Coverage¶
Last updated: 2026-04-07
The coverage of a PID system indicates how well it will cover and match the needs of a specific usage context.
Target scope coverage¶
The PID target scope may be limited to identification and adressability of a specific type of object or phenomenon, determined by its target scope. This may f.e. cover a specific range of research output types, individuals, organisations, controlled definitions or some other unique and persistently addressable phenomenon. It may also cover a broader scope, being adaptable to various target concepts or types.
Other factors than the target concepts or types themselves may also affect the usage scope of the PID system, such as organisational or national contexts.
Conceptual coverage¶
Conceptual coverage is an important aspect besides the formal PID scope. It may encompass how well a PID system models real-world relationships and distinctions that may be of specific importance to the scholarly ecosystem. This is especially relevant for PID systems with accompanying kernel metadata.
A PID system with overly simplistic or rigid concepts may fail to address the needs of research workflows or discipline-specific practices.
Discipline-specific PID systems can offer deeper semantic alignment with local practices, but may on the other hand risk isolation if they are not well integrated with broader infrastructures that are in general use.
Implementational coverage¶
For the research sector, the adoption of the PID system in research ecosystems indicates its implementational coverage. This may consist of different implementations in tools, specifications and other types of integrated usage of the PID system by various actors.
The implementational coverage may have a large impact on strategical decisions regarding use of PID systems and standardisation.
For example, a research infrastructure may need to adapt its workflows and information management to one or several metadata schemas related to PID systems to make use of them on a large scale in an effective and standards-compliant manner. Likewise, it may have to implement quality control procedures to ensure reliable reuse of PIDs and PID metadata. The effort required for implementation may require consideration of the broader implementational coverage of the PID system.