Beacon · Phase II · Production Architecture

Discovery Signal Types

Discovery Signal Types establish the governed classification vocabulary used to describe what kind of discovery a Beacon-owned Discovery Signal represents.

Signal Type classifies the signal. It does not transfer the authority, status, or institutional meaning of the source object into Beacon.

Purpose

The Entry Model established Signal Type as a structural component of every Discovery Signal. This page defines the initial classification architecture for that component.

Entry Model → establishes that a signal has a type.

Signal Types → establishes what those classifications mean.

Classification Principle

A Signal Type should describe the nature of the discovery, not duplicate the institutional authority of the source.

Signal Type → discovery classification
Source Object Type → source identity
Source Status → source authority

These are related, but they are not interchangeable.

Initial Signal-Type Architecture

Phase I established several recurring discovery categories. Phase II carries these forward as the initial architectural vocabulary to be tested against later schema, validation, and production work.

Information · Jurisdiction · Certification · Registry · Historical · Integrity · Trust · Relationship

Information Signal

Identifies information whose discovery is relevant enough to preserve as a Beacon signal but whose primary discovery meaning is not better represented by a more specialized governed type.

General information discovery
Relevant update or observation
Attributable source required
May reference internal or external information

Information should not become a catch-all substitute for a more precise signal type.

Jurisdiction Signal

Identifies discovery associated with a jurisdiction, jurisdictional condition, or relevant jurisdiction intelligence.

May reference Atlas Authoritative Intelligence
May identify jurisdiction-related external information
Preserves jurisdiction context
Does not create or modify Atlas authority

Beacon signals jurisdiction relevance. Atlas remains authoritative for Atlas-owned intelligence.

Certification Signal

Identifies certification-related information observed from an authoritative source.

May reference a Certification Package
May reference a related SREG
May describe an observed certification state or change
Uses the specialized Certification Signals architecture where applicable

Certifier owns certification authority. Beacon owns the Discovery Signal.

Registry Signal

Identifies discovery associated with Registry-owned records, registration activity, catalog state, or other relevant Registry information.

May reference an SREG
May identify registration or lifecycle relevance
Preserves Registry as source institution
Does not create or alter registration

Beacon may signal Registry information. Registry remains authoritative for SREG.

Historical Signal

Identifies discovery associated with historically preserved material or a relevant Chronicle Entry.

May reference a Chronicle Entry
May identify historical relevance
May connect discovery to a preserved Occurrence
Does not determine Preservation Eligibility

Chronicle owns historical preservation. Beacon exposes discovery context around it.

Integrity Signal

Identifies discovery associated with integrity information or an Anchor-owned Integrity Reference.

May reference an Integrity Reference
May surface verification or integrity-related context
Preserves Anchor as source authority
Does not perform Anchor Verification

Beacon discovers integrity information. Anchor owns the Integrity Reference and integrity-preservation process.

Trust Signal

Identifies discovery associated with trust-related information or an Attestor-owned Trust Statement.

May reference a Trust Statement
May surface trust-related context
May identify a relevant trust-related change or observation
Does not itself constitute trust assessment

A Trust Signal is not a Trust Statement. Attestor retains trust-assessment authority.

Relationship Signal

Identifies a meaningful discovered relationship between objects, institutions, sources, subjects, or other governed entities.

Preserves both relationship endpoints
Preserves relationship provenance
May connect Suite and external references
Does not manufacture relationships unsupported by evidence

A relationship should be signaled only when its basis is attributable and reviewable.

Signal Type vs. Source Object Type

Beacon must not assume that the type of a referenced source object automatically determines the Discovery Signal Type.

Source Object → what the referenced object is.
Signal Type → what kind of discovery Beacon is recording.

One source object may support different discoveries in different contexts.

For example, an Integrity Reference may be the source for an Integrity Signal, but it might also participate in a Relationship Signal when the discovered fact concerns its governed relationship to another object.

Specialized Signal Profiles

A general Signal Type may support a specialized profile when a domain requires additional controlled semantics.

The first established example is:

Certification Signal
→ specialized through /beacon/certification-signals/

Specialized profiles may refine metadata or permitted values without changing Beacon's institutional ownership of the Discovery Signal.

Multiple Relevant Classifications

A discovery may appear to touch more than one category. Production architecture should prefer the type that best expresses the signal's primary discovery meaning.

Prefer one primary governed Signal Type.

Preserve secondary context through references, metadata, and relationships rather than uncontrolled multi-classification.

Whether production will permit secondary classifications remains intentionally unfrozen.

Type Assignment Requirements

A Signal Type should eventually be assignable only when the signal provides sufficient evidence and context to support that classification.

Type must come from governed vocabulary
Source must be attributable
Classification must match discovery context
Specialized profiles must satisfy their own requirements
Type must not imply unsupported authority

What Signal Type Does Not Establish

Classification alone does not establish:

truth
certification
registration
historical significance
integrity verification
trust
source authority
publication eligibility

Signal Type classifies discovery. Other institutions and later Beacon processes govern the rest.

Controlled Vocabulary Posture

The eight initial types are established here as Beacon's Phase II architectural classification set. Their final machine-readable values, schema constraints, aliases, extensibility rules, and validation behavior remain subject to later production architecture.

Architectural types → established
Machine-readable enum values → not yet frozen
Schema enforcement → pending
Validation enforcement → pending
Production proof → pending

Authority Boundary

A Discovery Signal Type describes Beacon's discovery object. It does not convert the source institution's authority into Beacon authority.

Certification Signal ≠ Certification Package
Registry Signal ≠ SREG
Historical Signal ≠ Chronicle Entry
Integrity Signal ≠ Integrity Reference
Trust Signal ≠ Trust Statement

Reference does not transfer authority.

Relationship to the Entry Model

Signal Type now occupies a defined place inside the Discovery Signal Entry Model:

Identity → Subject → Signal Type → Source → Provenance → Canonical References → Discovery Metadata → Timestamps → Version → Status → Relationships

The next Phase II task will define how a Discovery Signal moves through institutional states over time.

Current Status

Beacon Status → Continuing Development
Phase → Phase II — Production Architecture
Entry Model → Defined
Signal-Type Architecture → Defined
Initial Architectural Types → 8
Machine-Readable Vocabulary → Not yet frozen
Production Validation → Pending
First Production Discovery Signal → Not yet created