A good start.
A better paper trail.

Try it with a sample first.

Paperbridge currently ships as a debug-signed Android pilot. It supports Android 7 and later. It is not a Play Store release or a production certification.

1. Download the APK to your Android phone.
2. Open the file and follow Android’s installation prompts. Your device may ask you to allow installation from the browser or file manager you use.
3. Open Paperbridge and choose Explore with a demo survey.
4. Open Projects, select the sample household survey and generate a paper pack. Try capture and review with sample data.

Demo mode never submits to Kobo. After a complete review, it can export the generated XML and original photos as a ZIP.

Your Kobo account is the connection.

Enter your Kobo server URL, then choose either your username and password or your Kobo API key. There is no OCR key or processing-server setting.

Use the root URL, without a project path or username suffix. Standard KoboCollect addresses are mapped to the matching Kobo API host automatically.

Project access

You can load deployed projects you own, or projects shared with Add submissions access. Kobo automatically includes View form with that permission. The pilot’s final upload verification separately needs access to the resulting submission and attachments.

In Projects, choose Refresh projects, then open a project. It must be deployed and active. Projects are labelled Deployed, Draft, or Archived. If Kobo has newer undeployed edits, Paperbridge loads the immutable deployed version so the paper layout and submission XML stay aligned with Kobo. The app does not change sharing permissions or deploy forms on your behalf.

See Kobo’s permissions guide and API key instructions.

A page with a known identity.

1. Choose the project and printed language.
2. Set the initial number of records for each repeat section. Each section supports up to 40 initial records per parent.
3. Generate a paper pack. It contains a unique questionnaire ID, per-page codes, alignment marks and a saved field map.
4. Print all pages at their intended A4 layout. Keep codes and corner marks intact.

Household tables and nested repeats are supported. If the printed pack needs more records, use Add record to append continuation pages to that same questionnaire. Earlier page maps stay unchanged. A pack can contain up to 300 pages.

Existing arbitrary paper questionnaires do not have the required field map. The current workflow supports scanning packs generated by Paperbridge, rather than automatically identifying fields on any document.

Required photo attachment fields

Live Kobo submission requires this top-level repeat. The app can export an XLSForm with photo fields as a proposed revision. Review it, deploy it in Kobo yourself, then reopen the deployed project.

XLSForm import/export carries the survey, choices and settings sheets. It is not a lossless workbook editor or a media importer. Always check a proposed revision before deployment.

Make the photograph easy to read.

• Lay the paper flat and use even lighting. Avoid glare and shadows over answer boxes.
• Include all four corner marks and the page code. Do not crop off the edges.
• Hold the camera steady and photograph the page as squarely as possible.
• Use JPEG or PNG images under 20 MB and 40 megapixels.
• Capture every printed page, including blank pages.

The app saves the original photograph before processing, then aligns a separate image for review. The page code links it to the questionnaire; the saved map identifies each answer area and repeat record.

Checkbox detection and basic English/French OCR run on the device. The app bundles its OCR worker, WebAssembly engine and language models. After loading a project, this part works without connectivity.

Replace this photograph intentionally clears that page’s extracted answers and review marks. Other pages remain unchanged. Use it to retake an unclear page or reprocess an earlier scan.

You approve the answers.

Each extracted answer appears beside its source crop. Correct it, then mark it reviewed. Basic OCR reads printed text and numbers; handwriting usually needs manual transcription. A high OCR confidence score never approves an answer for you.

• Check spelling, digits, dates and choice selections against the photo.
• Mark unused repeat records, including their nested records, as unused.
• Confirm that all pages are captured and the repeat counts are correct.
• Save the review before navigating away.
• Resolve the remaining validation checks before submitting.

The bottom menu remains available throughout the signed-in app. If there are unsaved edits, the app asks you to save them before leaving the questionnaire.

A direct submission, with the originals.

When connected, select Submit to Kobo. The Android app sends the structured submission and original photographs directly to your Kobo server. The website and its VPS do not participate in this transfer.

The app freezes the submission XML, UUID and photo filenames before its first upload attempt. If an upload is interrupted, use Verify upload to check and resume the same record. Photos already acknowledged by Kobo are skipped on retry.

A changed deployed-form version blocks sending an older paper pack until it is reviewed. Submission records are locked after the first upload attempt to preserve their identity during recovery.

Capture/review and OCR can be offline. Kobo sign-in, remote project loading, sending and verification require internet. Retries run while the app is open; the pilot does not provide a guaranteed background upload service.

What the pilot supports.

Always read the project’s Form compatibility section. The app can let you inspect a layout while keeping live submission blocked until issues are resolved.

Where the data lives.

In the Android app

Forms, generated questionnaires, original images and review data are kept in app storage on the device. OCR runs there too. Kobo credentials are protected using Android Keystore. The login password is exchanged with Kobo and is not retained.

Records and photos do not have additional record-level encryption. Removing the app or clearing its data removes local records. Automatic retention and deletion are not implemented. Device copies remain after sending; plan your team’s device access and retention procedures accordingly.

In Kobo

When you explicitly submit, the app sends answers and original photos to the configured Kobo server. Kobo’s hosting, access and retention arrangements then apply to those copies.

On this website

This site has no survey-upload endpoint, account form, analytics script or tracking cookie. Fonts and assets are served locally. Ordinary web requests still reveal information such as the visitor’s IP address to the hosting infrastructure; logging depends on the VPS operator’s configuration.

The optional developer browser preview is separate from this information website. Its credentials use browser session storage, and browser restrictions may prevent direct Kobo requests. Use Android for the live workflow.

If something doesn’t work.

A project is missing or will not open

Check that you are signed into the correct Kobo server and account. Refresh Projects. Confirm the form is deployed, active and shared for data collection or owned by you. Draft and archived projects must be deployed and activated before live collection. A 401 indicates a rejected login; a 403 indicates Kobo denied that request. The app shows a retry message when opening fails.

The scan cannot be matched

Use the generated pack belonging to this questionnaire. Retake the photograph with its complete QR code and corner marks visible. Avoid blur, folds and glare.

OCR is empty or incorrect

Compare the source crop and enter the answer manually. Use English/French hints for the bundled models. The original photo is kept when recognition fails.

The file did not download

On Android, the app prepares the PDF, XLSForm or ZIP and opens the system share sheet. Choose an available save, print or file-sharing destination. In the developer browser preview, use the explicit Download link after the file is prepared.

An upload was interrupted

Keep the questionnaire and use Verify upload when connected. Do not create a duplicate record as a workaround. If verification is denied, check access to the resulting submissions and attachments.

Version 0.3.5

Android 7+ · Debug APK · 24.7 MB

• Direct Kobo login with username/password or API key; standard KoboCollect server URLs are accepted.
• Automatic local OCR with bundled English and French models.
• Authenticated project downloads for private owned and shared collector forms.
• Phone layouts, visible project-opening errors and retry controls.
• Persistent bottom navigation on signed-in screens, including landscape layouts.

Validation status: automated tests and browser layout checks have been run. Real-account testing against your Kobo server, camera recovery after Android terminates the app, memory use and accuracy on your paper samples still need a pilot on your target phones.

Download the SHA-256 checksum to verify the APK file. This build is intended for testing; it is not a signed store release.