International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF)

The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) is a set of tools and standards that make digital images interoperable, providing a standardized method of describing and delivering images online. IIIF allows the delivery of both image and structural and presentational metadata, structured as Linked Open Data (LOD) generally using JSON-LD.

IIIF comprises two main Application Programming Interfaces (APIs): an Image API and a Presentation API. Image formats are delivered in a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) string that specify the format of the final image, ensuring consistency across platforms. The Presentation API gives contextual information, in JSON-LD, and comprises metadata such as a title label, the sequence of the image in its original context, and other such information. These APIs are realized in IIIF-compatible software, such as Universal Viewer.

Examples

• IIIF (2017) “What is IIIF?”: The following image demonstrates IIIF compatibility, showing the presentation information on the left and the image information on the right.

Further Resources

• Cramer (2017) “03 Introduction to IIIF” [Video]
• IIIF (2017) “What is IIIF?” [Video]
• International Image Interoperability Framework (Wikipedia)
• GitHub Inc (2022) “International Image Interoperability Framework”