ISO IEC 15286-1999 PDF

Full title and description

ISO/IEC 15286:1999 — Information technology — 130 mm optical disk cartridges for information interchange — Capacity: 5.2 Gbytes per cartridge. The standard specifies the family of 130 mm optical disk cartridges (ODCs) by type designation (R/W, P-ROM, O-ROM, DOW, P-DOW, WO, WO‑DOW), sector sizes supported, mechanical and dimensional characteristics, magneto‑optical recording characteristics and the conditions for conformance and interchange between drives.

Abstract

This International Standard defines the physical, mechanical, magneto‑optical and logical format characteristics needed to ensure mechanical and data interchange of 130 mm optical disk cartridges (nominal 5.2 Gbytes per cartridge; each side nominally 2.6 Gbytes). It specifies sector sizes (512, 1024 and 2048 bytes), embossed and user-written information formats, modulation and error‑correction methods, reference drive and conformance test conditions, and environmental/handling requirements for storage and operation.

General information

• Status: Published.
• Publication date: 10 June 1999.
• Publisher: Joint publication by ISO and IEC (ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 23 — Digitally Recorded Media for Information Interchange and Storage).
• ICS / categories: 35.220.30 (optical storage media).
• Edition / version: Edition 1.0 (1999).
• Number of pages: 148 pages.

Key bibliographic and product metadata sourced from IEC/ISO catalog records.

Scope

Specifies the characteristics required for 130 mm optical disk cartridges intended for information interchange, including: types of cartridge (rewritable, partially/pre‑recorded, write‑once, direct overwrite variants), supported sector sizes, mechanical and dimensional features to ensure drive interchangeability, magneto‑optical recording and readback characteristics, embossed (manufactured) information, user‑written data quality requirements, environmental and storage conditions, and the conditions for conformance testing and the Reference Drive. It is intended to enable interchange between optical disk drives and — together with a volume/file‑structure standard — to provide full data interchange between data processing systems.

Key topics and requirements

• Definitions of cartridge Types: R/W, P‑ROM, O‑ROM, DOW, P‑DOW, WO, WO‑DOW and their intended behavior.
• Nominal capacity and per‑side capacity (nominal 5.2 Gbytes per cartridge; typical allocation per side ≈2.6 Gbytes).
• Supported sector sizes: 512, 1 024 and 2 048 bytes (uniform sector size per disk).
• Mechanical, physical and dimensional specifications to ensure mechanical interchangeability between drives.
• Format of embossed and user‑written information: track/sector layout, modulation methods, error correction coding and physical disposition of recorded information.
• Magneto‑optical and thermo‑magnetic recording characteristics required for writing/reading/overwriting.
• Minimum quality levels for user‑written data to ensure reliable readback across compliant drives.
• Environmental, storage and handling conditions and conformance test conditions including a Reference Drive definition.

Typical use and users

Used by optical cartridge and drive manufacturers, test laboratories, system integrators, archival and data‑preservation organizations, procurement specialists specifying interoperable media, and engineers designing data interchange systems that rely on 130 mm ODC media. The standard provides the technical baseline for product specification, testing and interoperability assurance.

Related standards

Standards that typically accompany or complement ISO/IEC 15286 include standards that define volume and file structure for disk cartridges (to achieve full interchange), and other ODC/CD/DVD family standards for different disk sizes and recording technologies — for example ISO/IEC 9293 (volume and file structure of disk cartridges), ECMA/ISO volume and file structure standards such as ECMA‑107, and CD/DVD file/volume structure standards (ISO 9660 and subsequent revisions) and other ISO/IEC optical disk media standards for different form factors and recording methods. These references are typically used together to provide both the physical/media interchange and the logical file/volume interchange required for full data exchange.

Keywords

optical disk cartridge, ODC, 130 mm, magneto‑optical, thermo‑magnetic, direct overwrite (DOW), read/write (R/W), P‑ROM, O‑ROM, WO, sector size, conformance testing, reference drive, interchangeability, data interchange, ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 23

FAQ

Q: What is this standard?

A: ISO/IEC 15286:1999 is an international standard that specifies the physical, mechanical, recording and logical formatting characteristics of 130 mm optical disk cartridges (nominal 5.2 Gbytes per cartridge) to ensure mechanical and data interchange between compliant drives and systems.

Q: What does it cover?

A: It covers cartridge Types (R/W, P‑ROM, O‑ROM, DOW, P‑DOW, WO, WO‑DOW), sector sizes (512/1024/2048 bytes), embossed and user‑written info formats, modulation and error‑correction requirements, magneto‑optical recording characteristics, mechanical and dimensional specifications, environmental and storage conditions, and conformance testing (Reference Drive).

Q: Who typically uses it?

A: Cartridge and drive manufacturers, conformity/test laboratories, systems integrators, archivists and organizations specifying interoperable media for data interchange or long‑term storage use the standard as a design and verification reference.

Q: Is it current or superseded?

A: The published edition is Edition 1.0 dated 10 June 1999. As of 2 March 2026 this edition remains the published ISO/IEC 15286:1999 record in the ISO/IEC product catalogs consulted; no later edition or direct replacement was found in those catalogs at the time of this check. Standards can be reviewed or revised periodically, so always confirm the live status in the ISO or IEC catalog before relying on it for procurement or compliance.

Q: Is it part of a series?

A: It belongs to the family of ISO/IEC and ECMA standards addressing disk cartridge and optical media interchange (various sizes and recording technologies). It is produced under ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 23 (Digitally Recorded Media for Information Interchange and Storage) and is commonly used alongside volume/file‑structure standards that complete the data interchange specification.

Q: What are the key keywords?

A: Optical disk cartridge, ODC, 130 mm, magneto‑optical, thermo‑magnetic, DOW, R/W, P‑ROM, O‑ROM, WO, sector size, interchangeability, reference drive, conformance testing.