PDF Conversion Issues

Fix Jumbled Text When Converting PDF from Ricoh Printer

Adam Davis Oct 23, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user needs to resolve an issue where text becomes jumbled, garbled, or completely unreadable after converting a PDF document generated by a Ricoh IM C4500 printer.

How to Fix Jumbled Text When Converting PDFs from a Ricoh Printer

Product: PDF Converter
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Converting a scanned PDF document created by a hardware printer into an editable format like Word.
Observed behavior: The converted document contains jumbled symbols or unreadable text instead of the original scanned content.

Before you start

Verify if the original PDF displays correctly in your PDF viewer before conversion, and try highlighting the text to determine if the document is an image-based scan rather than a text-searchable PDF.

Solution 1Recommended

Use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for Conversion

Standard converters often scramble text when processing image-based scanned PDFs. Using an OCR-enabled converter forces the software to visually read and recreate the text.

When a Ricoh printer scans a document to PDF, it often saves it as a flat image unless the printer's OCR feature is enabled. If you convert an image-based PDF using standard methods, the software may attempt to decode non-existent text layers, resulting in garbled symbols.

Check the document type

Open the Ricoh-generated PDF in your default PDF reader and try to select individual words. If the cursor selects the entire page as a single block, it is an image-based scan.

Open an OCR-compatible converter

Launch a PDF conversion program that includes an OCR feature, such as WPS Office or Adobe Acrobat.

Run the OCR tool

Locate the 'OCR' or 'Recognize Text' option in the software's toolbar. Ensure the primary document language is selected correctly in the OCR settings.

Export to an editable format

Once the text recognition is complete, choose 'Export to Word' or 'Extract Text' and save the new document to your computer.

Use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for Conversion

Conversion Accuracy: Using OCR significantly reduces the chances of jumbled characters and ensures the output text matches the visual content of the original scan.

Solution 2

Adjust PDF Settings on the Ricoh Printer

Changing the scan-to-PDF settings directly on the Ricoh printer can embed fonts properly and prevent conversion errors down the line.

PDF OCR Solution

Convert Printer PDFs Accurately with WPS Office

WPS Office features an advanced OCR engine that accurately recognizes text from scanned documents, ensuring your Ricoh printer PDFs convert perfectly without jumbled characters.

1. Open the scanned PDF: Launch WPS Office and open the PDF file you scanned from your Ricoh printer.
2. Select the OCR tool: Navigate to the 'Tools' tab on the top ribbon and click on 'OCR' to begin text recognition.
3. Configure conversion settings: Choose the appropriate language for your document and select whether you want to extract plain text or convert it into a formatted Word document.
4. Process and save: Click 'Start' to let WPS Office process the image. Once complete, save the accurately converted text file to your local drive.

Advanced OCR technology automatically reads image-based scanned PDFsMaintains the exact layout and formatting of the original documentFully compatible with Microsoft Word (.docx) and standard PDF formatsBatch convert multiple scanned pages smoothly and accurately

microsoft office alternative - wps office

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my converted PDF text look like random symbols?

This usually happens due to missing embedded fonts or because the PDF was saved as an image by the scanner. When standard converters try to read non-embedded fonts, they map the characters incorrectly, resulting in wingdings or random symbols.

How do I know if my Ricoh PDF needs OCR before converting?

Open the PDF in any viewer and try to highlight individual sentences. If you can only select the entire page as a single image, the PDF is image-based and requires Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for proper text conversion.

Can I prevent this issue directly from the Ricoh printer?

Yes, if your Ricoh printer has an OCR or 'Searchable PDF' module installed, enable it in the scanner settings before scanning. Scanning in the PDF/A format can also sometimes enforce better font embedding and prevent jumbled text.

PDF Troubleshooting