Quickly scanning different documents or using images to create PDF files is a daily part of our life. The problem with scanned PDFs is that you cannot edit them. If you look for ways to turn scanned PDFs into editable and searchable forms, you will see the term “OCR PDF” used a lot. So, what is OCR PDF? It is the most convenient tool for converting scanned documents to editable PDFs.
To know more about OCR and how to perform it on your scanned PDFs using PDFelement for Mac and Windows, read this article.
Part 1: OCR: A Brief Introduction
Optical Character Recognition, or OCR, is a tool commonly used to recognize and extract text in images or scanned documents. It recognizes the text in images or scanned documents and turns it into editable content. If you have scanned handwritten notes that you want to edit or need to fill out a scanned PDF form, OCR is the way to go.
When using OCR, you can convert screenshots, pictures, and text images into editable PDFs. It saves you from retyping the text present in those images. You cannot perform search operations in scanned documents or text images. OCR lets you convert these files to searchable form, allowing you to look for specific keywords or phrases in the document.
Part 2: The Best PDF OCR Tool for You in 2022
Are you looking for a trusted and reliable PDF tool to perform OCR? We recommend using Wondershare PDFelement to perform OCR on your files. The file quality, integrity, and formatting are not affected when using the OCR function of PDFelement. It means when converting scanned documents containing forms, tables, indexes, graphs, and shapes, you won’t have to worry about the data being misplaced.
The interface of PDFelement is also engaging and straightforward. You can easily find all the tools and options on the main screen because the icons properly explain their utility.
You can download Wondershare PDFelement and try it for free to check its impressive OCR tool.
Part 3: How to Perform OCR using the Best PDF Tool
Performing OCR on your scanned documents or images using PDFelement is simple and easy to follow. Download and install Wondershare PDFelement in your system and follow these steps to perform OCR on your documents:
Step 1: Open your Scanned PDF File
After installing, launch the PDFelement and open the scanned document on which you want to perform OCR. You can use the drag-and-drop method or the “Open PDF” button to import your PDF file.
Step 2: Sort Out the OCR Settings
When the file is opened, click “Tools” from the top bar and select “OCR” or “OCR Area,” depending on your needs. The “OCR” option performs OCR on the whole document, while in “OCR Area,” you can select the specific area of PDF to perform OCR. When clicking “OCR,” you will be asked to define further parameters like scan option, page range, and language.
Step 3: Perform the OCR
Once you have defined all the required parameters, you can tap the “Apply” button to start the OCR process. When completed, the new OCR document will open in a new tab where you can confirm that the document is up to your requirements. You can save the new document by selecting “Save As” from the “File” tab.
Part 4: Why Should You Choose Our Recommended Tool
The OCR tool of PDFelement is tailored to suit your needs. When performing OCR on scanned documents, you can define which type of scan you want. If the scanned document contains tables or forms you need to fill out, you should choose “Scan to editable text.” In case you only need to create a searchable document, you can choose “Scan to searchable text in image.”
You can also define page range for scanning when performing OCR. It allows you to select between All Pages, Current Page, or Customized Page Range. Regarding languages in the scanned document, you can choose from over 20 languages. You can also upload your essential PDF documents to the free 1GB Cloud storage space offered by PDFelement.
Part 5: Impressive Features of the Powerful PDF OCR Tool
- Batch Processing: If you need to convert many scanned documents or text images to editable and searchable forms, PDFelement allows you to perform batch OCR. You can also perform batch processing for other tools.
- Text Translation: When reading or editing PDF files in PDFelement, you can now translate any part of the text. It saves you from the trouble of copying text and using online translation tools.
- Handwritten Signatures: You can create and add handwritten signatures to your important documents using PDFelement. Signatures can be drawn, typed, or upload as images.
- Compare PDFs: When checking two similar PDF files for differences, you can use the Compare tool of PDFelement. This tool will display all the modifications, insertions, and deletions.
Conclusion
Scanned documents and text images are now an important part of our life. They have made sharing important documents a lot easier for us. Their major drawback is that they can’t be edited, but OCR has made this drawback trivial. It would be best if you had a great PDF solution to convert these scanned documents to editable form, and Wondershare PDFelement is the soundest choice.
