KRSMS Semantic Annotation Language

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SMS Semantic-Annotation XML Interchange Format

An annotation is composed of three parts:

1. Resources. These are the objects being annotated (referred to). Typically there will only be one resource. We currently provide support for resources that are datasets, actors as a whole, or actor input and output ports.
2. Semantic Types. These are ontology-based (i.e., concept) descriptions of the classifications of the resources. Typically there will be only one semantic type for a resource(s).
3. Encodings. These are optional sets of expressions that link portions of resources to portions of the semantic types. An encoding links the two items, thus describing how the semantic types are "realized" within the resources.

An annotation takes the following form, expressed in XML:

<sms:Annotation ID="...">

   <sms:Resources>

      ...

   </sms:Resources>

   <sms:SemanticTypes>

      ...

   </sms:SemanticTypes>

   <sms:Encodings>

      ...

   </sms:Encodings>

</sms:Annotation>

Note that every annotation should have a unique identifier, preferably an LSID. We describe each of the annotation subelements in turn below.

Resources

A resource can take one of the following three forms, depending its resource type (i.e., dataset, actor, or actor input/output port):

<sms:Dataset resource="..."/>

<sms:Actor resource="..."/>

<sms:ActorPort portName="...">
  <sms:Actor resource="..."/>
</sms:ActorPort>

A dataset id is a unique identifier for the dataset. We assume that the dataset identifier can be used (with additional applications) for retrieval.