This section also includes an example of using a simple function handle. Manipulate handles in arrays, structures, and cell arrays.Improve performance in repeated operations.Reduce the number of files that define your functions.Ensure reliability when evaluating functions.Allow wider access to subfunctions and private functions.Capture all methods of an overloaded function.Pass function access information to other functions.It is the combination of which function methods are mapped to by the handle and what arguments the handle is evaluated with that determines which is the actual function that MATLAB dispatches to.įunction handles enable you to do all of the following: Other functions that might now be on the path or in scope are not considered. When you evaluate a function handle, MATLAB considers only those functions that were stored within the handle when it was created.

When you create a handle to a function, MATLAB takes a snapshot of all built-in and M-file methods of that name that are on the MATLAB path and in scope at that time, and stores access information for all of those methods in the handle. It often represents a collection of function methods, overloaded to handle different argument types.

It is then used in conjunction with feval to evaluate the function to which the handle belongs.Ī MATLAB function handle is more than just a reference to a function. Typically, a function handle is passed in an argument list to other functions. When you create a function handle, MATLAB stores in the handle all the information about the function that it needs to execute, or evaluate, it later on. Function Handles (Programming and Data Types) Programming and Data TypesĪ function handle is a MATLAB data type that contains information used in referencing a function.

Matlab function handle operator