Definition(en): Initial Graphics Exchange Specification, or IGES, establishes information structures for the digital representation and exchange of product definition data. It supports exchanging this data among Computer-Aided Design and Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAD and CAM, respectively) systems. IGES defines file structure and language formats to represent geometric, topographical, and non-geometric product definition data. These formats are independent of the modeling method used, and they support data exchange using physical media or electronic communication protocols.