Brief Guide to Creating a Matlab GUI Application

Creating a GUI consists of two steps. Step 1 is to design the user interface including figures, buttons and
menus. Step 2 is to create the Matlab code that runs when buttons are pressed. The code goes in callback
functions that are activated each time a button is pressed. For an example of a GUI application, see
>>graf2d
>>edit graf2d
To make things simple, Matlab includes a GUIDE application that provides a WYSIWYG interface for
laying out components on the screen and creates stub callback functions. GUIDE is ideal for most simple
GUI applications. Start GUIDE from the Matlab command line
>>guide
then use the online help for GUIDE to get started. Also see Matlab 7 manual, "Creating Graphical User
Interfaces" (PDF file, 480 pages), available on-line at the Mathworks web site. To see more samples, when
GUIDE starts, select the GUI with Uicontrols template and look at the generated code.

The following instructions are for Matlab 7. Other versions are similar.

Create the GUI

In the Matlab command window: >>guide
opens GUIDE quick start. Select Blank GUI..
File > Preferences > GUDE > Show names component palette.
View > Property Inspector
Click and drag to resize girded layout area to desired size, or use Position property in Property Inspector to
set an exact size.
Tools > Application Options > Resize behavior = Proportional.
Add components.
Use Static Text component for labels.
Align components using the Align tool bar button.
Label components using String property.
Label figure using Name property
For PopupMenu, String property gets one line per menu entry.
Tag components, Tag property. E.g. "button_go"
Save GUI using Tools > Run (or Tools > Activate Figure in Mlab 6). Will save both a .fig figure file and a
.m M file under the chosen name.

Create the Code

Place code that should run when the application starts in the opening function which is called
guiname_OpeningFcn(). Place code after comment that begins % varagin… In Matlab 6, place
opening code just before the line: if nargout > 0
Place code for buttons and other components in the appropriate callback function stubs that are at the end
of the .m file.

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Code Samples
set(handles.mass, 'String', mass); % set a text box
set(handles.text6, 'String', 'kg'); % set a text box
set(hObject, 'String', 0); % set own edit box
ns=str2double(get(handles.text_sides,'string')); % edit box data

% dealing with radio buttons that are in a button group

function unitgroup_SelectionChangeFcn(hObject, eventdata, handles)
if (hObject == handles.choice1)
% choice 1 code here
else
% other choice code here
end

% dealing with a checkbox

function checkbox1_Callback(hObject, eventdata, handles)
if (get(hObject,'Value') == 1)
% checked code goes here
else
% unchecked code goes here
end
set(handles.checkbox1,'Value',1) % sets checkbox
set(handles.checkbox1,'Value',0) % clears checkbox
if (get(handles.checkbox1,'Value') == 1) % check another checkbx

% creating plot and changing properties

h=plot(x,y,'k');
set(h, 'LineWidth',2);
set(h, 'LineStyle','--');

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Notes
When the GUI is saved for the first time, GUIDE
uses the Callback property to create the
callback file name. If Callback property is
set to <automatic> then the Tag property
name is used for the callback. Therefore,
one should set all the Tag properties before
saving the GUI. If the Tag is changed then
set Callback = <automatic> and save.
To access variables created in the initialization
function or in any callback function from
another callback function, store global data
in the handles structure. For example:
handles.mydata=mydata;
guidata(h,handles);
Then access in the callback by
mydata=handles.mydata;
where h=fig if in the initialization function
and h=h if in a callback
Try >>help guihandles and >>help guidata
for info
Code placed in the opening function is run only
at application launch time.
Callback for Edit text controls
function
edittext1_Callback(h,eventdata,handles,vara
rgin)
user_string = get(h,'string');
in the GUI. To plot to another window use
h=figure(1); in the code
In the callback use cla not clf.
Any error messages will appear in the Matlab
command window.
For callback to see variables from Matlab and
vice-versa, must have
global myvar
in both Matlab and callback. Watch for name
clashes.
To create dialog popups
msgbox('mymsg')
errordlg('My msg,'Bad Input','modal')
helpdlg('Msg','Title','modal')
Note: If when start GUIDE, the layout area is too
small to get your mouse on it, right-click >
Property Inspector > Position and set height.
Use a button group to manage a set of radio
buttons

Edit text control to get a numeric value

function
edittext1_Callback(h,eventdata,handles,vara
rgin)
user_entry = str2double(get(h,'string'));
if isnan(user_entry)
errordlg('You must enter a numeric
value','Bad Input','modal')
end

To plot to a GUI with multiple axes

axes(handles.axes1)
makes the axes with Tag property = axes1 the
current axes. This does not seem to work
when using step(), impulse(), bode() or other
commands that automatically generate plots.
Instead, generate points ([y,t]=step(sys);)
and use plot(t,y) to plot.

Sometimes it is simpler to plot in an external plot

window rather than to one or more plot axes

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