FAQs
Donna Roy, executive director of the NIEM Program Management Office and director of the Enterprise Data Management Office with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, recently noted that "DHS has had a variety of successes with NIEM and at the same grand level that NDEx has been for the Department of Justice. Over 35 percent of the major IT Programs in DHS are working on implemented standardized information exchange using NIEM, with an expected increase to 60 percent by the end of 2009. Major drivers for adoption at DHS include requirements of all new IT programs and modifications to existing programs to use NIEM, based on the DHS-wide System Engineering Lifecycle. NIEM is working for DHS, and we will continue to both use NIEM and support the use of NIEM in federal, state, tribal, and local information sharing initiatives."
Please refer to the pdf attached for the full article.
Also, the Information Sharing Environment (ISE) has four success stories available that provide insight into how various elements of the National Information Exchange Model (NIEM), a key aspect of the Common Information Sharing Standards (CISS), can be applied in different user environments:
NIEM and the HHS Meaningful Use “SPRINT”
UCORE and NIEM: Creating Potent New Cross-Boundary Networks
Suspicious Activity Reporting
The DHS Domestic Nuclear Detection Office Goes NIEM
These success stories are available at http://www.ise.gov and are also attached to this article.
Documents
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29911
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29916
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29921
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29926
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29931
In a progressive and unusual collaboration between the judicial system as represented by the National Center for State Courts and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, significant improvements have been made in improving outcomes for abused and neglected children, thanks to the use of the National Information Exchange Model (NIEM).
See attached pdf for full article.
Documents
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29936
The following NIEM Presentation was given in October 5-6, 2009 at a "Workshop on Improving Access to Financial Data on the Web". It was co-organized by W3C and XBRL International, Inc, and hosted by FDIC, Arlington, Virginia USA. For more speakers: http://www.w3.org/2009/03/xbrl/minutes.html.
This presentation on "The National Information Exchange Model (NIEM) Program" was provided by Anthony-Hoang (DHS OCIO) and Justin Stekervetz (Deloitte) on behalf of Donna Roy, Director, Enterprise Data Management Office, and Executive Director, for National Information Exchange Model.
Link to presentation slides: http://www.w3.org/2009/03/xbrl/talks/Anthony-Hoang.pdf
The first step in working with an IEPD is to create a batch file that will execute Xsd.exe. Because NIEM IEPDs are comprised of multiple xsd files and Xsd.exe will not automatically find imported schemas, we will need to include every xsd in the Xsd.exe input. The batch file will take the format:
> Xsd.exe "<Path to xsd file 1>" "<Path to xsd file 2>" … "<Path to xsd file n>" /c
An example of this is found at: IJIS Technical Advisory Committee NIEM FAQ Series "NIEM IEPD XML Code Generation in C# with .NET 3.5"; see article ID# 547
This case study highlights the successful utilization of NIEM as part of the MassGangs project to support the exchange of information obtained by local, regional, and state criminal justice agencies regarding members of criminal gangs and illegal organizations in Massachusetts.
See attached pdf or link below for complete article.
Link: https://www.niem.gov/about-niem/success-stories/massachusetts-executive…
Documents
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29941
There is no formal policy with respect to use of Schematron with NIEM.
Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) uses Schematron (in fact, publishes the Schematron rules) for the NIEM Conformance Tool. Schematron checks that IEPD schemas do not violate the NIEM Naming and Design Rules (NDR). However, Schematron could certainly be used to tighten constraints on schemas or instances for IEPD/IEPs that could not otherwise be checked by an XML Schema validator. As a result, the use of Schematron is be encouraged.
Originally, the concept of a constraint schema with two-pass validation was developed as the way to tighten constraints on XML instances if one cannot, or does not want to, design and apply Schematron rules. A constraint schema does not have to follow the NIEM NDR because it is used for a completely independent 2nd pass validation of an instance. So, as long as an instance passes the conformance validation (1st pass) with the NIEM subset (plus extensions and exchange schema), then it is conforming. A constraint schema can tighten the constraints without impacting conformance (because it's an additional pass with a constraint schema (usually a modified subset schema) that is independent of the first.
The disadvantage of this approach is that it requires a 2nd validation pass with a modified subset. However, Schematron also requires its own pass over the schema or instance being checked. In addition, you must write the Schematron rules - which are not always easy. For example, the Conformance Tool sometimes has to employ a set of as many as 3-4 Schematron rules to check a single NDR rule.
Many business rules can be formally designed and applied in Schematron. Lastly, since Schematron is the means by which NIEM conformance is achieved, the recommendation from a consistency point of view is to use the Schematron approach for complex business rules validation.
An announcement from the National Information Exchange Model (NIEM) LinkedIn Group, by Donna Roy, NIEM Executive Director:
Today marks a pivotal day for the NIEM program and the dedicated government users of the best in government XML based information exchange model. Altova's Mission Kit,according to Forrester Research, boasts over 3 million users across the world. Their lastest release, includes features built to make NIEM easier to implement.
http://ca.sys-con.com/node/1382623
BEVERLY, MA -- (Marketwire) -- 05/05/10 -- Altova® ( http://www.altova.com ), creator of XMLSpy®, the industry leading XML editor today announced the availability of Version 2010 Release 3 (v2010r3) of the Altova MissionKit®, an integrated suite of XML, database, and UML tools. Version 2010 Release 3 adds powerful new functionality including integration with the newly released Visual Studio® 2010, support for working with industry standards iXBRL and National Information Exchange Model (NIEM), support for mapping data based on SAP's IDoc EDI format, and much more.
"The new functionality available in 2010r3 adds to our already robust tool suite and gives users more flexibility to work with a variety of technologies and industry standards," said Alexander Falk, President and CEO for Altova. "By continually adding key features to support technologies such as XML and UML, and standards like XBRL and NIEM, we are helping our users to work as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible."
Each of the tools available in the Altova MissionKit 2010r3 includes several new features:
XMLSpy 2010r3 - With the release of v2010r3, the XMLSpy XML editor adds new usability enhancements to its graphical schema editor, including the ability to validate internal naming and coding conventions. The enhanced XMLSpy graphical schema editor allows schema designers to validate naming and coding conventions outside of the capabilities of the XML Schema standard. This new functionality is of key importance for users working with NIEM, a U.S. Government XML-based standard, when implementing their information sharing exchanges. Another new feature in XMLSpy 2010r3 is support for creating user-defined sample values for XML instance generation. Users can now add arbitrary sample data to their XML instance generations allowing them to control the sample data that is published. XMLSpy 2010r3 also integrates with Visual Studio 2010, adding to its existing support for VS 2005 and VS 2008.
On behalf of the NIEM community, a big thanks for the support of Alexander Falk and Altova!
For more information, please visit, NIEM LinkedIn Group.
The IJIS Institute Technical Advisory Committee (I-TAC) has two new documents available. They are attached to this article and are entitled: 1) NIEM IEPD XML Code Generation in C# with .NET 3.5; and 2) NIEM IEPD XML Code Generation in Java.
NIEM IEPD XML Code Generation in Java:
This document seeks to address generation of Java classes based on the JAXB standard. Initially, it was meant to demonstrate the similarities and differences between Axis and XFire. Since both technologies use the JAXB-XJC tool as one of the ways to generate Java classes for their code generation tools, this paper will address the use of the JAXB-XJC tool.
NIEM IEPD XML Code Generation in C# with .NET 3.5:
Programmatically working with NIEM IEPDs in C# can be challenging due to the overall complexity of working with large XML schema models, and the limitations in Microsoft’s Xsd.exe code generation tool. This document seeks to provide answers to frequently asked practitioner questions that may come up when working with NIEM IEPDs in .NET, and hopefully decrease the effort required to achieve successful NIEM IEPD programming. These questions address using Xsd.exe code generation, and rely on XML object serialization. It is worth noting that there are other viable approaches to working with C#.NET and XML that are available such as LINQ to XML.
Documents
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29946
https://bja.ojp.gov/media/document/29951
There are many ways to execute the XJC tool on a NIEM IEPD. The IJIS Technical Advisory Committee NIEM FAQ Series "NIEM IEPD XML Code Generation in JAVA" will deal with three of them:
1. Executing XJC using the Java command;
2. Executing XJC using xjc.sh or xsh.bat; and
3. using an Eclipse plugin.
More details, please see: IJIS Technical Advisory Committee NIEM FAQ Series "NIEM IEPD XML Code Generation in JAVA"; see article ID# 547
The National Information Exchange Model (NIEM) is an XML vocabulary that is quickly gaining popularity as a means to support cross-domain information sharing. NIEM is about the semantics of the message, not transportation of that message.
“Web services” is a term for a group of industry standards that collectively provide a mechanism for exchanging XML-based messages, such as NIEM messages. One of these standards is the Web Services Description Language (WSDL), which standardizes the specification and description of a web services interface.
This technical brief (see source below) explains the crucial relationship between NIEM Information Exchange Package Documentation (IEPD) and WSDL. The information that travels between systems is critical to the workings of a web service. A WSDL has the responsibility of specifically defining what that information looks like. Though IEPD is a concept separate from web services, an IEPD can be used in conjunction with WSDL to clearly and unambiguously specify a web services interface, including all the semantics. In other words, web services can be used for exchanging messages defined by NIEM IEPDs. For further reading, please see the source below.
Source - Using NIEM with Web Services
Service Specifications are similar to National Information Exchange Model ([NIEM]) Information Exchange Package Documentation (IEPD), commonly used within the justice community. They document the conceptual, logical, and physical models of a service in the same way NIEM IEPDs document the conceptual, logical, and physical models of a data exchange. Also, as with IEPDs, Service Specifications are a composite set of documentation, models, policies, contracts, and schemas that together provide a clear view of the service capabilities and business and technical requirements. While both Service Specifications and NIEM IEPDs are sets of artifacts which enable justice agencies to effectively share information and are of similar construction, they are not equivalent concepts. From a GRA perspective, NIEM IEPDs are used to describe the information model of a service and, as such, become a part of the Service Specification.
1. What are the reasons for-or-against this effort?
2. Any recommendations on how such an inventory should differ from just a "giant mapping sheet"?
NIEM Model Package Description (MDP) Specification document available on the NIEM web site has the best overview surrounding how the future of NIEM leverages enterprise data models in individual exchange package development.
To answer the specific questions:
The reason for doing this is that this is in line with the future of NIEM as outlined in the MPD Specification. It also a great way to ensure elements are mapped/modeled consistently across various exchanges in the future.
While a simple spreadsheet would work, it may be advantageous to use the new (when that becomes available) instead as it embodies the MPD and also provides tools to graphically depict and textually document the larger enterprise data model.
The xsd:appinfo element is used to provide machine-targeted annotations of schema components. In NIEM, there are some specific defined uses. There are some rules constraining use of xsd:appinfo in the NIEM Naming and Design Rules section 6.4.2, and the specifically defined uses are addressed in section 7.2.2 with additional detail in Appendix C.
For a new element created in a NIEM extension, xsd:appinfo is generally only required for the following:
1. Association types and elements, to indicate the base type or element (appinfo:Base)
2. Augmentation and metadata types, to indicate base type to which the augmentation or metadata may be applied (appinfo:AppliesTo)
3. Reference elements, to specify the type to which the reference element may be applied (appinfo:ReferenceTarget)
While xsd:appinfo is required for NIEM conformance in these cases, xsd:appinfo is ignored by XML schema validation so an otherwise valid XML schema will still validate even if the xsd:appinfo elements are not included.
This video is a short overview of NIEM and how it can help organizations exchange information. Produced by T. Reinhardt, Canada. 11-2011.
A Unified Modeling Language (UML) Profile for NIEM which aims to provide a standard for modeling NIEM artifacts (such as Model Package Descriptions, or MPDs) using UML. The UML profile will be an industry standard that will enable the development of NIEM-conformant information sharing and exchange models across systems, agencies, and levels of government.
The development team for this effort consisted of members from the NIEM Program Management Office, the OMG Technical Committee, Program Manager for the Information Sharing Environment, and industry and academic partners. On February 20, 2012, the Revised Submission to the UML Profile for NIEM (NIEM-UML) was delivered to the Object Management Group (OMG).
Final approval is expected in the June 2012 timeframe. You can review the NIEM-UML revised submission by clicking here.
Videos Resources:
NIEM-UML High-Level Introduction
NIEM-UML Specification Overview