What is ISO/IEC 21838-1 about?
ISO/IEC 21838-1 specifies the required characteristics of a domain-neutral top-level ontology (TLO) that can be used in tandem with domain ontologies at lower levels to support data exchange, retrieval, discovery, integration and analysis.
ISO/IEC 21838-1 specifies the characteristics an ontology needs to possess to support the goals of exchange, retrieval, discovery, integration and analysis of data by computer systems.
The following are within the scope of ISO/IEC 21838-1:
- Specification of the requirements an ontology needs to satisfy if it is to serve as a top-level hub ontology
- Specification of the relations between a top-level ontology and domainontologies
- Specification of the role played by the terms in a top-level ontology in the formulation of definitions and axioms in ontologies at lower levels
Who is ISO/IEC 21838-1 for?
ISO/IEC 21838-1 on TLO is relevant to:
- Bioinformatics organizations
- Information technology organisation
- Healthcare organisations
- Manufacturing industry
- Government administration
Why should you use ISO/IEC 21838-1?
In information science, a top-level ontology is an ontology which consists of very general terms (such as "object", "property", "relation") that are common across all domains.
ISO/IEC 21838-1 was developed in response to the demand from many quarters for ontology-based solutions to the problem of semantic interoperability across networks of information systems. The demand arises particularly from large organizations and consortia of organizations in areas such as bioinformatics, healthcare, the manufacturing industry and military and government administration, where independently created information systems need to exchange data in such a way that meaning is preserved.
With the help of ISO/IEC 21838-1, you can help achieve sharing of meaning because its terms are associated with formal definitions specifying their meanings in a way that can be processed computationally. ISO/IEC 21838-1 will help you exchange data in such a way that the meaning of the data can be preserved and can be associated with corresponding shared ontology terms
