The Extraction Engine is a data analysis software module which can be used to extract information of interest from source document content such as web sites or document repositories.
The Engine's function is to periodically monitor a target information source and to extract desired content for use in another application, such as a portal web site or information store (eg: a database). The extracted content can then be integrated into a larger Business Intelligence (BI) or Knowledge Management (KM) system.
For example, consider a competitor's web site which contains an online catalog of product and pricing information. The Extraction Engine can be configured to periodically import this online catalog information into a local database where further analysis of the competitors catalog content can be performed.