IRDI
ECLASS uses globally unique identifiers for every object included in the ECLASS standard. This IRDI (International Registration Data Identifier) is based on the international standards ISO/IEC 11179-6, ISO 29002 and ISO/IEC 6523. It consists of several parts:
- an International Code Designator (ICD) according to ISO/IEC 6523, followed by an Organization Identifier (OI) that globlly identifies ECLASS as the publishing organization (ECLASS: 0173, other registered organizations include ISO (0112), ODETTE (0177), SIEMENS (0175), GTIN (0160))
- a Code Space Identifer (CSI) that identifies the type of object (e.g. 01 for classification class, 02 for property etc.)
Below the Code space Identifiers (CSIs) used in ECLASS XML:
Table 1 – Code Space Identifier According To ISO 29002-5 (Restricted)
| CSI | Category of administered item | Used in ECLASS XML |
| CT | concept type | - |
| TM | term | - |
| DF | definition | - |
| IM | image | - |
| AB | abbreviation | - |
| GS | graphical symbol | - |
| TS | textual symbol | - |
| LG | language | - |
| OG | organization | - |
| 01 | class | YES |
| 02 | property | YES |
| 05 | unit of measure | YES |
| 07 | property value | YES |
| 08 | currency | - |
| 09 | data type | YES |
| 10 | document | - |
| 11 | ontology | YES |
| Z2 | aspect of conversion | YES |
| Z3 | template | YES |
| Z4 | quantity | YES |
| Z5 | keywords | YES |
| Z6 | synonyms | YES |
- a Concept Code (6-digit identifier, e.g. AAA123)
- a Version identifier (e.g. 001 for the first version of an object)
The ISO/IEC 6523 Registration Authority used to be the British Standards Institute (BSI) and has been the ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 32 secretariat (under the auspices of the American National Standards Institution, ANSI) since March 2011.
Company Specific Identifiers
Certain ranges of (6 digit) identifiers (i.e. the concept code) are blocked for company-specific use:
- concept codes starting with X are blocked for user-specific structural elements
- concept codes starting with Y are blocked for manufacturer-specific structural elements
- concept codes starting with Z are blocked for ECLASS-internal structural elements and shall not be used by ECLASS users
ECLASS will not use identifiers starting with X or Y. This guarantees that these company-specific structural elements will not be replaced by ECLASS elements. Apart from the blocked concept codes, a company may simply use a different ICD, so that all concepot codes can be used, but they are distinct with the help of an ICD that is not 0173 (for ECLASS).