforming the corrugations.
This is particularly true when a material having a large frictional resistance is selected as the material by which the roll body is covered.
The roll in accordance with the present invention may be used either as a roll wide enough to cover the entire width of the web or as a shorter roll covering onl~ part of its entire width, such as an auxiliary feed roll.
Although preferred embodimen~s have been described, it is to be understood that cha~ges and variations ma~ be made within the scope of the invention.

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Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A roll for use in corrugated fibreboard production and processing processes comprising a roll body and at least one flexible tube mounted on the roll body so as to at least partially cover the surface of the roll, said tube being adapted to contain gas therein.

2. A roll according to Claim 1 wherein said tube is spirally wound around the roll body.

3. A roll according to Claim 1 wherein a plurality of said tubes are annularly mounted on the roll body.

4. A roll according to Claim 1 wherein a plurality of said tubes are mounted on the roll body in parallel with the axis of the roll body.

5. A roll according to Claim 1 wherein a plurality of said tubes are mounted on the roll body at an angle with respect to the axis of the roll body.

6. A roll according to Claim l, 2 or 3 wherein the roll body is formed with at least one groove in its outer surface to partially receive said tube or tubes.

7. A roll according to Claim 1, 2 or 3 wherein each of said tubes has gas supply port means through which gas is introduced thereinto.

8. A roll according to Claim 1, 2 or 3 wherein the roll body is provided with a gas supply passage and a connecting means for connecting said passage with each of said tubes.

9. A roll according to Claim 1, 2 or 3 wherein an elastic spacer member is mounted between each pair of the adjoining tubes or each pair of the adjoining sections of the tube to fill up the gap formed therebetween.

10. A roll according to Claim 1 wherein said tube is made from a material selected from the group consisting of natural rubber, synthetic rubber, synthetic resin or a combination thereof.

11. A roll according to claim 10 wherein said tube is reinforced by interweaving said material with cloth.

12. A roll according to Claim 10 wherein said tube is reinforced by interweaving said material with wire.

13. A roll for use in corrugated fibreboard production and processing processes comprising a roll body and at least one flexible impermeable tubular sheet mounted on the roll body and fastened thereto at each end thereof, said tubular sheet being adapted to contain gas in a space formed between said tubular sheet and the roll body.

14. A roll according to Claim 13 further comprising seal means for separating said space into a plurality of sections.

15. A roll according to Claim 14 wherein said seal means comprise a plurality of bands annularly mounted on said tubular sheet at spaced intervals along the length of the roll body.

16. A roll according to Claim 14 wherein said seal means comprise at least one band spirally wound around said tubular sheet.

17. A roll for use in corrugated fibreboard production and processing processes comprising a roll body and a tubular sheet mounted on the roll body to cover its outer surface, said tubular sheet being made of synthetic resin and having air bubbles thereon or therein.

18. A roll for use in corrugated fibreboard production and processing processes comprising a roll body and a plurality of flexible tubular sheets mounted on the roll body and fastened and sealed to said roll body at each end of said each tubular sheet so as to contain a gas such as air in a space formed between said each tubular sheet and said roll body, whereby giving elasticity to the outer periphery of the roll.

19. A roll according to Claim 18 wherein the end wall of each of said tubular sheets is curved to provide greater flexibility.

20. A roll according to Claim 13 or 18 wherein an elastic annular spacer member is mounted between each pair of the adjoining tubular sheets or the adjoining sections of tubular sheet to fill up the gap formed therebetween.

21. A roll according to Claim 13 or 18 wherein each of said tubular sheets has gas supply port means through which gas is introduced thereinto.

22. A roll according to Claim 13 or 18 wherein the roll body is provided with an axial gas supply passage and a plurality of radial passages communicating with said axial passage.

23. A roll according to Claim 13 or 18 wherein said tubular sheet is made from a material selected from the group consisting of natural rubber, synthetic rubber, synthetic resin or a combination thereof.

24. A roll according to Claim 23 wherein said tubular sheet is reinforced by interweaving said material with cloth.

25. A roll according to Claim 23 wherein said tubular sheet is reinforced by interweaving said material with wire.

26. A roll according to Claim 4 or 5 wherein the roll body is formed with at least one groove in its outer surface to partially receive said tube or tubes.

27. A roll according to Claim 4 or 5 wherein each of said tubes has gas supply port means through which gas is introduced thereinto.

28. A roll according to Claim 4 or 5 wherein the roll body is provided with a gas supply passage and a connecting means for connecting said passage with each of said tubes.

29. A roll according to Claim 4 or 5 wherein an elastic spacer member is mounted between each pair of the adjoining tubes or each pair of the adjoining sections of the tube to fill up the gap formed therebetween.