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Extracting Tabular Data from PDF Documents with Python Code Tool

DavidM
Alteryx
Alteryx

Over the past few weeks, our team has posted some pretty interesting (well, we hope anyway) articles on how to utilize the Python Code tool for parsing Words and PDFs.

In case you have missed any of those, check out How to use R and Python to Parse Word Documents and Parsing Text From PDF Documents with Python Code Tool

 

This article just piles on with yet another interesting feature to extend the endless possibilities of Alteryx Designer.

 

Intro

We are utilizing the Python Code tool within Alteryx Designer together with just recently announced Camelot package for Python to parse tabular data from PDFs.

Being able to parse text alone from PDFs is a great thing. It may come as a bit of a nightmare to try parsing tabular data from your PDF documents though. Camelot package and a workflow from this post should allow you overcome these issues.

 

On many occasions, I have seen customers storing PDFs generated by legacy reporting platforms that are still out there on many shared drives or SharePoints.

 

The PDF format has no internal representation of a table structure, which makes it difficult to extract tables for analysis. A lot of open data is stored in PDFs, which was not designed for tabular data in the first place.

 

Camelot, a Python library and command-line tool, makes it easy for anyone to extract data tables trapped inside PDF files.

You can check out the documentation at Read the Docs and follow the development on GitHub.

 

image.png

 

Solution

We use the Python Code tool with Camelot and Pandas package to extract tabular data from PDF. No "free" text is actually being parsed. The aim is just the tabular data.

 

There are actually two outputs from the Python tool. Output 1 with the actual tabular data. Output 2 with a report on how successful our processing was.

 

image.png

 

You can find the workflow at the bottom of this post together with the sample "foo.pdf" that contains some sample tabular data for testing.

Make sure that you read the installation notes at the bottom of this post.

 

Disclaimer: Camelot only works with text-based PDFs and not scanned documents. (If you can click and drag to select text in your table in a PDF viewer, then your PDF is text-based.)

 

Note2: Make sure you specify the path to your file in the Python tool. Should be easy. Shame on me, I could have wrapped this into a Macro tool like. 

Also, the workflow may lose the code in the Python Code tool once you open it on your PC. This seems to be a bug in 2018-3 version of the Code tool...

 

If you have any problems opening it, just let me know and I can send you a workflow in ZIP file which seems to solve the problem.

Or you can just use the code from within the post to copy paste it into your tool.

  

image.png

 

Python Code

 

#Need the Alteryx package
from ayx import Alteryx

#Install Camelot Package for PDF tabular data parsing
Alteryx.installPackages("camelot-py[all]")

 

#Parse the tabular data

import camelot #specify the path to your PDF document tables = camelot.read_pdf('//Mac/Google Drive/__Alteryx/foo.pdf') #Get the dataframe from the PDF table data df=tables[0].df #Write the dataframe with tabular data to the tool output number 1 Alteryx.write(df,1)
#Get the parsing report


import pandas #Get the parsing report parsing_report=tables[0].parsing_report #Turn the dictionary based parsing report into Pandas df df_parsing_report = pandas.DataFrame.from_dict(parsing_report,orient='index',columns=['Value']) #Assign values from Index to a new measure column df_parsing_report['Measure'] = df_parsing_report.index #Write the dataframe with parsing report to the tool output number 2 Alteryx.write(df_parsing_report,2)

Installation and Prerequisites

Make sure that you follow the instructions on how to properly install Camelot package for Python. In case you need it, there is also documentation at github project.

 

I suggest you install Python 3 to begin with. Then, you’ll need to install the dependencies for Camelot package, which include Tkinter and ghostscript.

These can be installed using your system’s package manager. 

 

Tkinter should be packaged up with Python 3 installer, but you can also download it from ActiveTcl Community Edition from ActiveState.

For ghostscript, you can get the installer at the ghostscript downloads page.

 

After installing ghostscript, you’ll need to reboot. Seriously - do it! if you are like me you don't. But this is needed here and would have saved me a long long time.

Also, your system must have ghostscript executable’s path is in the windows PATH environment variable. 

 

PATH to GS was not automatically registered in my case. Check the ENV variables for something like "C:\Program Files\gs\gs9.25\bin".

Verify successful installation of GS from command line interface: 

C:\> gswin64c.exe -version

I would also suggest you run the Python Tool in Alteryx in interactive mode (i.e. by RUN button in Python Code tool directly). 

For whatever reason, pip installation of Camelot package failed once or twice before succeeding. Probably some hiccup on dependencies.

 

Why Camelot?

  • You are in control.: Unlike other libraries and tools which either give a nice output or fail miserably (with no in-between), Camelot gives you the power to tweak table extraction. (This is important since everything in the real world, including PDF table extraction, is fuzzy.)
  • Bad tables can be discarded based on metrics like accuracy and whitespace, without ever having to manually look at each table.
  • Each table is a pandas DataFrame, which seamlessly integrates with Designer
  • Export to multiple formats, including JSON, Excel, and HTML

 

Closing line

Hopefully, this will do the trick. Make sure you follow the install instructions above! Let me know how successful you were with deploying and running this tool.

 

Cheers!

David Matyas
Sales Engineer
Alteryx
65 REPLIES 65
esridhar126
7 - Meteor

Actually i don't know how to install.

is it same like installing other python packages using conda or ??

DavidM
Alteryx
Alteryx

@esridhar126 the AYX package is installed with Alteryx by default.

 

If you want to understand more about how to add new packages, then check out

https://community.alteryx.com/t5/Alteryx-Knowledge-Base/Tool-Mastery-Python/ta-p/197860

 

Did you do the test as suggested with new Python tool in new workflow? Did it render the same error with AYX package missing?

David Matyas
Sales Engineer
Alteryx
esridhar126
7 - Meteor

Don't take me wrong, how to install "Alteryx

 

Yes, in other tools also it shows the same error.

DavidM
Alteryx
Alteryx

My apologies, @esridhar126, i may not follow now.

 

The AYX package that you are missing in your Python tool is installed as part of Python tool automatically with Alteryx Designer.

 

You don't need to install any Python environment and everything is part of your Alteryx Designer install folder.

 

If the same error occurs in your other workflows that could be for two reasons:

1/ Either there is something wrong with your installation 

-> check that you have a folder in your path %alteryx%\bin\miniconda3\pythontool_venv\lib\site packages called AYX

2/ Or you have problem with your permissions which prevent you from using the Alteryx packages

-> can you try to run with elevated privileges?

 

In case of different packages than AYX (not being able to download them), this could also be not having the following whitelisted on your network

pypi.python.org
pypi.org
files.pythonhosted.org

David Matyas
Sales Engineer
Alteryx
esridhar126
7 - Meteor

Actually installed Alteyx, atter that also got the same error.

 

could you please tell what to do next, needs somr proper explanation.

 

It will be more helpful. 

DavidM
Alteryx
Alteryx

Can you please read my last post and check the rest of the things suggested please?

 

cheers

David Matyas
Sales Engineer
Alteryx
esridhar126
7 - Meteor

Hi @DavidM 

As you said, i checked . I installed the as you suggested.

Yes Ayx folder is installed in particular location you mentioned. 

And also i allow all permissions.

Still got an error.

DavidM
Alteryx
Alteryx

Hi @esridhar126 ,

 

Did you install the standard or NON-ADMIN installation? Should be obsious from the name of the installer.

 

I believe this is permissions issue and most likely you Designer cannot access the packages location.

 

Has the installation been done by IT or did you install Alteryx on your own?

 

Cheers.

david

David Matyas
Sales Engineer
Alteryx
willdupre
7 - Meteor

Phenomenal work - thanks @DavidM!

esridhar126
7 - Meteor

I did it personally, not through IT person, he only gave me permission to install.

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