Industrial Inflateable Rubber Covered Roller

There are custom shops who MAY be able to do this. The inflatable part will be tricky.

Rubber Covered Replacement Rollers, Belt Guide Wheels ...
Rotadyne: Rubber Roller Manufacturer | Custom Printing Rollers
Custom Rubber Roller Manufacturing, Specialty Coverings, Crowns ...

I used custom rolls when working in the wet PWB develop/etch/strip equipment business.
There were a couple of shops in California, but I can't remember their names.

Is it driven, or does it idle? Are you moving something with it, or does it support a load?

Can you make something out of 3" i.d. hose, which could about 3.5" o.d. uninflated and about 4" o.d. inflated? Maybe some disks near the shaft ends, with the hose clamped to them?

I am thinking it will need to be built similar to a tire,with a rubber inner tube,and an outer layer.

If there was no need to adjust the hardness, a fixed roller of a certain durometer hardness would work.If not for the length, and small diameter, a tire would work.

I just can seem to locate a hybrid of the two.

Inflatable Bladders - Perma-Type Rubber
Rubber Bladder Manufacturers, Rubber Bladder Exporters, Rubber ...

The bladders are not durable enough for this application.The exterior of the roller needs to be as durable as a truck tire.

Thanks for the input.

You still haven't told us what, "this application" is. That would be a big help, in the future.

I would like to tell more about the application, but I am restained by a non disclosure agreement.I realize it would be helpful but I simply cannot.

Thanks for your input.

OK.

I cannot for the life of me remember where I saw one but I think it was on a multi-thickness veneer/laminating machine.

I rember now....It was a large industrial pneumatic sanding/milling drum!

Perhaps something like an inflatable core chuck. Convertech and CAC are two manufacturers that I am familiar with. These consist of a shaft, a rubber bladder, and outer metal leaves that are expanded by the bladder. Maybe the leaves can be replaced by a reinforced rubber sleeve.

Talk to a manufacturer of rubber covered printing rollers used on rotogravure printing presses. I have seen many of these rollers, but never saw an inflatable one. They did have rotary connections for cooling water, so the switch to air from water is not a big stretch.

Just throwing this up in case you end up fabricating something. These are rollers for boat trailers. Might get you in the right direction.

HiTekRedNek-

Contact the manufacturers of the inflatable rescue lifting bags used by fire and rescue personnel to lift cars and heavy objects. They are normally shaped like a bed pillow but I think I have seen them in a cylinder shape. They may have something that can be adapted to your situation.

Try goggling "rescue lifting bags" "heavy lifting air bags" "pneumatic lifting pillows" and other similar phrases.

Sorry but I don't remember the names f the manufacturers. Look up the name of a local firefighter or fire truck supplier and they can probably get you headed in the right direction. The fire co I belong to doesn't do much rescue work so we don't normally use them.

Good Luck, Old Salt

Not an easy thing to make but in the furniture industry sanding drums are made similar to this. To mainatin the diameter the sanding paper cylinder is put around the drum.

You may have to look at something similar and get some reinforced cylinder like a lay flat hose to cover the roller.

Problem is that the pressure might be a problem and therefor you may not have much of a loading on it.

Could you use lots of more conventional pneumatic tires with modified valves connected to a manifold "in the axis".

I have considered this, but the problem is two-fold:the gap in between the tires.I Even considered a fitted collar to go between the tires,but this will upset the process design.

Second,the size,only 4 inches OD.

If the requirement was for a single hardness, I could specify a coating of the proper thickness and durometer rating and solve the problem.

You may be able to make something using the (roto-casting method) and I know you can get at least 3/8 thickness with plastic but rubber I have no experience. You will also need some form of belt or cords to keep the shape when inflated otherwise the center will be much larger than the ends. The people that make the suspension air bags may be able to throw some light on your project.

Thanks to everyone for their input.Due to this brainstorming,I think I have found a solution.It is not an "off the shelf component". I must fabricate it myself.

I cannot reveal the details, because of disclosure provisions, but suffice it to say that everyone's input has been much appreciated and helpful.

In road construction, there are rubber tired rollers. to eliminate the spaces between the tires from showing as raised stripes in the roadway, the front and rear tires are spaced to overlap. Could you achieve your desired results by using two rows of small inflatable tires that would overlap in width?