Glossary · Semantic interoperability and information models
Digital nameplate
Also known as: Digital type plate
German: Digitales Typenschild
In industrial automation, a digital nameplate is the machine-readable form of the information on a product's nameplate, such as manufacturer, type, serial number and ratings, typically accessed via an identification link (IEC 61406) in a QR code or data matrix and provided in structured form, for example as the Digital Nameplate submodel of the Asset Administration Shell.
- Information models
- Standards
In one sentence
A digital nameplate provides a product's nameplate data in machine-readable form, often via a QR code link and an AAS submodel.
Example
Scanning the QR code on a drive opens the manufacturer's page with the serial number, ratings, declaration of conformity and manuals for that exact unit.
How it applies
- Engineering: An identification link encodes a globally unique URL for the product instance. Behind it, structured data such as the Digital Nameplate submodel can be retrieved by people and systems.
- Compliance: Marking requirements of product legislation, such as the manufacturer's name and address or the CE marking, generally still require the physical marking. A digital nameplate supplements it unless the applicable law explicitly allows otherwise.
- Documentation: The link can lead to the current documentation for the specific unit. Keep URLs stable over the product's lifetime and make sure the documents behind them are version-controlled.
Digital nameplate vs. digital product passport
A digital nameplate provides identification and rating data of a product. A Digital product passport (DPP) is a legally defined set of product information under the ESPR and related acts, with its own requirements. The technologies can overlap, but a digital nameplate does not fulfill DPP obligations by itself.