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Terriqon’s form builder lets you design and deploy data collection forms without writing a single line of code. You drag field types onto a canvas, configure each one, tag any fields that contain personal data, and publish the form directly to your field team’s mobile devices. This guide walks you through the entire process — from opening the builder to assigning a finished form to a project.

Accessing the Form Builder

To open the form builder, navigate to Forms in the left sidebar and click New Form. Give your form a name and an optional description, then click Create. The builder canvas opens and you’re ready to start adding fields.

Adding Fields

1

Drag a field type onto the canvas

Choose a field type from the left panel and drag it onto your form canvas. You can reorder fields at any time by dragging them up or down.
2

Configure the field

Click any field on the canvas to open its settings panel on the right. Set the field Label (what your field officers see), an optional Placeholder (hint text inside the input), and toggle it as Required or Optional.
3

Tag sensitive fields

For fields that may contain personal data — names, phone numbers, national IDs, GPS coordinates — open the field settings and set the Sensitivity tag to Personally Identifiable or Restricted. See Tagging Sensitive Fields below for why this matters.
4

Repeat for all fields

Continue adding and configuring fields until your form covers everything your programme needs to capture.

Field Types Available

Terriqon supports a wide range of field types to match any data collection scenario:
Field TypeUse Case
Text (Short)Single-line responses: names, codes, brief answers
Text (Long)Multi-line narrative responses or notes
NumberCounts, quantities, scores, and measurements
Date / TimeEvent dates, visit timestamps, deadlines
Single ChoiceOne answer from a predefined list (radio buttons)
Multiple ChoiceOne or more answers from a predefined list (checkboxes)
GPS LocationCaptures latitude and longitude from the device
PhotoCamera capture or gallery upload
SignatureTouch or stylus signature from the respondent
File UploadAttach a document, spreadsheet, or image file
AudioVoice recording directly in the form
Case IDAuto-generated or manually entered unique identifier

Tagging Sensitive Fields

When you tag a field as Personally Identifiable or Restricted, Terriqon automatically excludes it from the AI report generation pipeline. The AI works only on aggregated, anonymised metrics — it never processes the raw values in tagged fields. This has two important benefits:
  • Beneficiary privacy is protected. Names, IDs, phone numbers, and location data never enter the AI processing layer.
  • Data protection requirements are satisfied. Your reports are generated from statistical outputs, not from identifiable records, which aligns with GDPR, HIPAA, and most funder data governance policies.
Always tag GPS, name, ID, and phone fields as sensitive. This ensures your AI reports are generated from aggregated metrics only — never from identifiable data.

Setting Required Fields

Toggle the Required switch on any field that must be filled before a submission can be sent. Required fields are marked with a red asterisk in the mobile app, and the app will not allow a submission to be finalised if any required field is blank. Use required fields for critical data points — dates, case IDs, primary outcome measures — and leave non-critical contextual fields as optional to avoid blocking your field officers in challenging conditions.

Previewing and Deploying

Before you publish, click Preview in the top toolbar. The preview renders your form exactly as it will appear on a mobile device, so you can check field order, label clarity, and layout on a small screen. When you’re satisfied with the form:
1

Click Publish

Click the Publish button in the top-right corner. The form moves from Draft to Live status.
2

Assign the form to a project

Navigate to the relevant Project, open the Forms tab, and click Add Form. Select your newly published form from the list. Field officers assigned to that project will see the form appear on their home screen the next time they open the app.
Once a form is used in a live project with submissions, changes to field structure may affect data consistency. Create a new form version if major changes are needed, rather than editing the published form in place.

Importing Existing Forms

If your organisation already has forms built in Excel, XLSForm, KoboToolbox, or a similar tool, you may not need to rebuild them from scratch. Contact Terriqon Support to discuss import options. The support team can advise on the best migration path based on your existing form structure.