Format Guide
The open XML scene format — cameras, lights, materials, animations, and scene hierarchy in one file.
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| Extension | .dae |
|---|---|
| Full name | Collada — COLLAborative Design Activity |
| Encoding | XML |
| Open standard | Yes — Khronos Group |
| Supports color | Yes — materials and textures |
| Supports animations | Yes — skeletal and morph |
| Supports physics | Yes — rigid body and constraints |
| Supports assemblies | Yes — scene hierarchy |
Collada (COLLAborative Design Activity) is an XML-based 3D scene format developed by Sony Computer Entertainment and managed by the Khronos Group. The .dae extension stands for Digital Asset Exchange. Collada stores complete scene descriptions: mesh geometry, materials, textures, lights, cameras, animation curves, skeletal rigs, physics objects, and kinematics. It is human-readable XML, making it useful for scripted processing. While glTF has largely superseded Collada for real-time applications, DAE remains in 3D printing (Cura accepts DAE), robotic simulation (ROS/Gazebo), and SketchUp/Google Earth workflows.
Ultimaker Cura accepts DAE files directly, making Collada a useful format for exporting colored multi-material models from Blender or Cinema 4D to the slicer.
ROS (Robot Operating System) URDF files reference DAE meshes for visual and collision geometry. Gazebo and RViz load robot models as Collada files.
SketchUp exports and imports DAE files for exchange with Google Earth, CityEngine, and other geo-visualization tools that require georeferenced 3D models.
Blender, Maya, Cinema 4D, SketchUp, Unity, Unreal Engine, Cura, ROS/Gazebo, MeshLab, and 3D CAD Converter.
Commonly converted to glTF/GLB (glTF is Collada's modern replacement), to FBX for game engines, or to STL for 3D printing.