The accuracy of the OCR program depends on the image quality, text size, and structure of the original and the quality of the scan itself. Make sure that your original has good image quality.

Colored backgrounds can cause images in the foreground to blend too much. Try adjusting the settings before you scan the original, or try enhancing the image after you scan the original. If you are performing an OCR operation on an original, any colored text on the original does not scan well, if at all.

Error messages appear

"Unable to activate TWAIN source" or "An error occurred while acquiring the image"

If you are acquiring an image from another device, such as a digital camera or another scanner, make sure that the other device is TWAIN-compliant. Devices that are not TWAIN-compliant do not work with the device software.

Make sure that you have connected the USB Device Cable to the correct port on the back of your computer.

Verify that the correct TWAIN source is selected. In the software, check the TWAIN source by selecting Select Scanner on the File menu.

Scanned image quality is poor

The original is a second-generation photo or picture

Reprinted photographs, such as those in newspapers or magazines, are printed by using tiny dots of ink that make an interpretation of the original photograph, which degrades the quality. Often, the ink dots form unwanted patterns that can be detected when the image is scanned or printed or when the image appears on a screen. If the following suggestions do not solve the problem, you might need to use a better-quality version of the original.

To eliminate the patterns, try reducing the size of the image after scanning.

Print the scanned image to see if the quality is better.

Make sure that the resolution and color settings are correct for the type of scan job.

Text or images on the back of a two-sided original appear in the scan

Two-sided originals can "bleed" text or images from the back side to the scan if the originals are printed on media that is too thin or too transparent.

The scanned image is skewed (crooked)

The original might have been placed incorrectly. Be sure to use the media guides when you place the original on the scanner glass. For more information, see Load originals.

The image quality is better when printed

The image that appears on the screen is not always an accurate representation of the quality of the scan.

Try adjusting your computer monitor settings to use more colors (or levels of gray). On Windows computers, you typically make this adjustment by opening Display on the Windows control panel.

Try adjusting the resolution and color settings.

Solve scan problems

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