| name | doc-ears-autopilot |
| description | Generate EARS documents end-to-end from a PRD, a prompt, or an IPLAN - detect input, validate readiness, generate formal statements, validate, and run the audit/fix cycle. Use to create or batch-create EARS. |
| metadata | {"tags":["sdd-workflow","layer-3-artifact","automation-workflow"],"custom_fields":{"layer":3,"artifact_type":"EARS","skill_category":"automation-workflow","upstream_artifacts":["BRD","PRD"],"downstream_artifacts":["BDD","ADR","SPEC","TDD","IPLAN"],"version":"0.24.0","framework_spec_version":"0.40.0","last_updated":"2026-05-23","adapts":["section_toggles","active_layers","audit_threshold","glossary","review_mode"]}} |
doc-ears-autopilot
Purpose
Automated EARS generation pipeline. From an upstream PRD, a user prompt, or
an implementation plan (IPLAN-*), it analyzes the source, verifies upstream
readiness, generates a complete EARS document of atomic WHEN-THE-SHALL-WITHIN
statements, validates readiness, maintains EARS-00_index.md, and drives the
audit↔fix cycle to a passing score — for one EARS or a batch.
Layer: 3. Upstream: a PRD (and its BRD), a prompt, or an IPLAN.
Downstream: a validated EARS + index entry.
Skill Dependencies
| Skill | Role |
|---|
../doc-ears/SKILL.md | EARS structure, the four patterns, syntax rules |
../doc-ears-audit/SKILL.md | quality gate (scoring + findings) |
../doc-ears-fixer/SKILL.md | applies fixes from the audit report |
../doc-naming/SKILL.md | element-ID standards and @threshold: tags |
Input Contract
Accepts: a target EARS id/path; an upstream PRD id/path; a free-text prompt; or
an IPLAN path. Optional: score threshold (default 90), max fix iterations
(default 3), batch list. With no explicit input, treat the request as a prompt.
Smart Document Detection
For each target, check whether the EARS already exists (nested folder
docs/03_EARS/EARS-NN_{slug}/):
- Missing → generate mode (from the upstream PRD / prompt / IPLAN).
- Exists → review & fix mode (audit, then fix if below threshold).
Determine deliverable_type (code/document/ux/risk/process,
inherited from the upstream PRD) from the source content.
Model precheck
Advisory, best-effort. Surfaces the model you recommended for this layer; it
cannot switch the session model. Before invoking the driver:
- If
.claude/aidoc-flow.config.yaml is absent, or has no model.* keys, skip
this section entirely (no output).
- Resolve the recommended model:
model.per_layer.EARS if set, else
model.default.
- Act on
model.precheck (warn | silent | block):
warn (default) — print one line, then continue to the driver:
ℹ EARS recommends model '<rec>'. If you're not on it, run /model <rec> (or set model.precheck: silent to hide this).silent — print nothing; continue.block — print the line above plus precheck=block: confirm you want to draft on the current model, or run /model <rec> first., then wait for the
user to confirm before continuing.
Workflow
Saga-driven generation loop (review_mode: team)
Step 1 — Invoke the driver. Period. The harness sets PREV_OUTPUT,
ARTIFACT_ID, ARTIFACT_PATH env vars before invoking this SKILL.
Your first orchestration action MUST be the Bash tool (the Model precheck above runs first), running exactly:
python3 "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/tools/saga_driver.py" \
--layer 03_EARS
Use a generous timeout (≥1800s). Do not pre-analyze the input. Do not
read the upstream. Do not classify type/scope. The driver and its
dispatched subprocesses (/aidoc-flow:doc-ears for draft,
/aidoc-flow:doc-ears-audit for review, /aidoc-flow:doc-ears-fixer
for fixer) handle all of that. The driver enforces the state machine
preemptively per
${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/REVIEW_SAGA.md; this
SKILL's job is to invoke it and report.
Step 2 — After the driver returns, report. Read
.aidoc/review/03_EARS/${ARTIFACT_ID}/saga.json. Final status MUST be
one of CLOSED (PASS), ESCALATED (terminal FAIL), or
PARTIAL_TIMEOUT (soft-deadline; resumable). Print the status, the
final score from verdict.json if present, and a 1-line summary.
Step 3 — Index update (only on CLOSED). Add a row to
docs/03_EARS/EARS-00_index.md referencing the new EARS; update the upstream artifact's
downstream entry.
That is the entire workflow in team mode. If you find yourself
doing anything else here — drafting prose, dispatching Task subagents,
invoking other slash commands — STOP, recognize that you are
bypassing the driver, and invoke the Bash command above instead.
Linear Pipeline (review_mode: single_pass)
Unchanged legacy behaviour — used when the profile says so, when Task
subagent dispatch is unavailable, or at write-time (on_author) where
cost is the primary concern. The 5-step in-session pattern below
produces the EARS without saga.json; the harness's saga-journal
check will then fail the layer, so this mode is only appropriate for
manual dry-runs.
- Input analysis — classify the input (PRD / prompt / IPLAN), locate the
upstream PRD and its BRD, and decide generate vs review-and-fix.
- Readiness check — confirm the upstream PRD exists and is EARS-Ready
(score ≥ threshold); reserve the next
EARS-NN. Categorize PRD requirements
into the four EARS patterns (Event, State, Unwanted, Ubiquitous).
- Generation — produce the EARS per
../doc-ears/SKILL.md: Document
Control first, all 5 sections, atomic WHEN-THE-SHALL-WITHIN statements,
tabular Quality Attributes (percentile timing), element IDs EARS.NN.SS.xxxx,
cumulative @brd/@prd tags, @threshold: references, state/sequence
diagram tags via ../charts-flow/SKILL.md.
- Validation — run
../doc-ears-audit/SKILL.md from scratch.
- Audit ↔ fix cycle — while score < threshold and iterations < max: run
../doc-ears-fixer/SKILL.md, then re-audit. On pass, update
docs/03_EARS/EARS-00_index.md; on exhausting iterations, flag for manual
review.
Execution Modes
- Single — one EARS (generate or review-and-fix).
- Batch — multiple EARS, processed in chunks of 3 to bound context;
generate each EARS only after its upstream PRD is confirmed ready.
- Dry-run — report the planned actions (patterns, sections, IDs) without
writing files.
Quality Gates
- Generation does not complete until the audit passes (BDD-Ready ≥ threshold, 0
Tier-1 errors) or the iteration cap is hit (then: manual-review flag).
- The EARS index is updated only after an EARS passes.
- Fresh audit every cycle — no cached scores.
Error Handling
| Situation | Action |
|---|
| Upstream PRD missing or below EARS-Ready threshold | stop; report the missing/unready dependency |
| Max iterations reached below threshold | write reports, flag for manual review, continue batch |
| Source input ambiguous | fall back to prompt mode; record assumptions in the EARS |
| Vague/compound statement cannot be auto-resolved | flag for manual review, continue batch |
| Write/permission error | log, skip the item, continue the batch |
Adaptation
Before applying defaults, read the project adaptation profile
(.aidoc/profile.yaml) and apply it in both the generation and the internal
audit/fix phases. Honor section_toggles, active_layers, audit_threshold
(raise-only — stricter only), and glossary. Ignore any unknown or
out-of-surface key; absent a profile, use framework defaults.
Authority: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/ADAPTATION.md.
Related Resources
- Create:
../doc-ears/SKILL.md · Audit: ../doc-ears-audit/SKILL.md · Fix:
../doc-ears-fixer/SKILL.md
- Authority:
${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/03_EARS/EARS-TEMPLATE.yaml,
${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/03_EARS/README.md,
${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/03_EARS/EARS-00_index.TEMPLATE.md
