System for handling bagged mail

Claim 1

A BULK MAIL HANDLING METHOD FOR LOADING LOADED ELONGATED MAIL BAGS INTENDED FOR A COMMON DESTINATION INTO THE LOAD RECEIVING AREA OF A TRANSPORT VEHICLE AND UTILIZING HAND TRUCKS EACH COMPRISING A SEPARABLE SIDELESS HAND TRUCK LOAD SUPPORT PALLET PORTION RESTING ON A WHEELED BASE, SAID METHOD COMPRISING: ARRANGING THE BAGS INTO LOAD UNITS OF ONE OR MORE TIERS ON THE RESPECTIVE HAND TRUCKS WITH THE TIERS HAVING A LENGTH APPROXIMATING THE WIDTH OF THE TRANSPORT VEHICLE LOAD RECEIVING AREA AND THE BAGS EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY OF THE HAND TRUCKS, LINING THE HAND TRUCKS IN END TO END RELATION ADJACENT THE LOADING DOORWAY OF THE VEHICLE, POSITIONING THE FIRST HAND TRUCK TO DISPOSE ITS LOAD UNIT IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE VEHICLE LOAD RECEIVING AREA WITH THE BAGS EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF, LIFTING THE HAND TRUCK PALLET PORTION FROM THE FIRST HAND TRUCK BASE ON A FORK LIFT TRUCK, MOVING THE SAID HAND TRUCK BASE TO ONE SIDE OF THE FORK LIFT TRUCK, MOVING THE FORK LIFT TRUCK TO MOVE SAID PALLET PORTION AND ITS LOAD TO A POSITION IN THE VEHICLE THAT IS IN SUPERIMPOSED RELATION IMMEDIATELY ABOVE THE LOCATION THAT THE LOAD IS TO BE DISPOSED IN ON THE TRANSPORT AREA WITH THE BAGS OF THE LOAD UNIT EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY OF THE VEHICLE, DEPOSITING THE LOAD IN SAID LOCATION BY WITHDRAWING SAID PALLET PORTION FROM UNDER THE LOAD UNIT BY MOVING THE PALLET PORTION LONGITUDINALLY OF THE UNIT LOAD BAGS TO DROP THE SAID LOAD UNIT BAGS IN SAID LOCATION, RETURNING THE EMPTIED PALLET PORTION TO ITS HAND TRUCK BASE, MOVING THE REASSEMBLED HAND TRUCK TO ONE SIDE OF THE FORK LIFT TRUCK, AND CONSECUTIVELY UNLOADING THE REMAINING HAND TRUCKS IN LIKE MANNER UNTIL THE VEHICLE IS LOADED.