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sph2cartvec

Convert vector from spherical basis components to Cartesian components

Description

vr = sph2cartvec(vs,az,el) converts the components of a vector or set of vectors, vs, from their spherical basis representation to their representation in a local Cartesian coordinate system. A spherical basis representation is the set of components of a vector projected into the right-handed spherical basis given by (e^az,e^el,e^R). The orientation of a spherical basis depends upon its location on the sphere as determined by azimuth, az, and elevation, el.

example

Examples

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Start with a vector in a spherical basis located at 45° azimuth, 45° elevation. The vector points along the azimuth direction. Compute the vector components with respect to Cartesian coordinates.

vs = [1;0;0];
vr = sph2cartvec(vs,45,45)
vr = 3×1

   -0.7071
    0.7071
         0

Input Arguments

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Vector in spherical basis representation specified as a 3-by-1 column vector or 3-by-N matrix. Each column of vs contains the three components of a vector in the right-handed spherical basis (e^az,e^el,e^R).

Example: [4.0; -3.5; 6.3]

Data Types: double
Complex Number Support: Yes

Azimuth angle in degrees, specified as a scalar in the closed range [–180, 180]. To define the azimuth angle of a point on a sphere, construct a vector from the origin to the point. The azimuth angle is the angle in the xy-plane from the positive x-axis to the vector's orthogonal projection into the xy-plane. As examples, zero azimuth angle and zero elevation angle specify a point on the x-axis while an azimuth angle of 90° and an elevation angle of zero specify a point on the y-axis.

Example: 45

Data Types: double

Elevation angle in degrees, specified as a scalar in the closed range [–90, 90]. To define the elevation of a point on the sphere, construct a vector from the origin to the point. The elevation angle is the angle from its orthogonal projection into the xy-plane to the vector itself. As examples, zero elevation angle defines the equator of the sphere and ±90° elevation define the north and south poles, respectively.

Example: 30

Data Types: double

Output Arguments

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Cartesian vector returned as a 3-by-1 column vector or 3-by-N matrix having the same dimensions as vs. Each column of vr contains the three components of the vector in the right-handed x,y,z basis.

More About

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Extended Capabilities

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Version History

Introduced in R2013a