Introduction

The schemas in STEP are written using the ISO EXPRESS language. The purpose of the exff EXRPRESS/Binary Page is to support implementors and developers of a binary representation of EXPRESS-driven data.

EXPRESS/Binary Support Status

Meetings on a binary representation of EXPRESS data started at the ISO STEP meeting in Poitiers, France in late 2003. Links to presentations and other documents from those meetings follow.

• WG11 N241 Survey of Current Binary Technology
• WG11 N240 Requirements on the EXPRESS/Binary standard

Developing the EXPRESS/Binary mapping

Based on the following approach agreed at ISO STEP meetings in Fall 2004 and Spring 2005:

1. The first working draft will be based on the HDF5 technology.
2. A workshop to produce that WD was held at Lillehammer ISO STEP meeting in March 2005.
3. An open-source prototype implementation should be written as a test vehicle and potential reference implementation.

An initial mapping specification for proof-of-concept implementation has been produced. V 0.1 is available for review and comment.