1. Visualizing Quaternion Multiplication
- Author
-
Gwangjin Kim, Hayeong Jeon, Jongchan Baek, and Soohee Han
- Subjects
Pure mathematics ,geometry ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,General Computer Science ,quaternion rotation ,Scalar (mathematics) ,MathematicsofComputing_NUMERICALANALYSIS ,ComputingMethodologies_IMAGEPROCESSINGANDCOMPUTERVISION ,Hypercomplex analysis ,01 natural sciences ,Euler's rotation theorem ,symbols.namesake ,4-dimensional spaces ,0103 physical sciences ,General Materials Science ,Quaternion ,Plane of rotation ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,Mathematics ,ComputingMethodologies_COMPUTERGRAPHICS ,Quaternion algebra ,Quaternions and spatial rotation ,scaling ,General Engineering ,Algebra ,symbols ,010307 mathematical physics ,Mathematics::Differential Geometry ,lcsh:Electrical engineering. Electronics. Nuclear engineering ,Dual quaternion ,lcsh:TK1-9971 - Abstract
Quaternion rotation is a powerful tool for rotating vectors in 3-D; as a result, it has been used in various engineering fields, such as navigations, robotics, and computer graphics. However, understanding it geometrically remains challenging, because it requires visualizing 4-D spaces, which makes exploiting its physical meaning intractable. In this paper, we provide a new geometric interpretation of quaternion multiplication using a movable 3-D space model, which is useful for describing quaternion algebra in a visual way. By interpreting the axis for the scalar part of quaternion as a 1-D translation axis of 3-D vector space, we visualize quaternion multiplication and describe it as a combined effect of translation, scaling, and rotation of a 3-D vector space. We then present how quaternion rotation formulas and the derivative of quaternions can be formulated and described under the proposed approach.
- Published
- 2017