MATLAB Operators

In MATLAB you get operators for arithmetic, logical, relational, and matrix-based computations. These operators are very important in automotive applications such as test automation, data processing, and creating control logic.

Arithmetic Operators

Arithmetic operators are the symbols in MATLAB (or similar programming tools) that are used to perform Maths operations. Some operators work on pure matrix level, and some element by element.

In below table you all can see some examples:

Example:

A = [1 2; 3 4];
B = [5 6; 7 8];
C = A .* B;     % Element-wise multiply

Relational Operators

Relational operators are used to compare values. They don’t give a number as the answer, but instead give true (1) or false (0).

Example:
If a = 5 and b = 3, then:

• a > b → true (1)
• a = b → false (0)

In below table you all can see some examples:

Logical Operators

Logical operators are used to check conditions. They always give a result that is true (1) or false (0), and are very useful in if or while statements.

&& (Logical AND for scalars)

• It returns true only when both the conditions are true.
• Example: if (x > 0 && y > 0) → The code will run only when both x and y are positive.

~ (Logical NOT)

• It reverses the condition. If something is true then it becomes false, and if it is false then it becomes true.
• Example: if ~x → The code will run only when x is false (0).

& (Element-wise AND)

• It checks element by element in arrays or matrices.
• Example: A & B → Every element will be true only when both A(i) and B(i) are true.

| (Element-wise OR)

• Compares element by element in arrays or matrices – if any one of them is true then the result becomes true.
• Example: A | B → Every element will be true if any one of A(i) or B(i) is true.

Decision-Making Statements

Decision-making statements are those programming commands that let the program decide which code block to run – whether the condition is true or false.

• This is exactly like the decisions we make in real life. Example:
  • “If it is raining, stay inside the house; else go outside.”

if-elseif-else

This is done for conditional branching which means running different code blocks based on conditions.

speed = 80;
if speed > 100
    disp('Overspeeding');
elseif speed == 100
    disp('At speed limit');
else
    disp('Safe speed');
end

Output: Safe speed

switch-case

Efficient when you need to handle multiple fixed values like multiple drive modes (Single, Normal, Sport).

mode = 'sport';
switch mode
    case 'eco'
        disp('Economy mode active');
    case 'sport'
        disp('Sport mode active');
    otherwise
        disp('Default mode');
end

Output: Sport mode active

Loops with Logic

This is done by combining loops with logical checks such as repeatedly checking a condition and running code based on that.

i = 1;
while i <= 5
    if mod(i, 2) == 0
        disp([num2str(i), ' is even']);
    end
    i = i + 1;
end

Output:

2 is even

4 is even

Strings in MATLAB

Declaring Strings

Declaring strings in MATLAB creates variables that hold text data.

Strings can be stored in two ways:

• Character array → within single quotes ‘ ‘ (e.g., ‘Hello’)
• String object → within double quotes ” ” (e.g., “Hello”)

str1 = 'Engine';        % Character array
str2 = "Powertrain";    % String object (preferred)

String Operations

String operations in MATLAB mean creating, combining, modifying, and analyzing text (strings).

Automotive Applications of Operators & Strings

Operators and strings are widely used in automotive applications – whether it is test automation, validating signals, creating filenames, generating reports or looking up CAN IDs.

• Test automation scripts – Decision-making operators like if or switch are used so that different operation modes can be automatically selected based on conditions.
• Signal validation – Relational (>, <, ==) and logical (&&, ||) operators are used to check whether the signals are within the allowed limits or not – to ensure safety and correctness.
• Filename generation – Automatic filenames are created for saving test data by concatenating strings (e.g., strcat) and using them with loops.
• Test report titles – Clear and descriptive report titles are created by formatting and combining strings that summarize test results.
• CAN ID lookup – Switch-case statements help map CAN message names to their respective IDs, making message processing easier.