Purpose

The OI-FITS (Optical Interferometry Flexible Image Transport System) format is commonly used to store data provided by optical interferometers. This software package is intended to check the validity of OI-FITS files relative to IAU standard.

The software package is intended to provide information about an input file, especially if this one isn't compliant with the norm, with different levels of granularity.

Technical information about OI-FITS format.

See the following articles or documents:

• FITS format definition
• OIFITS format definition
• AMBER product data specification

OI-FITS format controller

This tool aims at checking OI-FITS files format validity.

Requirements

Software perspective

The OI-FITS format controller software is intended to be provided as

• a program runable in standalone mode
• a program operable on common platforms (ie Windows, Mac OS X, Linux)
• function library (?? or program ??) which can be integrated in a user's program

General requirements

The software has to provide a command line interface (CLI) and a graphical user interface (GUI).

Both will allow the user

• to select one or more input files.
• to configure the tool according to specific expectations (TBD - lesquelles sont possibles exactement?? ).
• to access detailed information about detected irregularities.
• anything else???

Constraint requirements relative to the format itself

CR-01 Mandatory binary tables

The following tables and their occurance are strictly defined in the standard. These tables are the ones with an extension name beginning with OI_.

• OI_TARGET (one and only one)
• OI_WAVELENGTH (one or more)
• OI_ARRAY (one or more)

And one or more of the following ones:

• OI_VIS
• OI_VIS2
• OI_T3

Additional binary tables may appear in the file, provided their extension names do not begin with OI_.

CR-02 OI_* tables content

OI_* tables mandatory keywords and columns names, formats and units are described in IAU document. None of them can be missing, but others can be added.

CR-03 Cross referencing

Cross referencing identifiers must be unique (eg: Each OI_WAVELENGTH table in a file must have a unique value for INSNAME).