Your Knowledge Base is your organization's own reference library for Scout. Add your policies, procedures, maintenance manuals and specifications, and Scout uses them to answer questions about how your agency works and about your own vehicles and equipment.
Add text or files - write a text entry, or upload PDFs, Word documents, spreadsheets and photos.
Ask Scout as usual - Scout searches your Knowledge Base before help articles or the web, and tells you which entry the answer came from.
Shared across your organization - unlike files attached to a chat, Knowledge Base entries are available in every Scout conversation in your organization and are kept until you delete them.
Finding the Knowledge Base
Open Scout, then in the Scout menu on the left click Setup and choose Knowledge Base.
What you'll see:
A list of every entry in your organization's Knowledge Base, showing its source (text or file), name, status and when it was last updated. Click a column heading to sort by it. The Add Knowledge Entry button is at the top right.
Adding an entry
In Scout, open Knowledge Base and click Add Knowledge Entry. Choose Text entry or File upload.
Add a text entry
Give the entry a name, type or paste the content, and save. Text entries are good for short policies, FAQs and anything you'd otherwise explain over and over.
Note: Text entries can be up to 10,000 characters. For longer material, upload it as a file instead.
Upload files
Click File upload, then choose one or more files from your computer, or drag and drop them into the window.
Each file gets a name field, filled in with the file name. Change it to something people will recognise, such as "B6.7 Engine Service Manual".
Click Upload.
What you'll see:
Each file shows Uploaded when it's done, and you can click Close. Each file becomes its own entry in the Knowledge Base with the status Processing while Scout reads it. Large files can take a few minutes, and the list updates by itself. When Scout has finished, the status changes to Ready.
Note: Every file is checked for viruses before Scout reads it. A file flagged by the scanner is rejected.
How Scout reads your files
While a file is processing, Scout reads all of it, including what is only shown in pictures:
PDFs - Scout reads the text on every page and describes the diagrams, tables and drawings, such as wiring diagrams, torque sequences and component locators.
Word documents - Scout reads the text and describes the images in the document.
Spreadsheets and CSVs - Scout reads each sheet, so it can find the rows you ask about.
Photos - Scout describes the photo, so you can ask about what's in it, such as the details on a data plate.
Viewing an entry
Click an entry in the Knowledge Base to open it.
File - the file name, type, size and number of pages. Click Download to open the original.
Figures - the diagrams and images Scout found in the file. Click one to see it full size.
Extracted Text - the text Scout pulled out of the file, with descriptions of its figures.
Renaming or deleting an entry
Open the entry and click Edit to change its name. To remove it, delete the entry. The uploaded file and its figures are deleted with it, and Scout stops using it straight away.
Asking Scout about your Knowledge Base
Ask from the Scout home page or the Scout sidebar, the same way you ask anything else. You don't need to name the document. Scout searches your Knowledge Base, reads the right pages, and names the entry it answered from.
Examples:
"What's the torque sequence for the cylinder head on the B6.7?"
"Where is the fuel pressure sensor on the ISB5.9?"
"What's our policy on drivers waiting past the pickup window?"
"What's the VIN on bus 1042's data plate?"
What you'll see:
When the answer depends on a diagram, Scout shows the figure in its answer, with the document name and page underneath. Click the figure to see it full size, or click Open document at page to open the original file at that page.
If Scout answers from the web something your Knowledge Base could have covered, it tells you it didn't find it in your Knowledge Base.
Supported files and limits
The Knowledge Base accepts the following files:
Documents - PDF, Word (.docx)
Spreadsheets - Excel (.xlsx, .xls), CSV
Images - PNG, JPG/JPEG
Note: Legacy Word files (.doc) are not supported. Save the file as .docx and upload it again. Macro-enabled and password-protected Office files are also rejected. iPhone photos in HEIC format are not supported yet. Export them as JPEG first.
Size and content limits
File size - up to 20 MB per file
PDFs - up to 500 pages
Spreadsheets - up to 1 million cells
Images - up to 8,000 pixels on each side
Text entries - up to 10,000 characters
If a file fails
If Scout couldn't read a file, its status shows Failed with the reason, for example "Could not read page 12" or "This spreadsheet took too long to read".
What to do:
Open the entry and click Retry to have Scout read the file again. If it fails again, check that the file opens normally on your computer, then try re-saving or re-exporting it and uploading it as a new entry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can add entries to the Knowledge Base?
Users with permission to manage knowledge entries. Contact your administrator if you don't see Add Knowledge Entry.
Who can Scout show my Knowledge Base content to?
Anyone in your organization who uses Scout. Only add documents everyone who uses Scout is allowed to see.
Is this different from attaching a file to a Scout chat?
Yes. A file attached to a chat stays in that conversation and expires after 7 days. A Knowledge Base entry is available in every conversation in your organization and is kept until you delete it. Use the Knowledge Base for reference documents your team asks about again and again.
How do I update a document?
Upload the new version as a new entry, then delete the old one so Scout doesn't answer from outdated information.
Why is my file still Processing?
Scout reads every page of the file, so long manuals with lots of diagrams take longer. Most files are ready within a few minutes. If a file stays in Processing for a long time, contact Spare Support.
I don't see File upload. Why?
Uploading files to the Knowledge Base is in beta and is enabled per organization. Contact your Spare representative if you'd like it turned on.