ISO 19115

Overview

Metacatalog makes it possible to store metadata in ISO 19115 standard. Some of the required information for ISO 19115 will be the same for the whole metacatalog instance, or, is specific to your installation and use case. Below is a table of ISO 19115 code lists, which are implemented and how they translate into metacatalog.

ISO 19115 Fields

ISO 19115, 19115-1, and 19115-2 define only a few mandatory (M) fields, but a long list of optional (O) and coditional (C) fields. In the table below you find a mapping of ISO names to metacatalog names. If the column Code List is filled, metacatalog makes use of published ISO 19115 CodeList values. In the section below you can find for every list, how the single values map into metacatalog.

MD_Metadata

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
fileIdentifier	Entry.uuid		[1]
language	'en-US'	ISO 639-2 values are allowed	[1]	metacatalog is not multi-language and therefore a common value should be used
characterSet	DataSource.encoding	MD_CharacterSetCode	[1]	DataSource.encoding
parentIdentifier	EntryGroup.id if Entry.is_partial		[0] or [1]	Only for partial Entries a Parent Entry is mandatory.
hierachyLevel	'dataset'	MD_ScopeCode	[1]	All other values are not applicable for metacatalog.
hierachyLevelName			[0..*]	Conditional: not applicable if hierachyLevel == 'dataset'
contact	Entry.author | Entry.contributors	CI_ResponsibleParty, CI_RoleCode	[1..*]	In metacatalog, the first author is contact person.
dateStamp	Entry.lastUpdate	ISO 19103	[1]	either creation or last edit
metadataStandardName	'ISO19115-2'		[1]	As of now ISO is the only standard used. More can be added here
metadataStandardVersion	ISO19115-2:2019'		[1]	Not entirely sure about this
locale	'en-US.utf8'	ISO 19139	[0..*]	Not sure about the format
metadataLinkageURL			[0..*]	The specific installation of metacatalog has to define this.
spatialRepresentationInfo		MD_SpatialRepresentation	[0..*]	Recommended for INSPIRE topic ‘elevation’
referenceSystemInfo		MD_ReferenceSystem	[1]	In INSPIRE [1..*] cardinality. EPSG:4326 for metadata
metadataExtensionInfo		MD_MetadataExtensionInformation	[0..*]	Details.value if Details.thesaurus_id not None
identificationInfo		MD_Identification	[1..*]	Many possible. Only the first occarance is used for INSPIRE
contentInfo	DataSourceType.name & Variable.name	MD_ContentInformation	[1..*]	this does not map exactly, but is optional in ISO anyway
distributionInfo		MD_Distribution	[1]	INSPIRE requires distribution information. Has to be implemented by metacatalog admin.
dataQualityInfo		DQ_DataQuality	[1..*]	not yet implemended
portrayalCatalogueInfo		MD_PortrayalCatalogueReference	[0..*]	This has to be defined outside metacatalog.
applicationSchemaInfo		MD_ApplicationSchema	[0]	Not sure if metacatalog can implement this at all.

MD_Indentification

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
citation	Entry.citation	CI_Citation	[1]
abstract	Entry.abstract		[1]	The abstract may contain a details table (Entry.details_table(fmt=’markdown’))
purpose			[0]	The purpose goes into the abstract in metacatalog
status		MD_ProgressCode	[0..1]	not yet implemented.
pointOfContact	Entry.author	CI_ResponsibleParty	[1..*]	In metacatalog, this is a double entry to contact. Filled by Entry.author
resourceMaintenance		MD_MaintenaceInformation	[0..*]	as of now, no planned implementation
graphicOverview		MD_BrowseGraphic	[0..*]	as of now, no planned implementation.
descriptiveKeywords	Keyword	MD_Keywords	[1..*]	I have no idea, what the forced Keyword is…
resourceSpecificUsage		MD_Usage	[0..*]	as of now, no planned implementation
resourceConstraints	License	MD_Constrains	[1..*]	only a few values are allowed within metacatalog
aggregationInfo	EntryGroup	MD_AggregationInformation	[0..*]	only a few values are alled within metacatalog

MD_DataIdentification

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
spatialRepresentationType	'raster' or 'vector'	MD_SpatialRepresentation_TypeCode	[1..*]	'raster' for raster data-types, 'vector' else.
spatialResolution	DataSource.spatial_scale	MD_Resolution	[0..*]	if applicable (DataSource.spatial_scale can be None)
language	'en-US'	ISO 639-2	[1]	metacatalog is as of now not multi-language
characterSet	'utf8'	MD_CharacterSetCode	[1]	it is recommended to only use UTF-8 encodings
topicCategory	Keyword.value	MD_TopicCategoryCode	[1..*]	This may be mappable from Keywords
environmentDescription	Entry.abstract		[0..1]	If important, should go into the abstract
extent	SpatialScale.extent TemporalScale.extent	Ex_Extent	[1..*]	not sure if temporal scale is supported by ISO
supplementalInformation	DataSource.args		[0..1]	This may not be helpful on export

MD_BrowseGraphic

Note

The MD_Identification.graphicOverview is as of now not implemented in metacatalog. Currently, no implementation is planned.

MD_Keywords

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
keyword	Keyword.full_path		[1..*]	Keyword hierachies will always be separated by ' > '
type	'theme'	MD_KeywordTypeCode	[0..1]	in metacatalog keywords are: 'topic > term > ...'
thesaurusName	Keyword.thesaurusName	CI_Citation	[0..1]	Keyword.thesaurusName is a read only

Note

To reference a thesaurus, the thesaurus name is needed. Then, the url of the given Keyword is given as thesaurusUrl. The system, which operates metacatalog has to be able to create a valid CI_Citation. The thesaurusName.citedResponsibleParty is represented by an organisationName given by thesaurus_organisation and contactInfo, which is an OnlineResource of linkage given as thesaurus_url.

MD_RepresentativeFraction

Has only one field: denominator, which is the ISO 19103 scale. Applies only to raster sources in metacatalog. See MD_Resolution.

MD_Resolution

Has only one of two fields. The resolution applies only to raster sources in metacatalog and is either a MD_RepresentativeFraction (scale) or a ground distance stored in the field distance. If DataSource has a spatial scale, the SpatialScale.resolution can be used to give the ground distance.

MD_Usage

Note

Metacatalog does not store the usage information in extra fields, but they can be extracted from existing ISO fields, that are extended in metacatalog

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
specificUsage	Entry.abstract		[1]	This information is added to the abstract in metacatalog
userContactInfo	Entry.author		[1]	metacatalog defines the first author as a universal contact person

MD_AggregateInformation

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
aggregateDataSetIdentifier	Entry.associated_groups.entries.uuid	MD_Identifier	[1]	can either implement the UUID or full MD_Identifier
associationType	EntryGroupType.name	DS_AssociationTypeCode	[1]	not all types are mapped into metacatalog

MD_Constraints

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
useLimitation	License.full_text		[1]	This is redunant to meet INSPIRE

Note

There is an onging debate about this field between INSPIRE and GDI-DE. At the moment the useLimitations are meant to describe use-cases where the data is not applicable. But it is a mandatory field and it is not possible to leave it blank. DGI-DE is duplication the useConstraints from MD_LegalConstraints into this field to satisfy ISO 19115 and INSPIRE.

MD_LegalConstraints

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
accessConstraints		MD_RestrictionsCode	[C..0]	not mapped in metacatalog
useConstraints	'otherRestrictions'	MD_RestrictionsCode	[1]	note the warning below!
otherConstraints	License.full_text		[1]	note the warning below!

Note

ISO 19115 makes the fields accessConstraints, useConstraints and otherConstraints dependent on each other. otherConstraints is mandatory and either accessConstraints or useConstraints need at least a reference 'otherRestrictions' as a value to reference the field. All of them together are needed to set the legal framework of working with data. GDI-DE is trying to unify this semantic und suggests to duplicate open data licenses into all of these fields. They also have a suggestion how to store open data licenses (which only applies to the german geodata infrastructure and is therefore not a part of metacatalog.)

Warning

If you implement metacatalog in your application, you have to make sure, that the license information is mapped into ISO 19115 accordingly. Other restrictions and use limitation do not apply as metacatalog is made for open data. If you wish to store private or restricted information, you will need a security, authorization and authentification middleware as metacatalog does not handle these issues.

MD_SecurityConstraints

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
classification	'unclassified'	MD_ClassificationCode	[1]	note the warning below

Warning

Please also see MD_LegalConstraints. The metadata in metacatalog is always 'unclassified'. If you wish to implement classified information, you need a security middleware. However, ISO 19115 and INSPIRE define this field as mandatory and you have to include it.

DQ_DataQuality

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
scope	'dataset', 'series'	DQ_Scope	[1]	see note below
report		DQ_Element	[1..*]	not yet implemented
lineage		LI_Lineage	[1..*]	not yet implemented

Note

The scope is always 'dataset' for Entry and 'series' for EntryGroup. The DQ_Scope can then be filled automatically, as both entries do not need user-information to fill the other DQ_Scope fields and are therefore not implemented into metacatalog.

Note

All related data-quality tables are not mapped into metacatalog as the implementation is still in discussion.

MD_MaintenaceInformation

Note

Currently, there are no plans to implement MD_MaintenaceInformation

MD_SpatialRepresentation

Note

This only applies to 'raster' and 'vector' data types, which can be derived from a data source type. Any further implementations are not planned.

MD_ReferenceSystem

Note

Metacatalog stores all geographic information in EPS:4326, WGS84 and you can therefore handle the reference system. If the data uses different reference systems, the DataSource will be able to handle this information with the next revision.

Warning

Due to technical reasons, the DataSource can not yet handle CRS information. Please store only EPSG:4326 referenced data in metacatalog. This will be resolved with one of the future releases.

MD_ContentInformation

Note

The MD_ContentInformation and all related entities are not yet implemented in metacatalog. As metacatalog only uses a very limited amount of the defined values, DataSource and Variable will be mappable to MD_ContentInformation in the future.

MD_PortrayalCatalogueReference

Note

There are currently no plans to implement portayal information into metacatalog. But these records would have a m:1 relationship to Entry and can be implemented outside metacatalog in a data-delivery middleware.

MD_Distribution

Note

By the use of I/O extensions, almost any format and way of distributing data can be implemented into metacatalog. It is recommended to append distribution information on export filling the fields accordingly. Some of the fields can be determined by following metacatalog’s data types.

The distributor will always be the authority running the metacatalog installation (not the data owner!)

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
testData			[0]	this is not mapped in metacatalog
distributionFormat	'.txt' or .csv'	MD_Format	[1]	See note above.
distributor		MD_Distributor	[1]	metacatalog admin
transferOptions		MD_DigitalTransferOptions	[0..*]	Depending on the distribution system

Note

If the DataSourceTypes should be used for distribution, an CI_OnlineResource with the DataSource.path as linkage can be automatically derived.

Note

All other entities related to distribution are not part of metacatalog and have to be added, specifying the ways how the data can be requested and who is responsible. The I/O Extentions might store some useful information.

MD_MetadataExtensionInformation

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
extendedRoleInformation	nm_entries_details	MD_ExtendedElementInformation	[1..*]

MD_ExtendedElementInformation

Note

MD_ExtendedElementInformation can be realized by Details that relate a Thesaurus with public URI.

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
name	Details.key		[1]
shortName	Details.stem		[0..1]	can be omitted if 'codeListElement'
domainCode			[1]	3-digit integer code. No idea for what.
definition	Detail.description		[1]
obligation		MD_ObligationCode	[0]
condition			[0..1]	Can be omitted because obligation cannot be 'conditional'.
dataType	characterString	MD_DataTypeCode	[1]	models.Detail.value is always string
maximumOccurence	1		[1]	A key may not be duplicated on the same Entry
domainValue	'any'		[1]	key=value are arbitrary.
parentEntity	MD_Metadata		[1..*]	in metacatalog Detail is bound to Entry
rule	'descriptive Value'		[1]	Detail is always specifying Entry. You can set other text.
rationale	Detail.description		[0..1]	the description may contain a rationale
source	Entry.author		[1]	metacatalog specifies the author to be the source

MD_ApplicationSchema

Note

There are no plans to implement MD_ApplicationSchema.

Ex_Extent

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
description			[0..1]	Only one field of Ex_Extent can to be filled
geographicElement		EX_GeographicExtent	[0..1]	Only one field of Ex_Extent can to be filled
temporalElement		EX_TemporalExtent	[0..1]	Only one field of Ex_Extent can to be filled
verticalElement		EX_VerticalElement	[0]	verticalElements are not mapped in metacatalog

EX_GeographicExtent

The geographic extent is always given as bounding box in EPSG:4326, if applicable. Other values and objects defined in IOS 19115 are not supported by metacatalog.

EX_TemporalExtent

ISO 19115 only requires a EX_TemporalExtent.extent value, which has to be a ISO 19108 time range. The TemporalScale has a start and a end property and any instance of it can return an ISO 19108 time range.

EX_VerticalExtent

Note

EX_VerticalExtent cannot be mapped in metacatalog

CI_Citation

ISO field	metacatalog	CodeList or Table	Cardinality	description
title	Entry.title		[1]
alternateTitle			[0..*]	not available in metacatalog
date	Entry.publication		[1]	The CI_Date is always publication in metacatalog
edition	Entry.version		[0..1]	This might change in the future
editionDate	Entry.publication	ISO 19103	[0..1]	mandatory if edition is set. It is the publication of the new Entry.version
identifier			[0]	this does not apply to metacatalog
citedResponsibleParty		CI_ResponsibleParty	[0..1]	Not implemented, but could be filled by the metacatlog admin as CI_ResponsibleParty.
presentationForm		CI_PresentationFormCode	[0]	Not implemented in metacatalog.
series	EntryGroup.uuid	CI_Series	[0..1]	only applicable for EntryGroup
otherCitationDetails			[0]	not available in metacatalog
collectiveTitle	EntryGroup.title		[0..1]	only applicable for EntryGroup
ISBN			[0]	not available
ISSN			[0]	not available

CI_ResponsibleParty

Note

In metacatalog only two cases of using CI_ResponsibleParty are covered. Either it is the first author of the dataset and can then be filled by Entry.author, or it is the authority running metacatalog and CI_ResponsibleParty can automatically be filled on export.

Code-Lists

Metacatalog mappings are based on the CodeList dictionaries published by NOAA. The following list gives you an idea, where and how the codes lists and the values are implemented.

https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/wiki/index.php/ISO_19115_and_19115-2_CodeList_Dictionaries#CI_DateTypeCode

CI_DateTypeCode

ISO	metacatalog	description
creation	Entry.creation	start-date of the data
publication	Entry.publication	creation date of the Entry record
revision	/	we use ISO 19115-2 lastUpdate
adopted	n.a.	not applicable
deprecated	/	not yet implemented
distribution	n.a.	not applicable as metacatalog is a distribution system. Will be the same as publication here.
expiry	n.a.	not applicable
inForce	n.a.	not applicable
lastRevision	/	not yet implemented
lastUpdate	Entry.lastUpdate	updates on every edit
nextUpdate	n.a.	not applicable
release	n.a.	metacatalog is intended for open data
superseded	/	not yet implemented
unavailable	n.a.	not applicable
validityBegins	n.a.	not applicable
validityExpires	n.a.	not applicable

CI_PresentationFormCode

The definitions given in this list do not apply to environmental datasets. Depending on the metacatalog instance and the metadata stored, the CI_PresentationFormCode will apply to all data. If applicable it will be one of

• mapDigital

• modelDigital

• tableDigital

• physicalSample

Note

You will have to implement this _after_ metacatalog has exported the Entry information, if needed.

CI_RoleCode

Note

The full CI_RoleCode Codelist is implemented exactly into metacatalog.PersonRole.

Roles

id	name	description
1	author	the individual or organization whose name should appear first in the citation for the resource (for names that come after the first use co-author). while it is possible to have an author and principle investigator be the same individual or organization, author is not the same as nor synonymous with principle investigator. applicable mainly to documents, reports, memos, etc.
2	custodian	the individual or organization that has accountability and responsibility for the data and ensures appropriate care and maintenance of the resource.
3	distributor	the individual or organization that has accountability and responsibility for the data and ensures appropriate care and maintenance of the resource.
4	originator	the name of the individual or organization who is responsible for the data at the point when the data was first created. applicable for data sets that are an aggregation of two or more data sets or if the data set is the first instance of the signal having been converted into data.
5	owner	the individual or organization that has ownership of the resource.
6	pointOfContact	the individual or organization who is responsible for the initial triage of and answering questions related to the resource.
7	principalInvestigator	the individual or individuals who are the lead researchers for a grant (i.e. head of the laboratory, research group leader, etc.). if there are co-principal investigators then this field will repeat for each principle investigator. while it is possible to have a principal investigator and author be the same individual or organization, principal investigator is not the same nor synonymous with author.
8	processor	the name of the individual or organization who has processed the data in a manner such that the resource has been modified.
9	publisher	the individual or organization who prepares and issues the resource.
10	resourceProvider	the individual or organization that supplies or allocates the resource for another entity.
11	sponsor	the individual or organization who is providing sponsorship for the resource.
12	user	the individuals or organizations who are the intended consumers of the resource.
13	coAuthor	the individual(s) or organization(s) who name(s) should appear after the first name in a citation for the resource (use author to denote the first name in the citation). while it is possible to have a co-author and principal investigator/collaborator be the same individual or organization, co-author is no the same as nor synonymous with principle investigator or collaborator
14	collaborator	party who assists with the generation of the resource other than the principal investigator
15	contributor	the individuals or organizations whose contributions deserve recognition in the citation. contributor is mutually exclusive from author, co-author, principal investigator, and collaborator. use ISO MD_Identification credit field to identify individual or organizations that should be given acknowledgement only.
16	editor	the individual who has made a corrective or editorial change to the resource as part of a systematic revision process.
17	funder	the individual or organization which has provided all or part of the finances associated with the resource.
18	mediator	a class of entity that mediates access to the resource and for whom the resource is intended or useful
19	rightsHolder	he individual or organization who has ownership of the legal right to the resource.
20	stakeholder	an individual or organization who has an interest in the resource and/or is affected by or affects the actions of the resource

DQ_EvaluationMethodTypeCode

The DQ_EvaluationMethodTypeCode list is not yet implemented.

DS_AssociationTypeCode

The EntryGroup maps some of the DS_AssociationTypeCode.

ISO	metacatalog	description
crossReference	/	not implemented yet
largerWorkCitation	EntryGroupType.name=='Composite'	‘Citation’ might be misleading here.
partOfSeamlessDatabase	n.a.	not sure if this applies to metacatalog
source	n.a.	not applicable, as metacatalog does not store dependencies if the data is an image
stereoMate	n.a.	not applicable
collectiveTitle	EntryGroupType.name==’Project’	applies if the Entries are grouped by Project name
dependency	Entry if Entry.is_partial==True	Entry.uuid of all Entry.is_partial==False for a partial Entry within the same composite
isComposedOf	Entry.uuid	Entry.uuid of all child Entries for a EntryGroup
revisionOf	/	not yet implemented
series	n.a.	not applicable.

DS_InitiativeTypeCode

The InitiativeTypeCode List does not apply to metacatalog. In cases you use a data platform around metacatalog, which can either return aggregated datasets or processing results or datasets that share a context, you have to implement this list to describe the type of dataset aggregation.

MD_CellGeometryCode

The MD_CellGeometryCode List is extended in metacatalog by the Entry.location <metacatalog.models.Entry and Entry.geom <metacatalog.models.Entry properties.

Note

Note that MD_CellGeometryCode List is describing grid cells, therefore this section only applies to raster datasources and is not yet implemented.

ISO	metacatalog	description
point	Entry.location <metacatalog.models.Entry	location is always a point in metacatalog

MD_CharacterSetCode

The characterset of the metacatalog database is always the same as metacatalog is not supporting multi-database installations. We recommend to use 'utf-8'.

MD_ClassificationCode

The MD_ClassificationCode List describes classified information. As metacatalog is designed for and dedicated to managing open data this list does not apply.

However a Entry can be put into embargo for a limited amount of time. This defaults to two years after 'publication' date. An Entry under embargo is still 'unclassified' following MD_ClassificationCode List but just not visible in the system.

MD_CoverageContentTypeCode

The MD_CoverageContentTypeCode List is not yet implemented.

MD_DatatypeCode

The MD_DatatypeCode List is not implemented yet, but will be available as a lookup value for data types.

MD_DimensionNameTypeCode

The MD_DimensionNameTypeCode List does not apply to metacatalog, as the data can be more generalized than geometric dimensions.

MD_GeometricObjectTypeCode

The value is always 'point' for Entry.location

MD_ImagingConditionCode

The MD_ImagingConditionCode List is not yet implemented, but will be available optinally, to be linked to Detail information.

MD_KeywordTypeCode

The MD_KeywordTypeCode is not yet implemented. Some of the keyword types can be used to specify the controlled keywords implemented as Keyword and some might further specify Details. It will be decided with Version 0.2 of metacatalog how much of this information will be reflected within metacatalog.