STL - Format Overview
General Information
This guide is part of the RapidPipeline 3D Formats Knowledge Database.
| Format Name | STL |
|---|---|
| Long Name | Stereolithography |
| Extensions | .stl |
| Internet Media Type (previously MIME) | model/stl, model/x.stl-ascii, model/x.stl-binary |
| Common Use Cases | Animation, VFX, Games, Architecture |
What is the STL format, and what is it used for?
STL (Stereolithography) is a simple format to describe 3D geometry, primarily for 3D printing jobs (additive manufacturing). It is a file format mostly used for 3D printing.
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Features supported by the STL format
| Feature | Supported? |
|---|---|
| PBR Materials | No |
| Transparent Materials | No |
| Vertex Colors | No |
| Materials | No |
| Embedded Textures | No |
| Normal Mapping | No |
| Procedural Textures | No |
| Texture Compression | No |
| Texture Transforms | No |
| Multiple UV Channels | No |
| Texturing | No |
| Hierarchical Scene Graph | No |
| Scene Composition | No |
| Scene Nodes | No |
| Quad Meshes | No |
| Free-Form Surfaces | No |
| Geometry Compression | No |
| Basic 3D Geometry | Yes |
| Standardized Format | Yes |
| Morph Targets | No |
| Skinned Animations | No |
| Rigid Animations | No |
| Animations | No |
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Converting and Optimizing STL Files
There are various ways to convert between STL files and other 3D formats. With RapidPipeline, you can easily convert and and optimize STL files, at scale. It supports STL, as well as many other file formats (examples: AutoCAD, PRC/U3D, PLY, Parasolid, OBJ, Revit, VRM, VRML, SolidWorks, VDA-FS, JT, FBX, STEP Enhanced, STEP, COLLADA, glTF, USDZ, USD, CATIA, 3MF, Rhino 3DM, Navisworks, 3dsMax, ACIS, I-deas, DGN, IGES, Solid Edge, Creo, IFC, Inventor), at high quality.
Due to the potential limitations aforementioned on the table above, in principle, this format cannot always perfectly convert 3D data between STL and other formats. In the following, you can find format conversion guides between STL and the most important other formats, along with a rough score for compatibility of this workflow:
Converting STL to Other 3D File Formats
Converting Other 3D File Formats to STL
- AutoCAD to STL
- PRC/U3D to STL
- PLY to STL
- Parasolid to STL
- OBJ to STL
- Revit to STL
- VRM to STL
- VRML to STL
- SolidWorks to STL
- VDA-FS to STL
- JT to STL
- FBX to STL
- STEP Enhanced to STL
- STEP to STL
- COLLADA to STL
- glTF to STL
- USDZ to STL
- USD to STL
- CATIA to STL
- 3MF to STL
- Rhino 3DM to STL
- Navisworks to STL
- 3dsMax to STL
- ACIS to STL
- I-deas to STL
- DGN to STL
- IGES to STL
- Solid Edge to STL
- Creo to STL
- IFC to STL
- Inventor to STL
What's the best way to get STL files into my 3D applications?
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 STL files - the conversion guide above gives a rough idea. Once you know what you would like to do, tools like RapidPipeline can help you perform the necessary steps, and to automate the process.
However, especially when introducing pipelines and workflows at scale in an enterprise context, it is usually good to rely on dedicated 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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