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Sequential Relations

A SequentialHyperedge implements ISO 12620 A.6.3 sequential relations and ISO 704:2022 §5.5.5 Table 1’s sequential relation subtypes. It connects a comprehensive concept (the start or whole) to two or more subordinate concepts in an ordered sequence — temporal, spatial, causal, or developmental.

Sequential is the third n-ary hyperedge type, alongside Partitive and Generic. The structural difference: member array order is significant in sequential, whereas partitive and generic members are unordered sets.

How it looks

The frog life cycle is ISO 704:2022 §5.5.5’s canonical developmental subtype. Five stages flow in temporal order, each with its delimiting characteristic:

Frog life cycle — sequential hyperedge

Arrows (not rake teeth) indicate order. Reversing the array reverses the sequence — a property Partitive and Generic don’t have.

When to use SequentialHyperedge vs. alternatives

ShapeUse when …
Binary sequentially_related / spatially_related / temporally_relatedPairwise assertion with no completeness or multidimensionality claim
PartitiveHyperedgeWhole is composed of parts (simultaneous) — a frog is not “composed of” its life stages
GenericHyperedgeSpecies share a genus — a tadpole is not a “kind of” adult frog, it becomes one
SequentialHyperedgeSteps in an ordered process; earlier → later; cause → effect; stage → stage

ISO 704:2022 §5.5.5 Table 1 enumerates the major sequential subtypes:

SubtypeExample
temporal relation (earlier–later)production → consumption
causal relation (cause–effect)humidity → corrosion
spatial relation (position in space)floor → ceiling
developmental relation (process step – process step)tadpole → frog

Multidimensionality (ISO 704:2022 §5.6.3)

A single comprehensive can have multiple sequential rakes distinguished by criterion — same multidimensionality principle as Partitive and Generic. For example, a manufacturing process can be decomposed by:

  • process step (raw material → design → prototype → production → QC → packaging → distribution)
  • organizational responsibility (engineering → operations → quality → logistics)

Each criterion is a distinct SequentialHyperedge file.

Model

SequentialHyperedge extends AbstractHyperedge
  +comprehensive: ConceptRef [1]              # start of the sequence
  +members:       SequentialMember [2..*]      # ORDERED — array order matters
  +completeness:  Completeness [0..1]         # complete | partial
  +criterion:     LocalizedString [0..1]      # sequencing criterion
  +sources:       ConceptSource [0..*]
  +notes:         LocalizedString [0..1]
  +status:        ConceptStatus [0..1]

SequentialMember extends HyperedgeMember
  +ref:           ConceptRef [1]
  +presence:      Presence [0..1]             # required | optional
  +count:         Count [0..1]                # exactly_one | at_least_one | multiple
  +is_delimiting: Boolean [0..1]

Wire format

# relations/example-frog-life-cycle/by-developmental-stage.yaml
$id: example-frog-life-cycle/by-developmental-stage
type: sequential_relation
status: valid
comprehensive:
  source: EXAMPLE
  id: "frog-life-cycle"
members:
  - ref: { source: EXAMPLE, id: "egg" }
    characteristic: { eng: aquatic egg mass laid in water }
  - ref: { source: EXAMPLE, id: "tadpole" }
    characteristic: { eng: aquatic larval stage with gills and tail }
  - ref: { source: EXAMPLE, id: "tadpole-with-legs" }
    characteristic: { eng: larval stage developing hind legs }
  - ref: { source: EXAMPLE, id: "froglet" }
    characteristic: { eng: transitional stage with both tail and limbs }
  - ref: { source: EXAMPLE, id: "adult-frog" }
    characteristic: { eng: adult form with lungs, no tail, four limbs }
completeness: complete
criterion: { eng: developmental stage (temporal order) }

The characteristic field carries the intension-difference that distinguishes this stage from the others — same role as in GenericMember.

Validators

  • check-sequential-relation-coherence — same checks as partitive/generic coherence (cardinality, MECE combo, duplicate criterion), plus a sequential-specific check: warns when a member ref appears more than once in the same sequence (suggests the sequence is poorly defined).

See also

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