Airborne cargo container transporter and transfer system

Apparatus for handling lightweight cargo containers comprising:

• a low profile transporter vehicle adapted to receive a cargo container on an upper surface thereof, said transporter comprising a frame, a pair of load supporting steerable wheels positioned at the forward end of said frame and a pair of load supporting wheels positioned at the rear end of said frame, said frame carrying a rectangular platform, said platform being mounted on hydraulic jacks, one of said jacks supporting each corner of said rectangular frame, said jacks being operable in unison to raise and lower said rectangular platform and also being operable in pairs along each side or each end of said rectangular platform to provide roll and pitch adjustment of said rectangular platform, said rectangular platform having mounted thereon a side directed roller and drive wheel mechanism for the sideways loading and unloading of said cargo container, said roller and drive wheel mechanism comprising a plurality of gravity rollers cylindrical in shape and mounted in rows laterally across said rectangular platform with said rollers positioned so that their longitudinal axes are parallel to the fore-aft axis of said transporter vehicle, said roller and drive wheel mechanism further comprising a plurality of pneumatic rubber tires mounted on said platform, positioned in pairs among said rollers, and having their axes or rotation parallel to the fore-aft axis of said transporter vehicle, each pair of said pneumatic rubber tires drivingly connected by belts to a hydraulic motor mounted on said rectangular platform;
• a cargo container stand having legs depending from a frame, said frame being of rectangular shape and adapted to rest on said rectangular platform, said frame having conical apertures located on the underside of said frame which cooperate with indexing cones projecting from and normal to the upper surface of said rectangular platform to properly position said cargo container stand on said rectangular platform and to prevent movement of said stand with respect to said rectangular platform when said stand rests on said rectangular platform, said legs of said stand being of sufficient length to touch the ground when said rectangular platform is lowered, said rectangular platform capable of being lowered sufficiently to enable the uppermost portion of said roller and drive wheel mechanism to clear the bottom-most portion of said container stand frame, permitting said transporter to be removed from beneath said stand;
• a cargo pallet adapted to receive said cargo container on the upper surface thereof, said pallet being rectangular in shape and comprising a frame and a lattice within said frame, said lattice comprising cross-bars running laterally and longitudinally within said frame, and forming right angles at their intersections so that said lattice contains a plurality fo rectangular apertures, said apertures positioned to cooperate with said rollers and pneumatic rubber tires of said roller and drive wheel mechanism to allow said rollers and tires to protrude through said pallet apertures a distance above said pallet upper surface into engagement with the underside of said cargo container when said container is mounted on said pallet and said pallet is resting on said transporter vehicle, said pallet having standarized container corner mounted recesses located at each corner of said pallet, and said stand having standardized container pivot connectors located at each corner of said stand to coact with said corner mounted recesses to prevent relative motion between said pallet and said stand, wherein further said pallet has a pair of hooks attached to the exterior of each end of said frame of said pallet, said hooks being hinged at the point at which they are attached to said pallet and being able to move in a vertical plane normal to said pallet, said hooks coacting with slots located on the exterior of the lower protion of the ends of said cargo container to prevent relative motion between said container and said pallet when said container rests on said pallet, and wherein further said pallet has at least two rectangular apertures located in one side of said pallet and extending laterally through to the opposite side of said pallet, said apertures being of size sufficient to accept the forks of a conventional forklift.