The Complete STEP to VDA-FS Conversion Guide
Table of Contents
- General Information
- Converting and Optimizing STEP Files to VDA-FS
- What are STEP and VDA-FS files commonly used for?
- Comparison of Features Supported by STEP and VDA-FS
- Limitations of STEP Files to VDA-FS Conversion Workflow
- What's the best way to get STEP files into my 3D applications, and are there alternatives to using VDA-FS?
General Information
This guide is part of the RapidPipeline 3D Formats Knowledge Database. It shows how to convert STEP to VDA-FS, if you'd like to know more about the formats, please check out the following links:
Converting and Optimizing STEP Files to VDA-FS
RapidPipeline can import STEP files, but currently doesn't support exporting to VDA-FS format yet.
If you specifically need VDA-FS export functionality for your workflow, please feel free to get in touch with us - we'd be happy to discuss your requirements and potential timeline for adding this export capability.
If you need, you can import VDA-FS files and convert them to any of these 8 formats: FBX, glTF, OBJ, PLY, STL, USD, USDZ, and VRM.
In the meantime, you can explore other options on the 3D Formats Knowledge Database, which might serve as suitable alternatives for your workflow depending on your target applications and use cases.
Comparison of Features Supported by STEP and VDA-FS
| Feature | Supported by STEP | Supported by VDA-FS |
|---|---|---|
| Morph Targets | No | No |
| Rigid Animations | No | No |
| Skinned Animations | No | No |
| Animations | No | No |
| Free-Form Surfaces | Yes | Yes |
| Geometry Compression | No | No |
| Quad Meshes | Yes | Yes |
| Basic 3D Geometry | Yes | Yes |
| PBR Materials | No | No |
| Transparent Materials | No | No |
| Vertex Colors | No | No |
| Materials | Partial | No |
| Scene Composition | No | Partial0 |
| Hierarchical Scene Graph | Yes | Partial1 |
| Scene Nodes | Yes | Partial2 |
| Standardized Format | Partial | Partial3 |
| Embedded Textures | No | No |
| Multiple UV Channels | No | No |
| Normal Mapping | No | No |
| Procedural Textures | No | No |
| Texture Compression | No | No |
| Texture Transforms | No | No |
| Texturing | No | No |
Limitations of STEP Files to VDA-FS Conversion Workflow
The following limitations should be taken into account when converting STEP files to VDA-FS format:
| STEP Feature (not supported by VDA-FS) | Limitation Details |
|---|---|
| Materials | Materials Support: STEP: Partial support | VDA-FS: No support   Impact: Materials are a fundamental concept in 3D modeling, enabling colored and - in many cases - photorealistic rendering of the 3D model that they are applied to. There are also some formats that don't make use of 3D materials, for example because they need to solely describe a shape (e.g., for many cases in additive manufacturing). In this example, photorealistic PBR materials are used to equip the 3D model with a realistic look. Without support for materials, the model will have to be rendered with a default material (often a default shade of gray). |
| Scene Nodes | Scene Nodes Support: STEP: Full support | VDA-FS: Partial support   VDA-FS Notes: Basic surface organization and grouping Impact: Scene nodes make it possible to address parts of a 3D model separately. For example, a part could be dynamically hidden or shown as part of a 3D configurator. Without support for this feature, a 3D scene will only consist of a flat model, without parts being individually configurable. |
| Hierarchical Scene Graph | Hierarchical Scene Graph Support: STEP: Full support | VDA-FS: Partial support   VDA-FS Notes: Limited hierarchical surface relationships Impact: Scene graphs are one of the most common concepts in 3D computer graphics. By structuring the scene in a hierarchical way, logical parts of it can be easily addressed and transformed. This is useful in many applications, like games or 3D configurators. Without support for this feature, a 3D scene cannot be structured hierarchically, for example objects cannot be logically composed of smaller objects. |
What's the best way to get STEP files into my 3D applications, and are there alternatives to using VDA-FS?
Doing 3D conversion right, especially at scale, can be tricky, as 3D data is in general a rather complex (yet very powerful!) medium. This also applies to STEP and VDA-FS files - the conversion guide above provides a rough first idea about that. Once you know what you would like to do, tools like RapidPipeline can help you perform the necessary steps, and to even automate the process for thousands or even millions of files.
Especially when introducing pipelines and workflows at scale in an enterprise context, it is usually good to rely on dedicated tools and expertise, making sure you do not introduce any steps into your 3D workflow that are detrimental to the final output's quality, or that take your team too much time (and money).
If you're interested to hire dedicated expertise from the best in the field to help your company reach your goals fast and reliably, please do not hestitate to contact DGG. Being the creators of RapidPipeline, and ambassadors for open 3D standards for more than a decade, we have been building some of the world's most advanced 3D pipelines, having processed many millions of 3D assets.
Therefore, our expertise will help you to reach your goals faster, at scale, and with the least possible friction, since we are focused on maximum interoperability.
To get started with 3D data conversion and optimization today, sign up for a free account!
If you have any questions, feel free to chat with our human team.
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