Internet-Draft sdfType for Links June 2023
Bormann Expires 5 December 2023 [Page]
Workgroup:
ASDF WG
Internet-Draft:
draft-bormann-asdf-sdftype-link-01
Published:
Intended Status:
Standards Track
Expires:
Author:
C. Bormann
Universität Bremen TZI

An sdfType for Links

Abstract

This document defines and registers an sdfType "link" for the Semantic Definition Format (SDF) for Data and Interactions of Things (draft-ietf-asdf-sdf).

About This Document

This note is to be removed before publishing as an RFC.

Status information for this document may be found at https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-bormann-asdf-sdftype-link/.

Discussion of this document takes place on the A Semantic Definition Format for Data and Interactions of Things Working Group mailing list (mailto:asdf@ietf.org), which is archived at https://mailarchive.ietf.org/arch/browse/asdf/. Subscribe at https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/asdf/.

Source for this draft and an issue tracker can be found at https://github.com/cabo/sdftype-link.

Status of This Memo

This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.

Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). Note that other groups may also distribute working documents as Internet-Drafts. The list of current Internet-Drafts is at https://datatracker.ietf.org/drafts/current/.

Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."

This Internet-Draft will expire on 5 December 2023.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

The Semantic Definition Format for Data and Interactions of Things (SDF, [I-D.ietf-asdf-sdf]) is a format for domain experts to use in the creation and maintenance of data and interaction models in the Internet of Things.

A common data type that occurs in the modeling of IoT devices is the link. [RFC8288] defines the concept of Web Linking, which complements the target URI that any link will contain, with additional parameters, such as the "link relation type" that explains the relationship expressed by the link, as well as "target attributes" that provide additional information about the target of the link (without a need to "dereference", i.e., follow, the link).

This document defines and registers an sdfType "link" for the Semantic Definition Format. This type models an abstract "serialization" [RFC8288] of a link, in a way that is compatible with the way SDF maps information models to its data modeling language.

3. Discussion

Links play an important role in SDF modeling both during definition time (for adding information to a model, as e.g., in sdfRef) and during run time (for making links to instances into a subject of data and interaction modeling). The present document is an early attempt at addressing the run-time usage of links, in particular links that fit the Web Linking [RFC8288] abstractions. A related draft [I-D.laari-asdf-relations] addresses definition-time links, but does seem to touch modeling run-time use of links as well (e.g., by discussing "writable" link relations).

Not all links used in ecosystems are based on URIs. E.g., OMA has "object links", which are pairs of numbers (object/instance). These ecosystem links may have some structure that should be modeled in the SDF model (e.g., where the object id part of a link always has to have a specific value). This structure can be mapped into URI strings using some convention, e.g., an OMA object link could be oma-object:3303:0 (where oma-object is placeholder for a URI scheme to be defined). However, burying structural components of the ecosystem-specific link in a string syntax makes it hard to access and control those components from the model.

TODO: Examples are needed to show how the OCF collection pattern is addressed by the current specification.

4. Security Considerations

The security considerations of [RFC8288] apply in a general way, although modeling a link as a datatype does not incur all of the security considerations that will apply to actually interchanging these links.

(TODO)

5. IANA Considerations

// RFC Ed.: please replace RFC XXXX with this RFC number and remove this note.

IANA is requested to register the sdfType "link" in the "sdfType Values" sub-registry in the "SDF Parameters" registry, with the following completion for the registration template:

Table 1: Registration for sdfType "link"
Name Description type JSON Representation Reference
link A Web Link [RFC8288] object object members for link attributes RFCXXXX

6. References

6.1. Normative References

[I-D.ietf-asdf-sdf]
Koster, M. and C. Bormann, "Semantic Definition Format (SDF) for Data and Interactions of Things", Work in Progress, Internet-Draft, draft-ietf-asdf-sdf-13, , <https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/draft-ietf-asdf-sdf-13>.
[RFC8288]
Nottingham, M., "Web Linking", RFC 8288, DOI 10.17487/RFC8288, , <https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc8288>.

6.2. Informative References

[I-D.ietf-core-target-attr]
Bormann, C., "CoRE Target Attributes Registry", Work in Progress, Internet-Draft, draft-ietf-core-target-attr-04, , <https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/draft-ietf-core-target-attr-04>.
[I-D.laari-asdf-relations]
Laari, P., "Extended relation information for Semantic Definition Format (SDF)", Work in Progress, Internet-Draft, draft-laari-asdf-relations-01, , <https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/draft-laari-asdf-relations-01>.
[RFC6690]
Shelby, Z., "Constrained RESTful Environments (CoRE) Link Format", RFC 6690, DOI 10.17487/RFC6690, , <https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc6690>.

Acknowledgments

Discussions in the OneDM liaison organization shaped this proposal.

Author's Address

Carsten Bormann
Universität Bremen TZI
Postfach 330440
D-28359 Bremen
Germany