ISO 28560-2:2011

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 28560-2
First edition
2011-04-01
Information and documentation — RFID
in libraries —
Part 2:
Encoding of RFID data elements based
on rules from ISO/IEC 15962
Information et documentation — RFID dans les bibliothèques —
Partie 2: Encodage des éléments de données RFID fondé sur les règles
de l'ISO/CEI 15962
Reference number
©
ISO 2011
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ii © ISO 2011 – All rights reserved

Contents Page
Foreword .v
Introduction.vi
1 Scope.1
2 Normative references.1
3 Terms and definitions .2
4 Applicability and relationship with other systems .3
5 Requirements.5
5.1 Data elements .5
5.2 RFID air interface.5
5.3 Data protocol .5
5.4 RFID readers .5
6 Data elements .6
6.1 General .6
6.2 Primary item identifier.7
6.3 Content parameter.8
6.4 Owner institution (ISIL).8
6.5 Set information .9
6.6 Type of usage .9
6.7 Shelf location .9
6.8 ONIX media format .9
6.9 MARC media format .9
6.10 Supplier identifier.9
6.11 Order number.9
6.12 ILL borrowing institution .9
6.13 ILL transaction number.10
6.14 GS1 product identifier.10
6.15 Alternative unique item identifier .10
6.16 Local data.10
6.17 Title .10
6.18 Product identifier (local) .11
6.19 Media format (other).11
6.20 Supply chain stage.11
6.21 Supplier invoice number.11
6.22 Alternative item identifier .11
6.23 Alternative owner institution.11
6.24 Subsidiary of an owner institution .11
6.25 Alternative ILL borrowing institution .12
6.26 Other reserved data elements.12
7 Data encoding.12
7.1 Data protocol overview.12
7.2 Data constructs .12
7.3 ISO/IEC 15961-1 commands and responses.14
7.4 ISO/IEC 15962 encoding rules.14
8 RFID tag requirements.19
8.1 Air interface protocol .19
8.2 Air interface conformance.21
8.3 Performance.21
9 Data integrity, security, and privacy issues. 22
9.1 Data integrity. 22
9.2 Item security. 22
10 Implementation and migration . 23
Annex A (informative) Information about ISO 28560 RFID in libraries . 24
Annex B (normative) Relevant ISO/IEC 15961-1 application commands . 25
Annex C (normative) Pre-encoding the ISIL. 28
Annex D (informative) Encoding examples . 33
Annex E (informative) Implementation and migration. 38
Bibliography. 41

iv © ISO 2011 – All rights reserved

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies
(ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through ISO
technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee has been
established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations, governmental and
non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely with the
International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization.
International Standards are drafted in accordance with the rules given in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The main task of technical committees is to prepare International Standards. Draft International Standards
adopted by the technical committees are circulated to the member bodies for voting. Publication as an
International Standard requires approval by at least 75 % of the member bodies casting a vote.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent
rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
ISO 28560-2 was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 46, Information and documentation,
Subcommittee SC 4, Technical interoperability.
ISO 28560 consists of the following parts, under the general title Information and documentation — RFID in
libraries:
⎯ Part 1: Data elements and general guidelines for implementation
⎯ Part 2: Encoding of RFID data elements based on rules from ISO/IEC 15962
⎯ Part 3: Fixed length encoding
Introduction
Libraries are implementing RFID (radio frequency identification) as item identification to replace bar codes.
RFID streamlines applications like user self-service, security, and materials handling. A standard data model
for encoding information on RFID tags could increase the cost-effectiveness of the technology within libraries
particularly through greater interoperability of RFID tags and equipment, and enhance support for resource
sharing between libraries.
Several countries have undertaken preliminary work on standardization. The Netherlands developed a data
model for public libraries and in Denmark “RFID Data Model for Libraries” has been published. Finland has
adopted the Danish model, but with a few changes. There is a French data model that differs from the Danish
and Dutch models. Other libraries in different parts of the world have installations based on various proprietary
systems offered by technology and library system suppliers. All of these constitute the installed base of RFID
systems, but only account for a small minority of the total of libraries globally.
There is an opportunity to develop a standard data model, taking into account the lessons learned from the
national schemes and vendor solutions, and provide migration options for those libraries that have already
invested in the technology. Because new items are continually being purchased, a number of migration
options can be adopted based on factors relevant to each library.
This part of ISO 28560 deals with the encoding of data elements in a flexible manner using encoding rules
that are specified in ISO/IEC 15962. ISO 28560-1 defines the set of mandatory and optional data elements.
ISO 28560-3 and this part of ISO 28560 are mutually exclusive with respect to an RFID tag being applied to a
loan item. In other words, the RFID tag is encoded according to the rules of this part of ISO 28560, or to the
rules of ISO 28560-3, or to some proprietary rules. Depending on the technologies being used, and other
features of tags that are claiming compliance with this part of ISO 28560, the reading system might achieve a
degree of interoperability.
ISO 28560 provides essential standards-based information about RFID in libraries. Ongoing advice needs to
be provided because of the evolving nature of RFID technology, and the opportunities to migrate between
different types of legacy system and encoding rules of ISO 28560.

vi © ISO 2011 – All rights reserved

INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 28560-2:2011(E)

Information and documentation — RFID in libraries —
Part 2:
Encoding of RFID data elements based on rules from
ISO/IEC 15962
1 Scope
This part of ISO 28560 specifies a data model and encoding rules for the use of radio frequency identification
(RFID) tags for items appropriate for the needs of all types of libraries (including academic, public, corporate,
special and school libraries). The rules for encoding a subset of data elements taken from the total set of data
elements defined in ISO 28560-1 are based on ISO/IEC 15962, which uses an object identifier structure to
identify data elements.
This part of ISO 28560 defines the technical characteristics required to encode the data elements defined in
ISO 28560-1 in accordance with ISO/IEC 15962. These subsets of data elements can be different on different
items in the same library. The encoding rules also enable the optional data to be organized on the RFID tag in
any sequence. In addition, the encoding rules provide for flexible encoding of variable length and variable
format data.
This part of ISO 28560 provides essential standards-based information about RFID in libraries. A source of
additional information about implementation issues is provided in Annex A.
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document. For dated
references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced
document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO/IEC 15961-1, Information technology — Radio frequency identification (RFID) for item management: Data
protocol — Part 1: Application interface
ISO/IEC 15962, Information technology — Radio frequency identification (RFID) for item management — Data
protocol: data encoding rules and logical memory functions
ISO/IEC 18000-3, Information technology — Radio frequency identification for item management — Part 3:
Parameters for air interface communications at 13,56 MHz
ISO/IEC 18046-3, Information technology — Radio frequency identification device performance test
methods — Part 3: Test methods for tag performance
ISO/IEC TR 18047-3, Information technology — Radio frequency identification device conformance test
methods — Part 3: Test methods for air interface communications at 13,56 MHz
ISO 28560-1, Information and documentation — RFID in libraries — Part 1: Data elements and general
guidelines for implementation
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document the following terms and definitions apply.
3.1
access method
component of the DSFID (3.8) that is responsible for declaring the ISO/IEC 15962 compaction and encoding
rules on an RFID tag
3.2
air interface protocol
rules of communication between an RFID interrogator and the RFID tag of a particular type, covering:
frequency, modulation, bit encoding and command sets
3.3
application command
instruction issued from the application to the ISO/IEC 15962 data protocol processor in order to initiate an
action or operation with the RFID tag(s) via the interrogator
3.4
AFI
application family identifier
mechanism used in the data protocol and the air interface protocol (3.2) to select a class of RFID tags
relevant to an application, or aspect of an application, and to ignore further communications with other classes
of RFID tags with different identifiers
3.5
arc
specific branch of an object identifier tree, with new arcs added as required to define a particular object
NOTE The top three arcs of all object identifiers are compliant with ISO/IEC 9834-1, ensuring uniqueness.
3.6
data format
mechanism used in the data protocol to identify how object identifiers (3.11) are encoded on the RFID tag,
and (where possible) identify a particular data dictionary for the set of relevant object identifiers for that
application
NOTE The data format declares the Root-OID (3.13) in an efficient manner, so that a complete object identifier (3.11)
can be reconstructed for external communications.
3.7
data protocol process
implementation of the processes defined in ISO/IEC 15962, including data compaction, formatting, support of
the command/response unit, and an interface to the tag driver
3.8
DSFID
data storage format identifier
code that consists of, at least, the access method (3.1) and data format (3.6)
3.9
digital vandalism
unauthorized modification of data on an RFID tag that either renders it unusable or falsely represents another
identifier
3.10
metadata
type of data or information about data
2 © ISO 2011 – All rights reserved

NOTE In the context of this part of ISO 28560, metadata (3.10) can be the Relative-OID (3.12) in relation to the data,
the precursor in relation to the compacted and encoded bytes, or the AFI (3.4) and DSFID (3.8) in relation to the data.
3.11
object identifier
value (distinguishable from all other such values), which is associated with an object
3.12
Relative-OID
particular object identifier (3.11) that constitutes the remaining arcs (3.5) after the Root-OID (3.13)
3.13
Root-OID
particular object identifier (3.11) that constitutes the first, second and subsequent common arcs (3.5) of a set
of object identifiers (hence the common root)
3.14
tag driver
implementation of the process to transfer data between the data protocol processor and the RFID tag
4 Applicability and relationship with other systems
4.1 Figure 1 gives an overview of the relationship of this part of ISO 28560 with other systems. This part of
ISO 28560 defines a set of technical features while addressing a number of operational issues. This part of
ISO 28560 interfaces with four other activities, but with a clearly defined overlap. These other activities are
⎯ the circulation of library materials,
⎯ the data requirements of publishers, printers and other suppliers,
⎯ the inter-library loan processes, and
⎯ the details of borrowers, including membership cards.
4.2 Figure 1 also shows that there is a direct relationship with supply chain activities, and internally within
the library with RFID circulation devices and the library management system including interfaces such as SIP2
and NCIP.
As the use of RFID in libraries moves towards a more standardized approach as defined in this part of
ISO 28560, the characteristics and architecture systems will change compared to those already established.
To achieve interoperability with equipment and software, the required features include
⎯ the air interface protocol, which defines the way readers and tags communicate with one another,
⎯ the data protocol, which defines the encoding rules that convert application-based data to the encoded
bytes on the RFID tag; the data protocol also defines metadata features in the RFID tag to protect the
integrity of RFID for library systems in relation to other RFID applications,
⎯ the set of data elements that form the dictionary from which individual libraries may choose those that are
most appropriate for their operation.
4.3 By adopting this part of ISO 28560, libraries will have increased flexibility with a number of features as
follows.
⎯ Beyond the minimum of mandatory data elements defined in the standard, libraries will be able to choose
from the optional data elements those that are more appropriate to its application, even varying these for
different types of item.
⎯ Libraries should be able to rank the optional data elements into an appropriate order for encoding on the
RFID tag to support fast transactions across the air interface.
⎯ Libraries will have a greater choice of interoperable RFID equipment, and should be able to select RFID
tags with an appropriate size of memory.
⎯ Some degree of choice in the types of security system will become a library responsibility.
⎯ Libraries with an installed base of RFID data capture will be offered options on how to migrate to the more
open standard solution.
⎯ The library community, as a whole and through developments of this part of ISO 28560, will be provided
with future options to cope with changes within the RFID equipment as the technology develops. This
includes ensuring that new open systems applications do not corrupt the established base of RFID
systems in libraries.
Figure 1 — Relationship of this part of ISO 28560 with other systems
4 © ISO 2011 – All rights reserved

5 Requirements
5.1 Data elements
The data elements shall be compliant with ISO 28560-1.
NOTE There is a degree of flexibility in using locally defined codes that enable enhancements and variations to be
implemented whilst still complying with the basic set of data elements.
5.2 RFID air interface
5.2.1 General
The air interface for compliant tags is specified in ISO/IEC 18000-3, specifically the specification for Mode 1.
For migration purposes, additional non-compliant air interfaces used in legacy systems may be supported
during a transition period, which is permitted to remain in place for years as necessary.
5.2.2 Air interface conformance
The air interface conformance shall be tested in accordance with the procedures of ISO/IEC TR 18047-3.
5.2.3 Tag performance
Where there are requirements for test tag performance, these shall be done in accordance with
ISO/IEC 18046-3.
5.3 Data protocol
ISO/IEC 15961-1 specifies the application commands that are used to define the communication requirements
between the application and the RFID tag. The relevant commands are described in Annex B.
The process rules of ISO/IEC 15962 shall be used to encode and decode data from the RFID tag. In particular,
the following constraints shall apply.
⎯ The only encoding rules shall be based on the No-directory access method. No alternative access
method shall be supported until this part of ISO 28560 is revised.
⎯ Both the hard coded and software encoded DSFID shall be supported, depending on the capabilities of
the RFID tag.
5.4 RFID readers
In order to achieve interoperability, RFID readers shall be based on open architecture RFID standards defined
by ISO/IEC Joint Technical Committee JTC 1/SC 31, Automatic identification and data capture techniques.
Particular standards are specified in this part of ISO 28560. This means that any one manufacturer's
reading/writing equipment shall be able to read or write to any other manufacturer's RFID tags, and that any
manufacturer's RFID tags shall be able to be read and/or programmed by any other manufacturer's
reader/writer.
6 Data elements
6.1 General
The set of data elements that comprises the data dictionary for this part of ISO 28560 is fully described in
ISO 28560-1 and repeated in outline in Table 1. Only one data element is mandatory, the primary item
identifier. All others are optional, but may be selected to meet the requirements of individual libraries, and/or
for particular items.
Table 1 shows the Relative-OID value, the format for input data and advice about locking the data element as
an encoded data set on the RFID tag. A maximum length of 255 characters should apply to all data elements
that have a variable length display format.
Table 1 — List of data elements
Name of the
a
N Status Display format Lock
data element
1 Primary item identifier Mandatory Variable length alphanumeric Should be
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 International Reference locked
Version (IRV)
2 Content parameter Optional Bit mapped code (see 6.3) Optional
b
3 Owner institution (ISIL) Optional Variable length field (maximum of 16 characters) Optional
based on ISO 15511
4 Set information Optional {Total in set / part number} structure Optional
(maximum u 255)
5 Type of usage Optional Single octet (coded list) Optional
6 Shelf location Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
7 ONIX media format Optional Two uppercase alphabetic characters Optional
8 MARC media format Optional Two lowercase alphabetic characters Optional
9 Supplier identifier Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
10 Order number Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
b
11 ILL borrowing institution Optional Variable length field (maximum of 16 characters) Not locked
(ISIL) based on ISO 15511
12 ILL borrowing transaction Optional Variable length alphanumeric Not locked
number Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
13 GS1 product identifier Optional Fixed length 13 numeric digit field Optional
14 Alternative unique item Reserved — —
identifier for future
use
15 Local data A Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV, or ISO/IEC 8859-1,
or UTF-8
16 Local data B Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV, or ISO/IEC 8859-1,
or UTF-8
6 © ISO 2011 – All rights reserved

Table 1 (continued)
Name of the
a
N Status Display format Lock
data element
17 Title Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV, or ISO/IEC 8859-1,
or UTF-8
18 Product identifier local Optional Variable length Alphanumeric Optional
Char set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
19 Media format (other) Optional Single octet (coded list) Optional
20 Supply chain stage Optional Single octet (coded list) Optional
21 Supplier invoice number Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
22 Alternative item identifier Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
23 Alternative owner Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
institution Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
24 Subsidiary of an owner Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
institution Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
25 Alternative ILL borrowing Optional Variable length alphanumeric Not locked
institution Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV
26 Local data C Optional Variable length alphanumeric Optional
Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV, or ISO/IEC 8859-1,
or UTF-8
27 Not defined Reserved — —
for future
use
28 Not defined Reserved — —
for future
use
29 Not defined Reserved — —
for future
use
30 Not defined Reserved — —
for future
use
31 Not defined Reserved — —
for future
use
a
This column specifies the data element number (N) or the Relative-OID value, i.e. the number identifying the data element, as
defined in ISO 28560-1.
b
The ISIL, as used for Relative-OID values 3 and 11, is presented and displayed according to the characters defined in ISO 15511.
A special encoding scheme, as defined in 6.4, is used to compact efficiently the complex ISIL character string.

6.2 Primary item identifier
The primary item identifier is a mandatory data element defined in ISO 28560-1.
This is the only mandatory data element that is required to be encoded to be compliant with this part of
ISO 28560. The format is variable length, and the alphanumeric characters can be any from ISO/IEC 646
International Reference Version (also known as US-ASCII). Although the encoding rules will support any
length of primary item identifier, shorter codes and all-numeric codes will encode more efficiently, requiring
less memory and enabling faster transactions across the air interface. Although locking the primary item
identifier is optional, under normal circumstances this data element should be locked to prevent various forms
of digital vandalism. The primary item identifier shall be encoded as the first data element on the RFID tag to
allow for faster transactions across the air interface by invoking a read first object(s) argument in the read
command (see B.5).
6.3 Content parameter
The content parameter is an optional data element used to declare the Relative-OID values that are encoded
on the RFID tag, and for the purposes of this part of ISO 28560 is used as an OID index. It should be used if
additional data elements are encoded on the RFID tag. If used, it can be an aid to faster reading, because it
indicates the presence or absence of a particular data element. If the desired data element is encoded on the
tag, then additional reading is required, whereas if the OID index indicates that it is not on the tag, the wasted
transaction time can be eliminated.
The index itself consists of a bit sequence, where each bit position is associated with a particular Relative-OID.
If the bit position is set “1”, then the Relative-OID and associated data object is encoded on the RFID tag. As
Relative-OID 1 is mandatory and Relative-OID 2 is this particular data element, the bit map begins at
Relative-OID 3. An example is shown in Figure 2.
Relative-OID 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Bit 1 = encoded 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

padded bits to indicate not encoded or not applicable; rounded to 8-bit boundaries
Figure 2 — Example of OID index bit map
In the example in Figure 2, the OID index indicates that Relative-OID values 3, 8 and 11 are encoded.
Irrespective of whether the data dictionary includes other Relative-OID values, the bit map can be truncated at
this last Relative-OID that is encoded. It is also necessary to round up the bit map to 8-bit boundaries for
encoding on the RFID tag.
If this data element is encoded on the RFID tag, it should be in the second position so that the data capture
system can be set up to read the primary item identifier and the OID index in a single read process. The OID
index should only be locked if the information on the RFID tag is certain to remain unchanged. This data
element provides no information about the sequence of the encoded data elements, nor their size. In the
example in Figure 2, the encoding sequence could be Relative-OID value 8 followed by 11 followed by 3.
6.4 Owner institution (ISIL)
The owner institution data element represents the ISIL code as specified in ISO 15511. For this part of
ISO 28560, the ISIL code is introduced into the RFID encoding process in a structure defined in accordance
with the rules of ISO 15511. This means that the hyphen (present in every ISIL code following the
two-character country code) is presented in the application commands.
To achieve efficient encoding, the ISIL is pre-encoded to rules defined in Annex C. This annex also applies to
the ILL borrowing institution (6.12). In addition to providing details of the encoding scheme, Annex C also
provides advice about interfacing with ISO/IEC 15962 encoders and decoders.
The use of these codes assumes (for example) an external inter-library loans (ILL) system capable of tracking
the item based on the unique combination of its primary item identifier and owner institution. This element is
optional where items are not included in an ILL scheme but required when items are required to be issued on
ILL using RFID. While it may be deemed necessary to lock this data element, this is left optional as some
libraries may choose to leave the data element unlocked so that it could be changed if necessary as a result
of library mergers or transfer of collections, etc. Other applications may also make use of the ISIL.
8 © ISO 2011 – All rights reserved

6.5 Set information
The set information is presented in two components:
⎯ the total number of parts;
⎯ followed by the ordinal part number, with a maximum of 255 parts.
ISO 28560-1 defines various examples of encoding, particularly where not all the parts of the set carry an
RFID tag.
If the total number of parts is 9 or less, then the user data can be presented as a 2-digit code to reduce the
encoding requirement. If the total number of parts is between 10 and 99, then the user data is presented as a
4-digit code, with the lowest ordinal values shown as 00 to 09. If the total number of parts is between 100 and
255, then the user data is presented as a 6-digit code. If the ordinal value is less than 100, it is prefixed by
leading zeros to create a 3-digit number.
6.6 Type of usage
The type of usage data element is defined in ISO 28560-1, together with the supporting coded list of values for
this data element. The code in ISO 28560-1 is presented as an alphanumeric code, but is actually a single
byte hexadecimal code and is encoded in this manner.
6.7 Shelf location
The shelf location is a variable length field that is used to identify the location code of a shelving system of the
owning institution.
6.8 ONIX media format
The ONIX media format data element represents an ONIX media descriptor of two uppercase alphabetic
characters. A reference source for the code list is provided in ISO 28560-1.
6.9 MARC media format
The MARC media format data element represents a MARC category of material descriptor of two lowercase
alphabetic characters. A reference source for the code list is provided in ISO 28560-1.
6.10 Supplier identifier
The supplier identifier is a variable length field that may be used for a locally designated identification number
relating to the supplier of the library material. It may be left permanently written to the tag or it may be used
only temporarily during an acquisitions process.
6.11 Order number
The order number is a variable length field that may be used for a locally designated order number meaningful
to the library and to the supplier of the library material. It may be left permanently written to the tag or it may
be used only temporarily during an acquisitions process.
6.12 ILL borrowing institution
The ILL borrowing institution is represented by the ISIL code in accordance with ISO 15511. The data is
presented according to the rules defined in 6.4 (for the owner institution). This data element shall not be
locked.
6.13 ILL transaction number
The ILL transaction number is assigned by the lending institute to identify an inter-library loan transaction. The
structure of the number is locally defined. The data element shall not be locked.
6.14 GS1 product identifier
The GS1 product identifier data element is used to store the GTIN-13 code, commonly seen on retail products
in a bar code format on books and other media products. A more detailed definition is provided in
ISO 28560-1. The GTIN-13 code is always presented as a 13-digit code (i.e. with leading zeros, if necessary)
for input into the ISO/IEC 15962 encoding process.
NOTE 1 Since January 2007, the ISBN has formally changed from being a 10-digit code (sometimes with an X check
character) into a 13-digit code, as represented in the GTIN-13 code.
NOTE 2 The GTIN-13 code is more popularly understood in the United States as the UPC code, and in other parts of
the world as the EAN-13 code.
6.15 Alternative unique item identifier
This data element is reserved for possibly encoding in different tag architectures.
6.16 Local data
The local data elements (A, B, and C) are each variable length fields that may be used for any locally defined
purpose and as such there is no external application of this data object. Table 2 identifies the parameters for
the local data elements.
Table 2 — Local data element parameters
Relative-
Data element Category Format Lock
OID
Variable length alphanumeric field
Local data A 15 Optional Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV, or Optional
ISO/IEC 8859-1, or UTF-8
Variable length alphanumeric field
Local data B 16 Optional Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV, or Optional
ISO/IEC 8859-1, or UTF-8
Variable length alphanumeric field
Local data C 26 Optional Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV, or Optional
ISO/IEC 8859-1, or UTF-8
6.17 Title
The title data element is a variable length field used to identify the title or name of the item. The format may be
UTF-8 to allow for titles to be encoded in a language other than those based on the extended Latin alphabet.
The following advice is intended to assist with encoding efficiency.
⎯ If possible, a title should be defined using the ISO/IEC 646 IRV (US ASCII) character set. It is also
recommended that all uppercase characters be used as this encodes more efficiently.
⎯ If it is not possible to use the ISO/IEC 646 IRV (US ASCII) character set, then consideration should be
given to using ISO/IEC 8859-1, which is the default encoding set for ISO/IEC 15962.
⎯ UTF-8 should only be declared for titles that cannot be defined using the ISO/IEC 8859-1 character set.
10 © ISO 2011 – All rights reserved

⎯ For all defined titles, in situations where tag memory is small, a locally defined and administered limit may
be placed on the length of this field. The length should be the shortest that is practical to satisfactorily
identify the item from a small set of items (e.g. one item from six as a library borrower exits the security
gates and triggers an alarm due to a processing error).
The parameters for the item title data element are defined in Table 3.
Table 3 — Title data element parameters
Data element Relative-OID Category Format Lock
Variable length alphanumeric field
Title 17 Optional Character set = ISO/IEC 646 IRV, or Optional
ISO/IEC 8859-1, or UTF-8
6.18 Product identifier (local)
For items that do not have a GTIN-13 code, or where one cannot be constructed independently as is possible
with the ISBN, the product identifier (local) data element may be used. This enables information systems
linked to specific local code structures to be supported by the RFID system.
6.19 Media format (other)
The media format (other) data element represents any media descriptor other than ONIX or MARC. It is only
used if either of the two more standard codes is not supported locally.
6.20 Supply chain stage
The supply chain stage is a single octet that is used to identify the current stage of the supply chain in which
the RFID tag resides. The code list is provided in ISO 28560-1.
6.21 Supplier invoice number
The supplier invoice number is a variable length field that may be used for a locally designated invoice
number meaningful to the library and to the supplier of the library material. It may be left permanently written
to the tag or it may be used only temporarily during an acquisitions process.
6.22 Alternative item identifier
The alternative item identifier is a variable length field that may be used for a locally designated optional
identifier. The ID may be temporary and have only local meaning as during an acquisitions process or it may
contain other identifiers as deemed necessary.
6.23 Alternative owner institution
The alternative owner institution is used, for example, where a library identifier scheme pre-dates the ISIL.
This element is optional where items are not included in an ILL scheme but required when items are issued on
ILL. While it may be deemed necessary to lock this data element, this is left optional. Some libraries may
choose to leave the data element unlocked so that it could be changed if necessary as a result of library
mergers or transfer of collections, or a future migration to the ISIL code.
6.24 Subsidiary of an owner institution
The subsidiary of an owner institution data element is used to refine the identity to a level lower than the ISIL.
As such it is an internal code defined locally.
6.25 Alternative ILL borrowing institution
The alternative ILL borrowing institution is a variable length field that may be used for a locally designated
optional identifier, where an ISIL cannot be used. This data element shall not be locked.
6.26 Other reserved data elements
Data elements with the Relative-OID values 27 to 31 are reserved.
7 Data encoding
7.1 Data protocol overview
The data shall be written to, and read from, the RFID tag using facilities functionally equivalent to the
commands and responses defined in ISO/IEC 15961-1, though transfer encoding is not required. This allows
libraries complete flexibility in selecting from the present set of optional data elements as defined in this part of
ISO 28560, and for supporting new data elements, should these be added at a future date. This flexibility can
be implemented for different loan items, and changed over a period of time, depending on the requirements of
the library system.
The encoded byte stream on the RFID tag shall be encoded in accordance with the rules of ISO/IEC 15962.
These rules are implemented automatically through a system that has both ISO/IEC 15961-1 and
ISO/IEC 15962 as part of the complete data protocol.
NOTE The adoption of this data protocol, together with other standards specified by ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 31,
Automatic identification and data capture techniques, will allow libraries to
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