$VAR1 = {
          'inventors' => 'no content',
          'number' => 'as is',
          'inventor' => 'as array no content',
          'city,country,name,upper-name' => 'content'
        };

##</code><code>##

{
  'inventors' => {
                 'inventor' => [
                               {
                                 'country' => 'GB',
                                 'city' => 'Aston Clinton',
                                 'upper-name' => 'ANDY BARTH',
                                 'number' => {
                                             '_content' => '1',
                                             'type' => 'integer'
                                           },
                                 'name' => 'Andy Barth'
                               },
                               {
                                 'country' => 'GB',
                                 'city' => 'Aylesbury',
                                 'upper-name' => 'DANIELE DALL\'ACQUA',
                                 'number' => {
                                             '_content' => '2',
                                             'type' => 'integer'
                                           },
                                 'name' => 'Daniele Dall\'Acqua'
                               },
                               {
                                 'country' => 'GB',
                                 'city' => 'Calne',
                                 'upper-name' => 'NIGEL DREW',
                                 'number' => {
                                             '_content' => '3',
                                             'type' => 'integer'
                                           },
                                 'name' => 'Nigel Drew'
                               }
                             ],
                 'type' => 'array'
               }
};
##</code><code>##

{
  'inventors' => {
                 'inventor' => [
                               {
                                 'country' => 'GB',
                                 'city' => 'Aston Clinton',
                                 'upper-name' => 'ANDY BARTH',
                                 'number' => '1',
                                 'name' => 'Andy Barth'
                               },
                               {
                                 'country' => 'GB',
                                 'city' => 'Aylesbury',
                                 'upper-name' => 'DANIELE DALL\'ACQUA',
                                 'number' => '2',
                                 'name' => 'Daniele Dall\'Acqua'
                               },
                               {
                                 'country' => 'GB',
                                 'city' => 'Calne',
                                 'upper-name' => 'NIGEL DREW',
                                 'number' => '3',
                                 'name' => 'Nigel Drew'
                               }
                             ],
                 'type' => 'array'
               }
};
##</code><code>##

{
  'inventors' => {
                 '1' => {
                        'country' => 'GB',
                        'city' => 'Aston Clinton',
                        'upper-name' => 'ANDY BARTH',
                        'name' => 'Andy Barth'
                      },
                 '3' => {
                        'country' => 'GB',
                        'city' => 'Calne',
                        'upper-name' => 'NIGEL DREW',
                        'name' => 'Nigel Drew'
                      },
                 'type' => 'array',
                 '2' => {
                        'country' => 'GB',
                        'city' => 'Aylesbury',
                        'upper-name' => 'DANIELE DALL\'ACQUA',
                        'name' => 'Daniele Dall\'Acqua'
                      }
               }
};
##</code><code>##

use Data::Dumper;
use XML::Rules;

my $parser = XML::Rules->new(
	stripspaces => 7,
	rules => {
	  'inventors' => 'no content remove(type)',
	  'inventor' => 'by number',
	  'number,city,country,name,upper-name' => 'content'
	}
);

my $data = $parser->parsefile('c:\temp\inventors.xml');
#print Dumper($data);
print "The 1st inventor was $data->{inventors}{1}{name}\n";