A reference architecture for digital library systems: principles and applications

A reference architecture for a given domain provides an architectural template which can be used as a starting point for designing the software architecture of a system in that domain. Despite the popularity of tools and systems commonly termed ``Digital Library'', very few attempts exist to set the foundation governing their development thus making integration and reuse of third party assets and results very difficult. This paper presents a reference architecture for the Digital Library domain characterised by many, multidisciplinary and distributed players, both resource providers and consumers, whose requirements evolve along the time. The paper validates this reference architecture by describing the structure of two current systems, DILIGENT and DRIVER, facing the problem to deliver large-scale digital libraries in two different contexts and with diverse technologies.