README

Framework-agnostic Personal Data Sheet (PDS / CS Form 212) PDF generator.

It is a port of the legacy iHRMIS Pds_preview screen: the same four form pages, the same field coordinates, the same fonts and the same column widths, but with database access injected through one small interface. The package draws every page into a single PDF document — no temporary files, no concatenation step — so it works in CodeIgniter, Laravel, Symfony or plain PHP.

Requirements

PHP 8.2+
setasign/fpdi ^2.6 and setasign/fpdf ^1.9 (installed automatically)
Four PDS templates. Copies of the iHRMIS CS Form 212 pages ship in resources/templates/, and you can point the layout at your own files.

Installation

composer require kawayanmedia/pds

While the package lives inside the iHRMIS repository, install it through a path repository:

{
    "repositories": [
        { "type": "path", "url": "packages/pds-pdf", "options": { "symlink": true } }
    ],
    "require": {
        "kawayanmedia/pds": "^0.1"
    }
}

kawayanmedia/persistence comes with it as a dependency; it is only used by the write side, so printing needs no database at all.

See it running

The package ships with a database-free example that prints two employees:

php packages/pds-pdf/examples/generate-sample.php
open packages/pds-pdf/examples/output/pds-sample.pdf

The script writes examples/output/pds-sample.pdf and prints a summary per employee. Pass a template directory and an output path to override the defaults:

php vendor/kawayanmedia/pds/examples/generate-sample.php \
    /path/to/pds-templates /tmp/pds-sample.pdf

The write side has its own runnable example, which creates a SQLite schema and saves every PDS section:

php packages/pds-pdf/examples/write-sample.php

Quick start

use KawayanMedia\Pds\Adapter\ArrayPdsRepository;
use KawayanMedia\Pds\Config\PdsLayout;
use KawayanMedia\Pds\Config\PdsOptions;
use KawayanMedia\Pds\PdsGenerator;
use KawayanMedia\Pds\Renderer\PdsPdfRenderer;

$generator = new PdsGenerator(
    new ArrayPdsRepository([
        '013001' => [
            'employee_id' => '013001',
            'personal' => [
                'lname' => 'Dela Cruz',
                'fname' => 'Juan',
                'mname' => 'Santos',
                'sex' => 'M',
                'civil_status' => 2,
                'birth_date' => '1985-03-14',
            ],
            'family' => ['spouse_lname' => 'Dela Cruz', 'spouse_fname' => 'Maria'],
            'education' => [
                ['level' => 4, 'school_name' => 'Marinduque State College', 'degree_course' => 'BSIT'],
            ],
            'work' => [
                ['inclusive_date_from' => '2010-01-04', 'inclusive_date_to' => 'Present', 'position' => 'ITO I'],
            ],
        ],
    ]),
    new PdsPdfRenderer(PdsLayout::legacyIhrmis()),
);

$bytes = $generator->render('013001');            // PDF string, four pages
$generator->save('013001', '/tmp/pds.pdf');        // write a file
$generator->renderMany(['013001', '013002']);      // one PDF, four pages each

$generator->renderer()->stream($generator->pds('013001'), 'pds.pdf');   // to the browser
$generator->renderer()->download($generator->pds('013001'), 'pds.pdf');

Print only some pages, or change the accomplished date:

$renderer = new PdsPdfRenderer(
    PdsLayout::legacyIhrmis(),
    new PdsOptions(pages: [1], accomplishedOn: '2026-11-06'),
);

Architecture

rows from your database ──► PdsRepositoryInterface ──► Pds
                                                        │
                                          ┌─────────────┴──────────────┐
                                          ▼                            ▼
                                   PdsPdfRenderer              PdsOptions
                                          │
                          ┌───────────────┼────────────────┬──────────────────┐
                          ▼               ▼                ▼                  ▼
                    PersonalPage      CareerPage      LearningPage     QuestionsPage
                    (legacy page1)   (legacy page2)   (legacy page3)   (legacy page4)
                          │               │                │                  │
                          └───────────────┴────────────────┴──────────────────┘
                                          │
                              PlacementWriter + TableWriter
                                          │
                              FPDI + your templates ──► %PDF

Legacy	Package
`Pds_preview::page1()`	`Renderer\Page\PersonalPage`
`Pds_preview::page2()`	`Renderer\Page\CareerPage`
`Pds_preview::page3()`	`Renderer\Page\LearningPage`
`Pds_preview::page4()`	`Renderer\Page\QuestionsPage`
`Pds_preview::pds()` (temp files + `concat_pdf`)	`Renderer\PdsPdfRenderer`
`$pdf->SetXY()` / `Write()` chains	`Config\Placement` list in `Config\PdsLayout`
`Personal`, `Family`, `Children`, `Education`, `Eligibility`, `Work`, `Organization`, `Training`, `Other_info`, `Question`, `Reference`	`Model\*` value objects

The one contract to implement

use KawayanMedia\Pds\Contract\PdsRepositoryInterface;
use KawayanMedia\Pds\Model\Pds;

interface PdsRepositoryInterface
{
    public function find(string $employeeId): ?Pds;
}

Pds::fromArray() maps the legacy rows in one place:

Key	Legacy table
`personal`	`pds_personal_info`
`family`	`pds_family_background`
`children`	`pds_children`
`education`	`pds_education_background` (`level` 1–5)
`eligibility`	`pds_eligibility`
`work`	`pds_work_experience`
`volunteer`	`pds_organization`
`training`	`pds_training`
`other_info`	`pds_other_info`
`questions`	`pds_questions` (`question_no`, `answer`) — or `answers` as `[1 => true, …]`
`references`	`pds_references`

Rows are ordered the way the legacy queries ordered them: children by birth date, work experience and trainings from the most recent down.

Configuration

Layout

Every coordinate, font size and row height lives in Config\PdsLayout. The PdsLayout::legacyIhrmis() preset reproduces the legacy controller, using the bundled templates:

$layout = PdsLayout::legacyIhrmis();                       // bundled resources/templates
$layout = PdsLayout::fromDirectory('/srv/forms/pds');      // page1.pdf … page4.pdf
$layout = PdsLayout::legacyIhrmis([                        // explicit files
    PdsLayout::PAGE_PERSONAL  => '/srv/forms/pds/personal.pdf',
    PdsLayout::PAGE_CAREER    => '/srv/forms/pds/career.pdf',
    PdsLayout::PAGE_LEARNING  => '/srv/forms/pds/learning.pdf',
    PdsLayout::PAGE_QUESTIONS => '/srv/forms/pds/questions.pdf',
]);

The templates are placed at (1, 1) scaled to 210 mm wide, exactly like the legacy controller, so every coordinate in the preset is expressed in that same scaled space. Pass templateWidth: null to draw a template at its natural size.

Named adjustments:

Property	Default	Meaning
`templateX`, `templateY`, `templateWidth`	`1.0`, `1.0`, `210.0`	Template placement
`pageSize`, `pageOrientation`, `pageUnit`	`Legal`, `P`, `mm`	FPDF page
`fontFamily`, `baseFontSize`	`Arial`, `12`	Base font of the pages
`compress`	`true`	Set `false` for text assertions in tests
`personalPage`	`PageLayout`	Absolute fields on page 1
`children`, `eligibility`, `work`, `volunteer`, `training`, `otherInfo`, `references`	`TableLayout`	Repeating blocks
`education`, `questions`, `ctc`	arrays	Block anchors and columns

A TableLayout holds the row columns, the y of the first row, the row pitch and the y at which a fresh copy of the template page is started, so a long list never runs off the form:

new TableLayout(
    columns: [Placement::text('position', 39.0, 0.0, 8.0, 20)],
    startY: 115.2,
    rowHeight: 7.35,
    endY: 293.0,
    templatePage: PdsLayout::PAGE_CAREER,
);

Options

Option	Default	Meaning
`pages`	`[1, 2, 3, 4]`	Which form pages to print
`accomplishedOn`	`null` (today)	Date printed on the "Date Accomplished" line
`dateFormat`	`F d, Y`	Format of that date
`presentLabel`	`Present`	Text used for an open-ended work experience

Deviations from the legacy controller

Each row below is a defect in application/modules/pds/controllers/pds_preview.php that this package fixes; everything else is reproduced:

Legacy defect	Package behaviour
`str_split()` read at fixed offsets, so short names raised "undefined array key"	`Support\BoxText` pads and truncates to the 30 boxes
Education cells read `$sch[1..3]` / `$degree[1..3]` unconditionally	`Support\WordChunks::lines()` always returns four lines
Voluntary work printed `inclusive_date_from` in both date columns	`inclusive_date_to` is printed in the "To" column
Voluntary work printed `license_release_date` as the position	`position` is printed
Other information reused the training columns (`number_hours`, `conducted_by`)	only skills, recognition and membership are printed
Overflow rows landed on a blank page without the form	the same template page is repeated
Question marks drifted when a question row was missing	each question has an absolute y
Page 4 read `$reference` after the loop (undefined with no references)	the first reference is used, null-safe
`splitstroverflow()` pushed a word to the second line as soon as the running length reached the limit, and moved an over-long word off the first line	word-boundary split that keeps as many words as fit
Empty dates printed `--` / `//`	empty dates print nothing
Eligibility and work rows started one printed row too low	row pitch measured from the bundled templates (7.35 mm in scaled space)
Reference columns were printed at the 12 pt base size and overflowed their cells	printed at 10 pt

Behaviour preserved from the legacy code

Page order: personal information and family → career → learning → questions.
Name fields are printed one character per pre-printed box, across the same 30 box positions.
Table casing (ucwords(strtolower(...))) and CodeIgniter's character_limiter() truncation with the … → .. replacement.
Column widths used to wrap the education cells (23 and 15 characters, four lines) and the two-line address fields (30 characters).
Date shapes: m-d-Y for the birth date, m/d/Y for children, work, volunteers, trainings, references and the CTC, F d, Y for page 4.
The API returns bytes or writes files; it never sends headers, touches sessions or deletes rows. Streaming and downloading stay in your controller.

Writing data

Service\PdsEditor creates and updates the ten PDS sections, so the same package serves the entry screens and the print preview:

use KawayanMedia\Pds\Adapter\PdoPdsStore;
use KawayanMedia\Pds\Service\PdsEditor;
use KawayanMedia\Persistence\Adapter\PdoDatabase;

$store  = new PdoPdsStore(PdoDatabase::fromDsn('mysql:host=localhost;dbname=ihrmis', $user, $pass));
$editor = new PdsEditor($store);

$editor->savePersonal($employeeId, $request);
$editor->saveFamilyBackground($employeeId, $request, $children);
$editor->saveEducation($employeeId, [1 => $elementary, 4 => $college]);
$editor->saveEligibility($employeeId, $rows);
$editor->saveWorkExperience($employeeId, $rows);
$editor->saveVoluntaryWork($employeeId, $rows);
$editor->saveTraining($employeeId, $rows);
$editor->saveOtherInfo($employeeId, $otherInfo, $questions, $references);
$editor->savePositionDetails($employeeId, $profile);
$editor->saveServiceRecord($employeeId, $serviceRecord);

Each call replaces one section in a single transaction, drops the blank rows the legacy screens dropped, and mirrors birth_date, sex and res_address onto the employee record. Validation errors arrive as Exception\ValidationException::errors().

Tables, columns, the PdsStoreInterface seam and the behaviour differences are documented in docs/writing-data.md.

Using it in another project

Stack	Guide
Plain PHP (PDO, no framework)	docs/plain-php.md
Laravel (service provider, Eloquent, controller)	docs/laravel.md
CodeIgniter 2 / 3 / 4	docs/codeigniter.md

Testing

vendor/bin/phpunit -c packages/pds-pdf/phpunit.xml.dist

The suite covers the box writer, the word splitter, the date shapes, the model mapping, the array repository, the layout presets and real PDF output. The feature tests build blank templates with FPDF, so they do not depend on the scanned form.

Licence

MIT.

kawayanmedia / pds

Package info

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