---
title: TECObjectRef
framework: Core Services
role: symbol
role_heading: Type Alias
platforms: [Mac Catalyst 17.0+, macOS 10.0+]
path: coreservices/tecobjectref
---

# TECObjectRef

Defines an opaque reference to a converter object.

## Declaration

```occ
typedef struct OpaqueTECObjectRef *TECObjectRef;
```

## Discussion

Discussion When making a text conversion, the Text Encoding Converter requires a reference to a converter object that indicates how to accomplish the conversion. Functions, such as TECCreateConverter, that create a converter object return this reference, which you can then pass to other functions when converting text. A converter object reference is defined by the TECObjectRef data type.  The structure of the OpaqueTECObjectRef data type is private, and a converter object is not accessible directly.