TU/e FAIR Data Clinic Toolkit

About the TU/e FAIR Data Clinic Toolkit

The TU/e FAIR Data Clinic Toolkit v5.9.0-dev9 is the final standalone browser-based release of a proof-of-concept environment for pre-deposit Dataset Content and Reuse Readiness assessment and repository preparation.

The toolkit is intended for researchers and Data Stewards who want to examine a research data package before repository deposit and identify issues that may make the package difficult for another researcher to understand, interpret, technically use, or reuse.

What the toolkit assesses

The toolkit evaluates supported evidence concerning areas such as:

• research data package structure and relationships between files;

• README and supporting documentation;

• metadata and structured descriptions;

• variables, units, codes, abbreviations, and missing-value conventions;

• methods and provenance;

• file formats and technical usability;

• software, computational dependencies, and execution information;

• rights and access information;

• evidence requiring Data Steward or specialist review; and

• repository-preparation information.

Assessment results are expressed as evidence-based Findings and recommended actions rather than as an aggregate FAIR score.

Researcher and Data Steward workflow

The standalone toolkit supports a combined workflow for Researcher and Data Steward. Researchers can inspect and improve their own research package, while issues requiring professional judgment can be recorded for review by the Data Steward or a specialist.

The toolkit is intended to support preparation and decision-making. It does not replace professional authority.

How to try the standalone toolkit

The application is self-contained and browser-based. Download the appropriate HTML release, save it locally, and open it in a modern web browser. No server installation or repository account is required for the standalone release.

The toolkit operates locally first. It does not make a live repository connection, handle repository credentials or OAuth, mint or operate on DOIs, transfer research files to a repository, or write back to a repository.

Repository preparation

DEV9 includes a deterministic offline 4TU.ResearchData preparation adapter. The adapter evaluates a locked target metadata profile and reports mapped, transformed, unsupported, missing-required, and blocking conditions.

This is preparation only. It does not submit a dataset to 4TU.ResearchData and does not imply repository acceptance.

What the toolkit does not do

The toolkit does not:

• calculate an overall FAIR score;

• certify that a research object is FAIR;

• assess the scientific validity of research findings;

• provide institutional approval;

• determine legal, privacy, ethics, intellectual-property, or information-security compliance;

• replace Data Steward, repository, legal, privacy, ethics, information-security, or specialist judgment;

• guarantee repository acceptance;

• publish or transfer research files; or

• issue a DOI.

Validation status

DEV9 contains 426/426 passing embedded integrity checks and passed the project's internal software and governance validation chain.

These checks demonstrate conformity with the tested software and governance invariants. They are not empirical validation of assessment accuracy, researcher usability, institutional approval, or external endorsement.

Release and provenance status

fair-raps-researcher-toolkit_5_9_0-dev9.html is the immutable final standalone DEV9 baseline. It is preserved byte-for-byte to ensure provenance, reproducibility, and development history, and to serve as the migration reference for the development of successor platforms.

A separately versioned derivative, fair-raps-researcher-toolkit_5_9_0-dev9-public-hotfix1.html, is now the recommended public-facing standalone artifact. The hotfix removes an embedded TU/e departmental personnel directory while preserving the DEV9 assessment semantics, workflow behavior, and repository-preparation model.

The original DEV9 artifact remains unchanged and should not be overwritten by the public-facing derivative.

Successor development: RORA

The standalone FAIR Data Clinic Toolkit development line is now closed.

Successor development is taking place through the institution-neutral RORA Platform — Research Object Readiness and Assessment Platform. RORA separates institution-neutral assessment behavior from institutional configuration and repository-specific adapters while preserving the relevant assessment provenance of the FAIR Data Clinic lineage.

DEV9 therefore remains an archived and citable standalone baseline rather than the current platform-development branch.

Please Note:

This is the final standalone browser-based release. Future public software releases will mark validated development milestones for the new web-based frontend/backend platform rather than further feature development for the standalone HTML application.