Research to Diagram

Description

structure-to-pdf

Core Features

• Automated Research: Conduct multi-round in-depth research using WebSearch
• Intelligent Organization: Automatically extract, classify, and structure information
• Professional Design: Select the optimal visualization scheme based on topic characteristics
• Multiple Outputs: Support tools like Graphviz, PlantUML, Mermaid
• High-Quality PDF: Generate vector graphics that can be infinitely scaled

Trigger Conditions

• Research the knowledge structure of a complex topic (e.g., "A Dream of Red Mansions character relationships")
• Generate character relationship diagrams, concept maps, knowledge graphs
• Understand the organizational structure or technical architecture of a certain field
• Visualize complex relationship networks
• Need to research and visualize a topic from scratch

• "Research...and diagram"
• "Study the relationships of..."
• "In-depth analysis...and visualization"
• "Generate...knowledge graph"
• "Draw...relationship diagram" (no existing data)

Workflow

1. Task Planning (TodoWrite)

- Conduct in-depth research on the topic and related knowledge
- Design the graph structure and hierarchy
- Create visual diagrams
- Generate PDF documents

2. In-Depth Research Phase

• Multi-round WebSearch: Collect information from different perspectives
  • Topic overview and background
  • Core elements and characters/concepts
  • Relationships and connections
  • Hierarchies and classifications
• Information Source Recording: Save links to all reference materials
• Knowledge Extraction: Identify key entities and relationships

3. Structure Design Phase

• Family pedigree: Multi-level tree structure
• Social network: Network relationship diagram
• Organizational structure: Hierarchical layout

• Knowledge classification: Tree or mind map
• Concept relationships: Directed graph
• Flowchart: Linear or branching process

• System components: Modular layout
• Dependency relationships: Hierarchical or network diagram
• Data flow: Flowchart

4. Visualization Implementation

digraph G {
    // 全局样式
    graph [rankdir=TB bgcolor="#fdfdf5" fontname="Arial Unicode MS"]
    node [shape=box style="rounded,filled" fillcolor="#e8f4f8"]
    edge [fontname="Arial Unicode MS"]

    // 使用 subgraph cluster 分组
    subgraph cluster_group1 {
        label="分组名称"
        node1 [label="节点1"]
        node2 [label="节点2"]
    }

    // 定义关系
    node1 -> node2 [label="关系类型" color=red]
}

• PlantUML: UML diagrams, sequence diagrams
• Mermaid: Simple flowcharts, sequence diagrams

5. PDF Generation

dot -Tpdf diagram.dot -o output.pdf

6. Document Organization

• Research topic overview
• Graph explanation
• Reference sources (Sources)
• Usage instructions

Design Principles

Visual Design

1. Color Coding: Use different colors to distinguish categories
2. Shape Differentiation: Use different shapes for different types of entities
3. Clear Hierarchy: Use subgraph cluster for grouping
4. Relationship Annotation: Use edge color, style, and labels to express relationship types
5. Chinese Support: Use "Arial Unicode MS" or system Chinese fonts

Information Hierarchy

1. Title Layer: Main title
2. Grouping Layer: Main categories/families
3. Entity Layer: Specific characters/concepts
4. Relationship Layer: Connections and annotations
5. Legend Layer: Explain symbol meanings

Layout Strategies

• rankdir=TB: Top to bottom (family trees, organizational structures)
• rankdir=LR: Left to right (flowcharts, timelines)
• rankdir=BT: Bottom to top (dependency diagrams)
• splines=ortho: Orthogonal edges (clear organizational diagrams)
• splines=curved: Curved edges (aesthetic relationship networks)

Output Files

~/Downloads/

• <topic>_relations.dot

  - Graphviz source file

• <topic>_relations.pdf

  - Final PDF graph

• <topic>_sources.md

  - Reference materials (optional)

Usage Examples

Example 1: Literary Work Character Relationships

User: Conduct in-depth research on the relationships between characters in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and create a structure diagram PDF

1. Research main characters, camps, and relationships in the Three Kingdoms period
2. Design: Three major camps (Wei, Shu, Wu) + character hierarchy + alliance/opposition relationships
3. Create a multi-level relationship diagram using Graphviz
4. Generate PDF

Example 2: Technical Concept Map

User: Research Kubernetes architecture and generate a visualized graph

1. Research K8s core components and architecture hierarchy
2. Design: Control plane/data plane/plugin ecosystem
3. Generate technical architecture diagram
4. Output PDF

Example 3: Historical Event Relationships

User: Analyze the relationships between major countries and alliances in World War II and create a chart

1. Research participating countries, camps, and key time nodes
2. Design: Axis powers/Allied powers/neutral countries relationship network
3. Generate a relationship diagram with timeline
4. Output PDF

Differences from structure-to-pdf

• ✅ No existing data, need to research from scratch
• ✅ Want to deeply understand the knowledge structure of a topic
• ✅ Need visualization supported by authoritative sources

• ✅ Have existing structured data
• ✅ Need quick conversion to charts
• ✅ Data format is simple and clear

Dependent Tools

• Graphviz:

  brew install graphviz

  (macOS)
• WebSearch: Built into Claude Code

• PlantUML:

  brew install plantuml

• Mermaid CLI:

  npm install -g @mermaid-js/mermaid-cli

Configuration Options

• --tool

  : Specify visualization tool (graphviz/plantuml/mermaid)

• --layout

  : Specify layout direction (TB/LR/BT/RL)

• --output

  : Specify output directory

• --depth

  : Research depth (quick/medium/deep)

• --sources

  : Whether to generate reference materials document

Best Practices

1. Clear Topic Scope: The more specific the topic, the clearer the graph
2. Reasonable Grouping: Use clusters to group related entities
3. Control Complexity: No more than 50 nodes in a single graph
4. Progressive Refinement: Generate an overview first, then dive into details
5. Consistent Colors: Use the same color scheme for similar entities
6. Cite Sources: Label reference materials at the bottom of the PDF or in a separate document

Common Graph Type Templates

Character Relationship Diagram Template

- Use cluster for family/organization grouping
- Use box/ellipse for characters, special shapes for important characters
- Use solid lines for blood relationships, red lines for marriage, dashed lines for others
- Add legends to explain symbol meanings

Concept Map Template

- Top-level concepts at the top
- Sub-concepts expanded layer by layer
- Use solid lines for is-a relationships, dashed lines for has-a relationships
- Use colors to distinguish different categories

Technical Architecture Diagram Template

- Use rankdir=TB for layered architecture
- Use rectangles for components, rounded rectangles for services
- Use arrows for dependency relationships
- Use thick lines or special colors for critical paths

Troubleshooting

graph [fontname="Arial Unicode MS"]
node [fontname="Arial Unicode MS"]
edge [fontname="Arial Unicode MS"]

• Use

  concentrate=true

  to merge identical edges
• Split into multiple subgraphs
• Use different rankdir settings

• Adjust

  ranksep

  and

  nodesep

• Use

  rank=same

  to force nodes to be on the same layer
• Try different

  splines

  settings

Version History

• v1.0 (2026-01-02): Initial version
  • Summarized based on the "A Dream of Red Mansions" character relationship graph project
  • Support automatic generation with Graphviz
  • Integrated WebSearch for in-depth research
  • TodoWrite for task management