Scilab-Scientific Laboratory

It is a Free & Open Source Software package for Numerical

Computation.

Developed by Researchers from INRIA a start up (French National

Institute for Researchers in Computer Science and Control) and later
supported by ENPC(National School of Bridges and Roads).
Scilab is a free and open source software for engineers & scientists, with a
long history (first release in 1994) and a growing community

(100 000 downloads every months worldwide).

Scilab is one of the two major open-source alternatives to MATLAB, the other one
being GNU Octave

GNU Octave is a high-level programming language primarily intended for scientific

computing and numerical computation. Octave helps in solving linear and nonlinear
problems numerically, and for performing other numerical experiments using a
language that is mostly compatible with MATLAB.
 Why Scilab (Advantages of FOSS)
some of the capabilities of the Scilab package and benefits of shifting to Scilab.

• Free and open source, user friendly numerical and computational package.

• Used various streams of Science and Engineering.

• Interpreter converts line by line program, returning to high level language to a machine.

• Huge database available of predefined functions that we can directly use for implementation.

• Syntax is very easy

• Many numerical problems can be expressed in a reduced number of code lines as compared to

similar solutions using traditional languages.

In Scilab users can:

 See and modify the source code.

 Redistribute and improve the source code.

 Use the software for any purpose.

 Available for various Operating Systems (OS) viz Windows, Linux and Mac OS/X.
 Industries and Academic Institutions

This is an obvious advantage for Private Industries, Entrepreneurs, Defence

Establishments, Research Organizations, Academic Institutions and
Individual User.

As an institution, PIRACY of Commercial packages is avoided fully by

adopting FOSS Tools.

Skills learnt using Scilab at academic level are later useful in the industry as
usage is free of cost.
Scilab together with various toolboxes which are also free, can perform
operations like:
• Matrix Operations
• Control Systems.
• Image and Video Processing (SIVP)
• Real-time Control of Hardware (Serial Toolbox).
• Interfacing Data Acquisition Systems/Cards (HART Toolbox).
• Simulation (Xcos-Block Diagram Simulator).
• Plotting.
• Hardware In Loop(HIL) Simulation ( It differs from pure real time simulation
by the addition of a real component in the loop.)
Scicos or Xcos opens by default with two windows
 Differences Between Matlab Verses Scilab
Command Line Variables Strings

A new Variable can be entered To create a String in matlab.

using the variable name.
The Command Line begins with
Which is followed by ‘ = ‘ Sign
‘%’
Such as A= [1 2 3].
One needs to use double
quotes.
For example str =“friend”.

It can uses a single as well as

In Scilab it uses ‘// ‘ to
command a line
The predefined variable can be
double quotes to define a string
done by % in a prefix of the
in scilab.
variable.
Str = ‘blue’
Example: %i, %inf.
Str = “green”
 Differences Between Matlab Verses Scilab
Boolean Variable
It is defined as x=[0,1] and it
will an error to the value
x = [0,0].
It can be defined using the
syntax %T.
%T such as x =[0.0].
Polynomial Empty Matrix
The polynomial in matlab
requires to define the coefficient
The empty matrix is defined as
of vectors such as [1 -4 4],
[ ] in matlab.
which is nothing but
X2-4x+4.
In Scilab the polynomial can be
To defined the empty matrix of
defined with the help of poly( ).
scilab, one needs to write [ ] +1,
Which is a-built-in variable of
And it will return the value 1.
scilab.
 Data Types, Variables and Constants in Scilab
1. Constant
2. Double
3. Integers (int8,int16,int32)
4. Boolean
5. Complex
6. Strings
7. Polynomials
8. List
9. Functions
10.Graphics Handle
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