Paper case report forms are still common in clinical research, legacy studies, and fieldwork. Getting them into REDCap means either re-typing every field by hand or finding a faster path. Pirai AI converts scanned CRFs directly into REDCap Data Dictionary CSVs. Scan your paper form to PDF. Upload. Download the Data Dictionary. Done.
What Is a CRF and Why REDCap?
A Case Report Form (CRF) is a structured document used in clinical trials and research studies to record data for each study participant. REDCap is the platform of choice for CRF digitisation at universities, hospitals, and research institutions : it provides audit trails, field validation, branching logic, and HIPAA-compliant data storage.
The bottleneck is getting the CRF structure into REDCap. Manual data entry into the Online Designer takes hours per instrument and introduces transcription errors. A Data Dictionary upload does it in one step.
What Pirai AI does with your CRF
Pirai AI reads your scanned CRF or digital CRF document, extracts all fields, field types, and response options, assigns correct REDCap field types (text, radio, checkbox, dropdown, notes), and generates a complete Data Dictionary CSV. All required columns are populated. Upload directly to REDCap.
Step-by-Step: CRF to REDCap
- 1Scan your paper CRF to PDFIf your CRF is a paper document, scan it to PDF using any scanner or scanning app. If it is already a digital file (Word, Excel, PDF), upload it directly.
- 2Upload to Pirai AI and select REDCapGo to platform.piraiai.com, upload your CRF file, and select REDCap as the output platform.
- 3Download the Data Dictionary CSVDownload the generated .csv file. Pirai AI has populated all required REDCap Data Dictionary columns from your CRF content.
- 4Create a new empty REDCap projectLog in to REDCap, click New Project, select Purpose (typically Research), choose Empty project, and click Create Project.
- 5Upload the Data Dictionary and commitGo to Project Setup > Data Dictionary. Click Choose File, select your .csv, click Upload File. Review the summary and click Commit Changes.
- 6Review in the Online DesignerGo to the Online Designer to verify all CRF fields are correctly represented. Add validation rules and branching logic as needed.
CRF Formats Pirai AI Accepts
| CRF Format | How to Upload |
|---|---|
| Paper CRF (scanned) | Scan to PDF, upload .pdf to Pirai AI |
| Word CRF (.docx) | Upload .docx directly |
| PDF CRF (digital) | Upload .pdf directly |
| Excel CRF (.xlsx) | Upload .xlsx directly |
| Legacy CRF (CSV) | Upload .csv directly |
After import: Always review CRF fields in the REDCap Online Designer before data collection. Validate field types, add min/max validation for numeric fields, and apply branching logic where required by your study protocol.
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Get Started
Upload your document at platform.piraiai.com. Select REDCap, download your Data Dictionary .csv, and upload via Project Setup > Data Dictionary > Upload File > Commit Changes.
For the full import guide, see How to Convert Word, PDF, Excel to REDCap. For the three-method comparison, see How to Convert a Word Document to a REDCap Data Dictionary.