User`s manual
Handling Data Returned from a Java Method
5-57
Built-In Data Types
Java built-in data types are described in “Passing Built-In Data Types” on 
page 5-48. Basically, this data type includes 
boolean, byte, short, long, int, 
double, float, and char. When the value returned from a method call is one of 
these Java built-in types, MATLAB converts it according to the table, 
“Conversion of Java Types to MATLAB Types” on page 5-56.
A single numeric or 
boolean value converts to a 1-by-1 matrix of double, which 
is convenient for use in MATLAB. An array of a numeric or 
boolean return 
values converts to an array of the closest base type, to minimize the required 
storage space. Array conversions are listed in the right-hand column of the 
table.
A return value of Java type 
char converts to a 1-by-1 matrix of char. And an 
array of Java 
char converts to a MATLAB array of that type.
Java Objects
When a method call returns Java objects, MATLAB leaves them in their 
original form. They remain as Java objects so you can continue to use them to 
interact with other Java methods.
The only exception to this is when the method returns data of type, 
java.lang.Object. This class is the root of the Java class hierarchy and is 
frequently used as a catchall for objects and arrays of various types. When the 
method being called returns a value of the 
Object class, MATLAB converts its 
value according to the table, “Conversion of Java Types to MATLAB Types” on 
page 5-56. That is, numeric and 
boolean objects such as java.lang.Integer or 
java.lang.Boolean convert to a 1-by-1 MATLAB matrix of double. Object 
arrays of these types convert to the MATLAB data types listed in the 
right-hand column of the table. Other object types are not converted.
Converting Objects to MATLAB Data Types
With the exception of objects of class String and class Object, MATLAB does 
not convert Java objects returned from method calls to a native MATLAB data 
type. If you want to convert Java object data to a form more readily usable in 
MATLAB, there are a few MATLAB functions that enable you to do this. These 
are described in the following sections.










