This document describes how datasets can be annotated for use within an Open Transport Net Hub. The specification is a [[DCAT]] profile: it adds additional constraints to [[DCAT]] and brings together the DCAT and [[INSPIRE]] vocabularies.

To participate in the development of this specification, fork the repository, make your changes and perform a pull request.

Introduction

Scope and aim

An Open Transport Net Hub is a machine which provides a data harmonisation service on top of a given set of transport-datasets. The data is afterwards opened up again through Web-services and provided in graphical user interfaces towards end-users.

In order to be able to select the right datasets for a certain hub, the datasets MUST be annotated using the Open Transport Net Metadata Profile (OTN-MP). Data owners can also choose to upload their dataset to a hub. The data owner will then have to fill out a form which

DCAT profile

A DCAT profile is a specification for data catalogs that adds additional constraints to [[DCAT]]. A data catalog that conforms to the profile also conforms to [[DCAT]]. Additional constraints in a profile MAY include:

INSPIRE meta-data

The [[INSPIRE]] specification is a meta-data standard for geospatial datasets.

Namespaces

The namespace for OTN-MP (otn:) is http://semweb.mmlab.be/ns/otn-mp#. However, it should be noted that OTN-MP makes extensive use of terms from other vocabularies. A full set of namespaces and prefixes used in this document is shown in the table below.

PrefixNamespace
otnhttp://semweb.mmlab.be/ns/otn-mp#
dcathttp://www.w3.org/ns/dcat#
dcthttp://purl.org/dc/terms/
dctypehttp://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/
foafhttp://xmlns.com/foaf/0.1/
rdfhttp://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#
rdfshttp://www.w3.org/2000/01/rdf-schema#
skoshttp://www.w3.org/2004/02/skos/core#
vcardhttp://www.w3.org/2006/vcard/ns#
xsdhttp://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#

OTN-MP at a Glance

Overview

The figure below illustrates the OTN-MP core vocabulary (the figure's intention is to show how OTN-MP is used rather than its precise definition).

The OTN-MP core vocabulary

The OTN-MP core vocabulary. In black: mandatory, in gray: optional.

An alphabetical index of the classes and properties of OTN-MP is given below. All the terms are hyperlinked to their detailed description for quick reference.

Examples

Below we have added an example description of a dataset in the city of antwerp in the [[turtle]] RDF serialization. 

          Check the example in this turtle file

Objects and properties

This section lists objects and properties that must or may be given in an otn:Catalog in accordance with: [DCAT], [INSPIRE] or an ISO standard. Each time is mentioned which [DCAT] URI can be used and how to fill it out to also be in accordance with [INSPIRE].

dcat:Catalog

dct:title

A dc terms title must be given to the catalog to give a title which can be reused as part of a heading for user interfaces.

This title should be available in all languages in the EU.

Other properties that must be included:
  • dct:description
  • foaf:homepage
  • dct:issued
  • dct:language
  • dct:modified
  • dct:rights
  • dct:license
  • dct:spatial
  • dct:publisher

dcat:Dataset

All datasets must be of the type dcat:Dataset.

A dct:title must be given to the dataset to give a title which can be reused as part of a heading for user interfaces.

This title should be available in all languages in the EU.

Other properties that must be included:
  • dct:description
  • dct:issued
  • dct:modified
  • dct:spatial
  • dct:publisher

dcat:Distribution

All distributions must be of the type dcat:Distribution.

A dct:title must be given to the distribution to give a title which can be reused as part of a heading for user interfaces.

This title should be available in all languages in the EU.

Other properties that must be included:
  • dct:description
  • dct:issued
  • dct:modified
  • dct:license
  • dct:rights
  • dcat:downloadURL
  • dcat:mediaType

Controlled vocabulary for Themes

The Open Transport Net Theme taxonomy is a controlled vocabulary for themes

The theme taxonomy may be used to put a dataset in a certain theme. A dataset can have 1 or more themes.

Intended use

The Open Transport Net intended use taxonomy is a controlled vocabulary for describing the intended use of a dcat:Distribution.

The intended use taxonomy may be used to put a distribution in a certain category. The taxonomy is a fixed list of which cannot be altered unless it's altered in this specification. A distribution can have 1 or more distributions.