ChatPapers

Language / 语言: 中文 | English

An AI paper reading and summarization plugin for Zotero 9: chat with PDFs, generate summaries, compare multiple papers, listen to AI voice lectures, and save results as Zotero notes—all inside Zotero.

Features

Paper chat (ChatPapers)

• ChatPapers panel in the PDF / item sidebar
• One-click summary, add selection to context, streaming replies, stop generation
• Save replies as Zotero child notes
• Provider presets: Ollama / LM Studio / OpenRouter / OpenAI / DeepSeek / SiliconFlow / Custom
• Sidebar header: Open in separate window, Adaptive height (consistent with other Zotero plugins)

Multi-paper comparison

• Start Compare papers from the main-window item context menu
• Add up to 8 papers for Compare, Summarize each, Common themes, and Topic review

Voice lecture

• Voice lecture sidebar: one-click Prepare → listen to an AI walkthrough of the full paper
• Overview: segmented summary, play beat by beat
• Paragraph reading: original text first, then translation/explanation; switch By paragraph / By sentence
• Highlight sync in the PDF reader while playing (including multi-line selections)
• Typed Q&A with spoken answers; save lecture notes as Zotero child notes
• Configurable local TTS (e.g. Piper) and cloud TTS; optional MinerU path in preferences for structured PDF parsing

Selection explain & read aloud

• After selecting text in a PDF, use Explain from the selection popup or sidebar
• AI generates syntax/terminology and context explanations, then reads original + translated/explained audio
• Reuses prepared lecture cache when the selection matches an already prepared sentence
• Sidebar also supports Open in separate window and Adaptive height

Documentation

Document	Description
Requirements (zh-CN)	Product scope and acceptance criteria
Development (zh-CN)	Architecture and developer guide
Architecture & roadmap (zh-CN)	Voice lecture and future capabilities

Development

npm install
npm run build    # outputs .scaffold/build/*.xpi
npm run start    # requires Zotero 9 locally; configure .env (see .env.example)

Installation

1. Run npm run build
2. In Zotero: Tools → Add-ons → Install Add-on From File
3. Select .scaffold/build/chatpapers.xpi (exact filename may vary)

Usage

Paper chat

1. Preferences → ChatPapers: choose a Provider (e.g. Ollama) and set the model
2. Open a PDF or select an item, then open ChatPapers in the item pane sidebar
3. Ask questions or summarize → save replies as notes

Multi-paper comparison

1. Select 2 or more items in the Zotero main window
2. Right-click → ChatPapers: Compare papers
3. Add papers, enter a topic, and use compare or review actions

Voice lecture

1. Preferences → ChatPapers → Voice lecture: configure LLM and TTS; set MinerU path if you need structured PDF parsing
2. Open an item with a PDF attachment, then open Voice lecture in the sidebar
3. Click Start preparation, then choose overview or paragraph/sentence reading
4. The PDF highlights the current passage while audio plays

Selection explain & read aloud

1. Select a sentence or paragraph in the PDF reader
2. Click Explain in the selection popup, or Explain & read selection in the Voice lecture sidebar
3. Wait for generation, then audio plays automatically; view details and replay from the sidebar

Changelog

Unreleased (main, after v0.2.1)

• Voice lecture: preparation, overview, paragraph/sentence reading, TTS playback, note export
• PDF highlight sync: highlight matching text while playing; fix multi-line selections only highlighting one line
• Selection explain & read aloud: PDF selection popup + sidebar; reuse prepared sentence cache when matched
• Playback exclusivity: fix overlapping audio for multi-sentence selections; stop audio when the pane is closed
• Sidebar enhancements: separate window and adaptive height for chat and voice lecture panes
• Branding: updated plugin logo

v0.2.1

• Improved release workflow and installable .xpi packaging

v0.2.0

• Multi-paper comparison: compare, summarize each, common themes, topic review (up to 8 papers)

v0.1.0 (MVP)

• PDF / item sidebar chat, one-click summary, selection context, streaming replies
• Multiple Provider presets and preferences
• Save AI replies as Zotero child notes

License

AGPL-3.0-or-later (based on zotero-plugin-template)