Acrobat and PDF standards

With Adobe® Acrobat® X software, you can save any digital document as a PDF file that conforms to a variety of industry-specific standards or that adheres to your organization's own unique specifications.

Acrobat X software can help you:

• Easily create PDF files and validate that they conform to ISO standards, including PDF/A, PDF/E, and PDF/X, and fix those that do not
  
• Automate multistep PDF tasks and ensure consistent execution of processes across your enterprise with the Action Wizard
  
• Approve PDF documents using standards-compliant digital signatures
  
• Combine multiple documents into a single, searchable PDF document for team review or final publication
• Integrate industry data standards and ease business transactions by combining the power of XML with PDF
• Prepare PDF files to meet accessibility requirements

PDF: Invented by Adobe Systems and perfected over 17 years, PDF is now a formal, open standard maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).  ISO 32000 contains the complete PDF specification and is the foundation for derivative standards. Read the ISO press release.

PDF/A: Approved by the ISO in May 2005, PDF/A provides specifications for creating, viewing, and printing digital documents for long-term preservation. Records managers, archivists, and industry compliance professionals can use Acrobat X to easily preserve and protect final documents of record as self-contained files, helping to ensure future access to information. Visit the PDF/A resource page.

PDF/E: Ratified by ISO as an open standard in June 2007, PDF/E provides specifications for creating, viewing, and printing documents used in engineering workflows. Architects, engineers, construction professionals, and manufacturing product teams can use Acrobat X to facilitate the exchange of documentation and drawings with others in the supply chain, and to streamline document review and markup. Read about creating PDF/E-ready files (PDF, 1.5M) .

PDF/X: The first ISO PDF standard from 1999, the various versions of PDF/X provide specifications for creating, viewing, and printing print-ready or press-ready pages. This standard defines PDF settings that affect critical aspects of printing, such as color space and trapping. Print professionals, graphic designers, and other creative professionals can use Acrobat X to create and deliver predictable, press-ready PDF/X-compliant files. Learn more about PDF/X.

PDF Healthcare Committee: The AIIM PDF Healthcare Committee provides best practice and implementation guidelines to facilitate the capture, exchange, preservation, and protection of healthcare information. These guidelines support the healthcare industry in providing a secure electronic container for storing and transmitting health information, including personal documents, XML data, DICOM images and data, clinical notes, lab reports, electronic forms, scanned images, photographs, digital X-rays, and ECGs. Visit the AIIM PDF Healthcare Committee page.

PAdES: Maintained by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), PAdES provides a standard for the use of PDF digital signatures to facilitate more secure paperless business transactions throughout the European Union, in conformance with European legislation. Read the ETSI press release.

Adobe is an active member in dozens of working groups and industry associations that develop standards worldwide — including XML-based industry standards. Adobe is actively participating in the development of future standards, including:

• PDF/UA for creating PDF files that are universally accessible for people with vision impairment or limited mobility
• PRC for representing 3D models and assemblies in a compact 3D file format, optimized to store, load, and display various kinds of 3D data
• PDF/VT for creating, viewing, and printing files used in the variable and transactional printing industry, such as bank statements and business invoices

Learn more about Adobe and industry standards.