topic Explode PDF - Font Recognition in Documentation

Explode PDF - Font Recognition

MendoPermaculture — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 23:51:18 GMT

When I try to "explode into current view" a pdf of architectural details, the font appears to not be recognized. The characters come out as "?" symbols....

I believe it is a vector-based pdf, it came from another architect. I placed the drawing into a worksheet via the drawing tool as suggested by good practices.

How do I identify the font and get Archicad to recognize it? When I open the pdf in Acrobat Reader, it lists the "Fonts Used in this Document" under Document Properties as "Generic0-Regular", "Generic1-Regular", "Generic2-Regular", "Generic3-Regular"... I've tried using online tools like "Whatthefont" to id the font in the pdf, but it simply returns MANY options, all for sale to me...

Is there a method I am unaware of to remedy this problem I'm having?

Operating system used: Mac Apple Silicon 15.4.1 Sequoia

Re: Explode PDF - Font Recognition

Molinda Prey — Thu, 14 Aug 2025 13:02:03 GMT

Hi @MendoPermaculture,

I’m not sure if this will solve it, but have you tried selecting “Use Uniform Font” under Override Options?

If that doesn’t work, it might be because Archicad sees the font as vector shapes rather than actual text. One workaround is to edit the PDF in Adobe Acrobat and change the font to a common system font (like Arial), so Archicad can detect it and treat it as text when exploding.

Another option is to place the PDF as a drawing instead of exploding it (you may have to adjust the drawing a bit with Illustrator or Photoshop first). This way, the text will display correctly in Archicad, though you won’t be able to edit it.

And if you find another method that works, please share it with us. It might be a nice tip for others 😉 Thank you!

Re: Explode PDF - Font Recognition

MendoPermaculture — Thu, 14 Aug 2025 21:28:07 GMT

Molinda,

Thank you for the suggestion, but no, the "Use Uniform Font" option does not remedy the issue. I believe it has to do with Archicad simply not recognizing the font in the pdf.

Your other suggestions both would be recommended approaches. I was unable to edit the font in my pdf editing software, so I was unable to properly try that suggestion. It may be my technical limitations, or it could be that the pdf drawing simply has vector shapes instead of actual text.

Betreff: Explode PDF - Font Recognition

runxel — Thu, 14 Aug 2025 22:08:18 GMT

What's the source of these PDFs?

I have come across several of these in my life – it's a deliberate scrambling technique, where the creator does not want the text to be copyable.

Usually it's a fake font generated, where all the usual letters are stored in the PUA (private use area) – it looks okay, but that's where it ends.

Try to copy the text from the PDF. If that also returns garbage, this is the case here too.