Patent ID: 8727405

Claim:
A method of removing articles having a width from a shipping container in a group and placing the removed articles in a group on a display shelf for merchandising, the method comprising the steps of: (a) obtaining a merchandising grapple having spaced apart forks with each fork having a horizontal leg and a vertical leg and with the spacing between the forks being adjustable; (b) adjusting the spacing between the forks such that the distance between the vertical legs of the forks corresponds to the width of the articles; (c) sliding the forks beneath a plurality of articles in the shipping container until the plurality of articles are supported on opposed sides by the horizontal legs of the forks and the vertical legs of the forks reside against sides of the articles to hold the articles in place; (d) urging the forks toward one another until the vertical legs of the forks grip the sides of the articles; (e) moving the merchandising grapple and the plurality of collected articles out of the shipping container; (f) moving the merchandising grapple and the plurality of collected articles from the shipping container to a display shelf; (g) moving the merchandising grapple and the plurality of collected articles onto the display shelf; and (h) retracting the merchandising grapple from the plurality of articles.