While the 32-byte .splat format is ideal for real-time web delivery, native digital content creation suites (DCCs) such as Blender (via the 3D Gaussian plugin), Houdini, and Unreal Engine typically ingest standard Stanford PLY files.
Converting .splat back to .ply reconstructs the formal header structure and maps packed 8-bit color, opacity, and normalized quaternion channels into standard IEEE 754 floating-point coordinates.
Technical Decompression Pipeline
[.splat 32-Byte Stream]
├── Linear Position Unpacking ──► Float32 X, Y, Z coordinates
├── Inverse Sigmoid Opacity ──► log(a / (1 - a)) float values
├── Inverse SH Color Mapping ──► (Color - 0.5) / 0.282095 spherical harmonic DC
└── Quaternion Normalization ──► Normalized Float32 w, x, y, z rotation vectors| Channel | Input .splat Value | Output .ply Value | Mathematical Transform |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opacity | 0 to 255 (UInt8) | $-\infty$ to $+\infty$ (Float32) | $y = \ln(p / (1 - p))$ |
| Colors | 0 to 255 (UInt8) | Spherical Harmonic $f_{dc}$ | $f_{dc} = (C / 255 - 0.5) / C_0$ |
| Scales | Raw Float32 | Log-Space Float32 | $s_{ply} = \ln(s_{splat})$ |
| Rotations | 0 to 255 (UInt8) | $-1.0$ to $+1.0$ (Float32) | $q = (v / 127.5) - 1.0$ |
How to Convert Online
- Drag and drop any
.splatfile into the FreeConvert3D workspace. - Select PLY as your target output format.
- Click Convert & Download .PLY to obtain a standard 3D Gaussian binary PLY file ready for Blender or Unreal Engine.
