Patent ID: 7442896

Claim:
A method for processing mailpieces, comprising: collecting a plurality of mailpieces that have been dropped into mail drop boxes; transporting the mailpieces in transportation containers to postal centers; sorting the mailpieces in the postal centers with sorting devices, filling the mailpieces into the transportation containers, transporting the filled transportation containers to unloading stations in the postal centers, carrying out presorting according to postal categories partially and coincidentally during at least one of the filling and transport of the transportation containers to the postal center, removing the mailpieces from the transportation containers at the unloading stations utilizing said presorting, a manipulation arm reaching into a transportation container that is located in the area of the unloading station immediately after a stack of mailpieces of the same postal category has been recognized, the manipulation arm removing from the transportation container the previously recognized stack of mailpieces of the same postal category, the manipulation arm dropping the stack of mailpieces onto a conveyor belt that is located in the area of the unloading station, and conveying the mailpieces to subsequent processing stations as a function of the postal category.