Hence, there is currently some discussion in ISO over the merits of keeping representation class as a separate entity in 11179, versus collapsing it into the general classification scheme facility[1].
A clear distinction between the two mechanisms, however, is that 11179 allows a data element to be classified by only one representation class, whereas there is no such restriction on other classification schemes.
Today it has a combination of meanings and now goes well beyond how a data element is represented in a computer system.
In practice this term is used to shed light on the semantics or meaning of the data element.
Representation class is a mechanism by which the functional and/or presentational category of an item may be conveyed to the user.