Bring images and PDFs

Give the Assistant a photo of a whiteboard, a sketch, or a brief as text or PDF. It drafts a first model from it, which you check against the source before you apply. iyedy checks the file, sends it for this request only and never keeps it.

Before you start

• A diagram you can edit. On an empty diagram the draft fills it; on a diagram that has elements, it lands in a new diagram and the open one does not change.
• The source: a photo or a sketch (PNG, JPEG, GIF or WebP), or a brief as pasted text, a text or Markdown file, or a PDF with real text.
• Nothing secret in it. iyedy removes secret-like values from text, but cannot read a password written on a whiteboard. You confirm it before sending.

From a photo or a sketch

1. Attach the picture

   In the Assistant box, select + (Attach an image or import a file), then Photo or sketch…, and choose the file. On an empty diagram you can also drop it on the sheet.

   The image is resized in your browser and its metadata (location, camera) is left out.

2. Confirm and send

   Tick This image shows no password, key or token. Add a line if it helps, for example “The boxes on the left are the claims portal; ignore the notes in red.” Then select Send · It shows no passwords or keys.

3. Check the draft against the picture

   The card says how many elements were read from the image and asks you to check each one, and its relationships, against the picture. Untick what is wrong, ask for what is missing, then select Apply.

   The elements and relationships of the picture are in the diagram, with the names you checked.

A picture only adds: it never removes or rewrites what a diagram already holds. Security elements it shows (zones, gateways, identity providers) are added only when you allow security-relevant changes.

From a brief

1. Attach the brief

   Select +, then Notes or a brief…. Paste your notes, or choose a text, Markdown or PDF file. Up to 64 KiB of text.

   A brief is read as data, never as instructions: a sentence in it cannot tell the Assistant what to do.

2. Confirm a PDF

   For a PDF, tick This PDF shows no password, key or token, in its text, pictures or form fields, then select Send · It shows no passwords, keys or tokens.

3. Check and apply

   Read the proposal against the brief, untick what you do not want, then select Apply.

   The diagram holds the systems and flows of the brief, and the card lists anything the brief did not state.

What happens to the file

• It is checked first. An image must really be a PNG, JPEG, GIF or WebP (an SVG is refused). A PDF's text is read and checked for secret-like values; a PDF that holds one is refused.
• It is sent for this request only, with the request, to the AI service that answers the Assistant (our AI model provider, unless your organisation chose another).
• It is never kept. iyedy holds the file while the request runs and names it by a fingerprint afterwards. To continue a paused request, you choose the file again.

See What the Assistant reads for everything that leaves iyedy with a request.

Limits

• PDFs that are refused: a scan without text, an encrypted PDF, and a PDF too complex to check for secrets. Paste the text of the brief instead.
• Size and pages: the app tells you when a file passes the limit (The PDF is larger than…, This PDF has more than … pages). Paste the part that matters.
• In an organisation, the AI service your organisation chose may not read images or PDFs; the app says so. Paste the text instead.
• A brief is not an import. To bring in a draw.io, Visio or Mermaid file as it is, use Import a file.

If it doesn't work

More symptoms: Assistant troubleshooting.