| name | paper-parser |
| description | Parse PDF papers into structured Markdown/JSON using MinerU's precision extraction API. |
Paper Parser Skill
Purpose
Parse PDF papers into structured data (Markdown, images, tables, formulas) using MinerU's precision API. This is the third step in the paper reproduction pipeline.
When to Use
- After downloading a paper PDF with paper-downloader
- User asks to "parse", "extract", or "analyze" a PDF paper
- User needs structured content from a paper for summarization or reproduction
First-Time Setup
On first use, the user needs to provide their MinerU API token:
- Ask the user to visit https://mineru.net/apiManage to get their token
- Set the environment variable:
set MINERU_TOKEN=<token> (Windows) or export MINERU_TOKEN=<token> (Linux/Mac)
- The token is a long JWT string starting with "eyJ..."
How to Use
Step 1: Ensure PDF exists
The PDF should have been downloaded by paper-downloader, typically at:
workspace/<paper-slug>/paper/paper.pdf
Step 2: Run the Parser
python skills/paper-parser/parse_paper.py workspace/<paper-slug>/paper/paper.pdf -o workspace/<paper-slug>/parsed/
Options:
--model vlm — Highest precision (default, recommended for academic papers)--model pipeline — Faster but less precise--language en — For English papers (default)--language ch — For Chinese papers--timeout 600 — Increase timeout for large papers
Step 3: Read the Results
Check workspace/<paper-slug>/parsed/ for:
*.md — Full paper in Markdown formatimages/ — Extracted figures and diagramstables/ — Extracted table dataparse_report.json — Parsing log and file list
Step 4: Report to User
Tell the user:
- How many pages were parsed
- Key files generated (Markdown, images count)
- Any errors or warnings from the parser
Dependencies
Error Handling
- If token is missing, prompt user to set MINERU_TOKEN
- If parsing fails, check parse_report.json for error details
- For large papers (>600 pages), suggest splitting or using a different tool
- If upload fails, check network connectivity to mineru.net
