Getting Started
Scanning the Document
Making the Document Accessible
OCR Scanning Multiple Files

Getting Started

Adobe Acrobat can be used to make documents more accessible so that people who use assistive technologies, like text-to-speech readers, can engage with the content of the document. Text-to-speech tools need to use the information "embedded" within a digital document to fully describe the content to the user. Materials like paper handouts, scans from textbooks, photos of text, and hand-written documents are not accessible for users that rely on screen readers unless additional measures are taken. To make these types of documents accessible:

• Scan the material to generate a PDF.
• OCR (Optical Character Recognition) scan the PDF to convert the text into machine-encoded text.
• Add metadata to the document so that an application can "read" the title of the document.
• Add alternative text to images, figures, graphs, maps, charts, and other visual material in the document.

Scanning the Document

If the document is printed media, first scan the document and save it as a PDF. When you scan the pages, make sure they are straight on the scanning bed and keep the material as still as possible.

Making the Document Accessible

1. Open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat.

2. Select "OCR Scanning" on the right-hand tool menu. This will straighten the images and identify text. 

3. In the new menu at the top of the document editor:

        1. Select "Recognize Text."

        2. Select "In This File."

        ***NOTE: Navigate to the OCR Scanning Multiple Files section to use the "In Multiple Files..." function.***

4. Select "Recognize Text" button that appears underneath the Scan & OCR toolbar. Adobe Acrobat will start identifying the text in your document.

***NOTE: This part might take a few minutes as it scans all of your pages.***

5. A progress bar will appear, and will show that it is "Converting scanned page to Searchable Image Exact."

6. To make this document text-accessible, select "More Tools" in the menu on the right-hand side of the screen.

7. Scroll down until you see a section labeled Protect & Standardize. Select "Add" under Action Wizard.

8. In the Actions List menu on the right side of the screen, select "Make Accessible."

9. This will open the Make Accessible tab. Select "Start."

10. In the following pop-up menu:

        1. Uncheck Leave As Is.

        2. Enter in a title for the document.

        3. Select "Okay."

11. In General Settings:

        1. Select "EditableText and Images" for Output.

        2. Select "Okay."

12. On the next screen, select whether the document is meant to be a fillable form or not.

13. On the Set Reading Language screen:

1. Select the primary language of the document.

2. Select "OK."

14. On the next pop-up window, select "OK."

15. If Adobe recognizes images without alt text, the following screen will appear:

1. Supply an alternative text description or mark the image as decorative.

        2. Select the arrow to provide alt text to each image Adobe recogizes.

3. Select "Save & Close."

16. The Accessibility Checker Options pop-up menu will open. Select "Start Checking."

17. The Accessibility Checker tab will open on the left side of the page. Review any flagged accessibility issues and address them if necessary. To learn more about the Adobe Acrobat Accessibility Checker, navigate to the following Adobe guide: Check accessibility of PDFs (Acrobat Pro).

18. Save your document. Now your document has text that can be identified by a text-to-speech reader, a machine-readable title, and figures with alt text.

OCR Scanning Multiple Files

1. Open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat.

2. Select "OCR Scanning" on the right-hand tool menu. This will straighten the images and identify text. 

3. In the new menu at the top of the document editor:

        1. Select "Recognize Text."

        2. Select "In Multiple Files..."

4. In the Add Files page:

        1. Select "Add Files."

        2. Select if you want to add an additional file or folder.

5. Select any files you want to add in from File Explorer."

6. Select "OK."

7. In the next window, make changes as you see fit, then select "OK."

8. In General Settings:

        1. Select "EditableText and Images" for Output.

        2. Select "Okay."

9. When making the document accessible using the Action Wizard, you will have to add the same files again.