Heratio Help Center article. Category: Technical.

Records in Contexts (RiC) Integration Guide

What is RiC?

Records in Contexts (RiC) is the new international standard from the International Council on Archives (ICA) that replaces the traditional archival standards ISAD(G), ISAAR(CPF), ISDF, and ISDIAH. Unlike the hierarchical approach of ISAD(G), RiC uses a graph-based model that allows records to have multiple relationships and contexts.

How RiC Works in Heratio AHG

The Basic Concept

Traditional Heratio shows records in a tree structure (Fonds → Series → File → Item). RiC adds a network view that shows all the connections between records, people, organizations, places, and events.

Traditional View (ISAD):          RiC View (Graph):
                                  
    Fonds                              Person ←──── Record ────→ Place
      │                                   │            │
    Series                                ↓            ↓
      │                           Organization ←── Event
    File                                
      │                           
    Item

What You See

When viewing any archival description, a RiC Explorer panel appears in the sidebar showing:

Interactive Graph - Visual network of related entities
Creators - People and organizations who created the records
Related Records - Other descriptions connected to this one
Events - Activities like creation, accumulation, transfer

User Features

On every record view page, the RiC panel shows:

Feature	Description
2D Graph	Interactive network diagram (drag, zoom, click)
3D Graph	Immersive 3D visualization (toggle button)
Fullscreen	Expand graph to full screen
Accordions	Expandable lists of Creators, Related Records, Events

2. Full RiC Explorer

Access via: Browse → RiC Explorer or /ric-dashboard/

Page	What It Does
Dashboard	Overview statistics and recent activity
Graph Explorer	Full-page interactive visualization
Semantic Search	Search by relationships, not just keywords
Entity Categories	Browse by RiC entity types
Provenance Timeline	Visual history of record custody

3. Admin Dashboard

Access via: Admin → RiC Management or /admin/ric

Section	Purpose
Status	Monitor synchronization health
Orphans	Manage disconnected data
Queue	View pending sync operations
Configuration	Adjust sync settings

How Records Map to RiC

Heratio Records → RiC Entities

What You Create in Heratio	Becomes in RiC
Archival Description (Fonds/Series/File)	Record Set
Archival Description (Item)	Record
Digital Object	Instantiation
Authority Record (Person)	Person
Authority Record (Family)	Family
Authority Record (Organization)	Corporate Body
Repository	Agent (Holder)
Function	Activity
Subject/Place Access Points	Concepts/Places

Relationships Captured

Heratio Action	RiC Relationship Created
Add Creator to record	`hasCreator` / `wasCreatedBy`
Add record to Repository	`hasOrHadHolder`
Link digital object	`hasInstantiation`
Parent/child hierarchy	`isOrWasIncludedIn`
Add subject access point	`hasOrHadSubject`
Add place access point	`hasOrHadPlaceRelation`

Automatic Synchronization

What Happens Automatically

When You...	RiC System...
Create a record	Adds it to the graph with all relationships
Edit a record	Updates the graph connections
Delete a record	Removes it and cleans up orphaned links
Move a record	Updates parent/child relationships
Add a creator/subject	Creates new relationship links

Background Processing

Sync runs automatically when you save
Large operations queue for background processing
Weekly integrity checks ensure data consistency
Monthly cleanup removes orphaned data

Benefits of RiC Integration

For Researchers

Discover connections between records that hierarchy doesn't show
Visual exploration of archival collections
Multiple entry points - find records via people, places, or events
Understand provenance through relationship chains

For Archivists

Richer description with multi-dimensional relationships
Flexible arrangement without breaking hierarchies
Standards compliance with ICA's latest model
Future-proof metadata that exports to linked data formats

For Institutions

Linked data ready - connects to Wikidata, VIAF, etc.
Semantic search capabilities
Interoperability with other RiC-compliant systems
Modern standards alignment

Quick Reference

Access Points

Feature	URL
RiC Panel	Sidebar on any record view
Full Explorer	`/ric-dashboard/`
Admin Dashboard	`/admin/ric`

Graph Colors

Color	Entity Type
🔵 Cyan	Records (Fonds, Series, Files, Items)
🟡 Yellow	Corporate Bodies
🔴 Red	People and Families
🟣 Purple	Activities and Events
🟠 Orange	Places
⚫ Gray	Digital Objects (Instantiations)

Keyboard Shortcuts (Graph)

Key	Action
Scroll	Zoom in/out
Drag	Pan view
Click node	View details
Double-click	Navigate to record
Escape	Exit fullscreen

Summary

RiC integration transforms Heratio from a hierarchical catalog into a connected knowledge graph. Records, people, organizations, places, and events are all linked together, enabling new ways to discover and understand archival materials.

Component	Status
RiC Panel (sidebar)	✅ Complete
Full Explorer	✅ Complete
Admin Dashboard	✅ Complete
Auto-sync	✅ Complete
2D/3D Visualization	✅ Complete

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