Patent ID: 7040487

Claim:
A carrier for semiconductor wafers in combination with a stack of wafers, the carrier comprising: a base having a perimeter with at least one support wall extending upwardly inside the perimeter and defining a storage pocket containing the stack of wafers inside the at least one support wall, the base including a pair of resilient latching members positioned between the perimeter and the support wall, each latching member having an upright portion extending upwardly with a hook portion having a downwardly facing engagement surface, a cover having a periphery with at least one sidewall extending downwardly inside the periphery, the cover being disposable on the base to enclose the storage pocket, the cover including structure defining a pair of latching apertures each with a bearing surface for receiving the downwardly facing engagement surface adjacent to the latching aperture, each latching aperture positioned between the periphery and the at least one sidewall and corresponding to the pair of latching members, whereby when the pair of latching members is engaged with the top cover at the pair of apertures the cover is latched onto the base, and wherein the latching aperture has a first region adjacent the bearing surface and a second region opposite the bearing surface with a restricted opening between the first region and the second region, the first region sized to allow lateral movement of the latching member by bending of the latching member without the unlatching of the top cover, and the latching apertures and latching members sized such that each latching member must be deflected past the respective restricted opening into the respective second region to be disengaged from the respective bearing surface and to effect the unlatching of the top cover.