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Architecture Overview

Commerce Mesh Protocol (CMP) is designed as a decentralized, open protocol for commerce infrastructure. This document provides an overview of the technical architecture and design principles.

Core Design Principles​

1. Protocol, Not Platform​

  • Open standards over proprietary systems
  • Interoperability by design
  • No vendor lock-in
  • Community-driven evolution

2. Decentralized Architecture​

  • No central authority
  • Direct brand-to-consumer connections
  • Distributed trust model
  • Resilient infrastructure

3. Semantic Data Model​

  • JSON-LD for self-describing data
  • Schema.org vocabulary
  • Machine-readable semantics
  • AI-agent friendly

4. Four Core Primitives​

  • Discover - Find products and services
  • Transact - Execute commerce transactions
  • Trust - Establish and verify reputation
  • Fulfillment - Route and track orders

System Architecture​

Component Overview​

Brand Registry​

  • Decentralized brand directory
  • JSON-LD formatted entries
  • Git-based versioning
  • Community governance

Discovery Service​

  • Product search and filtering
  • Feed aggregation
  • Real-time indexing
  • Semantic search capabilities

Transaction Service​

  • Order processing
  • Payment orchestration
  • State management
  • Event streaming

Trust Service​

  • Reputation scoring
  • Review aggregation
  • Verification services
  • Dispute resolution

Fulfillment Service​

  • Order routing
  • Inventory management
  • Shipping integration
  • Tracking updates

Data Flow​

1. Registration Flow​

Brand → Create Entry → Submit PR → Review → Merge → Registry Update

2. Discovery Flow​

Agent → Query API → Search Index → Fetch Feeds → Return Results

3. Transaction Flow​

Customer → Create Order → Validate → Process Payment → Confirm → Fulfill

4. Update Flow​

Brand → Update Feed → Webhook Trigger → Index Update → Cache Invalidation

Technology Stack​

Data Formats​

  • JSON-LD - Linked data representation
  • Schema.org - Vocabulary standard
  • OpenAPI - API specifications
  • Webhooks - Event notifications

Protocols​

  • HTTPS - Secure communication
  • REST - API architecture
  • WebSockets - Real-time updates
  • OAuth 2.0 - Authentication

Standards​

  • ISO 4217 - Currency codes
  • ISO 8601 - Date/time format
  • UN/CEFACT - Unit codes
  • RFC 3986 - URI specification

Scalability Design​

Horizontal Scaling​

  • Stateless services
  • Load balancing
  • Geographic distribution
  • Edge caching

Data Sharding​

  • Deterministic SKU-based sharding
  • Parallel processing
  • Even distribution
  • Predictable routing

Caching Strategy​

  • CDN for static feeds
  • Redis for hot data
  • ETags for efficiency
  • Smart invalidation

Security Architecture​

Data Security​

  • HTTPS everywhere
  • Data encryption at rest
  • Secure key management
  • Regular security audits

Authentication​

  • API key authentication
  • OAuth 2.0 support
  • JWT tokens
  • Rate limiting

Trust Mechanisms​

  • HMAC webhook signatures
  • Certificate pinning
  • Domain verification
  • Fraud detection

Integration Patterns​

Direct Integration​

Brands host their own infrastructure:

Brand Server → Product Feed → CMP Discovery → Consumer

Proxy Integration​

Third-party hosting for smaller brands:

Brand → Proxy Service → Product Feed → CMP Discovery → Consumer

Marketplace Integration​

Existing marketplaces as CMP nodes:

Marketplace → Adapter → CMP Format → Discovery → Consumer

Future Architecture​

Planned Enhancements​

  • GraphQL API support
  • Blockchain integration
  • IPFS content addressing
  • Advanced ML/AI features

Extensibility​

  • Plugin architecture
  • Custom primitives
  • Protocol extensions
  • Community modules

Next Steps​