ISO/IEC 11694-4:2008

Identification cards - Optical memory cards - Linear recording method - Part 4: Logical data structures

ISO/IEC 11694-4:2008 defines the logical data structures for optical memory cards necessary to allow compatibility and interchange between systems using the linear recording method.

Cartes d'identification — Cartes à mémoire optique — Méthode d'enregistrement linéaire — Partie 4: Structures de données logiques

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 24-Jun-2008
• ICS: 35.240.15 - Identification cards. Chip cards. Biometrics
• Technical Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 - Cards and security devices for personal identification
• Drafting Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 - Cards and security devices for personal identification
• Current Stage: 9093 - International Standard confirmed
• Start Date: 10-Jul-2014
• Completion Date: 30-Oct-2025

Relations

• Revises: ISO/IEC 11694-4:2001 - Identification cards - Optical memory cards - Linear recording method - Part 4: Logical data structures
• Effective Date: 15-Apr-2008

Overview

ISO/IEC 11694-4:2008 - "Identification cards - Optical memory cards - Linear recording method - Part 4: Logical data structures" specifies the logical layout and data structures required to ensure compatibility and interchangeability for optical memory cards that use the linear recording method. It defines how information is organized on the accessible optical area, how tracks and sectors are formatted, and how error detection/correction and data encoding are applied, in the context of ISO/IEC 11694 family and the base ISO/IEC 11693.

Key topics and requirements

• Logical format structure: Definition of the accessible optical area subdivided into guard tracks, format description tracks, test tracks, application description tracks and user data (application area).
• Track layout and numbering: Tracks are arranged in reverse order starting from a reference track. The standard provides example layouts for small, moderate and maximum data capacity cards in normal and high-density modes (e.g., nominal track counts such as 1000, 2583, 3425 and high-density variants).
• Track guides & tolerances: Track guide width (2.2 µm ± 0.5 µm), centre-to-centre spacing (12.0 µm ± 0.1 µm normal density; 7.5 µm ± 0.1 µm high density) and accumulated tolerance limits (≤ 0.01 % at 25 °C). Limits on guide breaks are specified.
• Guard tracks & reference points: Guard tracks, including a reference (last bottom) guard track, are defined to protect user data regions and establish positional references.
• Track components & sectors: Definitions for Track ID, preformatted track headers, sectors, sector code words and the minimum access unit (sector).
• Data encoding and EDAC: Specifies modulation codes (e.g., MFM‑RZ, NRZI‑RZ), error detection and correction concepts (EDAC, ECC) and interleaving strategies. References to specific codes such as BEST are included where relevant.
• Measurement and characteristics: Procedures for preformatted and written data measurement and characteristics are outlined to support interoperability and testability.

Applications and practical value

• Ensures interoperability between card manufacturers, drive makers and application providers using optical memory cards with linear recording.
• Enables consistent design for secure ID credentials, access-control and biometric cards where optical memory is used.
• Supports card issuance, drive firmware, testing laboratories and system integrators who require standardized track layout, error correction, and encoding rules.
• Useful for developing card initialization tools, test suites and data interchange formats that rely on ISO/IEC 11694-4 logical structures.

Related standards

• ISO/IEC 11693 - Optical memory cards - General characteristics (base document)
• ISO/IEC 11694‑1, ‑2, ‑3, ‑5, ‑6 - Other parts of the linear recording method family
• ISO/IEC 10373‑5 - Test methods for optical memory cards

Keywords: ISO/IEC 11694-4:2008, optical memory cards, linear recording method, logical data structures, track layout, track guides, EDAC, MFM‑RZ, NRZI‑RZ, BEST code, sectors, ISO/IEC 11693.

Standards Content (Sample)

INTERNATIONAL ISO/IEC
STANDARD 11694-4
Third edition
2008-07-01
Identification cards — Optical memory
cards — Linear recording method —
Part 4:
Logical data structures
Cartes d'identification — Cartes à mémoire optique — Méthode
d'enregistrement linéaire —
Partie 4: Structures de données logiques

Reference number
©
ISO/IEC 2008
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ii © ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved

Contents Page
Foreword. iv
Introduction . v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions. 1
4 Format structure . 3
5 Track layout. 3
5.1 Track layout examples . 4
6 Track guides. 5
7 Guard tracks. 5
8 Format description tracks. 5
8.1 Content . 6
9 Test tracks . 7
9.1 Content - Test track 1 (top and bottom) . 7
9.2 Content - Test track 2 (top and bottom) . 7
9.3 Content - Test track 3 (top and bottom) . 7
9.4 Content - Test track 4 (top and bottom) . 7
10 Application description tracks . 7
11 Data tracks. 7
12 Data bits. 8
13 Reference points. 8
13.1 First data bit . 8
14 Track components. 8
14.1 Track ID. 8
14.2 Preformatted track header . 8
14.3 Sectors. 9
14.4 Track structure. 10
15 Measurement. 11
15.1 Preformatted data measurement. 11
15.2 Preformatted data characteristics. 11
15.3 Written data characteristics. 11
16 Data encoding . 12
16.1 Error detection and correction . 12

© ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved iii

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical
Commission) form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are members of
ISO or IEC participate in the development of International Standards through technical committees
established by the respective organization to deal with particular fields of technical activity. ISO and IEC
technical committees collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other international organizations, governmental
and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO and IEC, also take part in the work. In the field of information
technology, ISO and IEC have established a joint technical committee, ISO/IEC JTC 1.
International Standards are drafted in accordance with the rules given in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The main task of the joint technical committee is to prepare International Standards. Draft International
Standards adopted by the joint technical committee are circulated to national bodies for voting. Publication as
an International Standard requires approval by at least 75 % of the national bodies casting a vote.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent
rights. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
ISO/IEC 11694-4 was prepared by Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information technology,
Subcommittee SC 17, Cards and personal identification.
This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition (ISO/IEC 11694-4:2001), which has been
technically revised.
ISO/IEC 11694 consists of the following parts, under the general title Identification cards — Optical memory
cards — Linear recording method:
⎯ Part 1: Physical characteristics
⎯ Part 2: Dimensions and location of the accessible optical area
⎯ Part 3: Optical properties and characteristics
⎯ Part 4: Logical data structures
⎯ Part 5: Data format for information interchange for applications using ISO/IEC 11694-4, Annex B
⎯ Part 6: Use of biometrics on an optical memory card
iv © ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved

Introduction
ISO/IEC 11694 defines the parameters for optical memory cards and the use of such cards for the storage
and interchange of digital data.
ISO/IEC 11694 recognizes the existence of different methods for recording and reading information on optical
memory cards, the characteristics of which are specific to the recording method employed. In general, these
different recording methods will not be compatible with each other. Therefore, ISO/IEC 11694 is structured to
accommodate the inclusion of existing and future recording methods in a consistent manner.
This part of ISO/IEC 11694 is specific to optical memory cards using the linear recording method.
Characteristics which apply to other specific recording methods are defined in separate standards documents.
This part of ISO/IEC 11694 defines the logical data structures and the extent of compliance with, addition to,
and/or deviation from the relevant base document ISO/IEC 11693.

© ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved v

INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO/IEC 11694-4:2008(E)

Identification cards — Optical memory cards — Linear
recording method —
Part 4:
Logical data structures
1 Scope
This part of ISO/IEC 11694 defines the logical data structures for optical memory cards necessary to allow
compatibility and interchange between systems using the linear recording method.
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensible for the application of this document. For dated
references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced
document (including any amendments) applies
ISO/IEC 11693, Identification cards — Optical memory cards — General characteristics
ISO/IEC 11694-1, Identification cards — Optical memory cards — Linear recording method — Part 1: Physical
characteristics
ISO/IEC 11694-2, Identification cards — Optical memory cards — Linear recording method — Part 2:
Dimensions and location of the accessible optical area
ISO/IEC 11694-3, Identification cards — Optical memory cards — Linear recording method — Part 3: Optical
properties and characteristics
ISO/IEC 10373-5, Identification cards — Test methods — Part 5: Optical memory cards
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO/IEC 11693, ISO/IEC 11694-1,
ISO/IEC 11694-2, ISO/IEC 11694-3 and the following apply.
3.1
data bit
area which represents data on an optical memory card
NOTE It is usually a mark which has a different reflectivity and/or phase difference from the background reflectivity.
3.2
data track
area located between adjacent track guides where data are written and/or read
© ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved 1

3.3
error correction code
ECC
code designed to correct certain kinds of errors in data
3.4
error detection and correction
EDAC
family of methods in which redundancy is added to a message block, at the time the message block is
recorded, in known fashion, and in which, upon read back, a decoder removes the redundancy and uses the
redundant information to detect and correct erroneous channel symbols
3.5
modulation code
system for coding which transforms information bits into some physical representation for recording onto the
optical memory card
3.6
data pitch
distance between corresponding points on adjacent data spots
3.7
sector
minimum unit of data that can be accessed on a card for any read and/or write command
3.8
address
character or group of characters that identifies a register, a particular part of storage, or some other data
source or destination
3.9
BEST code
Burst and random-Error correction-System for-Teletext code
272,190 majority-logic decodable cyclic error detection and correction code
3.10
code word
fixed length sequence of bits resulting from encoding a message block using some error detection and
correction method
3.11
data area
portion of the accessible optical area that can be written and/or read under the control of the application
software
3.12
error detection code
EDC
set of code words in which elements conform to specific rules
NOTE If errors occur, the resulting presentation will not conform to the rules, indicating that errors are present.
3.13
error message
message returned by a card drive unit to indicate that the card inserted in the drive cannot be processed
2 © ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved

3.14
information
totality of data present on the card including service, system and user data for interchange independent of the
method of recording
NOTE Information can be replicated or written by means of an optical beam.
3.15
interleaving
process of distributing the physical location of code words to render the data more immune to clustered bit
errors
3.16
message block
fixed length sequence of data bits which is encoded using error detection and correction methods to form a
code word
3.17
MFM-RZ
modified-frequency-modulation-return-to-zero
modification of MFM encoding with a return to zero so that a flux reversal is used to indicate a 1 bit and the
lack of a flux reversal is used to indicate a 0 bit
NOTE Also referred to as 1,3 RLL.
3.18
NRZI-RZ
non-return-to-zero-inverted, return to zero
encoding similar to MFM-RZ (3.17) except that a transition does not occur between adjacent zeros
3.19
sector code word
sector data block encoded using an error detection and correction code
3.20
sector data block
block of data containing user data and system information
4 Format structure
This section details information which makes up the accessible optical area and is placed on cards during
manufacture and/or at the time of card initialization.
Area Subsets
Accessible optical area Guard tracks and data area.
Data area Format description tracks, test
tracks, application description
tracks and application area.
Application area Application data and user data.
5 Track layout
Track layout information shall be preformatted on cards during manufacture and/or written to cards prior to
use.
Tracks shall be arranged in reverse order beginning with the reference track, the last bottom guard track
located nearest the reference edge.
© ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved 3

The track layout is outlined below. Because the total number of tracks can vary, the numbers of all tracks
located between the last user data track and the reference track are given in parametric form where n is the
nominal number of tracks and n+9 is the number of the last bottom guard track, the reference track.
Track Description Track # Hex
Guard track (last bottom) n+9
: :
Guard track (first bottom) n
a
Format description track n-1
a
Test track 1 (bottom) n-2
: :
a
Test track 4 (bottom) n-5
a,b
Application description track n-6
a,b
Last user data track n-7
: :
a,b
First user data track 6 0006
a,b
Application description track 5 0005
a
Test track 4 (top) 4 0004
: : :
a
Test track 1 (top) 1 0001
a
Format description track 0 0000
Guard track (last top) -1 3FFF
: : :
Guard track (first top) -10 3FF6
a
Data area
b
Application area
5.1 Track layout examples
This section provides information concerning data structures that support the optional card layouts described
in ISO/IEC 11694-2.
5.1.1 Cards with moderate data capacity
NOTE These layouts support the inclusion of a magnetic stripe and/or signature panel.
5.1.1.1 Normal density mode
Nominal number of tracks 2583. This layout shall contain 2603 tracks, of which 2571 shall be user data tracks.
Tracks shall be numbered sequentially, in reverse order, beginning with track 2592, the reference track.
5.1.1.2 High density mode
Nominal number of tracks 4144. This layout shall contain 4164 tracks, of which 4132 shall be user data tracks.
Tracks shall be numbered sequentially, in reverse order, beginning with track 4153, the reference track.
5.1.2 Cards with small data capacity
NOTE These layout options support the inclusion of a magnetic stripe, IC chip with contacts, embossing and/or
signature panel.
4 © ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved

5.1.2.1 Normal density mode
Nominal number of tracks 1000. This layout shall contain 1020 tracks, of which 988 shall be user data tracks.
Tracks shall be numbered sequentially, in reverse order, beginning with track 1009, the reference track.
5.1.2.2 High density mode
Nominal number of tracks 1612. This layout shall contain 1632 tracks, of which 1600 shall be user data tracks.
Tracks shall be numbered sequentially, in reverse order, beginning with track 1621, the reference track.
5.1.3 Cards with maximum data capacity
NOTE These layouts support the inclusion of a magnetic stripe and/or signature panel.
5.1.3.1 Normal density mode
Nominal number of tracks 3425. This layout shall contain 3445 tracks, of which 3413 shall be user data tracks.
Tracks shall be numbered sequentially, in reverse order, beginning with track 3434, the reference track.
5.1.3.2 High density mode
Nominal number of tracks 5492. This layout shall contain 5512 tracks, of which 5480 shall be user data tracks.
Tracks shall be numbered sequentially, in reverse order, beginning with track 5501, the reference track.
The total number of tracks may vary dependent on the application requirements; however, in all cases, tracks
shall be arranged in order, and numbered sequentially, beginning with the reference track.
6 Track guides
Track guides shall be uniformly spaced across the card and shall extend the length of the accessible optical
area. The accumulated tolerances across the width of all track guides shall be less than or equal to 0,01 % at
25 °C.
The width of the track guides shall be 2,2 µm ± 0,5 µm. The distance from the centre of one track guide to the
centre of an adjacent track guide shall be 12,0 µm ± 0,1 µm in the normal density mode and 7,5 µm ± 0,1 µm
in the high density mode.
A maximum of ten track guides can have breaks exceeding 100 µm; no breaks shall exceed 500 µm.
7 Guard tracks
There shall be 20 guard tracks, ten located directly above and ten directly below the user data area to enable
the optics to locate the user data tracks and prevent the optical head from over running the accessible optical
area if auto-tracking is lost.
Guard tracks -1 to -10 and n to n+9 shall contain a copy of the card manufacturing information from sector 0 of
the format description track formatted using sector type 13. The excess bytes shall be filled with zeros.
8 Format description tracks
There shall be two format description tracks, one located at the top and the other at the bottom of the data
area, that shall be preformatted with information that permits the card drive to automatically switch between
formats and allows later generations of card formats to be introduced alongside earlier generations. To
© ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved 5

achieve this upward compatibility, the format description track must be of identical format and location on all
generations of card formats.
Format description tracks shall be created when an optical card is manufactured. Card drives shall be unable
to write to this track and an optical card shall be deemed invalid unless the format description track is present.
8.1 Content
Each format description track shall contain six sectors of 162 bytes. Sectors 0, 2, and 4 shall contain data
formats and card manufacturing information; sectors 1, 3, and 5 shall contain the error message to be
returned in case of improper use of the card.
Each format description track shall contain the required fields as described below and as shown in Tables 1
and 2. All distance measurements are in the units of microns unless otherwise specified.
⎯ data format identifier: A format identifier unique to each variation in format.
⎯ track pitch: The distance from the centre of one track guide to the centre of an adjacent track guide.
⎯ nominal number of data tracks: The number of data tracks contained in the data area. See section 5.
⎯ usable track length: The maximum track length available for written information and preformatted data.
⎯ type of preformat data: The method of coding the preformat data.
⎯ data encoding identifier: An encoding scheme identifier defining the encoding scheme used.
⎯ max. sectors per track: The maximum number of sectors per track allowable.
⎯ preformatted data bit size: The nominal size of the preformatted data bits.
⎯ written data bit size: The nominal size of the written data bits.
⎯ written data pitch: The minimum spacing from the centre of one written bit to the centre of an adjacent
written bit.
⎯ sector type identifier: An identifier code indicating the type of card sector.
⎯ EDAC scheme identifier: An identifier code indicating the EDAC scheme used.
⎯ media type identifier: An identifier code indicating the type of media used.
⎯ card type identifier: An identifier code indicating the type of card used.
⎯ manufacturing plant identifier: An identifier code used to indicate where the card was made.
⎯ master identifier: A four character identifier indicating the master used to make the cards.
⎯ serial number of master: A four character identifier indicating the serial number of the master used to
make the cards.
⎯ reserved for future use: Area reserved for future usage.
In Tables 1 and 2 fields marked Std shall be controlled by the standards body which will assign values and
keep a control register of the values assigned. Fields marked Mfg shall be assigned values by the individual
manufacturers of the cards in cooperation with the card issuer.
6 © ISO/IEC 2008 – All rights reserved

9 Test tracks
There shall be eight test tracks, four at the top and four at the bottom of the data area, for card drive
autodiagnosis and calibration purposes.
9.1 Content - Test track 1 (top and bottom)
The first test track shall consist of one sync marker, four leadins, six BOS (see 14.2.3), a continuous high
frequency pattern (0000) 12784 bits long, 24 sector padding bits, one sync marker, six BOS and ending with
four leadins.
9.2 Content - Test track 2 (top and bottom)
The second test track shall consist of one sync marker, four leadins, six BOS, a continuous low frequency
pattern (0101) 12784 bits long, 24 sector padding bits, one sync marker, six BOS and ending with four leadins.
9.3 Content - Test track 3 (top and bottom)
The third test track shall consist of one long sector containing random data generated using the generator
polynomial defined in 16.1.2 according to the following algorithm (x is an unsigned 16-bit number):
Step 0: If first generated value, set x=8000 hex, go to step 4.
Step 1: Set x to the last generated value.
Step 2: Shift x by one position to the left, that is, multiply by 2 modulo 2 .
Step 3: If bit 15 of the last generated value is set, take the bit by bit exclusive OR of x with 1021 hex and put the
result in x.
Step 4: Return x.
The series of random numbers begin with hex 8000, 1021, 2042, 4084, 8108, 1231, 2462, 48C4, 9188, 3331,
6662, CCC4, 89A9, etc.
9.4 Content - Test track 4 (top and bottom)
The fourth test track shall consist of 15 type 0 sectors containing incremental data 00, 01, 02, .FF, 00, 01,
...