The Vocabulary Mapping Framework
and its potential for improving
metadata interoperability in the
Semantic Web.
Gordon Dunsire
Presented to the EUROVOC Conference,
18-19 November 2010, Luxembourg
Vocabulary Mapping Framework
Funded by UK’s Joint Information Systems
Committee (JISC)
Only first stage funded
Major expansion of the RDA/ONIX framework for
resource categorization
To create a tool to support the automated mapping of
vocabularies from metadata standards of use to the
JISC community
Research, teaching, learning environments
Project conducted during second half of 2009
VMF requirements
VMF goal is to automatically compute the “best
fit” mappings between any two pre-defined
vocabularies
Scalable and extensible to accommodate new
and changing vocabularies
Flexible to allow engagement by different
communities in various stages of vocabulary
development and mapping
Non-prescriptive to encourage uptake
And allow use beyond VMF (and RDF) environment
VMF vocabularies
 FRAD, FRBR, MARC21, RDA (libraries)
 ONIX (book/serials publishing)
 DDEX (recorded music)
 Dublin Core (web metadata)
 LOM SCORM (education)
 DOI (any content)
 CIDOC CRM (museums and archives)
 MPEG21 RDD (digital rights)
 RDA ONIX Framework (libraries and publishing)
Focus on Resource and Party (Agent)
categories and relators between them
Increasing use of relators instead of attributes
VMF data model
Based on the Contextual ontology architecture
(COA) model developed by Rightscom, the
leader of the VMF project
Terms are mapped into an ontology (the VMF
matrix) built up from “families” of concepts
based on verbs
Concept families provide all possible points
(“nodes”) to which terms might be mapped.
Nodes are generated automatically
Concept family
 Accommodates terms for roles, bi-directional relator
pairs, uni-directional relators (properties), classes and
attributes
 FRBR class “Choreography”
vmf:ChoreographedDance
 RDA role “choreographer”
vmf:ChoreographedDance_DanceChoreographer
 RDA/ONIX attribute “language”
vmf:LexicalWork
 DDEX role “Author”
vmf:LexicalWork_Writer
Mapping to the matrix
Every term in a vocabulary is given an
equivalent term in a VMF concept family…
vmf:WordsCreator
vmf:Adaptor
vmf:WordsAdaptor
vmf:Commentator
ddex:Translator
onix:Translated by
vmf:Translator
vmf:SubtitlesTranslator
Ddex:SubtitlesTranslator
vmf:TranslatorAndCommentator
onix:Translated with
commentary by
From: Godfrey Rust (Rightscom) – How the VMF matrix works, Nov 2009
Mapping scheme to scheme
vmf:WordsCreator
Queries can then
be used to find
the “best fit”
mappings between
two terms or
complete
vocabularies.
vmf:Adaptor
vmf:WordsAdaptor
vmf:Commentator
ddex:Translator
onix:Translated by
vmf:Translator
vmf:SubtitlesTranslator
ddex:SubtitlesTranslator
vmf:TranslatorAndCommentator
onix:Translated with
commentary by
From: Godfrey Rust (Rightscom) – How the VMF matrix works, Nov 2009
Mapping scheme to scheme
vmf:WordsCreator
Queries can then
be used to find
the “best fit”
mappings between
two terms or
complete
vocabularies.
vmf:Adaptor
vmf:WordsAdaptor
onix:Translated by
vmf:Commentator
ddex:Translator
vmf:Translator
vmf:SubtitlesTranslator
Ddex:SubtitlesTranslator
vmf:TranslatorAndCommentator
onix:Translated with
commentary by
From: Godfrey Rust (Rightscom) – How the VMF matrix works, Nov 2009
VMF matrix
 Available (some constraints) from:
http://cdlr.strath.ac.uk/VMF/documents.htm
 Contains approximately:
10 schemes
53 vocabularies mapped in whole or part
500+ concept families
8000+ unique terms
30,000+ RDF triples
 RDF triples in TTL format
With or without sample vocabulary mappings
 Some documentation also available
Applications
Metadata cross-walks
Between different vocabularies
E.g. Publisher metadata (ONIX) and library metadata
(RDA)
Mapping of local, bespoke metadata schemes
From local scheme to global framework
Local metadata often specialised, specific, and
unique
VMF and Eurovoc roles
literary profession
artistic profession
UF
UF
author
poet
writer
vmf:Work_CreatorOfWork
actor
artist
composer
cultural worker
dancer
film-maker
musician
painter
photographer
sculptor
singer
vmf:Conceiver_Concept
Beyond roles
Rightscom believes the VMF matrix approach
can be extended to cover all kinds of topic
Not just roles
Hub-and-spoke architecture
High-Level Thesaurus (HILT) project used Dewey
Decimal Classification as hub
And others
E.g. Soergel proposes faceted classification hub
Topic clusters = concept families?
Thank you
gordon@gordondunsire.com
http://cdlr.strath.ac.uk/vmf/