Content management and transformation system for digital content

Abstract

A transformation engine that enables content and information to be transformed from one format, a source format, to a format that is compatible with the requesting device, a destination format. Advantageously, various device types can access and share content via a network without concern as to the original format of the content. When a client device provides a request for content, the transformation engine identifies delivery characteristics of the client device, and identifies a source for the requested content. The transformation engine then transforms the source formatted content into a format identified through a best fit analysis of the delivery characteristics of the device.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A content transformer engine comprising:
 a client identifier, the client identifier being operative to receive a content request from a client device, identify client device characteristics from the content request, and by deriving additional information about the client device from implicit sources and previously stored information;   a template database;   a best fit analyzer, the bet fit analyzer being operative to select a best fit template from the template database, the best fit template is being selected, based at least in part, on the client device characteristics;   a linker database, the linker database containing location information for a plurality of content resources and access information for each of the plurality of content resources;   an inbound content transformer, the inbound content transformer being operative to receive source formatted content and transform the source formatted content into interim formatted content; and   an outbound content transformer, the outbound content transformer being operative to transform the interim formatted content into destination formatted content in accordance with the best fit template.   
     
     
         2 . The content transformer engine of  claim 1 , wherein the outbound transformer is an extensible style language transformation engine. 
     
     
         3 . The content transformer engine of  claim 1 , wherein the inbound transformer is a reverse extensible style language transformation engine. 
     
     
         4 . The content transformer engine of  claim 1 , wherein characteristics of the client device comprise at least one of the following characteristics:
 screen resolution;   caching capabilities;   device type;   compression characteristics;   decompression characteristics;   network characteristics;   bandwidth characteristics; and   connection type.   
     
     
         5 . A server engine for obtaining and delivering desired content to a client device, the desired content residing in a first SGML-based format prior to deliver to said client device, said server engine comprising:
 a client device interface for receiving a content request from a client device;   a client identifier that is operative to interpret the content request to identify characteristics of the client device, interpret the characteristics of the client device to identify the second SGML-based format, and the desired content;   a template database;   a best fit analyzer operative for identifying a best fit template by retrieving constants stored in said template database which correlate to the characteristics of the client device and incorporating the constants into the bet fit template;   a linker database for identifying a content resource containing the desired content; and   a transformer engine operative to transform the desired content from the first SGML-based format into the second SGML-based format based on the best fit template.   
     
     
         6 . The server engine of  claim 5 , wherein said server engine includes and extensible style language transformation engine. 
     
     
         7 . The server engine of  claim 5 , wherein the characteristics of the client device comprises at least on of the following characteristics:
 screen resolution;   caching capabilities;   device type;   compression characteristics;   decompression characteristics;   network characteristics;   bandwidth characteristics; and   connection type.