How accession number formats work

Data entered into the Accession Number field must conform to a very specific format so that complex numbers can be sorted logically and the next available number calculated.

Overview

You may have several different formats of accession numbers which are valid now or were valid in the past. Each of these formats can be set up within Vernon CMS. We usually establish your accession number formats as part of installing your system.

  • The formats you set up will be used by the system to validate accession numbers during data entry.

  • Each format provides rules for the different segments of the accession number, which can be set to only allow specified patterns of keyboard characters. There are also optional characters defined as the separators of the segments, called segment delimiters. For example, the accession number 1990.123.a could be described as having three segments: a year, a sequence number and a part. Each of these is separated by a period.

  • There are several different pattern match settings that the system allows. These can be used for checking the keystrokes entered into each individual segment of the accession number.

  • The department which uses the format and the date period for which the format is valid can also be recorded and used as validation tools.

  • The system will display an error message if the accession number entered in the Accession Number field doesn't match any of the settings specified for your formats.

Creating accession number formats

You can create additional formats in consultation with us. You can have as many different formats as your organisation requires. For example, you may wish to have a different format for loan items or for items from different departments.

The format of accession numbers impacts on how records can be searched, so it's important to be careful when setting them up. Feel free to contact us at support@vernonsystems.com for advice.

For more information, see Create an accession number format.

Duplicate accession numbers

When defining accession number formats, you can indicate whether duplicate accession numbers are to be absolutely prohibited, or allowed after a positive response to a warning message. It's usually desirable to maintain completely unique accession numbers.

However, there may be situations which have resulted in certain number sequences being duplicated, such as:

  • A merger between two institutions.

  • Historic errors in registration which occurred prior to digitisation.

The system's ability to check the uniqueness of each accession number can be turned on and off. You may wish to maintain these historic numbers rather than assign new numbers to one set of items. You can turn off duplicate checking during data entry of these records, and turn it back on afterwards to prevent future incidents of duplication.

Departments and accession dates

You can also make use of the Accession Number field's sensitivity to the Department field and Accession Date field. When defining accession number formats you can specify which departments and which inclusive dates a particular format applies to. Then, when you enter that department name, or an accession date within the specified range and click in the Accession Number field, the appropriate next consecutive accession number for that department or those dates will appear.

This sensitivity facilitates data entry and acts as a protection against assigning incorrect accession numbers. Once you have defined the criteria that apply to a particular accession number format, the system will check to see that the criteria have been met, and if not, that accession number format will not be available for use in that instance.

For example, you may have specified that:

  • Format A applies only to items accessioned between 1961 and 1980 (inclusive).

  • Format B applies only to items which are part of the Decorative Arts department.

Whenever you enter a new accession number into the system, the system will check to see if an accession date has been entered for the object. If this date doesn't match the specified criteria (for example, if it doesn't fall between 1961 and 1980), then Format A will not be available for use for that object.

The system will also check to see if a department has been entered for the object and if it doesn't match the specified criteria (for example, if it is not the Decorative Arts department), then Format B will not be available for use for that object.

If no date and no department have been entered for the object, these will not be checked by the system, and all accession number formats will be available.

Multiple formats with potential for the same accession number

You may be using multiple accession number formats, and any two of these formats may allow the same accession number. In this case it is important that you differentiate between formats by one or more of these methods:

  • Use different segment delimiters for the formats, such as a full stop (.), hyphen (-) or forward slash (/).

  • Specify the department to which the format belongs.

  • Specify an earliest accession date or latest accession date for which the format is valid.

  • Set the priority for each of the formats that may give rise to identical accession numbers.

See also