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MATLAB |
Visualizing Data
All the graphics features that are required to visualize engineering and scientific data are available in MATLAB. These include 2-D and 3-D plotting functions, 3-D volume visualization functions, tools for interactively creating plots, and the ability to export results to all popular graphics formats. You can customize plots by adding multiple axes; changing line colors and markers; adding annotation, LaTEX equations, and legends; and drawing shapes.
Visualizing Data Overview 4:07
Visualize engineering and scientific data with a wide variety of plotting functions in MATLAB.
2-D Plotting
You can visualize vectors of data with 2-D plotting functions that create:
- Line, area, bar, and pie charts
- Direction and velocity plots
- Histograms
- Polygons and surfaces
- Scatter/bubble plots
- Animations
3-D Plotting and Volume Visualization
MATLAB provides functions for visualizing 2-D matrices, 3-D scalar, and 3-D vector data. You can use these functions to visualize and understand large, often complex, multidimensional data. You can specify plot characteristics, such as camera viewing angle, perspective, lighting effect, light source locations, and transparency. 3-D plotting functions include:
- Surface, contour, and mesh
- Image plots
- Cone, slice, stream, and isosurface
Creating and Editing Plots Interactively
MATLAB provides interactive tools for designing and modifying graphics. From a MATLAB figure window, you can perform the following tasks:
- Drag and drop new data sets onto the figure
- Change the properties of any object on the figure
- Zoom, rotate, pan, and change camera angle and lighting
- Add annotations and data tips
- Draw shapes
- Generate a function that can be reused with different data
Importing and Exporting Graphic Files
MATLAB lets you read and write common graphical and data file formats, such as GIF, JPEG, BMP, EPS, TIFF, PNG, HDF, AVI, and PCX. As a result, you can export MATLAB plots to other applications, such as Microsoft Word® and Microsoft PowerPoint®, or to desktop publishing software. Before exporting, you can create and apply style templates, covering characteristics such as layout, font, and line thickness, to meet publication specifications.
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