What is PDF/E?
PDF/E (PDF/Engineering) is one of PDF subsets, which is designed to be an open and neutral exchange format for engineering and technical documentation. It is authorised by the International Organization for Standardization as Standard ISO 24517-1:2008. It is being developed and supported by AIIM (Association for Information and Image Management).
Why PDF/E?
The PDF/E format has been widespread used in the creation and exchange of engineering and technical documents. PDF/E is evolved from the need for an open, neutral exchange format for engineering and technical documentation. While multiple proprietary formats exist, they each have their own viewers, making it difficult to repurpose 3D and engineering data for downstream uses. The cost of distributing and storing paper contributes to the high cost of managing distribution and change throughout the project for product development teams as well as for extended supply chains.
Like PDF, PDF/E is a digital container which supports a wide variety of content and can be viewed and marked up using free and widely available Adobe Reader® software. PDF/E can help support the secure distribution of sensitive information and reduce the complexity and costs associated with distributing and storing paper. While PDF/E is an open standard developed and maintained by an ISO working group, it also leverages U3D, another open standard, for the representation of 3D contentThe PDF/E is based on PDF V1.6. However, it has been stripped of certain capabilities that are not used when creating engineering documents.
PDF/E format history
PDF/E features
The PDF/E is based on PDF V1.6. However, it has been stripped of certain capabilities that are not used when creating engineering documents. Features specific to PDF/E include mandatory font embedding in the file being created, hardware-independent colors, and XMP for metadata. In addition, documents in this format may use JavaScript (associated with 3D), encryption, digital signatures, transparency, layers, etc. PDF/E documents may not contain links to external objects, dynamic (XFA-based) forms, or JavaScript that is not associated with 3D.
PDF/E benifits
The PDF/E Standard specifies how the Portable Document Format (PDF) should be used for the creation of documents in engineering workflows.
- - Reduces requirements for expensive & proprietary software
- - Lower storage and exchange costs (vs. paper)
- - Trustworthy exchange across multiple applications and platforms
- - Self-contained
- - Cost-effectve and accurate means of capturing markups
- - Developed and maintained by PDF/E ISO committee
