Create TikZ/pgf figures from Matlab

tikzfig is a Matlab toolbox to programmatically create figure files in pdf format using the TikZ/pgf LaTeX package. It exposes part of the TikZ interface to pgf as a Matlab API, so that graphics statements lead to the construction of a LaTeX file which is transparently processed into pdf, including a simple preview mechanism. Additionally, functionality to easily create multi-panel figure layouts is provided.

I created this toolbox because the capabilities of TikZ go far beyond what can be reasonably achieved with Matlab's graphics, both in versatility and quality. To get an impression, have a look at the TikZ and PGF examples on texample.net. The drawback is that this toolbox as well as TikZ/pgf itself cannot be used interactively, for fast prototyping. Its purpose is to produce high-quality publication-ready figures.

Installation

Copy the contents of the repository into a directory on your computer and add that directory to the Matlab path.

To create the pdf, the external command pdflatex is called, and to generate the preview, the external command gs (ghostscript) is called. Both programs therefore need to be installed. The generated LaTeX code depends on the packages tikz, inputenc, fontenc, cmbright, and amsmath. The code has only been tested on Debian GNU/Linux, with LaTeX installed from the texlive- packages.

Example

An example tikzfig script is contained in the file example.m:

```matlab % create a figure named "hello" (associated with a Matlab figure window) tfInit('hello') % define a color to be used later tfColor('kitty', 'rgb', [1 0 0]) % define a style to be used later tfStyle('pretty', 'mark=+,draw=orange') % define a layout with two boxes side-by-side, % the first with a 4:3 aspect ratio and the second one square tfLayout({1 1 4/3; 1 2 1})

% select layout box #1 and define coordinate system tfView(1, [0 3], [0 3]) tfIsoView % draw an arrow from (1, 2) to (2, 1) tfPath('green,thick,draw,->', [1 2 ; 2 1]) % make a text label tfPath('', [0.1 0.1], ... 'node [kitty,anchor=south west,draw,fill=yellow] {Hello Kitty! $E = mc^2$}') % close layout box and show standard decorations: viewbox and scales tfDeco

% select layout box #2 and define coordinate system tfView(2, [0.5 9.5], [-0.1 1.1]) % plot some random data tfPlot('pretty', [1 : 9 ; rand(1, 9)]') % close layout box and use scales and a title as decorations tfDeco scales tfDeco title graph

% generate pdf and show a preview in the associated figure window tfRender ```

The last command shows a preview in a figure window:

The file hello.pdf is created in the current directory:

Usage

The basic structure of a tikzfig script is - tfInit: initialize TikZ figure - style commands - tfLayout: organize the layout of a TikZ figure using boxes (views) arranged over a grid - for each view: - tfView: prepare layout box as current view - optionally tfIsoView: impose isoscaling on the current view - plot commands - optionally tfDeco: draw decorations for the current view - tfRender: render TikZ figure to pdf file and show a preview

Style commands: - tfColor: define color for later use in drawing or filling - tfStyle: define TikZ style for later use in options

Plot commands: - tfPath: insert path in current view - tfPlot: plot data in current view - tfScatter: generate scatter plot in current view - tfHeatMap: display matrix as a heat map - tfImage: insert image into the current view - tfContour: display matrix as a contour plot - tfEllipse: draw a circle or ellipse in the current view - tfArrow: draw arrow - tfColorBar: fill pre-defined layout box with colorbar - tfGrid: draw a coordinate grid into the current view

Helper functions: - tfPrintCode: print TikZ LaTeX code - tfLimits: compute fitting view limits for discretely sampled data (e.g. images)

All functions include additional usage information which is accessible via Matlab's help command. To use this toolbox effectively, you should however familiarize yourself with TikZ itself.

This software is copyrighted © 2019 by Carsten Allefeld and released under the terms of the GNU General Public License, version 3 or later.