Patent ID: 8051093

Claim:
A method, comprising: defining a general query for extracting data from at least one data store operable to store workpiece data associated with the processing of workpieces in a manufacturing system, the general query specifying at least one ambiguous parameter having a plurality of potential values, wherein the general query includes a material designator identifying a subset of workpieces, a process flow designator identifying at least one process flow event performed on workpieces in the manufacturing system, and a procedure designator identifying at least one procedure associated with the at least one process flow event, wherein the ambiguous parameter comprises at least one of the material designator, the process flow designator, or the procedure designator; accessing metadata associated with the workpiece data; employing the metadata to identify a plurality of candidate values for the at least one ambiguous parameter; generating a plurality of atomic queries, each atomic query being associated with one of the candidate values; and executing the plurality of atomic queries to extract data from the at least one data store and generate an output report including the extracted data.