GeographicScalebar Properties
Geographic scale bar appearance and behavior
GeographicScalebar
properties control the appearance and behavior
of the GeographicScalebar
object stored in a GeographicAxes
or MapAxes
(Mapping Toolbox™) object.
By changing property values, you can modify certain aspects of the scale bar. Access the
GeographicScalebar
object using the Scalebar
property
of the GeographicAxes
or MapAxes
object. Use dot notation to
query and set properties.
geoplot(1:10,1:10) gx = gca; v = gx.Scalebar.Visible; gx.Scalebar.Visible = "off";
Appearance
Background transparency, specified as a value in the range [0, 1]. A value of
1
means opaque and a value of 0
means
transparent.
Example: gx.Scalebar.BackgroundAlpha = 0.2;
Background color, specified as an RGB triplet, a hexadecimal color code, a color name, or a short color name.
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 string scalar or character vector that starts with a hash symbol (
#
) followed by three or six hexadecimal digits, which can range from0
toF
. The values are not case sensitive. Therefore, 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 the 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 |
This table lists the default color palettes for plots in the light and dark themes.
Palette | Palette Colors |
---|---|
Before R2025a: Most plots use these colors by default. |
|
|
|
You can get the RGB triplets and hexadecimal color codes for these palettes using the orderedcolors
and rgb2hex
functions. For example, get the RGB triplets for the "gem"
palette and convert them to hexadecimal color codes.
RGB = orderedcolors("gem");
H = rgb2hex(RGB);
Before R2023b: Get the RGB triplets using RGB =
get(groot,"FactoryAxesColorOrder")
.
Before R2024a: Get the hexadecimal color codes using H =
compose("#%02X%02X%02X",round(RGB*255))
.
Example: gx.Scalebar.BackgroundColor = [0 0 1];
Example: gx.Scalebar.BackgroundColor = "b";
Example: gx.Scalebar.BackgroundColor = "none";
Example: gx.Scalebar.BackgroundColor = "#0000FF";
Line color, specified as an RGB triplet, a hexadecimal color code, a color name, or a short color name.
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 string scalar or character vector that starts with a hash symbol (
#
) followed by three or six hexadecimal digits, which can range from0
toF
. The values are not case sensitive. Therefore, 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 the 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 |
This table lists the default color palettes for plots in the light and dark themes.
Palette | Palette Colors |
---|---|
Before R2025a: Most plots use these colors by default. |
|
|
|
You can get the RGB triplets and hexadecimal color codes for these palettes using the orderedcolors
and rgb2hex
functions. For example, get the RGB triplets for the "gem"
palette and convert them to hexadecimal color codes.
RGB = orderedcolors("gem");
H = rgb2hex(RGB);
Before R2023b: Get the RGB triplets using RGB =
get(groot,"FactoryAxesColorOrder")
.
Before R2024a: Get the hexadecimal color codes using H =
compose("#%02X%02X%02X",round(RGB*255))
.
Note
Setting properties of the parent axes can affect the scale bar.
When the parent is a geographic axes, setting the
AxisColor
property for the axes sets theEdgeColor
property for the scale bar to the same value.When the parent is a map axes, setting the
OutlineColor
property for the axes sets theEdgeColor
property for the scale bar to the same value.
However, setting properties of the scale bar does not affect the parent axes. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the scale bar property value, set the axes value first, and then set the scale bar value.
Example: gx.Scalebar.EdgeColor = "b";
Example: gx.Scalebar.EdgeColor = "blue";
Example: gx.Scalebar.EdgeColor = [0 0 1];
Example: gx.Scalebar.EdgeColor = "#0000FF";
Line width, specified as a positive value in point units. One point equals 1/72 inch.
Note
Setting the LineWidth
property for the parent axes sets the
LineWidth
property for the scale bar to the same value.
However, setting the scale bar property does not set the axes property. To prevent
the axes property value from overriding the scale bar property value, set the axes
value first, and then set the scale bar value.
Example: gx.Scalebar.LineWidth = 2;
State of visibility, specified as 'on'
or 'off'
,
or as numeric or logical 1
(true
) or
0
(false
). A value of 'on'
is equivalent to true
, and 'off'
is equivalent to
false
. Thus, you can use the value of this property as a logical
value. The value is stored as an on/off logical value of type matlab.lang.OnOffSwitchState
.
'on'
— Display the object.'off'
— Hide the object without deleting it. You still can access the properties of an invisible object.
Font
Font name, specified as a supported font name or 'FixedWidth'
. To
display and print text properly, you must choose a font that your system supports. The
default font depends on your operating system and locale.
To use a fixed-width font that looks good in any locale, use
'FixedWidth'
. The fixed-width font relies on the root FixedWidthFontName
property. Setting the root FixedWidthFontName
property causes an
immediate update of the display to use the new font.
Note
Setting the FontName
property for the parent axes sets the
FontName
property for the scale bar to the same value.
However, setting the scale bar property does not set the axes property. To prevent
the axes property value from overriding the scale bar property value, set the axes
value first, and then set the scale bar value.
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontName = "Cambria";
Font size, specified as a scalar numeric value.
Note
Setting the FontSize
property for the parent axes sets the
FontSize
property for the scale bar to the same value.
However, setting the scale bar property does not set the axes property. To prevent
the axes property value from overriding the scale bar property value, set the axes
value first, and then set the scale bar value.
When using the font size stored in the parent axes, the scale bar scales the font size to 80% of the axes font size.
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontSize = 12;
Character thickness, specified as 'normal'
or
'bold'
.
MATLAB® uses the FontWeight
property to select a font from
those fonts available on your system. Not all fonts have a bold font weight. Therefore,
specifying a bold font weight still can result in the normal font weight.
Note
Setting the FontWeight
property for the parent axes sets
the FontWeight
property for the scale bar to the same value.
However, setting the scale bar property does not set the axes property. To prevent
the axes property value from overriding the scale bar property value, set the axes
value first, and then set the scale bar value.
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontWeight = "bold";
Font color, specified as an RGB triplet, a hexadecimal color code, a color name, or a short color name.
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 string scalar or character vector that starts with a hash symbol (
#
) followed by three or six hexadecimal digits, which can range from0
toF
. The values are not case sensitive. Therefore, 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 the 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 |
This table lists the default color palettes for plots in the light and dark themes.
Palette | Palette Colors |
---|---|
Before R2025a: Most plots use these colors by default. |
|
|
|
You can get the RGB triplets and hexadecimal color codes for these palettes using the orderedcolors
and rgb2hex
functions. For example, get the RGB triplets for the "gem"
palette and convert them to hexadecimal color codes.
RGB = orderedcolors("gem");
H = rgb2hex(RGB);
Before R2023b: Get the RGB triplets using RGB =
get(groot,"FactoryAxesColorOrder")
.
Before R2024a: Get the hexadecimal color codes using H =
compose("#%02X%02X%02X",round(RGB*255))
.
Note
Setting properties of the parent axes can affect the scale bar.
When the parent is a geographic axes, setting the
AxisColor
property for the axes sets theFontColor
property for the scale bar to the same value.When the parent is a map axes, setting the
FontColor
property for the axes sets theFontColor
property for the scale bar to the same value.
However, setting properties of the scale bar does not affect the parent axes. To prevent the axes property value from overriding the scale bar property value, set the axes value first, and then set the scale bar value.
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontColor = "b";
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontColor = "blue";
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontColor = [0 0 1];
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontColor = "#0000FF";
Character slant, specified as 'normal'
or
'italic'
.
Not all fonts have both font styles. Therefore, the italic font might look the same as the normal font.
Note
Setting the FontAngle
property for the parent axes sets the
FontAngle
property for the scale bar to the same value.
However, setting the scale bar property does not set the axes property. To prevent
the axes property value from overriding the scale bar property value, set the axes
value first, and then set the scale bar value.
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontAngle = "italic";
Font smoothing, specified as 'on'
or 'off'
, or
as numeric or logical 1
(true
) or
0
(false
). A value of 'on'
is
equivalent to true
, and 'off'
is equivalent to
false
. Thus, you can use the value of this property as a logical
value. The value is stored as an on/off logical value of type matlab.lang.OnOffSwitchState
.
'on'
— Use antialiasing to make text appear smoother on the screen.'off'
— Do not use antialiasing. Use this setting if the text seems blurry.
Note
The FontSmoothing
property will have no effect in a future
release. Font smoothing will be enabled regardless of the value of the
property.
Example: gx.Scalebar.FontSmoothing = "off";
Parent/Child
This property is read-only.
Parent, specified as a GeographicAxes
object or
MapAxes
object.
Note
Scale bar objects are not listed in the Children
property of
the parent object.
This property is read-only.
Scale bar objects have no children.
Version History
Introduced in R2019aThe FontSmoothing
property will have no effect in a future release. Font
smoothing will be enabled regardless of the value of the property.
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