EDB Fragment Class: InlineDatasetFragment

WebMEM InlineDatasetFragment (WM-IDF) Specification

Part of the WebMEM Protocol
Location: /specification/entity-dataset-bridge/inlinedatasetfragment/
Status: v1.0 (Draft)
Last Updated: 2026-03-09

InlineDatasetFragment Overview
Purpose
Relationship to SDT (YAML-in-HTML)
Supported Container Types
Required Attributes
Atomic Data Rows
Integration with Entity Dataset Bridge
Minimal Example
Producer Rules
Consumer Rules
Common Use Cases
Changelog

1) InlineDatasetFragment Overview

An InlineDatasetFragment is a rendered HTML dataset surface that exposes
multiple structured facts directly within the visible document.

Unlike YAML-based SDT fragments, which store machine-readable memory objects inside
<template> containers, InlineDatasetFragments use native HTML structures
such as tables or lists to present structured data that is both human-readable and
machine-addressable.

InlineDatasetFragments function as dataset host surfaces within the
Entity Dataset Bridge (EDB) architecture. A Schema.org
Dataset object references the fragment through its
distribution.contentUrl property, allowing indexing systems and AI
agents to resolve the dataset to a specific HTML fragment.


Schema Dataset
      ↓
Entity Dataset Bridge
      ↓
InlineDatasetFragment
      ↓
Atomic facts

2) Purpose

InlineDatasetFragments allow publishers to expose structured datasets directly
within normal web documents without requiring external files such as CSV or JSON.

This approach enables:

datasets embedded directly in articles or documentation
machine-readable facts within human-visible content
fragment-level dataset discovery via Schema.org
compatibility with AI retrieval and indexing systems

3) Relationship to SDT (YAML-in-HTML)

InlineDatasetFragments complement, but do not replace, YAML-based Semantic Data
Template (SDT) fragments.

Fragment Type	Purpose
DataFragment	canonical atomic machine memory
InlineDatasetFragment	rendered dataset container
IdentityFragment	entity definition
ExplainerFragment	structured explanation logic

In practice:


SDT fragments = canonical machine memory
InlineDatasetFragments = human-visible dataset surfaces

4) Supported Container Types

InlineDatasetFragments may be hosted within common HTML structures used to represent
datasets.

Table datasets


<table data-sdt-class="InlineDatasetFragment">

Tables are commonly used for cost schedules, statistics, and structured comparisons.

Definition list datasets


<dl data-sdt-class="InlineDatasetFragment">

Definition lists are useful for glossary-style datasets and term-value pairs.

List datasets


<ul data-sdt-class="InlineDatasetFragment">

Ordered or unordered lists may represent enumerated datasets or ranked values.

5) Required Attributes

An InlineDatasetFragment must include attributes that allow the fragment to be
addressable and machine-discoverable.

Attribute	Purpose
`data-visibility-fragment`	signals the presence of a WebMEM fragment
`data-sdt-class`	identifies the fragment class
`data-entity`	entity scope of the dataset
`data-fragment-id`	unique fragment identifier
`data-year` (optional)	dataset time scope
`data-fragment-scope`	semantic routing scope

6) Atomic Data Rows

Each row or entry within an InlineDatasetFragment represents a structured fact.

Rows should include attributes identifying the fact and its value.


<tr
  data-id="part_a_hospital_deductible"
  data-defined-term="Medicare Part A Inpatient Hospital Deductible"
  data-value="$1,736 per benefit period">

This pattern preserves the original table while exposing atomic values for machine
extraction.

7) Integration with Entity Dataset Bridge

The Entity Dataset Bridge connects a Schema.org Dataset object to an
InlineDatasetFragment through the distribution.contentUrl property.


{
 "@type": "Dataset",
 "name": "2026 Medicare Part A costs",
 "distribution": {
   "@type": "DataDownload",
   "encodingFormat": "text/html",
   "contentUrl": "https://example.org/page/#part-a-costs-2026"
 }
}

When crawlers resolve the fragment URL, they locate the InlineDatasetFragment and
extract the dataset values.

8) Minimal Example


<table
  id="part-a-costs-2026"
  data-visibility-fragment
  data-sdt-class="InlineDatasetFragment"
  data-entity="medicare:part-a"
  data-fragment-id="part-a-costs-2026"
  data-year="2026"
  data-fragment-scope="semantic-digest">

9) Producer Rules

MUST assign stable fragment identifiers.
MUST use semantic container structures where possible.
SHOULD preserve the human-readable table structure.
SHOULD expose atomic values through row attributes.
MAY link fragments through a Dataset distribution object.

10) Consumer Rules

MAY locate fragments through distribution.contentUrl.
MAY identify dataset containers via data-sdt-class.
MAY extract atomic values from row attributes.
MUST ignore unknown attributes gracefully.

11) Common Use Cases

InlineDatasetFragments are commonly used for:

cost schedules
statistical tables
regulatory thresholds
structured glossaries
ranked lists

12) Changelog

1.0 (2026-03-09): Initial InlineDatasetFragment specification.

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