Design a schedule of assessments that runs itself
Anchor every visit to the right date, set its window and decide what happens when it is missed. Capture turns your design into the correct calendar for every participant.
- 6 anchor types
- 4 window enforcement modes
- Arm-specific visits
Free sandbox · No credit card · 21 CFR Part 11 compliant
Anchor
- Screening date
- Milestone (e.g. Randomization)
- An earlier visit's date
- Fixed study day
- A form field date
Offset
Window
Epoch
TreatmentVisit location
6
ways to anchor a visit
4
window enforcement modes
5
trial epochs
4
visit locations
Timing
Anchor each visit to the date that matters
Not every visit counts from day 0. In Capture each visit chooses its own anchor, so screening visits count from screening and treatment visits count from randomization.
- Screening date, a milestone such as randomization, or an earlier visit.
- A fixed study day, or a date recorded on a form.
- Offsets in days, weeks or months, with windows before and after.
- If an anchor date is never recorded, the visits that count from it are simply not scheduled for that participant.
Windows
Decide what happens when a window closes
Windows mean different things in different protocols. Choose the enforcement mode per visit, and optionally flag late or out-of-window visits in the casebook.
- Soft window: the task stays available with a protocol deviation flag.
- Hard window: the task locks outside the window.
- Warning only: the task stays available with a warning.
- Auto-close: the task is marked missed when the window closes.
- Optional overdue and out-of-window badges, and an automatic query when a visit date falls outside its window.
Window -3 / +3 days around the anchored target date
Soft window
Stays available with a protocol deviation flag
Hard window
Locks outside the window
Warning only
Stays available with a warning
Auto-close
Marked missed when the window closes
Structure
Epochs, arms and locations in the same design
Group visits into trial epochs, limit visits to the arms that need them, and mark where each visit happens. Decentralized and hybrid designs are built the same way as clinic studies.
- Epochs: screening, treatment, follow-up, unscheduled and early termination.
- Arm-specific visits, so each arm only sees its own schedule.
- Visit locations: on-site, remote, home (for example a home nurse visit) or hybrid.
- An unscheduled visit bucket for anything outside the plan.
Day 28 is an Arm B only visit, so Arm A participants never see it.
Tasks
Say who completes each assessment, and how
Every form in the schedule knows who fills it in and on what device. Repeating diaries follow their own rules, and participants can report events between visits.
- Completed by the participant, site staff or a caregiver.
- On a phone, a home tablet, a clinic device or paper entered by the site.
- Diaries that repeat daily, weekly or every few days.
- Separate instructions for participants and for site staff.
Completed by
Completed on
Repeats
Participant instructions
Complete before bed each evening.
Site instructions
Review missed entries at each visit.
Try your own visit schedule
Start from the Phase 1 template or your protocol in a free sandbox, and see each participant calendar update as you design.
Buyer checklist
What good study design tools should handle
Use this when you compare tools. Here is how Capture covers each point.
Visits that count from different dates
Six anchor types, set per visit.
Clear window rules
Soft, hard, warning-only or auto-close, per visit.
Multi-arm designs
Arm-specific visits in one schedule.
Remote and home visits
On-site, remote, home and hybrid visit locations.
Repeating diaries
Daily, weekly or every few days.
A fast start
Generate from a protocol or begin with the Phase 1 template.
What are clinical trial study design tools?
They are tools for turning a protocol into an operational study: the visit schedule, the timing rules and the assessments at each visit. In Capture this design directly drives each participant calendar and the forms sites complete.
What can a visit be anchored to?
The screening date, a milestone such as randomization, an earlier visit, a fixed study day, or a date recorded on a form. A visit can also be available immediately with no anchor.
How do visit windows work?
Each visit has a window before and after its target date, and one of four enforcement modes: soft window, hard window, warning only or auto-close.
Can different arms have different visits?
Yes. Visits can be limited to specific arms, so a participant only sees the visits for their own arm.
Does it support decentralized or hybrid trials?
Yes. Each visit can be on-site, remote, home or hybrid, and each assessment can be completed on a phone, home tablet, clinic device or paper.
Can I see the schedule by weeks instead of days?
Yes. The schedule matrix switches between days and weeks, and between matrix and list views.
What if a visit happens out of order?
By default Capture shows a reminder and still allows entry. A study can switch to a strict rule that locks a visit until the previous visit is recorded.
Can I try it without a protocol?
Yes. Start from the standard Phase 1 template in a free sandbox. No credit card is needed.
Keep exploring
Related pages
Study builder software
Visits, forms, sites and launch in one place.
Protocol-to-study setup
Generate the schedule from your protocol.
Clinical trial workflow software
Run the study once it is live.
CRF builder
Build the forms behind each visit.
Decentralized trial software
Remote and hybrid study designs.
ePRO
Participant questionnaires and diaries.
Design your schedule today
Free sandbox with nearly every feature. No credit card, no sales call.