UI Figure Properties

Control UI figure appearance and behavior in App Designer

UI figures are containers for creating apps in App Designer. Properties control the appearance and behavior of the UI figure. Use dot notation to refer to a particular object and property:

uf = uifigure;
name = uf.Name;
uf.Name = 'My App'; 

Window Appearance

Color — Background color

RGB triplet | hexadecimal color code | 'r' | 'g' | 'b' | ...

Background color, specified as an RGB triplet, a hexadecimal color code, or one of the color options listed in the table.

For a custom color, specify an RGB triplet or a hexadecimal color code.

• An RGB triplet is a three-element row vector whose elements specify the intensities of the red, green, and blue components of the color. The intensities must be in the range [0,1]; for example, [0.4 0.6 0.7].

• A hexadecimal color code is a character vector or a string scalar that starts with a hash symbol (#) followed by three or six hexadecimal digits, which can range from 0 to F. The values are not case sensitive. Thus, the color codes '#FF8800', '#ff8800', '#F80', and '#f80' are equivalent.

Alternatively, you can specify some common colors by name. This table lists the named color options, the equivalent RGB triplets, and hexadecimal color codes.

Color Name	Short Name	RGB Triplet	Hexadecimal Color Code	Appearance
'red'	'r'	[1 0 0]	'#FF0000'
'green'	'g'	[0 1 0]	'#00FF00'
'blue'	'b'	[0 0 1]	'#0000FF'
'cyan'	'c'	[0 1 1]	'#00FFFF'
'magenta'	'm'	[1 0 1]	'#FF00FF'
'yellow'	'y'	[1 1 0]	'#FFFF00'
'black'	'k'	[0 0 0]	'#000000'
'white'	'w'	[1 1 1]	'#FFFFFF'
'none'	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	No color

Here are the RGB triplets and hexadecimal color codes for the default colors MATLAB^® uses in many types of plots.

RGB Triplet	Hexadecimal Color Code	Appearance
[0 0.4470 0.7410]	'#0072BD'
[0.8500 0.3250 0.0980]	'#D95319'
[0.9290 0.6940 0.1250]	'#EDB120'
[0.4940 0.1840 0.5560]	'#7E2F8E'
[0.4660 0.6740 0.1880]	'#77AC30'
[0.3010 0.7450 0.9330]	'#4DBEEE'
[0.6350 0.0780 0.1840]	'#A2142F'

WindowState — Window state

'normal' (default) | 'minimized' | 'maximized' | 'fullscreen'

Window state, specified as one of these values:

• 'normal' — The window displays in a normal state.

• 'minimized' — The window is collapsed, but you can still execute commands to get or set its properties, to add children, or to create plots in the window.

• 'maximized' — The window fills the screen. The minimize, restore, and close buttons provided by the operating system appear in the corner of the window. If the window has menus in the normal state, they are present in this state.

• 'fullscreen' — The window fills the screen. However, the minimize, restore, and close buttons provided by the operating system are hidden. If the window has menus in the normal state, they are present in this state.

Clicking the minimize, maximize, or restore button provided by the operating system sets the WindowState property accordingly. Pressing Ctrl+F11 (Windows^® and Linux^®) or Ctrl+Command+f (Mac OS) toggles the 'fullscreen' state. Setting this property on a docked figure or in MATLAB Online™ is not supported.

UI figures cannot be minimized directly from a full screen state.

Position

Position — Location and size of UI figure, excluding borders and title bar

[left bottom width height]

Location and size of the UI figure, excluding borders and title bar, specified as a four-element vector of the form [left bottom width height].

This table describes each element in the vector.

Element	Description
left	Distance from the left edge of the primary display to the inner left edge of the UI figure window. This value can be negative on systems that have more than one monitor.
bottom	Distance from the bottom edge of the primary display to the inner bottom edge of the UI figure window. This value can be negative on systems that have more than one monitor.
width	Distance between the right and left inner edges of the UI figure.
height	Distance between the top and bottom inner edges of the UI figure.

Units — Units of measurement

'pixels' (default)

Units of measurement, specified as 'pixels'.

InnerPosition — Location and size of UI figure, excluding borders and title bar

[left bottom width height]

Location and size of UI figure, excluding borders and title bar, specified as a four-element vector of the form [left bottom width height]. All measurements are in units specified by the Units property.

This property value is identical to the Position property value.

Resize — Resizable

'on' (default) | 'off'

Resizable UI figure, specified as 'on' or 'off'. When this property is set to 'on', the UI figure is resizable. Otherwise, it is not resizable.

AutoResizeChildren — Automatically resize children

'on' (default) | 'off'

Automatically resize children, specified as 'on' or 'off'.

• 'on' — Child components automatically resize when the container resizes.

• 'off' — Child components do not resize.

The AutoResizeChildren property affects direct children of the container, not children inside nested containers.

To customize the resize behavior, set the AutoResizeChildren property to 'off' and create a SizeChangedFcn callback for the container. For more information, see Managing Resizable Apps in App Designer.

To disable resizing of an app, set the Resize property of the figure to 'off'.

Plotting

Colormap — Color map for UIAxes content

parula (default) | m-by-3 array of RGB triplets

Color map for UIAxes content, specified as an m-by-3 array of RGB (red, green, blue) triplets that define m individual colors.

Example: uifigure('Colormap',[1 0 1; 0 0 1; 1 1 0]) sets the color map to three colors: magenta, blue, and yellow.

MATLAB accesses these colors by their row number.

Alphamap — Transparency map for axes content

vector of 64 values between 0 and 1 (default) | vector of values between 0 and 1

Transparency map for axes content, specified as a vector of values between 0 and 1, inclusive. The size of the vector can be m-by-1 or 1-by-m. MATLAB accesses alpha values by their index in the vector. Alphamaps can be any length.

Interactivity

Visible — Visibility of UI figure

'on' (default) | 'off'

Visibility UI figure, specified as 'on' or 'off'. The Visible property determines whether the UI figure is displayed on the screen. If the Visible property is set to 'off', the entire UI figure is hidden. However, you can still specify and access properties.

To make your app start faster, set the Visible property of all components that are not displayed at startup to 'off'.

Note

Changing the Visible property does not change the value of the Visible property in a child component. This is true even though hiding the UI figure causes the children to be hidden.

CurrentPoint — Current point

two-element vector

Current point, returned as a two-element vector. The vector contains the (x, y) coordinates of the mouse pointer, measured in pixels from the lower-left corner of the UI figure. If the UI figure is scrollable, the coordinates are measured from the lower-left corner of the scrollable area. The scrollable area is the area that is bounded by the limits of the scroll bars.

The coordinates update when you do any of the following:

• Press the mouse button within the UI figure.

• Release the mouse button after pressing it within the UI figure.

• Press the mouse button within the UI figure, and then release it outside the UI figure.

• Rotate the scroll wheel within the UI figure.

• Move the mouse within the figure (without pressing any buttons), provided that the WindowButtonMotionFcn property is not empty.

If the UI figure has a callback that responds to mouse interactions, and you trigger that callback faster than the system can execute the code, the coordinates might not reflect the actual location of the pointer. Instead, they are the location when the callback began execution.

If you use the CurrentPoint property to plot points, the coordinate values might contain rounding error.

CurrentCharacter — Current character

'' (default) | character

Current character, returned as the character of the last key pressed. This property updates when the UI figure has focus while the user presses a key.

SelectionType — Mouse selection type

'normal' (default) | 'extend' | 'alt' | 'open'

Mouse selection type, returned as 'normal', 'extend', 'alt', or 'open'. This property provides information about the last mouse button press that occurred in the UI figure.

This table lists the possible SelectionType values and the user actions that produce those values.

Value	Corresponding Action
'normal'	Click the left mouse button.
'extend'	Any of the following: Shift-click the left mouse button. Click the middle mouse button. Click both left and right mouse buttons.
'alt'	Either of the following: Control-click the left mouse button. Click the right mouse button.
'open'	Double-click any mouse button.

Scrollable — Ability to scroll

'off' (default) | 'on'

Ability to scroll, specified as 'off' or 'on'. Setting this property to 'on' enables scrolling within the container. However, there are additional requirements:

• The child components in the container must occupy a larger area than the container can display at one time.

• Components that do not fit in the container must be above or to the right of the container. You cannot scroll to components that are below or to the left of the container.

Certain types of charts and axes do not support scrollable containers. However, you can place the chart or axes in a nonscrollable panel, and then place the panel in the scrollable container. For more information, see Displaying Graphics in App Designer.

Common Callbacks

ButtonDownFcn — Button down callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Button down callback, specified as one of these values:

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

This callback executes when the user clicks a blank area of the UI figure.

For more information about specifying a callback property value as a function handle, cell array, or character vector, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

Use the SelectionType property to determine whether the user pressed modifier keys.

CreateFcn — Creation function

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Object creation function, specified as one of these values:

• Function handle.

• Cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• Character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

For more information about specifying a callback as a function handle, cell array, or character vector, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

This property specifies a callback function to execute when MATLAB creates the object. MATLAB initializes all property values before executing the CreateFcn callback. If you do not specify the CreateFcn property, then MATLAB executes a default creation function.

Setting the CreateFcn property on an existing component has no effect.

If you specify this property as a function handle or cell array, you can access the object that is being created using the first argument of the callback function. Otherwise, use the gcbo function to access the object.

DeleteFcn — Deletion function

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Object deletion function, specified as one of these values:

• Function handle.

• Cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• Character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

For more information about specifying a callback as a function handle, cell array, or character vector, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

This property specifies a callback function to execute when MATLAB deletes the object. MATLAB executes the DeleteFcn callback before destroying the properties of the object. If you do not specify the DeleteFcn property, then MATLAB executes a default deletion function.

If you specify this property as a function handle or cell array, you can access the object that is being deleted using the first argument of the callback function. Otherwise, use the gcbo function to access the object.

Keyboard Callbacks

KeyPressFcn — Key-press callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Key-press callback, specified as one of these values:

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

This callback function executes when the user presses a key while UI figure or a child component has focus. Pressing a key on a component that accepts keyboard focus (such as an edit field) does not execute the callback unless the component is disabled. You can disable a component by setting the Enable or Editable property to 'off'.

If the user presses multiple keys at approximately the same time, MATLAB detects all the keys.

The KeyPressFcn callback can access specific information about the user’s interaction with the keyboard. MATLAB passes this information in a KeyData object as the second argument to your callback function. This table lists the properties of the KeyData object.

Property	Description
Character	The character that appears as a result of pressing the key or keys. Pressing certain keys or modifying keys with the Ctrl key might return unprintable characters in this property. Pressing certain keys alone (such as Ctrl, Alt, Shift) does not generate Character data.
Modifier	Cell array containing the names of the modifier keys pressed, such as control, alt, or shift. If no modifier keys are pressed, the cell array is empty.
Key	Key pressed, identified by the lowercase label on the key, or a descriptive word such as 'space'.
Source	Object that has focus when the key is pressed.
EventName	'KeyPress'

For more information about specifying callback property values and using callback arguments, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

The CurrentCharacter property also returns character information.

KeyReleaseFcn — Key-release callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Key-release callback, specified as one of these values

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

This callback function executes when the user releases a key while the UI figure or a child component has focus. Releasing a key on a component that accepts keyboard focus (such as an edit field) does not execute the callback unless the component is disabled. You can disable a component by setting the Enable or Editable property to 'off'.

This callback function can access specific information about the user’s interaction with the keyboard. MATLAB passes this information in a KeyData object as the second argument to your callback function. This table lists the properties of the KeyData object.

Property	Description
Character	Character that corresponds to the key or keys that are released. Certain keys or key combinations might return unprintable characters in this property. Pressing and releasing certain keys alone (such as Ctrl, Alt, Shift) does not generate Character data.
Modifier	Cell array containing the names of the modifier keys released, such as control, alt, or shift. If no modifier keys are released, the cell array is empty.
Key	Key released, identified by the (lowercase) label on the key, or a descriptive word such as 'space'.
Source	Object that has focus when the key is released.
EventName	'KeyRelease'

For more information about specifying callback property values and using callback arguments, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

Window Callbacks

CloseRequestFcn — Close request callback

'closereq' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Close request callback, specified as a function handle, cell array containing a function handle and additional arguments, or a character vector. MATLAB executes this callback when the app user attempts to close the app. For example, you can code the callback to display a dialog box that asks the app user to confirm or cancel the close operation.

Consider calling the delete function to close the Figure in the CloseRequestFcn callback:

• In App Designer, call delete(app).

• For apps created programmatically, call delete(f), where f is the Figure object.

If the closeRequestFcn callback does not contain a delete command, MATLAB never closes the window. You can always call the delete function to force the window to close.

SizeChangedFcn — Size change callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Size change callback, specified as one of these values:

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

Define this callback to customize the app layout when the size of this container changes (e.g., when the user resizes the window).

Note

The SizeChangedFcn callback will not execute unless the AutoResizeChildren property of this container is set to 'off'. In App Designer, you can make the SizeChangedFcn executable by clearing the AutoResizeChildren check box in the UI Figure Properties panel.

The SizeChangedFcn callback executes when:

• This container becomes visible for the first time.

• This container is visible while its size changes.

• This container becomes visible for the first time after its size changes. This situation occurs when the size changes while the container is invisible, and then it becomes visible later.

Other important points to consider when defining a SizeChangedFcn callback:

• Consider delaying the display of this container until after all the variables that the SizeChangedFcn uses are defined. This practice can prevent the SizeChangedFcn callback from returning an error. To delay the display of the container, set its Visible property to 'off'. Then, set the Visible property to 'on' after you define the variables that your SizeChangedFcn callback uses.

• If your app contains nested containers, they resize from the inside out.

• To access the container that is resizing from within the SizeChangedFcn, refer to the source object (the first input argument in the callback) or use the gcbo function.

WindowButtonDownFcn — Window button down callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Window button down callback, specified as one of these values:

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

This callback executes when the user clicks:

• A blank area of the UI figure

• A UI component within the UI figure that supports the ButtonDownFcn property

• A graphics object within the UI figure that supports the ButtonDownFcn property

For example, clicking an axes object triggers the WindowButtonDownFcn callback.

See the list of properties for a specific UI component or graphics object to determine if it supports the ButtonDownFcn property. See Designing Apps in App Designer for the properties of UI components. See Graphics Object Properties for the properties of graphics objects.

Note

The callback executes when the user clicks a uiaxes component, even though uiaxes components do not support the ButtonDownFcn property.

For more information about specifying a callback property value as a function handle, cell array, or character vector, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

WindowButtonMotionFcn — Window button motion callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Window button motion callback, specified as one of these values:

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

Typically, this callback function executes whenever the user moves the pointer within the UI figure. However, if the user clicks and holds the mouse button and moves the pointer outside the UI figure, the WindowButtonMotionFcn callback executes while the pointer is outside the UI figure.

For more information about specifying a callback property value as a function handle, cell array, or character vector, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

WindowButtonUpFcn — Window button up callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Window button up callback, specified as one of these values:

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

This callback executes when the user:

• Releases the mouse button on a blank area of the UI figure

• Releases the mouse button on a UI component within the UI figure that supports the ButtonDownFcn property

• Releases the mouse button on a graphics object within the UI figure that supports the ButtonDownFcn property

For example, releasing the mouse button on an axes object triggers the WindowButtonUpFcn callback.

See the list of properties for a specific UI component or graphics object to determine if it supports the ButtonDownFcn property. See Designing Apps in App Designer for the properties of UI components. See Graphics Object Properties for the properties of graphics objects.

Button-up actions are associated with button-down actions in the UI figure. The mouse pointer must be inside the UI figure when the button-down action occurs, but it can be outside the figure when the button-up action occurs.

Note

The callback executes when the user releases the mouse button on a uiaxes component, even though uiaxes components do not support the ButtonDownFcn property.

For more information about specifying a callback property value as a function handle, cell array, or character vector, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

WindowKeyPressFcn — Window key-press callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Window key-press callback, specified as one of these values:

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

This callback function executes when the user presses a key while the UI figure or a child component has focus. If the user presses multiple keys at approximately the same time, MATLAB detects all the keys.

This callback function can access specific information about the user’s interaction with the keyboard. MATLAB passes this information in a KeyData object as the second argument to your callback function. This table lists the properties of the KeyData object.

Property	Description
Character	The character that appears as a result of pressing the key or keys. Pressing certain keys or modifying keys with the Ctrl key might return unprintable characters in this property. Pressing certain keys alone (such as Ctrl, Alt, Shift) does not generate Character data.
Modifier	Cell array containing the names of the modifier keys pressed, such as control, alt, or shift. If no modifier keys are pressed, the cell array is empty.
Key	Key pressed, identified by the lowercase label on the key, or a descriptive word such as 'space'.
Source	Object that has focus when the key is pressed.
EventName	'KeyPress'

For more information about specifying callback property values and using callback arguments, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

The CurrentCharacter property also returns character information.

WindowKeyReleaseFcn — Window key-release callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Window key-release callback, specified as one of these values

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

This callback function executes when the user releases a key while the UI figure or a child component has focus.

This callback function can access specific information about the user’s interaction with the keyboard. MATLAB passes this information in a KeyData object as the second argument to your callback function. This table lists the properties of the KeyData object.

Property	Description
Character	Character that corresponds to the key or keys that are released. Certain keys or key combinations might return unprintable characters in this property. Pressing and releasing certain keys alone (such as Ctrl, Alt, Shift) does not generate Character data.
Modifier	Cell array containing the names of the modifier keys released, such as control, alt, or shift. If no modifier keys are released, the cell array is empty.
Key	Key released, identified by the (lowercase) label on the key, or a descriptive word such as 'space'.
Source	Object that has focus when the key is released.
EventName	'KeyRelease'

For more information about specifying callback property values and using callback arguments, see Write Callbacks in App Designer.

WindowScrollWheelFcn — Window scroll wheel callback

'' (default) | function handle | cell array | character vector

Window scroll wheel callback, specified as one of these values:

• A function handle.

• A cell array in which the first element is a function handle. Subsequent elements in the cell array are the arguments to pass to the callback function.

• A character vector containing a valid MATLAB expression (not recommended). MATLAB evaluates this expression in the base workspace.

This callback executes when the user moves the scroll wheel while the UI figure or any of its children have focus. However, other objects can capture scroll wheel movement and interfere with the execution of this callback.

This callback has no effect on the CurrentObject and SelectionType properties.

This callback can access specific information when the user rotates the scroll wheel. MATLAB passes this information in a ScrollWheelData object as the second argument to your callback function. This table lists the properties of the ScrollWheelData object.

Property	Contents
VerticalScrollCount	A positive or negative number that indicates the direction and number of scroll wheel clicks. Scrolling down returns a positive value. Scrolling up returns a negative value. The vertical scroll count is the sum of all scroll wheel clicks that occurred since the last time the callback executed. Typically, the value is 1 or -1. However, the scroll count can have a larger magnitude if the WindowScrollWheelFcn callback takes a long time to return, or if the user spins the scroll wheel very fast.
VerticalScrollAmount	A constant value of 3.
Source	Object that executes the callback.
EventName	'WindowScrollWheel'.

For more information about specifying callback property values and using callback arguments, see Write Callbacks in App Designer

Example: App for Changing x-Axis Limits

This example shows how to create an app that displays a plot. The user can scroll to change the limits of the x-axis. Copy and paste the following code into the editor and run it.

function scroll_wheel
% Shows how to use WindowScrollWheelFcn property
%
   f = uifigure('WindowScrollWheelFcn',@figScroll,'Name','Scroll Wheel Demo');
   x = 0:.1:40;
   y = 4.*cos(x)./(x+2);
   a = axes(f); 
   h = plot(a,x,y);
   title(a,'Rotate the scroll wheel')

   function figScroll(~,event)
      if event.VerticalScrollCount > 0 
         xd = h.XData;
         inc = xd(end)/20;
         x = [0:.1:xd(end)+inc];
         re_eval(x)
      elseif event.VerticalScrollCount < 0 
         xd = h.XData;
         inc = xd(end)/20;
         % Don't let xd = 0
         x = [0:.1:xd(end)-inc+.1]; 
         re_eval(x)
      end
   end

   function re_eval(x)
      y = 4.*cos(x)./(x+2);
      h.YData = y;
      h.XData = x;
      a.XLim = [0 x(end)];
      drawnow
   end
end

Callback Execution Control

Interruptible — Callback interruption

'on' (default) | 'off'

Callback interruption, specified as 'on' or 'off'. The Interruptible property determines if a running callback can be interrupted.

There are two callback states to consider:

• The running callback is the currently executing callback.

• The interrupting callback is a callback that tries to interrupt the running callback.

Whenever MATLAB invokes a callback, that callback attempts to interrupt the running callback (if one exists). The Interruptible property of the object owning the running callback determines if interruption is allowed. The Interruptible property has two possible values:

• 'on' — Allows other callbacks to interrupt the object's callbacks. The interruption occurs at the next point where MATLAB processes the queue, such as when there is a drawnow, figure, uifigure, getframe, waitfor, or pause command.

  • If the running callback contains one of those commands, then MATLAB stops the execution of the callback at that point and executes the interrupting callback. MATLAB resumes executing the running callback when the interrupting callback completes.

  • If the running callback does not contain one of those commands, then MATLAB finishes executing the callback without interruption.

• 'off' — Blocks all interruption attempts. The BusyAction property of the object owning the interrupting callback determines if the interrupting callback is discarded or put into a queue.

Note

Callback interruption and execution behave differently in these situations:

• If the interrupting callback is a DeleteFcn, CloseRequestFcn or SizeChangedFcn callback, then the interruption occurs regardless of the Interruptible property value.

• If the running callback is currently executing the waitfor function, then the interruption occurs regardless of the Interruptible property value.

• Timer objects execute according to schedule regardless of the Interruptible property value.

When an interruption occurs, MATLAB does not save the state of properties or the display. For example, the object returned by the gca or gcf command might change when another callback executes.

BusyAction — Callback queuing

'queue' (default) | 'cancel'

Callback queuing, specified as 'queue' or 'cancel'. The BusyAction property determines how MATLAB handles the execution of interrupting callbacks. There are two callback states to consider:

• The running callback is the currently executing callback.

• The interrupting callback is a callback that tries to interrupt the running callback.

Whenever MATLAB invokes a callback, that callback attempts to interrupt a running callback. The Interruptible property of the object owning the running callback determines if interruption is permitted. If interruption is not permitted, then the BusyAction property of the object owning the interrupting callback determines if it is discarded or put in the queue. These are possible values of the BusyAction property:

• 'queue' — Puts the interrupting callback in a queue to be processed after the running callback finishes execution.

• 'cancel' — Does not execute the interrupting callback.

BeingDeleted — Deletion status

'off' | 'on'

This property is read-only.

Deletion status, returned as 'off' or 'on'. MATLAB sets the BeingDeleted property to 'on' when the DeleteFcn callback begins execution. The BeingDeleted property remains set to 'on' until the component object no longer exists.

Check the value of the BeingDeleted property to verify that the object is not about to be deleted before querying or modifying it.

Parent/Children

Parent — Parent object

root object

This property is read-only.

Parent object, returned as a root object.

Children — Children of Figure object

empty GraphicsPlaceholder array (default) | 1-D array of component objects

Children of the Figure object, returned as an empty GraphicsPlaceholder or a one-dimensional array of component objects. The children can be any component, excluding another Figure object.

You cannot add or remove a child component using the Children property. Use this property to view the list of children or to reorder the children. The order of the children in this array reflects the front-to-back order (stacking order) of the components on the screen.

To add a child to this list, set the Parent property of the child component to the Figure object.

HandleVisibility — Visibility of object handle

'off'

This property is read-only.

Visibility of object handle, returned as 'off'. This property provides information about the visibility of the Figure object in its parent's list of children. Because this property value is always set to 'off', the Figure object is not visible in its parent’s list of children and it is not returned by functions that access objects by searching the object hierarchy or querying object properties. These functions include gcf, get, findobj, clf, and close.

Objects are valid even if their HandleVisibility property is set to 'off'. If you have access to an object, you can set and get its properties, and pass it to any function that operates on objects.

Identifiers

Name — Name

'' (default) | character vector | string scalar

Name of the figure, specified as a character vector or a string scalar.

Example: uifigure('Name','Results') sets the name of the figure to 'Results'.

Number — Number

integer | []

This property is read-only.

Number of the figure, returned as an integer or empty array. You can refer to a figure using this value. For example, figure(2) makes the figure with a Number property value of 2 the current figure.

If the IntegerHandle property is set to 'off', the Number property is empty.

If IntegerHandle is 'on', the Number property is an integer. When you delete the figure, MATLAB reuses the number for the next figure.

NumberTitle — Use number title

'on' (default) | 'off'

Number title, specified as 'on' or 'off'. When you set this property to 'on', the title of the UI figure includes the phrase 'Figure n', where n is a number.

Both the NumberTitle and IntegerHandle properties must be set to 'on' to show to show the number in the title.

IntegerHandle — Use integer handle

'off' (default) | 'on'

Use integer handle, specified as 'off' or 'on'.

If you set the IntegerHandle property to 'on', MATLAB finds the lowest integer value that is not used by an existing figure and sets the Number property to that value. If you delete a UI figure, MATLAB can reuse its number on a new figure.

If you set the IntegerHandle property to 'off', MATLAB does not assign an integer value to the UI figure, and it sets the Number property to an empty array.

To show the number in the title bar, both IntegerHandle and NumberTitle must be set to 'on'.

Type — Type of graphics object

'figure'

This property is read-only.

Type of graphics object, returned as 'figure'.

Tag — Object identifier

'' (default) | character vector | string scalar

Object identifier, specified as a character vector or string scalar. You can specify a unique Tag value to serve as an identifier for an object. When you need access to the object elsewhere in your code, you can use the findobj function to search for the object based on the Tag value.

UserData — User data

[] (default) | array

User data, specified as any MATLAB array. For example, you can specify a scalar, vector, matrix, cell array, character array, table, or structure. Use this property to store arbitrary data on an object.

If you are working in App Designer, create public or private properties in the app to share data instead of using the UserData property. For more information, see Share Data Within App Designer Apps.