3.2 Design Principles of the FDIS Reference Architecture

Return to 3. FDIS Reference Architecture

The Federated Data Interpretation Systems Reference Architecture (FDIS-RA) is shaped by explicit design principles that reflect the nature of the problem domain it addresses: long-lived, regulated data interpretation environments in which meaning, accountability, and comparability must be preserved across time, institutions, tools, and evolving analytical techniques.

These principles govern the structure, scope, and architectural emphasis of FDIS-RA.

The principles are architectural in intent rather than implementation guidance. They do not prescribe:

Specific technologiesProductsDevelopment methodologiesDeployment modelsOperational proceduresVendor tooling environmentsInstead, they express the foundational assumptions, constraints, and design commitments that guide how FDIS-RA is defined, evaluated, applied, and realized across diverse regulatory, organizational, and jurisdictional contexts.

Taken together, these principles explain why the architecture is organized as it is and why concerns such as the following are treated as first-class architectural responsibilities:

TraceabilitySemantic authorityGovernance boundariesSeparation of interpretive concernsControlled evolution of meaningLong-term comparabilityAuditabilityImplementation independenceThe architectural mechanisms through which these principles are realized are defined in Section 4.

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