Open EDI - Network-neutral Data Interchange
The ASC X12 Electronic Document Interchange (EDI) standards are published by the Data Interchange Standards Association, Inc.
| EDI | Description | Version |
| 204 | Motor Carrier Shipment Information | Version 4010 |
| 210 | Freight Details and Invoice | Version 4010 |
| 211 | Motor Carrier Bill of Lading | Version 4010 |
| 214 | Shipment Status Message | Version 4010 |
| 997 | Functional Acknowledgement | N/A |
Default Supported, No Mapping Required
Overview of EDI & Standards.
Diffreent standards define the commonly used business transactions in a formal, structured manner called transaction sets. X12 standards differ from data exchange protocols, in that a protocol allows data to flow from one computer to another without regard to the structure or meaning of the exchange.
EDI consists of text data, and the text is restricted to using specific
ASCII characters. A basic character set is defined for all exchanges,
and this set may be extended with additional characters by mutual
agreement of the trading partners. The characters described here are in
universal use today, and using any additional characters is discouraged if not prohibited.
Uppercase letters A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Numeric digits 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Special characters ! " & ' ( ) * + , - . / : ; ? =
The space character
Control characters: BEL HT LF VT FF CR FS GS RS US NL
ASCII hex values: 07 09 0A 0B 0C 0D 1C 1D 1E 1F
Lowercase letters a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
Other special chars % ~ @ [ ] _ { } \ | < >
National characters # $
Control characters: SOH STX ETX EOT ENQ ACK DC1 DC2 DC3 DC4 NAK SYN ETB
ASCII hex values: 01 02 03 04 05 06 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
Symbols representing delimiters
| Symbol | Type of delimiter |
|---|---|
| <tr> | Segment terminator |
| <gs> | Data element separator |
| <us> | Component element separator |
Elements and higher structures of the EDI transaction sets are
distinguished by delimiters. Three delimiter values may be used: two
levels of separators, for elements and sub-elements, and a terminator
which indicates the end of a data segment. Delimiters are specified in
the header of each interchange and shall not be used within a data
element value elsewhere in the exchange. Actual characters used as
delimiters are set within each exchange. Standards documentation
indicates the use of a delimiter with symbols as shown in the sidebar.
EDI standards do not impose requirements on delimiter choices other than to prohibit the use of a delimiter within a data element. Recommended delimiters are shown in the following table, along with values suggested in the standards and values in common use in industry:
| Delimiter | TradeDoc | Standards suggest | Industry practice |
|---|---|---|---|
<tr> |
|
|
|
<gs> |
|
|
|
<us> |
|
|
|
EDI data is exchanged in different ways, but always comes down to
encoding. Specifically the backtick and carat symbols are not
included in the EDI character set, and therefore are not present in data
elements. Please see our section on Codecs for more information on the
subject.
The data element is the smallest named unit of information in the standard. Data elements are identified as either simple or component. A data element which occurs within a composite data structure is identified as a component data element.
A data element which is outside the boundaries of a composite structure
is a simple data element. The distinction between simple and component elements is based on the placement of the element in the set and not on the attributes of the element.
Each data element is assigned a unique reference identifier of from one to four digits. Data elements have three attributes: the type, the length minimum, and the length maximum. Data element types are as follows:
| Type | Code | Data Element Type Description |
|---|---|---|
| Numeric | Nn | Numeric value with a predefined implied decimal point |
| Decimal | R | Numeric with an explicit decimal place |
| Identifier | ID | A unique coded value from a predetermined list |
| String | AN | A sequence of basic or extended characters |
| Date | DT | A standard date in the format YYMMDD |
| Time | TM | A time in the format HHMMSSd…d |
| Binary | B | Numeric sequence of binary octets |
| Fixed String | FS | Space-padded sequence of basic or extended characters |
The composite data structure is an intermediate unit of information in a
segment. The definition of a composite data structure consists of two or
more component data elements. In the actual data transmission the
composite may consist of one or more component data elements. Adjacent
component elements in a composite data structure are delimited by the
component element separator <us>. Composite data structures are
delimited from other adjacent elements in a segment by the data
element separator <gs>.
Each composite data structure has a unique four-character reference identifier. The identifiers for composite data structures which appear in control segments start with an S; a C is the first letter of composite identifiers which are used in data segments.
A detail table defines the component data elements in a composite data structure. Each component referenced has a requirement and an ordinal
sequence in the structure. In the actual data transmission omitted
elements are indicated by including their delimiters to preserve this
sequence, except for elements which are omitted at the end of the
component data structure.
1.component 2. component data structure 3. composite data structure 4. delimiter 5. segments
The data segment is an intermediate unit of related information in a transaction set. Simple data elements and composite data structures are the data parts of the segment. Each segment in a transmission starts with the segment identifier, followed by at least one data element or component structure, and ending with a segment terminator <tr>.
Each data segment has a unique two- or three-character identifier which also serves as a label for the segment in the data transmission. Segment labels are separated from the following data element by an element separator <gs>. The label is considered to be position zero of the segment, so that the first data element following the label is in position one.
A detail table defines the sequence of simple data elements and composite data structures in a segment. Each unit referenced has a requirement and an ordinal sequence in the segment.
<!> Freight Trust Strictly Enforces which delimiters can be used
The transaction set is a complete unit of information exchanged between trading partners, representing a business document. Each transaction starts with a header segment (ST) and ends with a trailer segment (SE). At least one data segment is required between the header segment and the trailer. Each segment in the transaction set ends with the segment terminator <tr>.
The transaction set identifier uniquely identifies each transaction set. This identifier is the first data element of the transaction set header segment. The transaction set header and trailer segments contain a control number which must be identical for any given transaction. Transaction set control numbers should not repeat in the history of exchanges of the transaction set between two trading partners. The transaction set trailer segment also contains a count of the number of segments in the transaction including the ST and SE segments.
The sequence of data segments in a transaction set definition is presented in detail tables for the set. Up to three tables may be used to represent transaction header information, repeating details, and a summary area. Each segment in a set has a requirement designator, a position in the set definition, and a maximum occurrence. An example set detail table is shown below:
| NA Pos | Seg | Segment Name | Req | MaxUse | Level | Repeat | Loop | | —— | — | ———— | — | —— | —– | —— | —- |
Single data segments within a transaction set may repeat up to a specified maximum number of occurrences, as shown in the MaxUse column. The notation >1 is used to show that the number of repeats for a segment is unlimited. Groups of two or more related data segments may be repeated as a loop.
The start of an unbounded loop is marked by the occurrence of the first
segment of the loop. The beginning segment of an unbounded loop shall
not appear anywhere else in a loop. The requirement for a loop is implicitly the requirement of the loop’s first segment.
Requirement Segment Designator.
If the requirement designator for the first segment of a loop is mandatory, then the loop must appear at least once in the transaction set`. A loop may be repeated up to a specified maximum number of times. The notation >1 designates an unlimited repeat.
A level entry indicates the nesting of loops, and the start of a loop
structure is indicated by a loop label on the first segment of the loop.
When unbounded loops are nested within loops, the inner loop shall not start at the same position as any outer loop. The inner loop shall not
start with the same segment identifier as the start of any outer loop,
nor may the inner loop contain a segment that is also the beginning
segment of any outer loop in the same structure.
The characteristics of unbounded loops also apply to bounded loops, except that bounded loops have no restriction on which segment begins the loop. For bounded loops, a unique loop identifier defined in the standard is used in the LS and LE segments to convey segment position or loop hierarchy, or both, within the transaction set.
A transmission consists of a sequence of interchanges in a stream which are all addressed to a specific trading partner (as when receiving) or all addressed from a specific partner (as when sending).
The Sender and Receiver Identifiers in the ISA header of an interchange address the interchange envelope between partners. Therefore a transmission is analogous to a mail delivery to or a mail pickup from a mailbox.
Content of ASC X12 standards is proprietary, and FreightTrust and Clearing Corporation makes no claim over its copyright, and only provides this for educational purposes only.