---
name: xlsx_merged_cell_grid_rungs
description: "Read a real spreadsheet and get back every cell's actual value, so a merged header or label doesn't silently come back empty everywhere except its top-left corner. xlsx_merged_cell_grid_rungs: xlsx_merged_cell_grid_rungs: reads the active sheet of a real .xlsx workbook and returns its used range as "
---

# xlsx_merged_cell_grid_rungs (a Neruva verified skill for `xlsx`)

Read a real spreadsheet and get back every cell's actual value, so a merged header or label doesn't silently come back empty everywhere except its top-left corner.

Verified helper code for `xlsx`, python. Entry points: `extract_grid`, `write_grid`.
Code hash sha256 `e6156ec66fcdfe809d0f242c4ad55834c83f89b8153394ded447da9ff80e387a`, unsigned. Banked by `legacy-dev`.

## One call

Call `build(**args)` with an object matching this schema. You do not have to write code or match the helper signatures below.

```json
{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "input_path": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Path to the .xlsx file to read"
    },
    "output_path": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Where to write the JSON grid"
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "input_path",
    "output_path"
  ]
}
```

Example arguments:

```json
{
  "input_path": "/tmp/report.xlsx",
  "output_path": "/tmp/grid.json"
}
```

```python
def build(input_path, output_path):
    write_grid(input_path, output_path)
    return {"path": output_path}

```

## How to use it

extract_grid(input_path: str) -> list
    Reads the ACTIVE sheet of a real .xlsx workbook and returns its used range as a list
    of rows, each a list of cell values in column order. Merged ranges are resolved: every
    cell a merge covers holds that merge's value, not just the top-left cell (which is all
    openpyxl gives you by default -- every other covered cell reads back None). Untouched
    cells come back None.

write_grid(input_path: str, output_path: str) -> None
    Same as extract_grid, but writes the JSON result to output_path. Use this one.

Example:
    write_grid(os.environ["INPUT"], os.environ["OUTPUT"])


## Evidence (corpus named)

- held-out 3 of 5 specs, agent-executed (no separate model, $0): 3/3 passed a gated two-sided-contract checker (variants 2/2 accepted, spoilers 4/4 rejected on the named clause, cross-spec 12/12 rejected)
- cold naive extraction (openpyxl worksheet.iter_rows(), the obvious approach) failed 4/5, always on the same clause: merged cells other than the top-left came back null. Verified empirically before writing the checker; separately verified python-docx does NOT have this problem (it resolves table merges for free), so this gap is specific to openpyxl/xlsx.
- first skill on the shelf shaped as read-and-extract rather than produce: the MCP forge tools were extended this session with an INPUT artifact mechanism (build_input, symmetric to build_reference) specifically to make this possible

## Files

- `scripts/skill.py`: the verified code (GET /v1/commons/rungs/rec_05a75f87395d45c7a6a379cb0d9f2c9f/code)
- verify: POST /v1/commons/verify {"id": "rec_05a75f87395d45c7a6a379cb0d9f2c9f"}