ISO 21812-1:2019

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 21812-1
First edition
2019-06
Graphic technology — Print product
metadata for PDF files —
Part 1:
Architecture and core requirements
for metadata
Technologie graphique — Métadonnées des produits d'impression
pour les fichiers PDF —
Partie 1: Architecture et exigences principales pour les métadonnées
Reference number
©
ISO 2019
© ISO 2019
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
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Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2019 – All rights reserved

Contents Page
Foreword .v
Introduction .vi
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 2
4 Notation . 2
4.1 Keywords . 2
4.2 Cardinality . 2
4.3 Values of lists . 2
4.4 XPath Notation . 3
5 Conformance . 3
6 Technical requirements . 3
6.1 Encoding metadata keys . 3
6.2 Encoding metadata values . 4
6.2.1 Mapping of the encoding of XJDF Intent . 4
6.2.2 Encoding of XML . 4
6.3 Document part (DPart) hierarchy . 5
6.4 Defining metadata within a DPart . 5
6.5 Registered second class name prefixes . 5
7 CIP4 Common metadata hierarchy . 6
7.1 Background . 6
7.2 CIP4_Root hierarchy . 6
7.3 CIP4_Metadata level . 7
7.4 Recipient level . 7
7.5 Intent level . 8
7.5.1 Background. 8
7.5.2 Intent referencing . 8
7.6 Supported XJDF Intents .10
7.6.1 Background.10
7.6.2 Scope of Intents .10
7.6.3 CIP4_Intent/CIP4_AssemblingIntent .10
7.6.4 CIP4_Intent/CIP4_BindingIntent .12
7.6.5 CIP4_Intent/CIP4_ColorIntent .14
7.6.6 CIP4_Intent/CIP4_FoldingIntent .14
7.6.7 CIP4_Intent/CIP4_HoleMakingIntent .17
7.6.8 CIP4_Intent/CIP4_LayoutIntent .17
7.6.9 CIP4_Intent/CIP4_MediaIntent .18
7.6.10 CIP4_Intent/CIP4_ProductionIntent .19
7.7 Restrictions on mapping XJDF Intent types .20
7.8 CIP4_IntentSummary level .20
7.9 Production level .21
7.9.1 CIP4_Production .21
7.10 Common metadata structures .22
7.10.1 General.22
7.10.2 Contact information .22
7.10.3 CIP4_Contact/CIP4_Person .23
7.10.4 CIP4_Contact/CIP4_Company .23
7.10.5 CIP4_Contact/CIP4_Address .24
7.10.6 CIP4_Contact/CIP4_ComChannel .24
8 PDF metadata encoding example .25
8.1 Introduction .25
8.2 Example metadata for a single recipient .25
Bibliography .27
iv © ISO 2019 – 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.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www .iso .org/directives).
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. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www .iso .org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) see www .iso
.org/iso/foreword .html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 130, Graphic technology.
A list of all parts in the ISO 21812 series can be found on the ISO website.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www .iso .org/members .html.
Introduction
PDF files represent content pages and do not normally contain information identifying the usage of
these content pages in print production. Document part metadata is a simple mechanism that allows
for the exchange of information regarding a set of content pages to aid the receiver of the PDF files in
determining the intended use of those content pages in the final print product. By understanding the
intended use of content pages, the receiver of the PDF file can make more informed decisions regarding
the production process for the final print product.
Several Industry groups have initiated work in the area of workflow control and print product
semantics for use with document exchange using PDF. These include CIP4, Ghent Workgroup, the PDF/
VT Competence Center, and TC 130 WG 2.
A set of application notes for this document may be found at http: //www .printtechnologies
.org/standards/tools - -best -practices/. In addition, pointers may be found on this site to development
tools provided for the assistance of developers and users of applications prepared based on this
document.
A standard set of such document part metadata is needed to allow composition s
...

INTERNATIONAL STANDARD
Deleted: /TC 130 N 3903
ISO
Deleted: TC130/WG2/TF5 N 070¶
ISO/FDIS
21812-1
Deleted: :
First edition
2019‐06 Deleted: (E)
Deleted: ISO TC 130/WG 2/TF5¶
Graphic technology — Print product metadata for PDF
Secretariat: SAC
Date: 2019-01-14¶
files —
Deleted: Digital data exchange —
Part 1:Architecture and core requirements for metadata
Technologie graphique — Métadonnées des produits d'impression pour les fichiers PDF — Deleted: FDIS stage¶
Warning for WDs and CDs¶
Partie 1: Architecture et exigences principales pour les métadonnées
This document is not an
ISO International Standard. It is
distributed for review and comment.
It is subject to change without
notice and may not be referred to as
an International Standard.¶
Recipients of this draft are invited to
submit, with their comments,
notification of any relevant patent
rights of which they are aware and
to provide supporting
documentation.¶
© ISO 2019 – All rights reserved i

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.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
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. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT)
see www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 130, Graphic technology.
A list of all parts in the ISO 21812 series can be found on the ISO website.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.
ii © ISO 2019 – All rights reserved

Introduction
PDF files represent content pages and do not normally contain information identifying the usage of
these content pages in print production. Document part metadata is a simple mechanism that allows for
the exchange of information regarding a set of content pages to aid the receiver of the PDF files in
determining the intended use of those content pages in the final print product. By understanding the
intended use of content pages, the receiver of the PDF file can make more informed decisions regarding
the production process for the final print product.
Several Industry groups have initiated work in the area of workflow control and print product
semantics for use with document exchange using PDF. These include CIP4, Ghent Workgroup, the
PDF/VT Competence Center, and TC 130 WG 2.
A set of application notes for this document may be found at
http://www.printtechnologies.org/standards/tools‐‐best‐practices/. In addition, pointers may be
found on this site to development tools provided for the assistance of developers and users of
applications prepared based on this document.
A standard set of such document part metadata is needed to allow composition system and pdf creation
vendors to effectively allow their users to communicate with printing and finishing systems that will
receive and act on the provided PDF content data. This document defines a standard for document part
metadata keys for PDF and their meanings for the purposes of driving workflows or aiding the creation
of print production job tickets such as JDF or XJDF.
The intent is to accomplish this through standardizing the document part metadata that can be
provided by a document creator. This document builds on the initial CIP4 ICS‐Common Metadata for
Document Production Workflow published in 2010. This document focuses on defining standardized
document part metadata for PDF files using the DPart syntax as defined in ISO 16612‐1 (PDF/VT) and
ISO 32000‐2 (PDF 2.0).
This document is the first part of a series of international standards that define a set of metadata keys
and their meanings for use in PDF files to identify printed products and their component pages, to
describe their appearance and characteristics and to guide their production.
The structure of the metadata is intended to encapsulate sufficient information in a PDF file to guide the
production of printed products without the creator needing to know the details of the production
processes that will be used.
It is expected that additional parts of this document will be published that standardize additional print
application specific metadata using the architecture defined in this document.
© ISO 2019 – All rights reserved iii

Graphic technology — Digital data exchange — Print product
metadata for PDF files — Part 1: Architecture and core
requirements for metadata
1 Scope
The document part metadata in a PDF file that conforms to this document can be used to communicate
the intended appearance of print products and their components. Examples of intended use are: direct
interpretation within a production process, creation of job tickets such as XJDF, or populating records in
an MIS. This document builds on the DPart syntax as specified in ISO 16612‐1 (PDF/VT) and
ISO 32000‐2 (PDF 2.0) which is designed for encoding metadata related to pages or groups of pages in
PDF files.
NOTE The document part metadata provided in this document applies to individual document parts, whereas
XMP metadata typically applies to the scope of the entire document. XMP can apply to the scope of an individual
page or part of a page but this usage is very uncommon. Thus, XMP is not applicable for the case where metadata
is required for sets of pages such as multiple recipients or binding information. For example, XMP is used within
PDF/X for file conformance identification and is also used for additional file level information such as author.
This document defines standardized metadata to:
— provide product intent specifications such as paper media selection and binding information;
— identify the type of product that the content pages are intended to represent (e.g. a brochure, letter
or postcard);
— identify the intended recipient of each of the content pages for variable document printing
applications.
This document defines a base conformance level that includes the syntax of the metadata framework
and the semantics of a core set of metadata.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements 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 16612‐2, Graphic technology — Variable data exchange — Part 2: Using PDF/X-4 and PDF/X-5
(PDF/VT-1 and PDF/VT-2)
ISO 32000‐1:2008, Document management — Portable document format — Part 1: PDF 1.7
ISO 32000‐2:2017, Document management — Portable document format — Part 2: PDF 2.0
ISO 12647‐2:2013, Graphic technology — Process control for the production of half-tone colour
separations, proof and production prints — Part 2: Offset lithographic processes
ISO 3166‐1, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions — Part 1: Country
codes
LANGUAGE E.M. (XML) 1.0 (Second Edition), 6 October 2000, World Wide Web Consortium, Available
from internet
© ISO 2019 – All rights reserved 1

XJDF Specification, Release 2.0, 2018, CIP4 Organization, Available from internet

3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https://www.iso.org/obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https://www.electropedia.org/
3.1
JDF
job definition format
3.2
print product
outcome of the processing of a document through a print manufacturing process
Note 1 to entry: Examples include a perfect bound book or postcard.
3.3
product part
part of a print product
Note 1 to entry: Examples include the cover part of a saddle‐stitched booklet.
3.4
recipient
person or institution that receives a print product
3.5
XJDF
simplified version of JDF as defined by XJDF Specification Release 2.0
4 Notation
4.1 Keywords
Glossary items are designated in bold.
EXAMPLE recipient.
Metadata keywords are designated in bold font.
EXAMPLE CIP4_Root.
Metadata values are designated in italic font.
EXAMPLE true.
4.2 Cardinality
Optional keys are labelled (Optional) in the description and required keys are labelled (Required).
4.3 Values of lists
This specification provides both open and closed value lists. Open value lists provide a list of suggested
values that should be used. Open value lists are marked as (Extendable). Additional values may be
2 © ISO 2019 – All rights reserved

added in case no value in the list sufficiently matches the requirements of the conforming writer. Open
lists are identified by specifying that one of the values should be used. Closed lists shall not be extended.
Closed lists are identified by specifying that only values that are defined in the list shall be used. Closed
value lists are marked as (Closed).
NOTE Some of the standardized metadata values have been defined as open lists of suggested values. The
goal is to provide as much interoperability as possible without restricting the use of the standard to a limited set
of use cases or print products. If extensions to these open lists are used, the correct interpretation of the extended
values needs to be ensured.
4.4 XPath Notation
A notation that is based on XPath will be used to describe nested PDF dictionaries in the DPart
hierarchy. Unless stated otherwise, no assumption is made whether the respective dictionaries are
direct objects or indirect objects within the PDF structure. The root of any such XPath always specifies a
child of a DPM dictionary. For instance, CIP4_Root/CIP4_Metadata/CIP4_Conformance specifies a
key named CIP4_Root in a DPM dictionary that references a dictionary that contains a CIP4_MetaData
key that references a dictionary that contains a key with the name CIP4_Conformance.
5 Conformance
This document specifies a base conformance level for the exchange of document part metadata in PDF
files. The base conformance level defines the syntax and semantics of document part metadata
properties.
Conforming document part metadata shall conform to all the technical requirements set out in
Clauses 6 to 7 of this document. Conforming document part metadata shall include a conforming
CIP4_Root dictionary at the root of the document part hierarchy of the document part metadata as
defined in 7.2 of this document. A conforming writer is an application that shall write a conforming file
according to the requirements specified in this document.
A conforming processor is an application that shall read and appropriately process the metadata
encoded within a conforming file according to the requirements specified in this document.
A conforming file is a pdf file that contains document part metadata conforming to the requirements
specified in this document and that also conforms to ISO 16612‐2 (PDF/VT), ISO 32000‐2 (PDF 2.0), or
any file that is in accordance with ISO 32000‐1, such as PDF/X‐4 (ISO 15930‐7) and that includes an
extensions dictionary (ISO 32000‐1:2008, 7.12) as follows. The prefix used for the name of the
extension shall be GTS_, the value of the BaseLevel entry shall be 1.7 and the value of the ExtensionLevel
entry shall be 1.
EXAMPLE In a PDF with only this extension, the entensions dictionary would look like:
<<
/GTS_ << /BaseLevel /1.7 /ExtensionLevel 1 >>
>>
6 Technical requirements
6.1 Encoding metadata keys
Each metadata key shall be encoded as a PDF name that consists of the second class name prefix of the
metadata property followed by an underscore symbol and the name of the metadata property.
Elements and attributes that are defined in the XJDF namespace but not in this document may be used.
They shall then be specified using the local name with a prefix of CIP4. A conforming writer wishing to
add private metadata properties into the CIP4 hierarchy may do so but shall explicitly identify those
© ISO 2019 – All rights reserved 3

private metadata properties and levels by specifying an alternate second class name prefix for that
property.
NOTE ISO 32000‐2:2017, Annex E contains the definition of second class prefixes.
EXAMPLE A vendor that is using the second class name prefix ACME that wishes to encode a value for a key
named foobar in the CIP4_Root/CIP4_Recipient hierarchy will therefore use a metadata property called
CIP4_Root/CIP4_Recipient/ACME_foobar.
6.2 Encoding metadata values
6.2.1 Mapping of the encoding of XJDF Intent
Explicit product definitions shall only be specified in the CIP4_Root/CIP4_Intent hierarchy. This
hierarchy is based on the Intent resources that are defi
...