PAC 2024 error details
appearance
category
Logical Structure > Alternative Descriptions > Alternative Texts for “Figure” Structure Elements
Error message
“Figure” structural element without alternative text
Matterhorn error condition
13-004 (The alternative text or replacement text (ActualText) is missing for a Figure tag.)
explanation
There is a graphic in the document that is marked with a figure tag but has no alternative text. Since the graphic is not marked as an artifact, it is relevant in terms of content. However, without alternative text, the content of the graphic is not (fully) accessible to visually impaired people.
solution in Adobe Acrobat Pro
solution approach
To correct the error, the graphic must either be marked as an artifact (if it is not relevant to the content) or marked with a figure tag and additionally provided with alternative text (if it is relevant to the content). When writing the alternative text, care should be taken to ensure that it explains all relevant aspects of the graphic briefly and concisely without redundancies.
video tutorial
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More Informationpicture instructions
Option 1: Mark graphic as artifact (if content is not relevant)
1. In the search bar, search for the “Reading Order” tool and open it
2. Double-click the graphic so that it is highlighted in color (while the reading order window is open) >
Click "Background/Artifact"
Option 2: Set alternative text for tagged graphic (if relevant to content)
1. In the search bar, search for the tool “Accessibility Tags” and open it
2. Right-click the Figure tag >
Click “Properties…”
3. Open the “Tag” tab >
Enter alternative text
As soon as you save the document and check it again with the PDF Accessibility Checker, the error message “Figure” structural element without alternative text disappeared.
When saving, make sure to give the document a new name (e.g. Document Title_Rev2) and not oversave the previous version of the document. This way, you can go back to the previous version of the document if something goes wrong.
Tips for Error Prevention
Create your document using a standard word processing program such as Microsoft Word, as such programs allow you to specify for each graphic whether it is relevant to the content or not. You can also assign alternative text to graphics that are relevant to the content. This means that the graphics are correctly tagged (or marked as artifacts) during the PDF export and, if necessary, provided with the alternative text. This means you no longer have to fix the error in the PDF afterwards.
