Extract structured data from unstructured documents
How to automate data extraction from resumes, invoices, and more with Extracta AI.
2024-12-20
Extracting structured data from unstructured documents like resumes, invoices, and contracts is a critical task for many businesses. However, manual data entry is slow, error-prone, and drains valuable resources from more important tasks.
Enter Extracta AI, a powerful tool that revolutionizes data extraction by automating the process of turning unstructured documents into usable, structured data.
In this tutorial, we'll walk you through using Extracta AI to effortlessly extract key information from various document types, including a UI/UX designer's resume as our practical example.
Steps we'll follow in this tutorial:
- Create an account and access the dashboard
- Initiate a new extraction
- Configure the extraction settings
- Customize the extraction fields
- Upload and process documents
Let's get to it.
Step 1: Initiate a new extraction
Create a new account with Extracta AI, then from the dashboard, click "Data Extraction" in the left-side menu.
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Click the blue "+ New extraction" button in the upper right corner.
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In the "Choose Your Template" popup, select a pre-existing template that best fits your document type, or choose "Custom Document" for unique formats.
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For example, if you're working with resumes like our UI/UX designer sample, you might select the "Resume/CV" template. Click "Next" to proceed.
Step 2: Configure the extraction settings
Now, let's configure the extraction settings:
1. In the "New Extraction" popup, give your extraction a descriptive name.
2. Add an optional description if desired.
3. Select the appropriate language for your documents.
4. If applicable, check boxes for additional document options (e.g., "Contains tables" or "Includes handwritten text").
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5. Click "Next" to continue.
Step 3: Customize the extraction fields
This step is crucial for tailoring the extraction to your specific needs:
Review the pre-defined fields in the "Set Fields" popup. Modify the template to fit your document structure:
- Remove any irrelevant fields.
- Add new fields as needed.
- Adjust field types (e.g., String, List<String>, Object) to match your data.
For instance, with our UI/UX designer resume, we might:
- Add a "professional_skills" field (type: List<String>) to capture software skills.
- Modify the "work_experience" section to include a "responsibilities" field (type: List<String>).
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Click "Next" when you're done customizing the fields.
Step 4: Upload and process documents
Now it's time to extract data from your documents. Back on the "Data Extraction" page, click on your newly created extraction.
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Click the blue "+ Add files" button and upload the document(s) you want to extract data from. This could be one or multiple files.
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Confirm the upload and click "Upload" to begin processing. Wait for the extraction to complete. The status will change from "processing" to "finished" when done.
Once the extraction is complete, you can review the extracted data, download it in various formats (Excel, CSV, or JSON), and use it for further analysis or integration with other systems.
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By following these steps, you've successfully used Extracta AI to extract structured data from unstructured documents. This process can be applied to various document types, from resumes and invoices to contracts and beyond, making it a versatile tool for automating data extraction tasks.
This tutorial was created by Tanmay.