orientationto

Orientationto is a term used in robotics and computer graphics to describe the process of aligning an entity's orientation with a specified target direction, pose, or object. In practice it is often encountered as an algorithmic step or function name in navigation and control software.

The core idea is to determine the angular difference between the current heading and the desired orientation, then apply rotational commands to minimize that error. The result is an aligned orientation that enables precise targeting, tracking, or presentation of an object or vehicle.

Key elements include the target orientation, the current orientation, a method for computing angular error (for example normalizing the bearing difference to the range [-180, 180) degrees), and a control strategy such as proportional, PID, or model-predictive control. Practical implementations respect limits on yaw rate and collision avoidance requirements.

In typical use, orientationto focuses on two-dimensional orientation (yaw) for ground vehicles and robotics, while three-dimensional variants extend to pitch and roll for aircraft, underwater vehicles, or virtual reality avatars. Sensor inputs may combine data from compasses, gyroscopes, GPS, cameras, and LIDAR through sensor fusion.

In software, orientationto is commonly exposed as a function such as orientationTo(targetPose, currentPose) that outputs a rotational command or updates the agent's orientation. It is closely related to heading, bearing, and pose estimation, but represents the deliberate adjustment toward a specified orientation.

See also orientation, heading, yaw, bearing, pose, target.