Skip to main content
The scanner turns paper into a PDF in your library. Lectra finds the edges of the page, straightens it, and can capture it for you as soon as you hold steady. After you save, you can write on the scan like any other document, and Lectra reads its text so you can search it.

​
Before you begin

  • Your iPad needs a camera.
  • The first time you scan, iPadOS asks for permission to use the camera. Tap Allow.

​
Scan a document

1

Open the scanner

In your library, open the folder where the scan should go. Tap New, then tap Scan. With a keyboard, press ⇧ ⌘ N.
2

Point the camera at the page

Hold your iPad over the page. When Lectra finds the page, it outlines it. Follow the hint at the top of the screen, such as Point at a document or Hold steady.
3

Capture the page

With Auto on, Lectra captures the page by itself after you hold steady for about a second. The hint says Hold — capturing, then Captured. With Auto off, tap the shutter button when the hint says Ready — tap to capture.
4

Scan more pages

Move to the next page and repeat. The stack in the corner shows how many pages you have.
5

Review the scan

Tap the page stack to open Review Scan.
6

Save the PDF

Tap Save PDF. The scan opens in the editor, ready to mark up.
The new document is named with the date and time of the scan, for example “Scan 2026-10-16 14.05”, and is saved in the folder you were viewing. To rename it, tap its title in the editor, then tap Rename.

​
Camera controls

On iPads with a LiDAR scanner, you also see a LiDAR badge, and the hint can say Move closer or Move farther away to help you get the whole page in view.
Closing the scanner before you tap Save PDF discards the pages you captured. Lectra doesn’t ask first.

​
Review and adjust pages

In Review Scan, you can:
  • Choose how the pages look under Look: Color, Grayscale, or B&W. The choice applies to every page.
  • Delete a page: tap its trash button (Delete Page), or swipe left on it.
  • Reorder pages: tap Edit, then drag pages into order.
  • Add more pages: tap Scan More to go back to the camera. The pages you already have stay.
The Save PDF button shows the page count, for example Save PDF · 3 pages.
You can’t retake, crop, or rotate a single page in review. To redo a page, delete it and tap Scan More.

​
Other ways to start a scan

  • Touch and hold the Lectra app icon, then tap Scan Document.
  • Ask Siri: “Scan a document in Lectra” or “Scan into Lectra”.
  • Add the Scan Document control to Control Center, or the Quick Actions widget to your Home Screen.

​
Search your scans

Scanned pages are pictures, so at first they have no text. After you open a scan, Lectra reads the text on its pages on your iPad. When it finishes, you can find the scan’s words in library search, in Search This PDF, and in iPad Spotlight. Shared PDFs of the scan also carry the recognized text, so other apps can search it. Reading happens in the background while Lectra is open, and can take a little while for long scans. To learn more, see Search.

​
Add a scan to an existing document

The scanner always creates a new document. To add scanned pages to a document you already have:
1

Save the scan to Files

Open the scan, tap Share, choose PDF, tap Share, then tap Save to Files.
2

Insert the pages

Open the other document, open the pages panel, tap Insert, then tap From Files… and choose the scan. The pages go after the current page.
If you no longer need the separate scan, delete it from your library. To learn more, see Manage pages.

​
Troubleshooting

Lectra doesn’t have permission to use the camera. Tap Open Settings, then turn on Camera for Lectra.
This iPad has no camera that Lectra can use, so scanning isn’t available on it.
Put the page on a surface that contrasts with it, such as white paper on a dark table. Turn on Flash in dim light, and keep the whole page in view.
Open the scan in the editor and leave Lectra open for a moment so it can finish reading the pages.