XVL is a highly compressed 3D file format that can be viewed in a web browser. To view these files, you must have a browser plug-in from Lattice 3D, the developers of XVL. For more information about XVL and to download the free viewer, please visit
Lattice 3D’s web site.
Creo Elements/Direct Modeling only exports XVL in the XV3 and XV2 file types. These formats contain part structure and geometry data. Other XVL formats are available from Lattice 3D, but they are not supported by Creo Elements/Direct Modeling. To view assembly information, you must have a licensed XVL viewer from Lattice 3D. The free viewer displays only geometry and not the assembly information.
When you save an XVL file, the current camera view is saved. To restore that view in the XVL viewer, right-click and select Viewpoint and select the viewport name.
You must have a license to export XVL files from Creo Elements/Direct Modeling.
To export an XVL file,
1. Activate the XVL module:
a. Click File > Modules in the main menu. The Modules dialog box opens.
b. Click the Data Interfaces pane.
c. Click XVL.
2. Click File > Save in the main menu.
3. Select a File Type:
◦ P-XVL (Precise XVL) (*.xv3)
◦ V-XVL (Visual XVL) (*.xv2)
4. Click Options and set the following options:
◦ Type the Tolerance to a value between 0.1 and 0.001. This determines the approximation of freeform surfaces using the Gregory patch interpolation method.
◦ Click the ExportEmptyParts check box to include the empty parts in the export.
◦ Click the ExportContainers check box to include the containers and their content in the export.
◦ Click the Part-Structure check box if you want to include part and assembly information.
◦ Click the Labels check box to export 3D notes, dimensions, and tolerances as polylines.
◦ Select a Faceted Data level. (P-XVL only.) If you select None, Creo Elements/Direct Modeling doesn't calculate the facets and the XVL viewer will do the calculations. The remaining four levels (Rough, Fast, Fine, and Finer) will determine how smooth your facets appear. Rough is the least detailed, while Finer preserves the most detail. This setting also affects the size of the file and its performance in the viewer.
Rough (lowest facet detail)
Finer (highest facet detail)
Example file size: 4.58 KB
Example file size: 79.2 KB
◦ Select Statistics to create an html file that contains an overview and error report of the exported entities.
5. Click Select in the Save dialog box.
6. Select parts and/or assemblies in the viewport or the StructureBrowser.
7. Type or browse to find a folder and file in Filename data entry field.
8. Click Save.
Creo Elements/Direct Modeling displays the result in the Output dialog box and the XVL file is saved.
