Searchable PDF
Transform scanned PDF to searchable PDF
A searchable PDF file, also known as an OCR (Optical Character Recognition) PDF, is a digital document that contains both scanned images of the pages of the original document and the recognized text obtained from those scans. This recognition process allows you to search and highlight text in a PDF file just as you would in a regular text document.
Here's how it usually works:
Scanning: First, the PDF document is scanned into a digital image format. This scanned image is essentially a document page image.
Optical Character Recognition (OCR): Next, OCR software is used to analyze the scanned images and recognize any text characters that appear in them. This software identifies individual characters or words and converts them into machine-readable text.
Adding a text layer: The recognized text is then added as a hidden text layer to the PDF document. This text layer remains invisible to the viewer, but is accessible to search engines and text selection tools.
Combining text and images: OCR-processed text is combined with original scanned images to create a searchable PDF file that contains both a visual representation of the document and the underlying textual data.
Advantages of searchable PDF files: searchability, accessibility for people with visual impairments,
text indexing by search engines and others.
data extraction: Companies can extract structured data from documents such as invoices or forms to automate data entry processes.
It is important to note that OCR quality and text recognition accuracy may vary depending on factors such as the quality of the original document, the OCR software used, and the language of the text. Advanced OCR software can handle multiple languages and improve accuracy using machine learning techniques, making searchable PDFs a valuable tool for document management and information retrieval.
Welcome to our web-based application for converting scanned PDFs to searchable! Whether you're using a computer or a mobile device, our convenient platform provides searchable PDF conversion across all operating systems.
Our free web software with no registration and no code verification supports text recognition in up to 32 languages.
Imagine the efficiency of converting up to 10 files in one pass! We understand the importance of resource management, which is why our web application has an overall file size limit of 32 MB per pass. This ensures that you can convert large amounts of data while maintaining optimal performance. Converting large searchable PDFs can take several hours, so we've included a progress bar to let you know how long you'll have to wait for the conversion to complete.
Although your files are stored on our server for 24 hours, we value your privacy, so we allow you to delete files immediately after processing.
Experience the convenience of our application, which is available for free and is available on any desktop or mobile operating system.
How it works
Select files
You can select files from the file system, Dropbox and Google Drive.
Press button "Transform"
in order to upload files for processing.
Wait for completion
It will take from 10 seconds to several minutes depending on the number and size of the files.
FAQ
What is a searchable PDF?
A searchable PDF, also known as an OCR (Optical Character Recognition) PDF, is a type of document that contains both scanned images and machine-readable text. This makes it possible for users to search for and select text within the document, copy it, and perform text-based functions. As a result, the content of the PDF becomes searchable and editable.
How are searchable PDFs created?
Searchable PDFs are created through Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology. OCR software scans the text in a document, recognizes the characters, and embeds this text invisibly within the PDF file, alongside the scanned images. This hidden text layer is used for searching and text selection.
Can I search for specific words or phrases in a searchable PDF?
Yes, one of the primary advantages of a searchable PDF is the ability to search for specific words or phrases. You can use our tool for words searching.
Are there any limitations to searchable PDFs?
While searchable PDFs are highly useful, they do have some limitations: OCR accuracy: The quality of OCR results can vary depending on the software and the quality of the scanned document. File size: Searchable PDFs are often larger in file size compared to non-searchable ones due to the embedded text. Formatting: OCR may not preserve complex formatting, fonts, or layout precisely.