Overview
ISO/IEC 18975:2024 defines how to encode and resolve globally unique identifiers used in Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) as HTTP URIs. The standard specifies a dual‑use data structure that is simultaneously an HTTP URI and a composition of structured item identification properties (identifiers and optional descriptive attributes). These URIs can be parsed offline to extract identifiers (important where connectivity is limited) or dereferenced online to retrieve linked data. The document also specifies a basic common API for querying online services about identified items.
Key technical topics and requirements
- Dual‑use URI structure: an HTTP URI that is also a structured payload composed of identification qualifiers and values.
- Two encoding approaches:
- Structured path approach: identifiers encoded as ordered path segments (left-to-right increasing granularity); descriptive attributes placed in the query string as name=value pairs. Requires exactly one primary qualifier + identifier; percent-encoding for reserved characters; ampersand (&) delimiter for query pairs.
- Query string approach: all qualifiers, identifiers and attributes expressed as name=value pairs in the query string.
- Identifier uniqueness methods:
- Use of AIDC identifiers (e.g., those defined by the ISO/IEC 15459 series) encoded in path or query, independent of the internet domain.
- Reliance on the internet domain name where appropriate (domain sovereignty over URIs).
- Resolution and discovery:
- Definition of a linkset and LinkType parameter to associate URIs with multiple data sources.
- A basic common API for querying online services about identified items (querying semantics defined in annexes).
- Canonicalization & online considerations: rules to ensure consistent parsing and dereferencing behavior across implementations.
- Implementation notes: forbids port/userinfo usage in these URIs and points to handling percent-encoding and query delimiters.
Practical applications
- Supply chain and logistics item lookup (GTINs, batch/lot, serial numbers)
- Retail and inventory systems that map barcodes/RFID to online product data
- Asset tracking and IoT where devices publish or resolve identifiers over HTTP
- Regulatory and healthcare traceability workflows needing interoperable URIs
- High‑speed scanning environments where carrying descriptive attributes in the URI reduces lookup latency
Who should use this standard
- AIDC system architects and integrators
- Software developers building scanner firmware, middleware or cloud lookup services
- Solution providers implementing identifier resolution and Linked Data for physical objects
- Standards committees and organizations issuing identifiers (ISO/IEC 15459 issuers)
Related standards and references
- ISO/IEC 15459 series (identifier issuance rules)
- ISO/IEC 19762 (AIDC vocabulary)
- RFC 3986 (URI generic syntax)
- IEC 61406 series (domain‑name centric identification, industry specific)
- ISO 26324 (DOI) - example identifier family referenced in the introduction
Keywords: ISO/IEC 18975:2024, AIDC, HTTP URI, identifier resolution, structured path, query string, ISO/IEC 15459, Linked Data, dereference, item lookup API.