Form 3 fields

Characteristic Number: AS9102 glossary definition

A characteristic number is the Form 3 identifier that ties a drawing balloon or listed design characteristic to its requirement, result, and evidence.

Updated July 3, 2026

What Characteristic Number means

A characteristic number is the Form 3 identifier that ties a drawing balloon or listed design characteristic to its requirement, result, and evidence.

It is usually the same number shown on the ballooned drawing, but the important rule is consistency: reviewers need one stable identifier from print to form row to evidence.

Use this term as a review cue: it should help connect a drawing requirement, specification, certificate, result, or approval field to the evidence a customer will inspect. If the purchase order or customer portal uses stricter wording, follow that controlled source instead of this glossary entry.

Where it appears in AS9102

AS9102 Form 3 field 5 is the characteristic number. It is required because the rest of the row depends on that identifier for traceability and reviewer navigation.

In an Articul review, this term is treated as part of the traceability path from source drawing or flowed requirement to form field, evidence, validation issue, and final approval. Use the AS9102 standard text as the controlled source, and use this glossary to clarify reviewer-facing meaning before export. When the term is ambiguous, keep the reviewer note close to the row or field it affects.

Review notes

Use characteristic numbers in a way that survives sorting, imports, and attachment review. If the print has duplicate or skipped balloons, document the reason before release.
Do not renumber rows late in the review without rechecking evidence links and nonconformance references; a mismatch can make the package appear incomplete.
Keep wording, units, identifiers, and attachment names consistent across the drawing, Forms 1-3, evidence files, and any customer portal submission.

AS9102 Forms 1-3 guideField-by-field hub for the complete FAIR package AS9102 Form 3 templateCharacteristic accountability workbook and completed example How to fill out Form 3Characteristic requirement, result, and nonconformance review Ballooned drawing examplesSample prints paired with downloadable Form 3 rows

Ballooned DrawingA ballooned drawing is an engineering drawing marked with numbered callouts so each inspected requirement can be tied to a row in AS9102 Form 3.Reference LocationReference location is the Form 3 field that points reviewers to where a characteristic appears on the drawing, specification, or other controlled source.RequirementA requirement is the design or flowed condition that a Form 3 row must verify, such as a dimension, tolerance, note, GD&T control, finish, material callout, or specification reference.

FAQ

What does Characteristic Number mean in an AS9102 FAIR?

A characteristic number is the Form 3 identifier that ties a drawing balloon or listed design characteristic to its requirement, result, and evidence. Use characteristic numbers in a way that survives sorting, imports, and attachment review. If the print has duplicate or skipped balloons, document the reason before release.

Source notes

This Articul glossary entry is based on the public AS9102 field matrix used in product validation and on the internal review patterns linked from the related guides. It is not a replacement for purchased AS9102 text, customer requirements, or purchase order flowdowns.

Changelog

July 3, 2026: Published the first Characteristic Number glossary entry with DefinedTerm, FAQPage, and BreadcrumbList schema plus links to related AS9102 guides and terms.

Keep the FAIR review tied to the print

Articul pre-fills Forms 1-3 from the print and routes anything uncertain to you, including drawing notes and title-block fields, while preserving source traceability for review.

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