computer science

Information Delivery Specification

Information Delivery Specification is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Information Delivery Specification rather than just read about it. In short: Information Delivery Specification (IDS) is a description format in the construction industry for specifying information for BIM building model and checking it automatically. IDS (like IFC) is defined by buildingSMART; version 1.0 was published in June 2024.

Key takeaways

Information Delivery Specification belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Information Delivery Specification to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Information Delivery Specification from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Information Delivery Specification (IDS) is a description format in the construction industry for specifying information for BIM building model and checking it automatically. IDS (like IFC) is defined by buildingSMART; version 1.0 was published in June 2024.

Description An IDS file is a machine-readable document that specifies requirements for a building model. It requires attributes to be supplied, or which attribute values are accepted. For example, it can require that the thermal transmittance of all windows in the building must be within a prescribed range, or that all room names must follow a regular expression such as "Office001". A typical workflow is:

Requirements are described on the client side using an IDS editor (also available free of charge). Requirements are taken into account during planning; BIM software can support the planner. Requirements are checked automatically with the IDS file and the building model as an IFC file.

References

External links Information Delivery Specification IDS on buildingSMART V1.0 Final buildingSMART Standard on GitHub

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Information Delivery Specification

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Information Delivery Specification claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Information Delivery Specification before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Information Delivery Specification ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Information Delivery Specification

In research: Information Delivery Specification appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Information Delivery Specification in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Information Delivery Specification is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Building, Building information modeling, Industrial computing, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Information Delivery Specification outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Information Delivery Specification in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Information Delivery Specification means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Information Delivery Specification out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Information Delivery Specification in simple terms?

Why does Information Delivery Specification matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Information Delivery Specification?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Information Delivery Specification.