This toolbox allows to capture, to store, to browse and to exchange over the Internet product /property dictionaries and catalogues of industrial components described according to the PLIB Standard (ISO 13584). It consists of three major tools:
- PLIB API is a software module associated with a JAVA API allowing to store PLIB data, to read and write ISO 10303-21 files containing PLIB data, to check integrity constraints on these data;
- PLIB Editor is a Java-based application allowing to describe dictionaries and catalogues and to record their content as PLIB data within PLIB API;
- PLIB Browser is a tool allowing to generate automatically a human readable view of PLIB data as active electronic catalogues; such catalogues may then be posted on the Internet as Web site, or exchanged using either the Internet or CD.
Thus, these three tools allow the automatic production of Web sites and active electronic catalogues on industrial components. Possible applications:
- Manufacturing companies, for capturing and publishing their component catalogues;
- Industry consortiums and standardization committees, for developing standard product/property dictionaries for one particular industry domain;
- Web publishers, for automating electronic catalogue generation;
- R&D projects, to prototype full electronic information flow over a supply chain.
Main innovative features:
- The whole information content of catalogues is represented as data: documents are generated from data, an API provide for accessing data;
- Capability to exchange data as ISO 10303-21 file ("STEP files");
- Automatic generation of web-oriented active catalogues;
- Allow to reference standards product/property dictionaries;
- Reduce cost and improve quality of information exchange.