Using a Sketch in a Report Draft: Keep Labels, Arrows and Legend Together

When referring to a supplied sketch in a report draft, keep each label connected to its actual target and to any explanation in the sketch's legend. Describe only the relationship the source supports. The top of a page is not automatically north, an arrow is not automatically a direction of movement, and a drawn gap is not a measurement unless the source gives a basis for reading it that way.

This guide offers an original manual reference record for writers organizing documentation. It supports the workflow on the StateClaimAI field-adjuster page. It does not describe an automatic drawing-analysis feature or provide a method for deciding cause, coverage, liability, value or payment. The responsible professional must review the draft and the supplied material.

Identify the sketch as a particular source copy

Start with its filename or document identifier, version if stated, preparer if identified, and page location. Record the copy actually used. A sketch embedded in a later packet may have an added note or a different label even when its general shape looks familiar. Do not silently substitute an earlier copy because it is easier to read.

If page numbering differs between the source and the viewer, use a source-page map to locate it. That map gets the reviewer to the right page. The sketch record then explains which mark on that page supports the proposed wording.

Keep the supplied source intact in its authorized location. If a working copy needs callouts, identify it as an editorial aid and retain the original. A label added by the writer must not later look like a label supplied by the source's author. Record who added the working callout and what source location it identifies.

Read the target before writing the sentence

For each label used in the draft, inspect the mark it points to. Does the line end at a boundary, inside a drawn area, beside an object, or at a location that cannot be distinguished? Write the observed connection narrowly. A label close to a room outline does not necessarily name the room; it may refer to one item within it.

Read any legend and nearby note. If the legend explicitly defines a symbol, preserve that definition with the reference. If there is no explanation, keep the meaning unresolved. A familiar symbol on another drawing does not establish what this particular preparer intended. Do not import a professional convention merely because it produces a convenient interpretation.

Orientation needs its own evidence. Record a stated direction marker if one exists and if its scope is clear. Otherwise use source-relative wording such as “the upper part of the supplied sketch” when that is useful to a reviewer, while making clear that this describes the page. Do not convert it into a compass direction or an assertion about the physical site.

The same restraint applies to size. A drawing can help locate a label without supporting a distance, area or proportion. This worksheet does not propose taking measurements from a sketch. If the drafting task needs dimensional information, identify the missing source and route the question to the appropriate reviewer.

Build a label–target–legend record

Use one record for each relationship that will appear in the draft. Suggested fields are:

• Source copy: identifier, version, page location and the preparer as stated in the source.
• Visible label: the exact short label or an explicitly marked unreadable portion.
• Target: where the associated arrow or line ends, or why the target is unclear.
• Legend or note: the source's explanation and its location; mark absence rather than supplying a meaning.
• Orientation and scale: what the source explicitly states, and what remains unstated.
• Proposed wording: the narrow sentence intended for the draft, with source attribution.
• Open question: the ambiguity, responsible review role and the reply location if clarification arrives.

These fields are a manual drafting aid, not a required StateClaimAI file format. Include only the source detail needed for the authorized task. Keep unrelated personal information and private documents out of public examples or support messages.

Work through a fictional room sketch

The following sketch description, labels and wording are invented for this exercise. They do not describe a real site or customer file. Suppose source SK-02 contains two outlined areas labeled “Room A” and “Room B.” A separate label, “P1,” has a line ending beside one boundary of Room A. The legend says “P labels identify photo positions.” No compass direction or scale is stated.

A careful working sentence is: “In sketch SK-02, P1 identifies a photo position beside the drawn boundary of Room A, using the sketch's P-label legend.” This describes the source relationship. It does not identify a north wall, establish the camera's viewing direction, or report an observed condition at that position.

Before linking P1 to a photograph, check whether the supplied photo record actually makes that connection. Similar numbering alone is insufficient: an image named P1 in a different packet may be unrelated. Use the photo-index worksheet to preserve the confirmed image identity, then reference the same identity in the sketch record.

Now suppose a working copy shows an additional arrow with no label or legend entry. Do not describe it as movement between rooms or as the direction in which a photo was taken. Record where it appears and ask what it represents. The answer may clarify that one mark without resolving any other unlabeled mark on the page.

If a reviewer later receives a clarified copy, identify that copy and record which question it answers. Preserve the original uncertainty in the working history. A later explanation should not make an earlier draft look as if it always had information that was then unavailable.

Keep the drawing and the narrative at the same level of certainty

Compare the proposed sentence with the source in both directions. Starting from the sentence, can the reviewer locate its label, target and explanation? Starting from the sketch, has the sentence added an object, direction, relationship or observation that the sketch does not state?

Separate documentary statements from observations. “The sketch labels this area Room A” describes what is on the page. It does not mean that the writer inspected Room A or verified every feature shown. The source-labeling worksheet can keep that distinction attached to the proposition when it enters the narrative.

Where two copies disagree, retain their identities and their respective readings. Do not combine one copy's labels with another copy's legend and present the result as a single supplied source. Ask the responsible reviewer which material applies to the task and what clarification is needed. A more polished paragraph does not settle the disagreement.

Hand over the usable references and remaining questions

Before drafting, group references with clear source connections separately from unresolved marks. Give the reviewer the exact source copy and a short question for each unresolved relationship. Avoid replacing an unclear arrow with a confident narrative simply to fill every report section.

Follow the site's drafting standards and continue in the StateClaimAI drafting workspace with appropriately prepared inputs. Keep the sketch record available for human comparison with the resulting text; using a drafting tool does not independently validate the sketch. For an interface issue, use official support and describe only the necessary steps and message shown.