---

title: "JSON" lang: "en-US" draft: false description: "Learn about how to set up a VDP JSON component https://github.com/instill-ai/instill-core"

The JSON component is an operator component that allows users to manipulate and convert JSON entities. It can carry out the following tasks:

• Marshal
• Unmarshal
• jq

Release Stage

Alpha

Configuration

The component definition and tasks are defined in the definition.json and tasks.json files respectively.

Supported Tasks

Marshal

Convert JSON to a string

Unmarshal

Convert a string to JSON

jq

Process JSON through a jq command

[`jq`](https://jqlang.github.io/jq/) defines a syntax to "transform JSON in various ways, by selecting, iterating, reducing and otherwise mangling JSON documents". Depending on the command input and the `jq` filter, the type and shape of the results may vary.

Here are some examples on how the jq syntax works.

Input JSON	jq filter	Output
{"foo": 128}	.foo	[128]
{"a": {"b": 42}}	.a.b	[42]
{"id": "sample", "10": {"b": 42}}	{(.id): .["10"].b}	[{ "sample": 42 }]
[{"id":1},{"id":2},{"id":3}]	.[] | .id	[1, 2, 3]
{"a":1,"b":2}	.a += 1 | .b *= 2	[{ "a": 2, "b": 4 }]
{"a":1} [2] 3	. as {$a} ?// [$a] ?// $a | $a	[1, 2, 3]

Example Recipes

Recipe for the Resume Screening pipeline.

version: v1beta
component:
  json-0:
    type: json
    task: TASK_UNMARSHAL
    input:
      string: ${openai-0.output.texts[0]}
  openai-0:
    type: openai
    task: TASK_TEXT_GENERATION
    input:
      model: gpt-4o-2024-08-06
      n: 1
      prompt: |
        Given an ${variable.resume} and a ${pdf-to-text.output.body}, create an automated system to screen and convert this information into a structured candidate profile. The system should extract key information such as:

        Skills: Identify and list relevant skills mentioned in the resume.
        Experience: Extract work history including job titles, companies, durations, and responsibilities from the resume.
        Education: Capture educational background including degrees, institutions, and graduation dates from the resume.
        Certifications: Identify any professional certifications or additional qualifications in the resume.
        Fit Score: Calculate a fit score based on the alignment of the candidate's profile with the job description, taking into account required skills, experience level, and education.
      response-format:
        json-schema: |-
          {
              "name": "resume_response",
              "strict": true,
              "schema": {
                  "type": "object",
                  "properties": {
                      "name": {
                          "type": "string"
                      },
                      "education": {
                          "type": "string"
                      },
                      "score": {
                          "type": "number"
                      },
                      "reasoning": {
                          "type": "string"
                      },
                      "experience": {
                          "type": "array",
                          "items": {
                              "type": "string"
                          }
                      },
                      "skills": {
                          "type": "array",
                          "items": {
                              "type": "string"
                          }
                      }
                  },
                  "required": [
                      "name",
                      "education",
                      "score",
                      "reasoning",
                      "experience",
                      "skills"
                  ],
                  "additionalProperties": false
              }
          }
        type: json_schema
      system-message: You are a helpful assistant.
      temperature: 1
      top-p: 1
    setup:
      api-key: ${secret.INSTILL_SECRET}
  pdf-to-text:
    type: document
    task: TASK_CONVERT_TO_TEXT
    input:
      document: ${variable.resume}
variable:
  job-description:
    title: job description
    description: The text of the job description.
    instill-format: string
  resume:
    title: resume
    description: The PDF file of the candidates resume
    instill-format: "*/*"
output:
  output:
    title: output
    value: ${json-0.output.json}