Recently, I had a request to make PDFs screen reader capable. First - I did not realize not all PDFs are not screen reader capable. Second - Where do I start?
Step 1 - Check Your Document
Open your PDF in Adobe Reader and check to see if it is a readable document. You can do this by clicking the View Option and then the Read Out Loud Option.
Once you select the "Active Read Out Loud Option," you will want to have Adobe Reader read each page by either selecting the "Read This Page Only" or the "Read To End of Document" option.
If Adobe Reader reads the document, you are good to go! If not, move the Step 2.
Step 2 - Convert Your Document
Open your PDF in Adobe Acrobat DC.
Once in Adobe Acrobat DC, you will want to use the tool bar to select the Tools option.
Next, select the Enhance Scans option under the Create & Edit category.
After you select this option, you will will be given an option to Recognize Text.
Click Recognize Text.
You will then start to convert your PDF to a Searchable Image which in fact is also a readable PDF.
After the conversion is complete, make sure to save your document!
Step 3 - Check Your Converted Document
Use your new converted document (the one you just saved) and repeat Step 1 to make sure it converted correctly.
And that's it!
Hope this works for you as it has for me!
-h