3D Scan Output Formats and Post-Processing
Choosing a file format begins with the model representation and intended next step—not with the most familiar extension.
A format may store points or faces, geometry only or color, one file or several linked assets. Software compatibility and current platform availability must also be verified.
Choose the geometry family before the file extension
Ask four questions:
- Do you need sampled points or a connected surface?
- Must the file retain color or texture information?
- Which formats can the destination software import correctly?
- What inspection or preparation is required before the model is useful?
The current 3D-Scan.Online interface is the authority for formats available to a particular project and processing result.
Point-cloud formats preserve sampled geometry
Point-cloud formats such as PLY can store reconstructed 3D points and may also preserve normals or vertex color. They are useful for inspection, registration, Multi Merge and geometric reference workflows.
They do not inherently provide a closed surface for fabrication.
Mesh formats support continuous surfaces
Mesh formats store polygonal surface geometry. STL is commonly associated with fabrication geometry but does not provide a general textured-material workflow. OBJ can use linked material and texture files. GLTF/GLB and other exchange families can package geometry and appearance for viewing or transfer.
Format capability does not guarantee that every export contains every optional property. Confirm the delivered variant and test it in the target software.
Geometry, color, textures and materials are separate properties
HTML anchor: color-and-materials
A model can contain accurate geometry without color, or an attractive texture over incomplete geometry. Vertex color stores values on mesh vertices or points. Texture-based color maps images onto surface coordinates. Materials describe how a renderer should present the surface.
When appearance matters, verify that all linked assets travel with the model and that the destination application supports them.
Post-processing depends on the intended use
Downstream work may include:
- removing unrelated geometry or outliers;
- aligning and merging scans;
- generating or repairing a mesh;
- filling appropriate holes;
- reducing polygon count;
- correcting orientation or scale;
- preparing normals, color or textures;
- modifying geometry in mesh or CAD software;
- checking printability.
Post-processing can improve usability, but it cannot recover a surface that was never observed without introducing inferred or manually created geometry.
Understand point clouds and meshes
Review, export and download a modelThe video is not merely a presentation of the object. It is the capture evidence from which the system interprets changing views, object boundaries, coded rotation and—where applicable—the laser line.