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RIDIAN TECHNOLOGIES · ACCESSIBILITY STUDIO

Make your documents
easier to use.

Inspect a file, apply supported repairs, and verify the result.

ACCS conference companion ↓

01 / INSPECT

Start with your file

PDF or Word (.docx) · up to 15 MB · PDFs up to 80 pages

Document bytes stay in this browser. No account, AI upload, or paid API is used. Reloading or clearing the session discards the working copy; downloaded files remain on your device.

What can this tool repair?
  • Word: title, default language, selected heading styles, image descriptions, and simple table header rows. Other package content is retained.
  • Original PDF: title, language, display-title preference, and descriptions on existing Figure tags. It does not create missing tags or repair reading order.
  • Simple text PDF: reconstruct reviewed text as a new tagged PDF or editable Word file. This changes the layout and excludes non-text objects.

Scans need OCR. Complex layouts, forms, charts, math, and untagged tables need a source-document or specialist repair workflow. Signed and encrypted files are not modified.

03 / VERIFY

Test the document people will receive.

Review the downloaded output, not just the original. Run an independent checker, test the reading experience, and keep the review record with the final file.

Record checks completed on the output

0 of 7 review actions recorded. These are your review notes, not a compliance score.

Choose an independent checker →

The HTML record includes input and output fingerprints, inspection findings, applied changes, and your review notes. It does not certify conformance.

FREE TOOLKIT

The right tool for each check.

Independent resources that support accessible authoring and testing. No tool listed here is presented as DOJ approved or a guarantee of accessibility.

ValidateFree · open source

veraPDF ↗

Validate machine-testable PDF/UA requirements. Select the appropriate PDF/UA profile; a PDF/A result is not an accessibility result.

Create and repairFree · Windows, macOS, Linux

LibreOffice ↗

Repair the editable source in Writer, use Tools → Accessibility Check, then File → Export As → Export as PDF → General → Universal Accessibility (PDF/UA). Review the exported file.

Test the experienceFree · Windows

NVDA screen reader ↗

Open the final document in a compatible reader and test the reading sequence, headings, links, and table navigation. Pair this with keyboard and visual checks.

Check contrastFree · Windows, macOS

Colour Contrast Analyser ↗

Sample foreground and background colors in a design or document. Review normal text, large text, and meaningful graphics separately.

Check contrastFree · browser

WebAIM Contrast Checker ↗

Enter two color values to check contrast. It checks the chosen pair, not a whole PDF or website.

Learn and verifyFree · guidance

Section508.gov document guides ↗

Practical authoring and testing guidance for documents. Section 508 and the ADA are different legal frameworks; these techniques support accessibility work.

ACCS PUBLIC RELATIONS ASSOCIATION · MARKETING CONFERENCE

AI Literacy for Accessible PDFs

Ryan Buchanan · September 17, 2026 · 1:45–2:30 p.m.

Creating clear, accessible documents before PDF conversion. Follow the presentation, practice the workflow, and use AI as a drafting partner while you keep responsibility for the result.

Open the presentationCanvas companion & practice files

Gamma or Canvas may request sign-in depending on sharing settings.

Accessible Marketing PDF Coach

Get help with plain language, heading suggestions, and image-description drafts. Review suggestions before applying them. The coach does not inspect or certify PDF tags.

Institutional access · ACCS / Alabama.edu sign-in may be required. Use approved, nonconfidential material.

Open the Copilot coach

Follow the session

  1. Build access into the source. Use real headings and lists, descriptive links, contextual alt text, table headers, and a logical sequence.
  2. Use AI thoughtfully. Ask for clearer wording or draft descriptions. Protect private information and check every suggestion.
  3. Check, revise, and export. Run the source checker, review manually, export with tags, and inspect the resulting PDF.
  4. Test with people in mind. A passing checker is one piece of evidence. Read with assistive technology and verify facts, usability, and completeness.

Practice the workflow

Word → repaired source → tagged PDF
  1. Open the original in Word. Select Review → Check Accessibility. The Accessibility pane should open. If it is absent, use the Word search box to find “Check Accessibility.”
  2. Use Home → Styles for headings. Review images with right-click → View Alt Text. Use a real table header row and descriptive hyperlink text. Verify the reading sequence.
  3. Run the checker again. In Word for Windows, select File → Save As → PDF → More options → Options. Confirm Document structure tags for accessibility, then save. If your version uses Export, check the equivalent PDF options. Avoid Print to PDF.
  4. Open the final PDF in PAC or another validator and test it with a screen reader. If the source was PowerPoint, also inspect Review → Check Accessibility → Reading Order Pane before export.
Microsoft’s accessible PDF export instructions

Word and PowerPoint may require a license. They are not included in the free toolkit above.

Existing PDF → Acrobat Pro → verification
  1. Open the file in Acrobat Pro. Select All tools → Prepare for accessibility. If you do not see it, search Acrobat’s tools for “accessibility”; confirm that you have Pro rather than Reader.
  2. For a scan, use Scan & OCR → Recognize Text → In This File. Correct OCR errors against the page image. OCR alone does not add meaningful structure.
  3. In Prepare for accessibility, run Check for accessibility. Use Automatically tag PDF when appropriate, then inspect and correct the tags and reading order.
  4. Review document title and language, image alternatives, tables, links, and interactive form labels. Manually review every applicable item marked “Needs manual check.”
  5. Save a new copy, rerun the checker, validate independently, and test navigation and reading order with assistive technology.
Adobe’s repair and verification guide

Acrobat Pro is paid. Automatic tagging still requires review.

Free source-document workflow with LibreOffice
  1. Open a copy of the editable source in LibreOffice Writer. Use paragraph styles for headings and repair image descriptions, lists, links, and tables.
  2. Select Tools → Accessibility Check, then address the findings. If unavailable, update LibreOffice and consult its Help for your version.
  3. Select File → Export As → Export as PDF → General → Universal Accessibility (PDF/UA). Export and inspect the resulting PDF.
  4. Use PAC or veraPDF and a screen reader. Compare the output with the source because importing Word documents can change the layout.
LibreOffice PDF/UA export guidance

Copy a workshop prompt

Review the source

Act as an accessibility drafting assistant for a college marketing and public relations team. Review this nonconfidential document before PDF export. Flag unclear wording, heading hierarchy gaps, ambiguous links, image-description needs, and table complexity. Preserve all names, dates, prices, deadlines, and other facts. For each suggestion, give the location, concern, and proposed revision. Separate things you can observe from checks that require Word, Acrobat, or assistive technology. Do not claim ADA, WCAG, or PDF/UA compliance.

Draft image descriptions

Help me draft alternative text for the attached nonconfidential image in this document. Ask about its purpose if that is unclear. Describe the information a reader needs in this context, preserve important text and data, and identify uncertainty. For a chart, propose a concise alt text plus a longer description or data table. Suggest decorative treatment only when the image communicates no information in this context, and explain why. Do not invent visual details. I will review every description before applying it.

Improve headings and links

Review this nonconfidential marketing document. Propose a logical heading hierarchy using Heading 1, Heading 2, and Heading 3, and descriptive replacements for vague link text. Preserve the document’s meaning and all original destinations. Do not turn ordinary emphasis into headings. Return a table with the original wording, proposed wording or style, and reason. Flag decisions that need my confirmation.

SOURCE OF TRUTH · REVIEWED SEPTEMBER 11, 2026

Grounded in the rule. Clear about the limits.

DOJ’s ADA Title II web and mobile accessibility rule adopts WCAG 2.1 Level AA for covered state and local government content. Public colleges are covered public entities. An independent Ridian tool is not endorsed, certified, or approved by DOJ.

DOJ’s 2026 interim final rule extended the compliance dates to April 26, 2027 for entities with populations of 50,000 or more, and April 26, 2028 for smaller entities and special district governments. A state institution generally uses the state’s population, not its student enrollment. Existing ADA obligations continue before those dates. Confirm your institution’s classification and any additional requirements with its accessibility lead.

PDF/UA is a technical standard for accessible PDF structure. It supports evaluation but does not replace WCAG, human judgment, or testing with assistive technology. Exceptions in the DOJ rule are limited; an old PDF is not automatically exempt when it supports a current service, program, or activity.

This companion supports an accessibility practice. It does not provide legal advice or automatically determine which legal exceptions apply to a document.

Report an accessibility barrier or request help