Chapter 4:

Introduction to Matrices
Fletcher Dunn

Ian Parberry

Valve Software

University of North
Texas

3D Math Primer for Graphics and Game Development

What Youll See in This

Chapter
This chapter introduces matrices. It is divided
into three sections.
Section 4.1 discusses some of the basic
properties and operations of matrices strictly
from a mathematical perspective.
Section 4.2 explains how to interpret these
properties and operations geometrically.
Section 4.3 puts the use of matrices in this
book in context within the larger field of linear
algebra, and is not covered in these notes.
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Word Cloud

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Section 4.1:

Matrix: An Algebraic Definition

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Definitions
Algebraic definition of a matrix: a
table of scalars in square brackets.
Matrix dimension is the width and
height of the table, w x h.
Typically we use dimensions 2 x 2 for
2D work, and 3 x 3 for 3D work.
Well find a use for 4 x 4 matrices
also. Its a kluge. More later.
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Matrix Components
Entries are numbered by row and
column, eg. mij is the entry in row
i, column j.
Start numbering at 1, not 0.

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Square Matrices
Same number as rows as columns.
Entries mii are called the diagonal
entries. The others are called
nondiagonal entries

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Diagonal Matrices
A diagonal matrix is a square matrix
whose nondiagonal elements are
zero.

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The Identity Matrix

The identity matrix of dimension n,
denoted In, is the n x n matrix with 1s
on the diagonal and 0s elsewhere.

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Vectors as Matrices
A row vector is a 1 x n matrix.
A column vector is an n x 1 matrix.
They were pretty much
interchangeable in the lecture on
Vectors.
Theyre not once you start treating
them as matrices.

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Transpose of a Matrix
The transpose of an r x c matrix M
is a c x r matrix called MT.
Take every row and rewrite it as a
column.
Equivalently, flip about the
diagonal

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Facts About Transpose

Transpose is its own inverse: (MT)T
= M for all matrices M.
DT = D for all diagonal matrices D
(including the identity matrix I).

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Transpose of a Vector
If v is a row vector, vT is a column
vector and vice-versa

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Multiplying By a Scalar
Can multiply a matrix by a scalar.
Result is a matrix of the same
dimension.
To multiply a matrix by a scalar,
multiply each component by the
scalar.

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Matrix Multiplication
Multiplying an r x n matrix A by an n
x c matrix B gives an r x c result AB.

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Multiplication: Result
Multiply an r x n matrix A by an n x
c matrix B to give an r x c result C
= AB.
Then C = [cij], where cij is the dot
product of the ith row of A with the
jth column of B.
That is:

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Example

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Another Way of Looking at It

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2 x 2 Case

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2 x 2 Example

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3 x 3 Case

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3 x 3 Example

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Identity Matrix
Recall that the identity matrix I (or In) is a
diagonal matrix whose diagonal entries are all 1.
Now that weve seen the definition of matrix
multiplication, we can say that IM = MI = M for
all matrices M (dimensions appropriate)

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Matrix Multiplication Facts

Not commutative: in general AB
BA.
Associative:
(AB)C = A(BC)
Associates with scalar multiplication:
k(AB) = (kA)B =A(kB)
(AB)T = BTAT
(M1M2M3Mn)T = MnT M3TM2TM1T
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Row Vector Times Matrix

Multiplication
Can multiply a row vector times a
matrix

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Matrix Times Column Vector

Multiplication
Can multiply a matrix times a column
vector.

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Row vs. Column Vectors

Row vs. column vector matters now.
Heres why: Let v be a row vector, M
a matrix.
vM is legal, Mv is undefined
MvT is legal, vTM is undefined

DirectX uses row vectors.

OpenGL uses column vectors.

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Common Mistake
MvT (vM)T, but MvT = (vMT)T
compare the following two results:

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Vector-Matrix Multiplication
Facts 1
Associates with vector multiplication.
Let v be a row vector:

v(AB) = (vA)B
Let v be a column vector:

(AB)v = A(Bv)

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Vector-Matrix Multiplication
Facts 2
Vector-matrix multiplication
distributes over vector addition:
(v + w)M = vM + wM
That was for row vectors v, w.
Similarly for column vectors.

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Section 4.2:

Matrix a Geometric
Interpretation

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Matrices and Geometry

A square matrix can perform any linear
transformation. Whats that?
Preserves straight lines
Preserves parallel lines.
No translation: the axes do not move.

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Linear Transformations

Rotation
Scaling
Orthographic projection
Reflection
Shearing
More about these in the next chapter.

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A Movie Quote
Unfortunately, no-one can be told
what The Matrix is you have to see
it for yourself.
Actually, its all about basis vectors.
Look back to Chapter 3 if youve
forgotten about those.

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Axial Displacements
Can rewrite any vector v = [x y z] as a
sum of axial displacements.
V = [x y z]
= [x 0 0] + [0 y 0] + [0 0 z]
= x [1 0 0] + y [0 1 0] + z [0 0
1]

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Basis Vectors
Define three unit vectors along the
axes:
p = [1 0 0]
q = [0 1 0]
r = [0 0 1].

Then we can rewrite the axial

displacement equation as
v = xp +yq +zr

p, q, r are known as basis vectors

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Arbitrary Basis Vectors

Can use any three linearly
independent vectors
p = [px py pz]
q = [qx qy qz]
r = [rx ry rz]
Linearly independent means that
there do not exist scalars a,b,c such
that:
ap + bq + cr = 0
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Orthonormal Basis Vectors

Best to use an orthonormal basis
Orthonormal means unit vectors that
are pairwise orthogonal:
p.q = q.r = r.p = 0
Otherwise things can get weird.

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Matrix From Basis Vectors

Construct a matrix M using p, q, r as
the rows of the matrix:

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What Does This Matrix Do?

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Transformation by a Matrix
If we interpret the rows of a matrix
as the basis vectors of a coordinate
space, then multiplication by the
matrix performs a coordinate space
transformation.
If aM = b, we say that vector a is
transformed by the matrix M into
vector b.
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Conversely
See what M does to the original
basis vectors [1 0 0], [0 1 0], [0 0 1].

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Visualize The Matrix

Each row of a matrix is a basis vector after
transformation.
Given an arbitrary matrix, visualize the
transformation by its effect on the
standard basis vectors the rows of the
matrix.
Given an arbitrary linear transformation,
create the matrix by visualizing what it
does to the standard basis vectors and
using that for the rows of the matrix.
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2D Matrix Example
What does the following 2D matrix
do?

Extract the basis vectors (the rows

of M)
p = [2 1]
q = [-1,2]
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Whats the
Transformation?
It moves the unit axes [1, 0] and [0,
1] to the new axes.
It does the same thing to all vectors.
Visualize a box being transformed
from one coordinate system to the
other.
This is called a skew box.

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Befor
e
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So What Does It Do?

Rotates objects counterclockwise by
a small amount.
Scales them up by a factor of two.

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3D Transformation Example

After
Before
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Whats the Matrix?

Get rows of matrix from new basis
vectors.

So what does it do?

Rotates objects clockwise by 45.
Scales them up along the y axis.
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Constructing & Deconstructing

Matrices
By interpreting the rows of a matrix as basis vectors, we
have a tool for deconstructing a matrix.
But we also have a tool for constructing one! Given a
desired transformation (e.g. rotation, scale, etc.), we
can derive a matrix which represents that
transformation.
All we have to do is figure out what the transformation
does to basis vectors, and then place those transformed
basis vectors into the rows of a matrix.
We'll use this tool repeatedly in Chapter 5 to derive the
matrices to perform the linear basic transformations
such as rotation, scale, shear, and reflection that we
mentioned earlier.
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That concludes Chapter 4. Next, Chapter 5:

Matrices and Linear

Transformations

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