The S-100 standard, officially named the S-100 Universal Hydrographic Data Model, is a framework document developed by the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO). It provides a modern standard for marine geospatial data, aiming to lay the foundation for hydrographic surveying, maritime affairs, and Geographic Information System (GIS) digital products and services, while lowering the barriers for different professional fields to use marine survey data and technology.

• Product standard system developed based on the S-100 standard: The IHO assigns S-1XX numbers to products developed based on the S-100 standard. Numbers from S-101 to S-199 are allocated to products developed by the IHO, while higher numbers are assigned to other organizations. Below are some number ranges of the S-100 product specification system:
  • International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) (S-101 to S-199)
  • International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities (IALA) (S-201 to S-299)
  • Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) (S-301 to S-399)
  • Inland Electronic Chart Coordination Group (IEHG) (S-401 to S-402) 

Figure: Product standard system developed based on the S-100 standard (Source: International Hydrographic Organization, IHO)

In the S-100 product standard system shown above, the main standards include S-101 for providing the base chart of electronic charts, S-102 for standardizing seafloor depth surface elevation data, and S-104 for focusing on tidal information for navigation water levels.

Through these number ranges, the S-100 series of standards provide a unified product development framework for multiple organizations, helping to ensure interoperability and standardization of data products.

• Relationship between the S-100 product standard system and the S-57 series specifications: The S-100 product standard system is often regarded as a replacement, update, and upgrade of the S-57 series specifications:
  • S-57 typically refers to a series of product specifications, including S-57 (data), S-52 (display), S-58 (checking), and S-63 (encryption). The development of the S-57 series standards can be traced back to the 1980s. With the advancement of technology over 40 years, S-57 has gradually become unsuitable for current electronic chart product requirements.
  • In 2001, the IHO initiated the development of S-100 as a comprehensive update to the S-57 series standards. By retaining the core content of the S-57 series specifications and developing new data structures, enriching data sharing and display methods, and other content, the S-100 series specifications make marine survey data and applications easier to integrate into geospatial solutions.
  • Compared to S-57, the S-100 series offers advantages such as a more flexible maintenance system, data requirements better suited for future development, better data model extensibility, and more open standards.
  • As the basic data specification for electronic charts, S-101 electronic charts, also stored in *.000 format, serve as a replacement for S-57 (Digital Hydrographic Data Transfer Standard).

SuperMap iDesktopX supports accessing data from seven product specifications: S-101, S-102, S-104, S-111, S-127, S-131, and S-421, and displays them according to their respective specifications.

This chapter will introduce the following content:

• S-101 Electronic Navigational Chart: Introduces the import, display, and feature property query and modification of S-101 data.
• S-102 Bathymetric Surface: Introduces the import of S-102 data and depth query.
• S-104 Navigational Water Level: Introduces the import of S-104 data and pick report data query.
• S-111 Surface Current: Introduces the import of S-111 data and symbolic display of surface currents based on the display catalog specification.
• S-421 Planned Route: Introduces the import of S-421 data and symbolic display of planned routes based on the display catalog specification.
• S-127 Maritime Traffic Management: Introduces the import of S-127 data, feature property query, and related information query of feature objects.
• S-131 Port Infrastructure: Introduces the import of S-131 data, feature property query, and related information query of feature objects.
• S-100 Property Settings: Introduces how to set the display parameters of S-101, S-102, S-104, and S-111 products in the S100 attribute tab of nautical chart properties.
• Multi-standard Integrated Display: Introduces S-98 interoperability settings and water level dynamic playback settings.