1. Overview

This target creates ISO 19139 codelist dictionaries for the code lists contained in an application schema. Depending upon the configuration options, either a gmx:CodeListDictionary or a gmx:ML_CodeListDictionary is created. The latter provides multi-lingual support.

2. Description

This section explains how a codelist dictionary is constructed:

  • If parameter languages only has a single value, and that value is equal to the value of parameter defaultLang, then a gmx:CodeListDictionary is created – otherwise a gmx:ML_CodeListDictionary.

    • NOTE: If the intent is to create a non-multilingual dictionary, the two parameters can simply be omitted.

  • The parameter defaultLang identifies the language in which the description of a dictionary or definition element is given. In a gmx:ML_CodeListDictionary, gmx:alternativeExpression elements are created for the additional language identifiers defined by the languages parameter.

    • Documentation in multiple languages can be provided by using tagged values as source of the documentation descriptor. A code, for example, would then have multiple tagged values, one for each language in which documentation is available – like:

      • documentation="Code XYZ defines …"@en

      • documentation="Code XYZ definiert …"@de

    • If no documentation for the default language is available for a given model element, ShapeChange will instead use the documentation that is given (in the model) without language identifier, for example in the EA notes field, or as a tagged value like: documentation=Code XYZ defines …

    • For each additional language identifier, a corresponding locale ref parameter (e.g. localeRef_en) must be added to the configuration, providing a reference to a gmd:PT_Locale element that describes the language.

  • A dictionary element has the following child elements:

    • gml:description - with value being the documentation of the code list

    • gml:identifier – with the code list name as value, and a @codeSpace attribute (whose value is created based upon an info URL – details explained further below)

    • gml:name – with value being the code list name

    • one or more code definition entries, one for each code defined by the code list as well as any of its direct and indirect supertypes

  • The gml:id of a dictionary element is the name of the code list.

  • A code definition has the following child elements:

    • gml:description - with value being the documentation of the code

    • gml:identifier – with the initial value of the code, if specified in the model, otherwise the name of the code, and a @codeSpace attribute (whose value is created based upon an info URL – details explained further below)

    • gml:name – with value being the code name

  • By default (and for backwards-compatibility), the gml:id of a code definition element is the model id of the code. However, if rule-cldml-prop-codeListAndCodeNameAsGmlId is enabled, then the gml:id is based on the name of the code list and the name of the code, leading to more meaningful references to code definitions (that contain the gml:id as fragment identifier). Note that all characters of the code name that match the regular expression [^a-zA-Z0-9_] are removed, to avoid issues if a code value contained special characters that are not allowed for a gml:id (which has type xs:ID).

  • The @codeSpace of dictionary and definition elements is determined as follows:

    • If the code list represented by the dictionary has tagged value infoURL, its value is used as the code space.

    • Otherwise, the value of configuration parameter infoURL is used. If that parameter is not set, the target namespace defined for the schema that owns the code list is used as info URL. Either way, the code space is then constructed by appending "/" + \{code list name} to the info URL.

Note
Code lists that do not belong to the schemas selected for processing (which can be controlled by parameters appSchemaName, appSchemaNameRegex, and appSchemaNamespaceRegex both in the input and the target configuration), have tagged value asDictionary=false, or define no codes are ignored, i.e. not encoded. Furthermore, if the configuration parameter clPackageName is set, then code lists that are not direct children of a package with that name are ignored.

3. Configuration

3.1. Class

The class for the target implementation is de.interactive_instruments.ShapeChange.Target.Codelists.CodeListDictionariesML

3.2. Rules

An <EncodingRule> element defines an encoding rule.

Example:

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<EncodingRule name="cldml_rule">
 <rule name="rule-cldml-prop-codeNameAsGmlId"/>
</EncodingRule>

The name attribute of the <EncodingRule> element defines the identifier of the encoding rule to be used. The value of the target parameter defaultEncodingRule must contain this name.

Each <rule> references either a conversion rule or – possibly in the future – a requirement or recommendation to be tested during the validation before the conversion process.

The following sections list the rules that are supported by this target.

3.2.1. rule-cldml-prop-codeListAndCodeNameAsGmlId

(since v2.6.0)

This rule results in @gml:id of a code definition entry being constructed using the name of the code list as well as the name of the code, rather than the model specific ID. Note that all characters of the code name that match the regular expression [^a-zA-Z0-9_] are removed, to avoid issues if a code value contained special characters that are not allowed for a gml:id (which has type xs:ID).

This can be useful in cases where a URL is used to directly reference the code definition, since the URL is then more meaningful to a human. For example, one would get gml:id=YourCodeList_codeX instead of gml:id=_13_152.

3.3. Target Parameters

3.3.1. clPackageName

Required / Optional: optional

Type: String

Default Value: none

Explanation: If this parameter is set, only code lists that are owned by a package with this name will be processed. The parameter supports use cases in which only a specific subset of the code lists within an application schema shall be encoded.

Applies to Rule(s): none – general behaviour

3.3.2. defaultEncodingRule

Alias: none

Required / Optional: optional

Type: String

Default Value: none

Explanation: The identifier of the default encoding rule governing the conversion to a code list dictionary. To use a custom encoding rule defined in the configuration, simply provide the name of the custom encoding rule via this parameter.

Applies to Rule(s): none – default behavior

3.3.3. defaultLang

Required / Optional: optional

Type: String

Default Value: "de"

Explanation: Specify the language that is considered as default.

Applies to Rule(s): none – general behaviour

3.3.4. infoURL

Required / Optional: optional

Type: String

Default Value: none

Explanation: Default value for the @codeSpace attribute, to be used in case that the model element – a code attribute or code list class - does not specify the code space via a tagged value infoURL.

Applies to Rule(s): none – general behaviour

3.3.5. languages

Required / Optional: optional

Type: List of strings (separated by spaces)

Default Value: the value of parameter defaultLang

Explanation: Provide the list of languages that shall be taken into account for creating the codelist dictionaries.

Applies to Rule(s): none – general behaviour

3.3.6. localeRef_{lang}

Required / Optional: optional

Type: String

Default Value: none

Explanation: Path to the locale file for the language identified by the parameter suffix (e.g. English in case of localeRef_en). Specify one parameter for each language defined by parameter languages, except for the default language (defined by parameter 'defaultLang'). For example, if a multilingual dictionary shall be created, with German as the default language, and English as an additional language, you need to specify the configuration parameter 'localeRef_en'.

Applies to Rule(s): none – general behaviour

3.3.7. noNewlineOmit

Required / Optional: optional

Type: Boolean (true or false)

Default Value: false

Explanation: If set to true, new line characters in the documentation of a code list or code are not replaced by spaces.

Applies to Rule(s): none – general behaviour

3.3.8. outputDirectory

Required / Optional: optional

Type: String

Default Value: <the current run directory>

Explanation: The path to which the XML files representing the dictionaries will be written. Because there may be a large number of such files, it is suggested that a unique directory be designated for this purpose.

Applies to Rule(s): none – general behaviour

4. Sample Configuration

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<TargetXmlSchema
 class="de.interactive_instruments.ShapeChange.Target.Codelists.CodelistDictionariesML"
 mode="enabled" inputs="INPUT">
 <targetParameter name="outputDirectory" value="results/codeLists/CodeListDictionariesML"/>
 <targetParameter name="sortedOutput" value="true"/>
 <targetParameter name="infoURL" value="http://example.org/info"/>
 <targetParameter name="defaultEncodingRule" value="myrule"/>
 <rules>
  <EncodingRule name="myrule">
   <rule name="rule-cldml-prop-codeListAndCodeNameAsGmlId"/>
  </EncodingRule>
 </rules>
 <xi:include href="https://shapechange.net/resources/config/StandardNamespaces.xml"/>
</TargetXmlSchema>