Introduction

ISO 10303 is an International Standard for the computer-interpretable representation of product information and for the exchange of product data. The objective is to provide a neutral mechanism capable of describing products throughout their life cycle. This mechanism is suitable not only for neutral file exchange, but also as a basis for implementing and sharing product databases, and as a basis for retention and archiving.

This part of ISO 10303 specifies an application module for the representation of simple numeric and boolean expressions associated to products. The requirements to represent additional characteristics of the products, takes it to support the representation by flexible methods of parameterized characteristics. The use of an expression will fulfil the requirements for the representation of variable characteristics, and can be represented by an expression with input arguments. Some examples can introduce the real need for those characteristics, such as:

• price: where can depends on some dimensions like height and width or even depending on some characteristic like the color or the finishing type of the product;
• dimensions: to represent the area of a product, it can be determined by the inputs of the height and width.

Clause 1 defines the scope of the application module and summarizes the functionality and data covered. Clause 3 lists the words defined in this part of ISO 10303 and gives pointers to words defined elsewhere. The information requirements of the application are specified in Clause 4 using terminology appropriate to the application. A graphical representation of the information requirements, referred to as the application reference model, is given in Annex C. Resource constructs are interpreted to meet the information requirements. This interpretation produces the module interpreted model (MIM). This interpretation, given in 5.1, shows the correspondence between the information requirements and the MIM. The short listing of the MIM specifies the interface to the resources and is given in 5.2. A graphical representation of the short listing of the MIM is given in Annex D.

In ISO 10303, the same English language words can be used to refer to an object in the real world or concept, and as the name of an EXPRESS data type that represents this object or concept.

The following typographical convention is used to distinguish between these. If a word or phrase occurs in the same typeface as narrative text, the referent is the object or concept. If the word or phrase occurs in a bold typeface or as a hyperlink, the referent is the EXPRESS data type.

The name of an EXPRESS data type can be used to refer to the data type itself, or to an instance of the data type. The distinction between these uses is normally clear from the context. If there is a likelihood of ambiguity, either the phrase "entity data type" or "instance(s) of" is included in the text.

Double quotation marks " " denote quoted text. Single quotation marks ' ' denote particular text string values.

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