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BREP at a glance
BREP
Solid model exchange between OpenCASCADE-based CAD applications, engineering analysis preparation, and BREP-to-mesh conversion pipelines.
PLY at a glance
PLY
Convert to PLY when handling scanned meshes, point clouds, or geometry with per-vertex properties such as color or normals that should remain explicit.
It is a good target for research, reconstruction, and technical asset exchange.
For broader DCC and runtime pipelines, OBJ or GLB may be more convenient.
Format comparison
| Feature | BREP | PLY |
|---|---|---|
| File type | Cad | Cad |
| Extensions |
|
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| MIME type |
|
|
| Compression / quality | precise | precise |
| File size characteristics | depends | depends |
| Compatibility | limited | limited |
| Editability | high | high |
| Created year | 1996 | 1994 |
| Inventor | Open CASCADE Technology | Greg Turk / Stanford Graphics Laboratory |
| Status | active | active |
| Transparency | Not supported | Not supported |
| Animation | Not supported | Not supported |
| Primary use cases |
|
|
| Common software |
|
|
| Archival suitability | moderate | moderate |
| Metadata handling | rich | rich |
| Delivery profile | limited | limited |
| Workflow fit | design | design |
| Layer support | Not supported | Not supported |
| Vector scaling | Supported | Supported |
| Structured data | Not supported | Not supported |
When to use each format
When to use BREP
- design authoring
- review handoff
- manufacturing exchange
- Preserves exact geometry and topology for solids, shells, faces, edges, and vertices.
When to use PLY
- design authoring
- review handoff
- manufacturing exchange
- Good fit for mesh and property-rich geometry.
FAQs
Why convert BREP to PLY?
Convert to PLY when handling scanned meshes, point clouds, or geometry with per-vertex properties such as color or normals that should remain explicit.
It is a good target for research, reconstruction, and technical asset exchange.
For broader DCC and runtime pipelines, OBJ or GLB may be more convenient.
What changes when converting BREP to PLY?
This conversion changes how the format behaves in downstream tools and delivery environments.
What should I review after converting BREP to PLY?
Check the exported file for Not a rich full-scene format.; Less familiar to mainstream end users than OBJ or STL..