Suite · Standards
Schemas Standard
The Schemas Standard defines shared structural and representation expectations for
Satoshium machine-readable records across the Suite.
Schemas support readability, validation, interoperability, and preservation, but they
do not themselves create canonical objects, canonical ownership, institutional authority,
or substantive conclusions.
Schema vs. Canonical Object
A schema defines structural requirements for a representation. A canonical object remains the institution-owned governed object whose identity and state are controlled by the owning institution.
SCHEMA ≠ CANONICAL OBJECT.
SHARED SCHEMA ≠ SHARED OWNERSHIP.
SCHEMA CONFORMANCE ≠ INSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY.
MULTIPLE REPRESENTATIONS ≠ MULTIPLE AUTHORITIES.
Record Models
Defines shared structural patterns used by governed records and representations while preserving the independent canonical ownership of each institution.
Architecture Active
Required Fields
Establishes minimum structural fields required by applicable schemas. Required fields
support interpretation and validation but do not themselves establish authority,
substantive validity, certification, trust, or publication state.
Planned
Validation Rules
Defines structural validation expectations where institutions require them. Schema conformance does not independently establish source authority, certification, trust, lifecycle state, or publication state.
Architecture Active
Schema Evolution
Provides a framework for versioning, extending, and preserving schemas as
Suite tools and certification methods mature over time.
Architecture Active
Standard Role
The Schemas Standard provides shared structural language for governed records and
representations while preserving each institution's canonical ownership, lifecycle,
authority, and substantive decision-making.
Shared structure improves portability and interoperability.
Shared structure ≠ shared ownership.
Schema validation ≠ institutional authority.
Shared Structure vs. Shared Ownership
Institutions may reuse field names, identifier patterns, schema fragments, or representation rules without merging their canonical objects or authority.
SHARED STRUCTURE ≠ SHARED OWNERSHIP.
SHARED FIELD NAME ≠ SHARED AUTHORITY.
SHARED IDENTIFIER PATTERN ≠ SHARED CANONICAL IDENTITY.
SCHEMA REUSE ≠ AUTHORITY TRANSFER.
Canonical JSON Standard
When a Satoshium Suite record declares or requires a canonical JSON
representation, the Suite-wide canonicalization rule is:
Representation Type → canonical_json
Canonicalization Standard → RFC 8785 — JSON Canonicalization Scheme (JCS)
Character Encoding → UTF-8
JCS provides deterministic serialization so semantically equivalent JSON data is not
treated as different merely because of indentation, insignificant whitespace, or object-member presentation order.
A Suite institution may use another representation type where appropriate, but it must
not label a representation canonical_json while applying a conflicting local canonicalization rule.
Suite-Wide Rule Defined
Institutional Profiles
Suite institutions may define narrower schema profiles when production requires additional
constraints, provided those profiles remain compatible with the Suite-wide schema rules.
Suite Schema Standard
↓
Institution-specific Schema / Profile
↓
Production Record
Anchor's first production Integrity Reference therefore inherits the Suite definition of
canonical_json rather than inventing an Anchor-specific JSON normalization rule.
That shared representation rule does not transfer Anchor's canonical ownership to the Schemas layer.
Governance Boundary
Schema changes may alter representation requirements, but they may not silently alter institutional role, canonical ownership, canonical object identity, Suite membership, authority allocation, or constitutional dependency.
SCHEMA CHANGE ≠ ARCHITECTURAL AUTHORITY.
SCHEMA SOPHISTICATION ≠ CANONICALIZATION.
CANONICALIZATION SIGNALS ≠ CANONICALIZATION.
Canonical ownership changes require explicit Constitutional Governance.