Manual

File Format Information
Besides our MFCX file format, there are several other file formats that all have
unique attributes and can be used for a variety of purposes:
FILE TYPE
DESCRIPTION
MFCX
(project file)
Matter and Form Inc’s proprietary file format that is the quickest and
easiest format to use while utilizing Matter and Form’s software. Third
party software, however, doesn’t recognize this file format so scans
must be saved in XYZ, PLY, OBJ, or STL format if you want to view and
edit your scans with other software, such as MeshMixer, MeshLab,
Blender, AutoDesk 3D, etc.
XYZ
(point cloud)
The most basic point cloud format, saving your scan as an XYZ file will
simply store all of the points without color on a Cartesian coordinate
system with X, Y, and Z axes. Used for and with third party CAD
modeling programs.
PLY
(point cloud)
Also called the Stanford Triangle Format, it supports a relatively
simple description of a single object as a list of nominally flat
polygons. A variety of properties can be stored including color and
transparency, surface normals, texture coordinates and data
confidence values. The format permits you to have different
properties for the front and back of a polygon.
OBJ
(meshed)
An OBJ is another type of 3D model file. It is also used by a number of
3D modeling programs and meshes the point cloud, but is used for 3D
printing less often than STL. Unlike STLs, where every facet of your 3D
model is a triangle, an OBJ can contain both triangles and other
polygons. Due to innate properties associated with our MFCX
software, our scanner’s camera takes 12 photos during each 360°
turntable rotation while simultaneously capturing the point cloud.
These photos are then layered onto the meshed point cloud while
exporting/saving to OBJ format. In 3D computer graphics (CGI), one of
the most common geometry interchange file formats is the OBJ
because it captures texture so well. There are a few 3D printers that
can print OBJs and reproduce the texture and color.
STL
(meshed)
An STL is a widely-used type of 3D model file. It consists of surfaces
made up of triangles. Each triangle has an inner side and an outer
side. The outer side is called the “normal.” In a well-formed STL, all
the normals face outward and the surface is continuous, with no
holes. When a model meets these standards, we refer to this as a
“watertight mesh.” This watertight-ness is typically mandatory for 3D
printing.
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