A rotation matrix is a matrix used to rotate an axis about a given point. The center of a Cartesian coordinate frame is typically used as that point of rotation. Rotation matrices are used for computations in aerospace, image processing, and other technical computing applications.
The revolution of a rotation matrix is often described with Euler angles, but can also be described in vector form using quaternions. Although there are many methods to perform a rotation, the most prevalent are based on directional cosine matrices and quaternions.
Common tasks include::
- Performing 2D and 3D rotations using a single function call
- Converting between quaternion vectors and rotation matrices
- Actively using matrix operations for rotation in simulation
