Patent ID: 8761923

Claim:
A system for managing the entry of a wafer carrier into a stocker in a semiconductor manufacturing operation comprising: said stocker having at least one input port; means for detecting the presence of the wafer carrier at the input port; means for identifying the type of the wafer carrier; means for identifying the model of the wafer carrier; means for identifying the material used to construct the wafer carrier; and means for executing an action sequence if the stocker is not compatible with the identified material used to construct the wafer carrier; wherein the means for identifying the material used to construct the wafer carrier comprises a plurality of electromechanical identification pins on the underside of the wafer carrier, wherein said plurality of identification pins are configured and arranged to form a pattern corresponding to the wafer carrier type, said plurality of identification pins contacting a corresponding plurality of wafer carrier type detection pins disposed on the input port, thereby providing an indication of wafer carrier type.