create_item_from_doi
Generate Zotero items automatically by entering a DOI, which populates metadata and organizes references into collections with tags.
Instructions
Create a Zotero item from a DOI (auto-fills metadata)
Input Schema
TableJSON Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| doi | Yes | ||
| collections | No | ||
| tags | No |
Output Schema
TableJSON Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| result | Yes |
Implementation Reference
- src/zotero_mcp/client.py:202-252 (handler)The core logic for creating an item from a DOI, utilizing the Zotero translator service or CrossRef API.
def create_item_from_doi( self, doi: str, collections: list[str] | None = None, tags: list[str] | None = None, ) -> dict: """Create item from DOI using Zotero translator. Returns {key, title}.""" import json import urllib.request metadata = None # Try Zotero translator first try: req = urllib.request.Request( "https://translate.zotero.org/search", data=doi.encode(), headers={"Content-Type": "text/plain"}, ) with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=10) as resp: items = json.loads(resp.read()) if items: metadata = items[0] except Exception as e: logger.warning(f"Zotero translator failed: {e}, trying CrossRef") # Fallback to CrossRef if not metadata: try: cr_url = f"https://api.crossref.org/works/{doi}" req = urllib.request.Request(cr_url, headers={"User-Agent": "ZoteroMCP/0.1"}) with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=10) as resp: data = json.loads(resp.read())["message"] metadata = self._crossref_to_zotero(data) except Exception as e: raise RuntimeError(f"Could not resolve DOI {doi}: {e}") if not metadata: raise RuntimeError(f"No metadata found for DOI {doi}") if collections: metadata["collections"] = collections if tags: metadata["tags"] = [{"tag": t} for t in tags] resp = self.zot.create_items([metadata]) created = resp.get("successful", resp.get("success", {})) if created: val = list(created.values())[0] if isinstance(created, dict) else created[0] key = val.get("key", val.get("data", {}).get("key", "")) if isinstance(val, dict) else str(val) return {"key": key, "title": metadata.get("title", "")} raise RuntimeError(f"Failed to create item: {resp.get('failed', resp)}") - src/zotero_mcp/server.py:134-142 (registration)The MCP tool registration and invocation call to the Zotero client for creating an item from a DOI.
@mcp.tool(description="Create a Zotero item from a DOI (auto-fills metadata)") def create_item_from_doi( doi: str, collections: list[str] | None = None, tags: list[str] | None = None, ) -> str: """Look up DOI metadata and create item automatically.""" result = _get_client().create_item_from_doi(doi, collections, tags) return json.dumps(result, ensure_ascii=False)