ISO/IEC 25422:2025

Information technology - 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) specification suite

This specification defines the 3MF file format Core Specification and extensions. It defines all the necessary components that are needed to implement this Suite. This Suite does not change if one or more components are updated by a new edition. The Suite changes only when new components are added to it and/or existing components are removed from it.

Titre manque

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 05-Jun-2025
• ICS: 25.030 - Additive manufacturing
• ICS: 35.240.50 - IT applications in industry
• Technical Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1 - Information technology
• Drafting Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1 - Information technology
• Current Stage: 6060 - International Standard published
• Start Date: 06-Jun-2025
• Due Date: 03-Sep-2026
• Completion Date: 06-Jun-2025

Overview

ISO/IEC 25422:2025 defines the 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) specification suite, a comprehensive international standard for the 3MF file format used in additive manufacturing and related technologies. Developed by ISO and IEC, this suite specifies the core 3MF file structure along with multiple optional extensions to support advanced manufacturing scenarios. The standard aims to offer a reliable, scalable, and interoperable format for transmitting full-fidelity 3D models between design applications, services, platforms, and additive manufacturing devices.

The 3MF format addresses limitations seen in previous file formats by providing robust representation of both geometry and manufacturing metadata. It builds on Open Packaging Conventions (OPC) to enable advanced features such as digital signatures, encryption, and extensibility through modular components.

Key Topics

• 3MF Core Specification
  The foundation of the suite, this core defines the internal organization and structure of 3MF documents, including a triangle mesh representation of 3D models. It ensures that 3D objects can be reliably communicated for additive manufacturing or basic subtractive manufacturing processes. The core format supports resources like textures and materials necessary for accurate color and internal structure reproduction.

• Materials and Properties Extension
  Adds support for detailed surface colors, 2D textures, composite materials, and layered material properties, allowing for multi-property definitions per triangle. This extension improves visual realism and consistent rendering of 3D printed parts.

• Production Extension
  Enables unique identification of build parts and copies within 3MF packages, supports referencing external model files separate from the root model for efficient parsing, and introduces alternative model representations for specialized use cases.

• Beam Lattice Extension
  Enhances geometry handling by defining beam lattice structures useful for representing small-scale lattices and large truss frameworks. This improves efficiency over pure mesh representations, especially for complex lattice geometries.

• Slice Extension
  Supports storage of sliced 2D cross-sectional data alongside 3D meshes within the 3MF package. This is critical for layer-based manufacturing processes and allows for detailed material and property assignments per slice.

• Secure Content Extension
  Introduces encryption mechanisms to protect sensitive 3MF package contents, facilitating secure additive manufacturing workflows by controlling access to confidential model parts.

• Boolean Operations Extension
  Provides new capabilities to create complex shapes by applying boolean operations (union, intersection, difference) between mesh objects, enabling advanced design modifications such as repeated perforations or labeled copies.

Applications

ISO/IEC 25422:2025 serves as a vital international standard for additive manufacturing ecosystems, enabling:

• Design-to-Print Workflows
  Seamless transfer of fully detailed 3D models from CAD and design software to 3D printers or manufacturing platforms with accurate representation of geometry, materials, and production instructions.

• Material and Color Fidelity
  Enhanced support for multi-material and full-color 3D printing to achieve realistic prototypes and finished products.

• Secure Manufacturing
  Encryption support enables confidential designs and intellectual property to be protected throughout the printing process, vital for industries such as aerospace, healthcare, and defense.

• Efficient Data Management
  The modular suite design and support for external resource referencing allow handling of large models and complex assemblies more efficiently.

• Advanced Geometries
  Beam lattice and boolean operation extensions enable creation and production of optimized lightweight structures and complex patterned components.

Related Standards

• Open Packaging Conventions (ISO/IEC 29500-2)
  The 3MF format builds upon OPC for its packaging structure, enabling standardized containerization and metadata handling.

• Additive Manufacturing Process Specifications
  Works in conjunction with other industry standards defining specific production technologies and quality requirements.

• 3MF Consortium Specifications
  The suite aligns with and extends the 3MF Consortium’s published technical specifications, maintaining an open ecosystem for additive manufacturing file formats.

---

Keywords: ISO/IEC 25422:2025, 3D Manufacturing Format, 3MF specification, additive manufacturing standard, 3MF core specification, 3MF extensions, 3D printing file format, secure 3D model encryption, 3MF materials properties, beam lattice 3MF, sliced 3MF data, boolean operations 3MF, Open Packaging Conventions, 3D printing interoperability

Standards Content (Sample)

International
Standard
ISO/IEC 25422
First edition
Information technology — 3D
2025-06
Manufacturing Format (3MF)
specification suite
Reference number
© ISO/IEC 2025
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below
or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
© ISO/IEC 2025 – All rights reserved
ii
Contents
Foreword . iv
Introduction . v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Overview . 1
4 3MF core specification. 2
5 3MF materials and properties extension . 2
6 3MF production extension . 3
7 3MF beam lattice extension . 3
8 3MF slice extension . 3
9 3MF secure content extension . 4
10 3MF boolean operations extension . 4
Bibliography . 5

© ISO/IEC 2025 – All rights reserved
iii
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical
Commission) form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are members
of ISO or IEC participate in the development of International Standards through technical committees
established by the respective organization to deal with particular fields of technical activity. ISO and IEC
technical committees collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other international organizations, governmental
and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO and IEC, also take part in the work.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are described
in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the different types of
document should be noted (see www.iso.org/directives or www.iec.ch/members_experts/refdocs).
ISO and IEC draw attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use of
(a) patent(s). ISO and IEC take no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed
patent rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO and IEC had not received
notice of (a) patent(s) which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are
cautioned that this may not represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent database
available at www.iso.org/patents and https://patents.iec.ch. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for
identifying any or all such patent rights.
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions
related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the World Trade
Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
In the IEC, see www.iec.ch/understanding-standards.
This document was prepared by JDF (as 3MF Specification Suite) and drafted in accordance with its editorial
rules. It was adopted, under the JTC 1 PAS procedure, by Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information
technology.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html and www.iec.ch/national-
committees.
© ISO/IEC 2025 – All rights reserved
iv
Introduction
The 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF) is a file format designed by the 3MF Consortium[1] to allow design
applications to send full-fidelity 3D models for additive manufacturing to other applications, platforms,
services, and additive manufacturing hardware. The primary goal behind the creation of this format is to
establish a new standard for additive manufacturing, which addresses the shortcomings and complexities of
existing file formats, thereby making the various processes reliable, repeatable, and scalable from prototyping
through to production.
© ISO/IEC 2025 – All rights reserved
v
International Standard ISO/IEC 25422:2025(en)

Information technology — 3D Manufacturing Format (3MF)
specification suite
1 Scope
This specification defines the 3MF file format Core Specification and extensions. It defines all the necessary
components that are needed to implement this Suite. This Suite does not change if one or more components
are updated by a new edition. The Suite changes only when new components are added to it and/or existing
components are removed from it.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes
requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references,
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
3MF, Core Specification, https://3mf.io/spec/core-v1-3-0
3MF, Materials and Properties Extension, https://3mf.io/spec/materials-v1-2-1
3MF, Production Extension, https://3mf.io/spec/production-v1-1-2
3MF, Beam Lattice Extension, https://3mf.io/spec/beam-v1-2-0
3MF, Slice Extension, https://3mf.io/spec/slice-v1-0-2
3MF, Secure Content Extension, https://3mf.io/spec/secure-v1-0-2
3MF, Boolean Operations Extension, https://3mf.io/spec/boolean-v1-1-0
ISO/IEC 29500-2, Information technology — Document description and processing languages — Office Open
XML File Formats – Part 2: Open Packaging Conventions
3 Overview
An implementation of 3MF consists of components, each specified by their corresponding Normative
reference entry. The following components are part of the current 3ML Specification Suite:
— 3MF Core Specification (required)
— 3MF Materials and Properties Extension (optional)
— 3MF Production Extension (optional)
— 3MF Beam Lattice Extension (optional)
© ISO/IEC 2025 – All rights reserved
— 3MF Slice Extension (optional)
— 3MF Secure Content Extension (optional)
— 3MF Boolean Operations Extens
...