If you upload existing Excel manuals, work standards, and checklists, Word SOPs, or PowerPoint slides to Dive, the AI automatically generates even the title, summary, and steps (including questions and pass/fail judgments). You can then edit and share them on the same screen as video SOPs.
Many customers currently manage their SOPs in Excel. With this feature, you can move existing SOP assets into Dive as they are, without re-filming videos or rewriting the scripts.
Supported file formats
- PDF (already supported)
- Excel: .xlsx / .xlsm / .xls
- Word: .docx / .doc
- PowerPoint: .pptx / .ppt
- OpenDocument: .odt / .ods / .odp
When you upload a file, it is converted to PDF in the cloud, and the AI builds the steps from that PDF. (The original Excel, Word, or PPT file is also kept as material.)
You can also create an SOP from photos and other images (JPEG / PNG / WebP / HEIC) by following the same steps and selecting them in the [Images] tab under [Choose from materials]. Each image becomes one step. If you select multiple images, they become one SOP in the order you arranged them. For images, "How to choose the import method" and "Step split method" described in this article are not used.
How to create an SOP
- Click the [+] button in the sidebar, then click [Register existing SOPs]
- On the screen that opens, click [Choose from materials] at the bottom. If you only want to register the file in its original format without splitting it into steps, drag the file onto this screen (Register an existing SOP as a file (File-based SOP)).
- The file selection screen opens. To upload a new file, drag and drop it, or upload it using [Select file].
- After uploading, the AI processing options open. Adjust them as needed (see the next section for details), then click [Run].
- When AI processing is complete, select that file. Files already in [Materials] that have been AI processed can also be selected as they are.
- [How do you want to import the file?] opens, so choose the import method (see "How to choose the import method" below).
- In [Step conversion settings], check the narration, questions, and other settings, then click [Confirm with this content].
- The SOP editing screen opens. Check and edit the content, then publish it.
If you want to redo the processing, open the material details modal, click [Re-run AI], change the options, and analyze again. (You can try as many times as you like with the same file.)
How to choose the import method
After you select a file, you can choose the import method under [How do you want to import the file?]. There is [File as is] at the top, and three options under the heading "View as a Dive SOP." The three options under "View as a Dive SOP" can be selected for files whose AI processing is complete. Hover your mouse over each button to see its description.
- File as is: Without splitting it into steps, the file is turned into a single SOP as it is (file-based SOP). When opened, the file is displayed as it is. This can also be selected for files that have not been AI processed. For details, see Register an existing SOP as a file (File-based SOP).
- Whole file as 1 step: The entire file becomes one step. The title and summary are filled in with the content read by the AI.
- 1 step per slide: Imports all the steps the AI has split. Hover your mouse over the button to see how many steps will be created, such as "10 pages → 12 steps." Because the steps follow the [Step split method] in the AI processing options, the number of pages and the number of steps may not match.
- Select slides: Choose the pages you want to use, and only the steps for those pages are imported. If you choose a page for which the AI did not create steps (such as a cover page, or content that overflowed from the previous page), that page becomes a step that simply displays the page.
For steps created from Excel, Word, or PowerPoint, the pages shown in each step are the pages converted to PDF.
Adding steps to an SOP you have already created
When you add a step on the SOP editing screen and select [File] under [What type of content would you like to add?], you can select Excel, Word, and PowerPoint in addition to PDF. After you select a file, choose the import method from [Whole file as 1 step] / [1 step per slide] / [Select slides], the same as above. [File as is] can only be selected when creating a new SOP.
Excel, Word, and PowerPoint files can only be selected if their AI processing is complete. PDF files can be added with [Whole file as 1 step] even if AI processing has not been done. ([1 step per slide] and [Select slides]: AI processing is required.)
Details of the AI processing options
You can adjust the following options to match the content of your file and the image of the SOP you want to create.
Body mode (how the content is imported)
- Refine (summarize) (default): The AI reads the body text and refines it into sentences that are easy to read as steps. It condenses wordy explanations and makes the subject and object of each action clear.
- Transcribe (verbatim): Carries the text in the file into the step body with its original wording. Use this when you want to strictly keep the company's phrasing and sentence endings.
Step split method
- Per content (default): The AI splits steps at meaningful breaks in the body text. Even when one Excel step is spread across multiple cells, it is grouped by content.
- Per page: Splits so that one PDF page = one step. Works well with Excel files and PowerPoint slides arranged as 1 sheet = 1 page.
Sentence style
- Imperative (e.g., "Turn on the power.")
- Polite (e.g., "Please turn on the power.")
- Suggestion (e.g., "Let's turn on the power.")
- Writing guide: If your team has set up How to write SOPs, the output follows that guide.
Conversion mode (layout when converting to PDF)
For Excel, this sets the layout used when converting sheets to PDF.
- Follow print settings (default): Converts according to the print settings in the Excel file (page breaks and print area).
- Fit width to 1 page: Shrinks the sheet horizontally so that its width fits on one page when converted. This avoids the problem of wide sheets being cut off midway.
- 1 sheet = 1 page: Forces each sheet to fit on one page.
Create questions
If you check [Create questions] in the AI processing options, the AI creates questions for workers based on the content of the material. It is ON by default. If you turn it OFF, only the questions written as questions in the original material are imported (the previous behavior). No questions are created for pages without work content, such as the cover, table of contents, or revision history.
When it is checked, you can select the [Question type] (On-site check / Comprehension test). The default is [On-site check]. For details, see AI processing options: items and how to choose them.
When [Body writing style] is set to [Transcribe], the mode copies the original text as it is, so [Create questions] cannot be selected. Only the questions in the original material are imported.
Settings when creating an SOP
After AI processing is complete, specify the following in [Step conversion settings] when you create the SOP.
- Apply questions to steps: Sets whether the created questions are attached to the steps. If you turn this off, the SOP consists of step body text only.
- Continue when unexpected: Judges questions as normal / abnormal instead of correct / incorrect. This suits operations that use inspection sheets or checklists. For materials for which [On-site check] was selected in the AI processing options, this is turned ON from the start.
- Narration target: Sets whether the body text is read aloud when the created SOP is played back.
For details, see Step conversion settings (narration, subtitles, questions, related files).
Specify a reference SOP (beta, related feature)
When you create an SOP from a video, you can also specify an existing SOP or file (such as Excel) as reference material and have it reflected in the video analysis. If you want to create a video manual based on an Excel SOP you have already prepared, please give it a try (currently in beta). For details, see Specify a reference SOP in video analysis (beta).
Frequently asked questions
Q. Are Excel charts and images also reflected in the SOP?
A. After conversion to PDF, charts and images are imported as page images. The AI mainly reads the text in the body, and images are attached to steps as thumbnails and reference material. If you want to make use of the page images, the "Per page" step split method is a good fit.
Q. Can I import .xlsm files that contain macros?
A. Yes. .xlsm is also a supported format. The macros themselves are not run; the sheet contents as displayed are converted to PDF and imported.
Q. The AI does not split the steps the way I expected.
A. You can open the material details modal, click [Re-run AI], change the options, and analyze again. Simply switching the "Step split method" between [Per content] and [Per page] can change the results considerably. If it still doesn't match, the most reliable option is to edit manually in the SOP editor.
Q. Can I create SOPs from the same file as many times as I want?
A. Yes. Files saved in [Materials] can be re-analyzed as many times as needed with [Re-run AI], and you can also create a new SOP each time.
Q. What is the upload size limit for supported files?
A. The same upload limit as for video materials applies. If an Excel or PowerPoint file is too large (equivalent to several hundred pages), splitting it and uploading the parts will allow stable processing.