SAREF: the Smart Applications REFerence ontology
type: Ontology
version info: v3.2.1
version IRI: v3.2.1
prior version: v3.1.1
issued: 2023-12-31
modified: 2020-12-31
publisher: www.etsi.org
license: etsi-software-license
creator: lauradaniele
creator: me
creator: mpoveda
creator: me#
source: saref-core
preferred namespace prefix: saref
description: The Smart Applications REFerence ontology (SAREF) is intended to enable interoperability between solutions from different providers and among various activity sectors in the Internet of Things (IoT), thus contributing to the development of the global digital market.
comment: Information about changes compared to version 3.1.1: - Added the saref:FeatureKind class - Added the saref:PropertyOfInterest class - Added the saref:StateOfInterest class
comment: Information about changes compared to version 2.1.1: - Added the saref:FeatureOfInterest class and the properties used to relate it to saref:Measurement (saref:hasMeasurement and saref:isMeasurementOf) and to saref:Property (saref:hasProperty and saref:isPropertyOf). - Added the saref:measurementMadeBy property as inverse of saref:makesMeasurement. - The saref:relatesToProperty and saref:relatesToMeasurement properties are now inverse of each other. - The range of saref:hasValue, which was defined as xsd:float, has been removed to support other datatypes for measurements. - The range of datatype properties, which was defined as xsd:string, has been removed in order to support strings with language tags (rdf:langString). This affects saref:hasDescription, saref:hasManufacturer, saref:hasModel and saref:hasName, which now have implicitly a range of rdfs:Literal. - The saref:hasName property has been removed and the use of rdfs:label is recommended. - The saref:hasDescription property has been deprecated and the use of rdfs:comment is recommended. - Too restrictive restrictions have been removed and in some cases the ontology documentation has been updated to reflect this: a saref:Command having at most one saref:hasDescription; a saref:Task being accomplished by at least one saref:Device; a saref:Device having a typical consumption of only energy or power; a saref:Commodity being measured in units of measure; restrictions on the values of saref:accomplishes that only covered specific use cases; universal restrictions on the saref:actsUpon property have been changed to existential ones; restrictions on the commands that a saref:Function may have, since there could be others not included in the defined enumerations; restrictive documentation of saref:EventFunction and saref:SmokeSensor. - Bugs have been fixed: some devices (saref:DoorSwitch, saref:EnergyMeter, saref:LigthSwitch, saref:SmokeSensor, and saref:TemperatureSensor) were defined as subclass of a device and at …
comment: Information about changes compared to version 1.1.1: - The classes and properties related to how to represent devices in building spaces (such as the saref:BuildingSpace class, saref:BuildingObject class and saref:isLocatedIn property) have been removed from SAREF and incorporated into the SAREF4BLDG extension related to buildings, including the reuse of the W3C? WGS84 geo positioning vocabulary. - The saref:DeviceCategory and saref:FunctionCategory classes have been removed. Instead, the hierarchy of device categories has been implemented directly as subclasses of the saref:Device class. - The information specific for energy efficiency has been moved to the SAREF4ENER extension. For example, the saref:Profile class has been redefined to accommodate only the properties that are general enough for any type of profile, not only for energy and power. Details on how to specifically model a power profile can be found in the SAREF4ENER extension. - The subclasses of the saref:Energy class have been removed (i.e., Average Energy, Maximum Energy, Minimum Energy, Total Energy, HVAC Energy, Hot Water Energy and Lighting Energy). - The saref:Property class has been split into two classes (saref:Property and saref:Measurement), as it is done in the SAREF4ENVI extension, in order to properly accommodate the distinction between the concept of property (an observable quality of something) and the concept of measurement (a concrete value observed for a property). - Too restrictive cardinality restrictions have been revised, sometimes making them optional rather than mandatory (better to make properties mandatory in the extensions that specialize SAREF for a specific purpose, rather than restricting SAREF, whose purpose is more general). For example, definitions of units of measurement using an enumeration (owl:oneOf) were too restrictive because they did not allow using other units than those enumerated. Therefore, the individuals of each class are still there, but the owl:oneOf en…

Feature of interest
type: Class
comment: A feature of interest represents any real world entity from which a property or a state may be acted upon, such as measured and controlled. An instance of saref:FeatureOfInterest represents one specific real world entity.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: consists of
  all values from: Feature of interest

Feature kinds
type: Class
comment: Feature kinds allow to describe kinds of features of interest, with common properties having the same value, and common states being the same. An instance of saref:FeatureKind represents an archetype of real world entities, for example to populate product catalogs.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: broader
  all values from: Feature kinds
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: narrower
  all values from: Feature kinds
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: consists of
  all values from: Feature kinds

has feature kind
type: ObjectProperty
comment: links a feature of interest to its kind, a feature kind
domain: Feature of interest
range: Feature kinds
property chain axiom: broader

consists of
type: ObjectProperty
comment: A relationship indicating a composite entity that consists of other entities (e.g., a temperature/humidity sensor that consists of a temperature sensor and a humidity sensor)

has description
type: DatatypeProperty
deprecated: true
comment: DEPRECATED: The use of rdfs:comment is recommended instead.
comment: A relationship providing a description of an entity (e.g., device). The value is expected to be a string or a string with language tag.

has manufacturer
type: DatatypeProperty
comment: A relationship identifying the manufacturer of an entity (e.g., device). The value is expected to be a string or a string with language tag.
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest

has model
type: DatatypeProperty
comment: A relationship identifying the model of an entity (e.g., device). The value is expected to be a string or a string with language tag.
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest

Device
type: Class
comment: A tangible object designed to accomplish a particular task. In order to accomplish this task, the device performs one or more functions. An instance of saref:Device represents one specific real world entity.
example: For example, a washing machine is designed to wash (task) and to accomplish this task it performs a start and stop function.
example: Examples of devices are a light switch, a temperature sensor, an energy meter, a water flow meter, and a laundry dryer. A laundry dryer is designed to dry laundry, and to accomplish this task it has a start/stop function.
subclass of: Feature of interest
subclass of: System

has device kind
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: has feature kind
comment: Links a device to its kind, a feature kind. Kinds of devices describe models of devices, with common properties having the same value, common states being the same, common functions, and common services.
domain: Device
range: Feature kinds

acts upon
type: ObjectProperty
comment: Links a device, function, command, or procedure execution, to the feature, property, or state, it acts upon.
domain: Class
  union of: Device
  union of: Function
  union of: Command
  union of: ProcedureExecution
range: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
  union of: Property
  union of: Property of Interest
  union of: State
  union of: State of Interest

is acted upon by
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: acts upon
comment: Links a feature, property, or state, to the device, function, command, or procedure execution, that acts on it.
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
  union of: Property
  union of: Property of Interest
  union of: State
  union of: State of Interest
range: Class
  union of: Device
  union of: Function
  union of: Command
  union of: ProcedureExecution

measures
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: acts upon
inverse of: is measured by
comment: Links a device, function, command, or procedure execution, to the feature or property it measures.
range: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
  union of: Property
  union of: Property of Interest

is measured by
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: is acted upon by
inverse of: measures
comment: Links a feature, property, or state, to the device, function, command, or procedure execution, that measures it.
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
  union of: Property
  union of: Property of Interest

observes
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: acts upon
inverse of: is observed by
comment: Links a device, function, command, or procedure execution, to the feature, property, or state, it observes.

is observed by
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: is acted upon by
inverse of: observes
comment: Links a feature, property, or state, to the device, function, command, or procedure execution, that observes it.

controls
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: acts upon
inverse of: is controlled by
comment: Links a device, function, command, or procedure execution, to the feature, property, or state, it controls.

is controlled by
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: is acted upon by
inverse of: controls
comment: Links a feature, property, or state, to the device, function, command, or procedure execution, that controls it.

measures property
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: measures
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A relationship specifying the property that can be measured by a certain device
domain: Device
range: Property

is measured by device
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: is measured by
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A relationship specifying the devices that can measure a certain property
domain: Property
range: Device

is controlled by device
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: is controlled by
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A relationship specifying the devices that can control a certain property
domain: Property
range: Device

controls property
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: controls
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A relationship specifying the property that can be controlled by a certain device
domain: Device
range: Property

Appliance
type: Class
subclass of: Device
comment: A device designed to accomplish a particular task for occupant use. It consumes, produces, or stores, some commodity.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: is used for
  min cardinality: 1

Sensor
type: Class
subclass of: Device
comment: A device designed to observe one or more properties or states of one or more features of interest.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: observes
  min cardinality: 1

Actuator
type: Class
subclass of: Device
comment: A device designed to control one or more properties or states of one or more features of interest.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: controls
  min cardinality: 1

Meter
type: Class
subclass of: Device
comment: A device designed to measure one or more properties of one or more features of interest.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: measures
  min cardinality: 1

Task
type: Class
comment: The goal for which a device is designed, from a user perspective.
example: For example, a washing machine is designed for the task of washing.
note: Tasks can be accomplished by devices (saref:isAccomplishedBy).
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: broader
  all values from: Task
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: narrower
  all values from: Task

Cleaning
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

Comfort
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

Drying
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

EnergyEfficiency
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

Entertainment
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

Lighting
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

Meter reading
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

Safety
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

Washing
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

WellBeing
type: Task
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of task for which a device is designed

accomplishes
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: is accomplished by
comment: A relationship between a certain entity (e.g., a device) and the task it accomplishes.
range: Task

is accomplished by
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: accomplishes
comment: A relationship identifying an entity (e.g., a device) that can accomplish a task.
domain: Task

Commodity
type: Class
comment: A marketable item which may be supplied without qualitative differentiation.
note: SAREF refers to energy commodities such as electricity, gas, coal and oil.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: broader
  all values from: Commodity
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: narrower
  all values from: Commodity

Electricity
type: Class
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be defined as an instance of saref:Commodity in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of energy commodity

Gas
type: Class
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be defined as an instance of saref:Commodity in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of energy commodity

Coal
type: Class
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be defined as an instance of saref:Commodity in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of commodity

Water
type: Class
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: will be defined as an instance of saref:Commodity in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: A type of commodity

Energy Commodity
type: Class
subclass of: Commodity
comment: The class of energy commodities

Natural Resource Commodity
type: Class
subclass of: Commodity
comment: The class of natural resource commodities

is used for
type: ObjectProperty
deprecated: true
note: DEPRECATED: may be deleted in the next major revision of SAREF
comment: Links a feature kind, feature of interest, or device, to the commodity it is used for
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
  union of: Device
range: Commodity

consumes
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: is used for
inverse of: is consumed by
comment: Links a feature kind, feature of interest, or device, to the commodity it consumes

is consumed by
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: consumes
comment: Links a commodity to the feature kind, feature of interest, or device, that consumes it

produces
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: is used for
inverse of: is produced by
comment: Links a feature kind, feature of interest, or device, to the commodity it produces

is produced by
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: produces
comment: Links a commodity to the feature kind, feature of interest, or device, that produces it

stores
type: ObjectProperty
sub property of: is used for
inverse of: is stored by
comment: Links a feature kind, feature of interest, or device, to the commodity it stores

is stored by
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: stores
comment: Links a commodity to the feature kind, feature of interest, or device, that stores it

Property
type: Class
comment: Identifiable qualities of features of interest that can be acted upon by devices, such as measured or controlled. A property can apply to different features of interest.
note: Until SAREF V3.1.1, there was an ambiguity between whether properties should be specific or generic to features of interest. This ambiguity has been solved in SAREF V3.2.1, and the new modeling will be enforced in the next major revision of SAREF.
note: Concepts from existing code lists, vocabularies, and taxonomies, may be used as instances of saref:Property.
example: Air temperature, pressure, luminance, etc. are all properties.
example: Two examples using the QUDT Quantity Kind vocabulary, and the British Oceanographic Data Centre Parameter Usage Vocabulary. <https://qudt.org/2.1/vocab/quantitykind/ActiveEnergy> a saref:Property ; rdfs:label "Active Energy"@en ; rdfs:comment ""Active Energy" is the electrical energy transformable into some other form of energy."@en . <http://vocab.nerc.ac.uk/collection/P01/current/CDTSZZ01/> a saref:Property ; skos:prefLabel "Absolute temperature standard deviation of the atmosphere by dry bulb thermometer"@en .
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: broader
  all values from: Property
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: narrower
  all values from: Property

has property
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: is property of
comment: Links a feature kind or a feature of interest to one of its properties.
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
range: Property
property chain axiom: broader
property chain axiom: has feature kind
property chain axiom: has property

is property of
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: has property
comment: Links a property to the feature kind or feature of interest it is a property of.
domain: Property
range: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest

Property of Interest
type: Class
comment: Identifiable qualities of features of interest that can be acted upon by devices, such as measured or controlled. An instance of saref:PropertyOfInterest is specific to a feature of interest. It is inherent to and cannot exist without that feature of interest.
note: Until SAREF V3.1.1, there was an ambiguity between whether properties should be specific or generic to features of interest. This ambiguity has been solved in SAREF V3.2.1, and the new modeling will be enforced in SAREF V4.1.1.
note: A property of interest is the property of (OP saref:isPropertyOf) exactly one feature of interest.
note: Per convention, the IRI of properties of interest should consist of the IRI of their feature of interest, suffixed with a fragment identifier #{P} where {P} refers to the name of the property.
example: The air temperature of the atmosphere sample at a certain location and altitude, the received signal strength indicator of an wireless IoT connection, the luminance of the ETSI ATHENA amphitheatre. <etsi_premises/athena#luminance> a saref:PropertyOfInterest ; saref:isPropertyOf <etsi_premises/athena> ; saref:hasPropertyKind saref:Luminance ; rdfs:comment "The luminance of amphitheatre ATHENA"@en .
note: Properties of interest need not always be explicited. It depends on the use case. Typically, properties of interest are useful in applications, where the association between a feature of interest and a property (i.e., the property of interest) needs to be identified and related to other properties of interest.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: is property of
  cardinality: 1

has property
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: is property of
comment: Links a feature of interest to one of its properties of interest.
domain: Feature of interest
range: Property of Interest

is property of
type: ObjectProperty
type: FunctionalProperty
inverse of: has property
comment: Links a property of interest to the feature of interest it is a property of.
domain: Property of Interest
range: Feature of interest

has feature kind
type: ObjectProperty
comment: links a property of interest to its kind, a property.
domain: Property of Interest
range: Property
property chain axiom: broader

Property Value
type: Class
comment: Describes the value for a property. The property value is linked to its value expressed as an RDF literal (DP saref:hasValue), optionally to the unit of measurement (OP saref:isMeasuredIn), and optionally to the properties or properties of interest it is a value of (OP saref:isValueOfProperty).
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: has value
  cardinality: 1
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: is measured in
  max cardinality: 1

has value
type: DatatypeProperty
comment: Value of a property value expressed as an RDF literal. Note that, even if decimal values are expected, values could use other datatypes.

is measured in
type: ObjectProperty
comment: A relationship identifying the unit of measure used for a certain entity.
range: Unit of measure

Unit of measure
type: Class
comment: The unit of measure is a standard for measurement of a quantity, such as a Property.
example: For example, consumption power is a property and Watt is a unit of power that represents a definite predetermined power: when we say 10 Watt, we actually mean 10 times the definite predetermined power "Watt".
note: Our definition is based on the definition of unit of measure in the Ontology of units of Measure (OM).
note: Concepts from existing code lists, vocabularies, and taxonomies, may be used as instances of saref:UnitOfMeasure. For example the QUDT Unit vocabulary

has property value
type: ObjectProperty
comment: Links a feature kind, a feature of interest, or a property of interest, to a property value.
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
  union of: Property of Interest
range: Property Value
property chain axiom: broader

is value of property
type: ObjectProperty
comment: Links a property value to the property or property of interest it is a value of.
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
  union of: Property of Interest
range: Property Value
property chain axiom: has feature kind

State
type: Class
comment: Identifiable conditions that features of interest are or may be in, and that can be acted upon by devices, such as observed and controlled. A state can apply to different features of interest.
example: A switch can be found in the saref:OnOffState, which is further specialized in saref:OnState and saref:OffState.
note: SAREF is not restricted to binary states such as the saref:OnOffState, but allows to define also n-ary states (see, for example, the saref:MultiLevelState class).
note: Concepts from existing code lists, vocabularies, and taxonomies, may be used as instances of saref:State.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: broader
  all values from: State
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: narrower
  all values from: State

has state
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: is state of
comment: Links a feature kind or a feature of interest to one of its states.
domain: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest
range: State
property chain axiom: broader
property chain axiom: has feature kind
property chain axiom: has state
property chain axiom: has state kind

is state of
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: has state
comment: Links a state to the feature kind or feature of interest it is a state of.
domain: State
range: Class
  union of: Feature kinds
  union of: Feature of interest

State of Interest
type: Class
comment: Identifiable conditions that features of interest are or may be in, and that can be acted upon by devices, such as observed and controlled. An instance of saref:StateOfInterest is specific to a feature of interest. It is inherent to and cannot exist without that feature of interest.
note: A state of interest is the state of (OP saref:isStateOf) exactly one feature of interest.
note: Per convention, the IRI of states of interest should consist of the IRI of their feature of interest, suffixed with a fragment identifier #{P} where {P} refers to the name of the state.
note: States of interest need not always be explicited. It depends on the use case. Typically, states of interest are useful in applications, where the association between a feature of interest and a state (i.e., the state of interest) needs to be identified and related to other states of interest.
subclass of: Restriction
  on property: is state of
  cardinality: 1

has state
type: ObjectProperty
inverse of: is state of
comment: Links a feature of interest to one of its states of interest.
domain: Feature of interest
range: State of Interest

is state of
type: ObjectProperty
type: FunctionalProperty
inverse of: has state
comment: Links a state of interest to the feature of interest it is a state of.
domain: State of Interest
range: Feature of interest

has state kind
type: ObjectProperty
comment: links a state of interest to its kind, a state
domain: State of Interest
range: State
property chain axiom: broader