5.2 Category Bitmap Specification

5.2.1 Bitmap Vector

The bitmap is defined as:

$$\begin{gathered} B=(b_0,b_1,\dots ,b_i), \\ {b}_i\in 0,1 \\ i\in [0,255] \end{gathered}$$

Categories are mapped to a 256-bit vector where each bit represents a specific category based on a predefined schema. The bitmap can be efficiently stored as a 256-bit integer types or a byte array of size 32 (32 bytes).

Multiple bits indicates multiple categories, i.e.:

• Bits 64-127: Protocol specific Categories
• Bits 128-191: Network Specific Categories
• Bits 192-255: Cross-chain Categories

This compact representation allows for efficient storage and querying of categorized records.

5.2.1 Pointers:

Pointers facilitate bitmap to bitmap referencing and enable the creation of complex category structures. Bitspaces can be reserved for pointers to other bitmaps as long as there is a clear schema for the pointer and a mapping function between the pointer and the referenced bitmap.

5.2.2 Partitions & Reservations:

A parition is a logical grouping of categories within a specific range of bits. Partitions are used to group categories based on their domain or ownership.

i.e. Bitspace 0-63 can be reserved for AML categories, while bitspace 64-127 can be reserved for KYC categories.

During the integration phase between an entity and an ASP, the entitity (i.e. a protocol) can reserve a specific range of bits for it’s categories, i.e. Bitspace 64-127 for Protocol X categories.