# I have images and their corresponding bounding box coordinates in a JSON file, but when I upload them together, Roboflow isn't linking them correctly to generate annotated images

**URL:** <https://discuss.roboflow.com/t/i-have-images-and-their-corresponding-bounding-box-coordinates-in-a-json-file-but-when-i-upload-them-together-roboflow-isnt-linking-them-correctly-to-generate-annotated-images/10365>\
**Category:** 🤝  Community Help\
**Created:** [June 25, 2025, 8:36am UTC](https://discuss.roboflow.com/t/i-have-images-and-their-corresponding-bounding-box-coordinates-in-a-json-file-but-when-i-upload-them-together-roboflow-isnt-linking-them-correctly-to-generate-annotated-images/10365 "2025-06-25T08:36:56Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Tixtor710](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex029/user_avatar/discuss.roboflow.com/tixtor710/32/7419_2.png) [@Tixtor710](https://discuss.roboflow.com/u/Tixtor710)\
**Post date:** [June 25, 2025, 8:36am UTC](https://discuss.roboflow.com/t/i-have-images-and-their-corresponding-bounding-box-coordinates-in-a-json-file-but-when-i-upload-them-together-roboflow-isnt-linking-them-correctly-to-generate-annotated-images/10365/1 "2025-06-25T08:36:56Z")

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**Issue:**

I’m working on a surgical object detection project and I have a dataset comprising image files and a corresponding JSON file that contains the bounding box coordinates for each image. However, when I upload both the images and the JSON file to Roboflow, the platform does not automatically link the annotations to the images. As a result, none of the images are being displayed as annotated, and the bounding boxes are not rendered.

I have verified that the image filenames match the keys or references used inside the JSON file. Still, the annotations aren’t recognized, suggesting either a formatting mismatch or an issue with the import process. I believe the problem might be related to how Roboflow is interpreting the structure of the JSON, and I would appreciate guidance on how to correctly upload or restructure the annotation file so it links to the images properly.

Could you please advise if:

1. There is a specific JSON format (like COCO, VOC, or a custom schema) that Roboflow expects for annotations?
2. There’s a way to map my current JSON structure to the format Roboflow supports?
3. You have any tools or scripts to convert non-standard JSON files into a compatible annotation format?

**Details:**

- **Project Type:** Object detection surgical
- **Operating System & Browser:** Windows and Firefox
- **Project Universe Link or Workspace/Project ID:** _cholect50_

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**Author:** ![Ford](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex029/user_avatar/discuss.roboflow.com/ford/32/7747_2.png) [@Ford](https://discuss.roboflow.com/u/Ford)\
**Post date:** [June 25, 2025, 1:47pm UTC](https://discuss.roboflow.com/t/i-have-images-and-their-corresponding-bounding-box-coordinates-in-a-json-file-but-when-i-upload-them-together-roboflow-isnt-linking-them-correctly-to-generate-annotated-images/10365/2 "2025-06-25T13:47:09Z")

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Hi @Tixtor710!  
I’m sorry you have run into this issue. To answer your questions:

1. Yes, Roboflow supports multiple standard annotation formats. For JSON specifically, COCO is the most commonly utilized format. Here is a link to that expands on Roboflow’s [supported formats](https://roboflow.com/formats).

2. You can convert your structure into COCO using a custom script. To create the custom script, you can use a prompt like this in ChatGPT. I suggest providing ChatGPT a sample of your current format to help tailor this script.

```auto
Write a python script to convert my custom annotation JSON (structured with 
filenames as keys and bounding boxes as values) into a COCO format JSON file
for object detection. Include Image IDs, annotation IDs, and a sample categories
section

```

1. At this time, Roboflow doesn’t offer a built in tool to convert non-standard JSON files into a proper format, however the above prompt will be able to quickly accomplish this for you.

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**Author:** ![system](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex029/uploads/roboflow1/original/1X/bb6edbfa56d0cf2ee603f061e9e09103502cc8cc.png) [@system](https://discuss.roboflow.com/u/system)\
**Post date:** [July 2, 2025, 1:47pm UTC](https://discuss.roboflow.com/t/i-have-images-and-their-corresponding-bounding-box-coordinates-in-a-json-file-but-when-i-upload-them-together-roboflow-isnt-linking-them-correctly-to-generate-annotated-images/10365/3 "2025-07-02T13:47:27Z")

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