Guide · Digital workflow
How to export STL from Shining 3D Aoralscan for your lab
Aoralscan files leave IntraoralScan through the order's Export button as STL, OBJ or PLY; BEB is encrypted. Steps, Dental Cloud and uploading to our portal.
Short answer
Shining 3D Aoralscan scans leave the IntraoralScan software through the order's Export button: pick a folder and a format, then click Confirm. Export STL, the format every lab software opens; OBJ and PLY come out of the same dialog. BEB is encrypted and won't work for a lab. Attach the STL to your order in the Smile portal.
Step by step
- 01
Keep the patient's name out of the naming rule
In the order settings, the default naming rule combines creation date, doctor code and order ID. Leave it that way, without adding the patient's name.
- 02
Open the order details
With the scan finished, click the order in the list to open its details. The Export, Exocad, Explore and Send buttons are there.
- 03
Click Export
The export dialog lets you change the folder name, path, CAD type and data format. Pick the folder you'll attach from.
- 04
Tick STL and click Confirm
Tick STL; if your lab asks for it, tick OBJ or PLY as well, and they'll come out in the same export. Click Confirm to write the files.
- 05
Open the folder with Explore
The Explore button opens the order's local folder. Check that both exported arches are there, not just the prep arch.
- 06
Attach the files to your Smile portal order
Build the order in the portal with the services and teeth (FDI numbering) and attach the STL from the order folder, without the BEB. For implant work, add the implant brand, platform and scan body model.
Which format should you export from Aoralscan?
An Aoralscan STL opens in any lab software and carries no color. OBJ and PLY come out of the same export dialog, and you can tick all three at once. BEB, which IntraoralScan saves on its own, is Shining 3D’s encrypted format and doesn’t go to the lab.
| format | keeps color? | when to use it |
|---|---|---|
| STL | no | crowns, implant work and provisionals; the format our portal accepts |
| OBJ | the format can hold color; Shining 3D doesn’t say whether the file includes texture | when the lab asks for OBJ |
| PLY | the format can hold color; Shining 3D doesn’t say whether the file includes texture | when the lab asks for PLY |
| BEB | Shining 3D’s encrypted format | no use to a lab designing in other software |
The IntraoralScan 3.7.0 documentation covers the Aoralscan Wireless G2; the 3.5.6 documentation, for the Aoralscan Elite, lists the same export formats.
How do you send a case through Dental Cloud?
Dental Cloud is Shining 3D’s cloud linking practices and labs, and sending through it requires an approved connection. You open Connections, click new, search for the lab and confirm; the lab gets an email and has to accept. Until then, the connection shows as to be confirmed.
Once connected, the order goes out from IntraoralScan with the Send button. On the send screen, you review the order, choose the destination institution and add attachments with ”+”. Institutions you aren’t connected to don’t appear in the list.
Smile Digital Lab receives cases as orders in our dentist portal, with the STL attached. If you already work through Dental Cloud, ask us before your first case whether we can receive there.
Which scan errors send an Aoralscan file back?
An Aoralscan file comes back when the bite didn’t align, a hole was filled by the software instead of scanned or a scan body was misaligned. IntraoralScan puts an on-screen signal on each of these.
| error | what happens | how to avoid it on Aoralscan |
|---|---|---|
| No opposing arch | contacts and occlusion designed blind | scan both full arches as well as the bite |
| A bite that didn’t align | the restoration may come in high or out of contact | an exclamation mark on the bite icon means alignment failed: rescan the bite segments. In bite detection, blue marks bite-through areas |
| Hole at the margin filled by the software | the margin in the design becomes a guess | during scanning, gray flags data that isn’t good enough; after processing, it marks filled holes. On the prep, rescan until the color returns |
| Mesh that fails from too little overlap | captures don’t align | keep at least 30% overlap between captures and don’t scan silicone |
| Misaligned scan body | implant position shifts in the design | seat the scan body before scanning; if auto-alignment is poor, align by hand with three point pairs |
| BEB file sent to the lab | the lab can’t open it | export STL from the Export button |
Scan technique for margins and scan bodies is covered in our intraoral scanning guide. For full-arch implant bridges, also see our full-arch scan body guide.
How do you attach an Aoralscan file to a Smile portal order?
In the Smile portal, Aoralscan files are attached to the order from the folder the Explore button opens. That folder may also hold the BEB and the exocad dentalProject: attach the STL and leave the rest unless the lab asks for them. Build the order from the services on your price list and the teeth in FDI numbering.
STL is accepted; OBJ or PLY only after you check with us before your first case. The patient’s name goes in the order field; check the file names before attaching. Shade and implant details follow our guide to sending a case; the portal screens are in Portuguese. If the bite doesn’t close or the margin was filled in by the software, we contact you before design starts.
Related services
Open a portal accountFrequently asked questions
What is an Aoralscan BEB file?
It's Shining 3D's own encrypted format, which IntraoralScan saves automatically. It won't open in other brands' lab software. For the lab, export STL from the order's Export button.
If I turn texture on in the viewer, does the file come out in color?
Not necessarily. In the IntraoralScan documentation, the Texture option turns color display on and off in the editing view. STL never carries color; OBJ and PLY can, but Shining 3D doesn't say whether exported files include texture. For the restoration's shade, rely on the tab on the order.
Do I need exocad to send the case?
No. The Exocad button opens the order in exocad if you have it, and IntraoralScan also saves a dentalProject file by default. For a lab designing in other software, the exported STL is enough.
Sources
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0 (Aoralscan Wireless G2), Getting Started · Shining 3D
- IntraoralScan v3.5.6 (Aoralscan Elite), Getting Started · Shining 3D
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Interface (Order details) · Shining 3D
- File storage change in new version · Shining 3D (October 25, 2022)
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Settings (order) · Shining 3D
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Send Order · Shining 3D
- Make connections with labs in Dental Cloud · Shining 3D (September 10, 2024)
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Scanning Preparations · Shining 3D
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Restorations · Shining 3D
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Bite Detection · Shining 3D
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Implant · Shining 3D
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Parameters · Shining 3D
- IntraoralScan v3.7.0, Data Edit · Shining 3D
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