BIN segment ID

Binary data is identified with a BIN segment ID, which notifies the parser that data following the segment ID is binary. Although the parser must always treat the BIN segment as if it contained binary data, the segment can contain normal text. The first data element of the BIN segment contains the length of the binary data so that the parser knows the amount of data to pass without interference. The first character after the binary data should be BIN segment terminator. Any other value is a syntax error that ends parsing for the envelope.

The BIN segment ID triggers the special binary processing. Although the 841 transaction set is the only one that uses the BIN segment, binary processing is not limited to the X12 standard. In addition, WebSphere Partner Gateway applies this special processing to all envelope types.

Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2005