DatasheetXML

Table of Contents

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Design Goals
• 3. Design Principles
  • 3.1 Canonical Source
  • 3.2 Separation of Content and Presentation
  • 3.3 Semantic Markup
• 4. Root Document
  • 4.1 Reusable Property Values
• 5. Identification
• 6. Electrical
• 7. Mechanical
• 8. Thermal
• 9. Material
• 10. Environmental
• 11. Reliability
• 12. Regulatory
• 13. Manufacturing
• 14. Commercial
• 15. Packaging
• 16. Documentation
• 17. EDA Models
• 18. Change History
• 19. Cross References
• 20. Validation
• 21. Rendering
• 22. Versioning
• 23. Future Work
• License

1. Introduction

DatasheetXML is a vendor-neutral, machine-readable format for describing electronic and electromechanical components. It is intended to become the canonical source of truth for a component's technical, manufacturing, compliance, commercial, and documentation data.

Rather than publishing a PDF as the primary artifact, manufacturers publish a structured XML document. Human-readable outputs such as PDF, HTML, Markdown, and web pages are generated automatically using rendering templates.

datasheet.xml
        │
        ├── style-pdf.xsl
        ├── style-html.xsl
        ├── style-markdown.xsl
        └── style-ai.xsl

                ↓

      PDF / HTML / Markdown / AI View

The XML document contains semantic information only. Presentation is handled separately.

2. Design Goals

The specification aims to be:

• Human editable
• Machine readable
• Vendor neutral
• Schema validated
• Version controlled
• Diff friendly
• Suitable for long-term archival
• AI friendly
• Automatically renderable

3. Design Principles

3.1 Canonical Source

Every piece of information exists only once. Renderers and downstream tools derive their output from the same structured value.

<voltageRating>
    <minValue>2.7</minValue>
    <typValue>3.3</typValue>
    <maxValue>3.6</maxValue>
    <unit>V</unit>
    <dataType>REAL_MEASURE</dataType>
</voltageRating>

3.2 Separation of Content and Presentation

The XML never specifies fonts, colors, page sizes, margins, or table borders. Those belong in rendering styles.

3.3 Semantic Markup

Tags represent meaning rather than appearance.

<maxJunctionTemperature>
    <value>150</value>
    <unit>degC</unit>
</maxJunctionTemperature>

4. Root Document

The public validation entry point is schema/datasheet.xsd. A document uses the Datasheet root element and places the thirteen component-data sections directly inside it in the order shown below.

<Datasheet
    xmlns="https://datasheet.org/schema/v1"
    version="1.0"
    schemaVersion="0.3">
    <identification>
        <referenceDesignator>R104</referenceDesignator>
        <designatorCategory>R</designatorCategory>
        <manufacturerPartNumber>RC0402FR-0710KL</manufacturerPartNumber>
        <manufacturer>Yageo</manufacturer>
    </identification>
    <electrical>
        <resistance>
            <value>10000</value>
            <unit>ohm</unit>
            <dataType>REAL_MEASURE</dataType>
            <tolerance>+/-1%</tolerance>
        </resistance>
    </electrical>
</Datasheet>

identification is required. All other sections are optional. The version attribute identifies the revision of the document itself; schemaVersion is required and fixed to 0.3 by this schema release.

4.1 Reusable Property Values

Measured and classified data uses a reusable property structure. Every field is optional so the document can preserve the information available from its source.

5. Identification

identification gives the unique identity and classification of the component instance. referenceDesignator and designatorCategory are required.

6. Electrical

electrical contains electrical ratings and characteristics.

7. Mechanical

mechanical describes physical form, dimensions, and mounting characteristics.

8. Thermal

thermal records temperature ratings and thermal-transfer characteristics.

9. Material

material describes bulk material, plating, finish, and construction.

10. Environmental

environmental captures environmental compliance and operating-environment tolerance.

11. Reliability

reliability stores lifetime, failure-rate, qualification, and endurance data.

12. Regulatory

regulatory contains certifications, export-control data, and standards references.

13. Manufacturing

manufacturing describes process, assembly, and production characteristics.

14. Commercial

commercial stores sourcing, pricing, and lifecycle data.

15. Packaging

packaging describes shipping and handling packaging, distinct from the component body described by mechanical.

16. Documentation

documentation describes supporting documents using a controlled document type.

Supported documentType values are:

17. EDA Models

edaModels provides direct links to machine-readable engineering assets. Each field accepts one or more URIs and is optional, including svd when it does not apply to the component.

18. Change History

Document changes are recorded in documentation/revisionHistory.

<documentation>
    <revisionHistory>
        <entry>
            <revision>1.1</revision>
            <date>2026-08-13</date>
            <notes>Updated the resistance tolerance.</notes>
        </entry>
    </revisionHistory>
</documentation>

19. Cross References

Cross references are represented by the fields closest to their meaning:

• IEC class identifiers use identification/irdiClassId.
• CAD model references use mechanical/cadModelRef; downloadable 3D models use edaModels/threeDModel.
• Certifications and IEC standards use regulatory.
• Application notes, technical notes, errata, PCNs, and certificates use documentation.
• Simulation models, device descriptions, symbols, footprints, and 3D models use edaModels.

20. Validation

Every document must validate against schema/datasheet.xsd. The schema checks:

• the required root attributes and identification fields;
• element names, ordering, and value types;
• reference-designator syntax;
• controlled values for categories, processes, statuses, and formats;
• dates and URIs; and
• the numeric types used by property ranges and commercial data.

Example using an XML Schema validator:

xmllint --noout --schema schema/datasheet.xsd datasheet.xml

21. Rendering

Rendering is performed by stylesheet engines. Possible outputs include PDF, HTML, EPUB, Markdown, DOCX, plain text, and AI-optimized views.

Rule: No information may exist only in one rendered output.

22. Versioning

The current specification version is 0.3.

23. Future Work

Future versions may define:

• Digital signatures
• Localization support
• Constraint language for design rules
• Component relationship graphs
• Semantic identifiers for specifications

License

License terms for this specification have not yet been finalized. A permissive license such as CC BY 4.0 or Apache 2.0 is proposed to encourage manufacturer and tooling adoption.