Interface Converter

All Known Subinterfaces:
TwoWayConverter
All Known Implementing Classes:
ArrayToArray, ArrayToCollection, CollectionToCollection, DataModelConverter, FormattedStringToNumber, NumberToNumber, ObjectToArray, ObjectToCollection, PropertyEditorConverter, ReverseConverter, SpringConvertingConverterAdapter, StringToBigDecimal, StringToBigInteger, StringToBoolean, StringToByte, StringToCharacter, StringToClass, StringToDate, StringToDouble, StringToEnum, StringToFloat, StringToInteger, StringToLocale, StringToLong, StringToObject, StringToShort

public interface Converter
A converter is capable of converting a source object of type getSourceClass() to a target type of type getTargetClass(). If the converter is a TwoWayConverter, it can also convert from the target back to the source.

Implementations of this interface are thread-safe and can be shared.

Author:
Keith Donald
  • Method Summary

    Modifier and Type
    Method
    Description
    convertSourceToTargetClass(Object source, Class<?> targetClass)
    Convert the provided source object argument to an instance of the specified target class.
    The source class this converter can convert from.
    The target class this converter can convert to.
  • Method Details

    • getSourceClass

      Class<?> getSourceClass()
      The source class this converter can convert from. May be an interface or abstract type to allow this converter to convert specific subclasses as well.
      Returns:
      the source type
    • getTargetClass

      Class<?> getTargetClass()
      The target class this converter can convert to. May be an interface or abstract type to allow this converter to convert specific subclasses as well.
      Returns:
      the target type
    • convertSourceToTargetClass

      Object convertSourceToTargetClass(Object source, Class<?> targetClass) throws Exception
      Convert the provided source object argument to an instance of the specified target class.
      Parameters:
      source - the source object to convert, which must be an instance of getSourceClass()
      targetClass - the target class to convert the source to, which must be equal to or a specialization of getTargetClass()
      Returns:
      the converted object, which must be an instance of the targetClass
      Throws:
      Exception - an exception occurred performing the conversion