AI agent for librarians
Interlibrary Loan Request Agent
Fill ILL requests fast
What it does
Interlibrary loan requests are often for items the library already has in print or through a database, or come with incomplete citations that slow lenders down. This agent checks each request against local holdings and licensed databases first, and offers the patron any local copy. For the rest, it completes the citation and chooses lenders by speed, cost and past fill rate. It prepares the request for the librarian to send. It tracks each request, and if a lender has not filled it within five days, it suggests other lenders and moves the request on. Edge case: fees above the set limit need librarian approval before the request goes out, so costs never come as a surprise.
How it works
Follow the arrows from top to bottom. The orange dashed arrow is the loop: when a check fails, the agent goes back and tries again.
Read the steps as a list
- Request received
- Check local holdings and licensed databases
- Tell the patron if the item is held locally
- Complete the citation
- Librarian sends requestThe agent waits here for your OK.
- Filled within 5 days?If not: suggest other lenders. Back to step 5.
- Notify the patron of delivery
- Item delivered
How it decides
Local first, then fastest lender.
- Local first
- Cost limit
- Next lender after 5 days
Make it yours
Every agent is a starting point. You choose these settings for your own situation.
- Lenders
- Cost limit
- Timing
- Patron messages
What keeps you in control
It always asks you first
- Fees
Hard limits
- Copyright rules
It stops when
- Done: delivered
- Stop: unavailable
Set it up
We guide you through the set-up, step by step
Members get the full set-up guide for this agent. No technical skills needed: you copy, paste and upload.
- One set of instructions to paste into your AI, with the clicks for ChatGPT, Claude, Microsoft 365 Copilot, Gemini and Grok
- The agent then walks you through connecting your own data, one source at a time
- A downloadable copy with the flow chart, the rules and the full guide
