Abstract class in Java

• A class which is declared with the abstract keyword is known as an

abstract class in Java. It can have abstract and non-abstract methods
(method with the body).
• Before learning the Java abstract class, let's understand the abstraction in
Java first.
• Abstraction in Java
• Abstraction is a process of hiding the implementation details and showing
only functionality to the user.
• Another way, it shows only essential things to the user and hides the
internal details, for example, sending SMS where you type the text and
send the message. You don't know the internal processing about the
message delivery.
• Abstraction lets you focus on what the object does instead of how it does
it.
• Ways to achieve Abstraction
• There are two ways to achieve abstraction in java
– Abstract class (0 to 100%)
– Interface (100%)
•
 Abstract class in Java
• A class which is declared as abstract is known as an abstract class. It
can have abstract and non-abstract methods. It needs to be
extended and its method implemented. It cannot be instantiated.
• Points to Remember
• An abstract class must be declared with an abstract keyword.
• It can have abstract and non-abstract methods.
• It cannot be instantiated.
• It can have constructors and static methods also.
• It can have final methods which will force the subclass not to
change the body of the method.
• Example of abstract class
• abstract class A{}
 Abstract Method in Java
• A method which is declared as abstract and does not have implementation is
known as an abstract method.
• Example of abstract method
• abstract void printStatus();//no method body and abstract
• Example of Abstract class that has an abstract method
• In this example, Bike is an abstract class that contains only one abstract method
run. Its implementation is provided by the Honda class.
abstract class Bike{
abstract void run();
}
class Honda4 extends Bike{
void run(){System.out.println("running safely");}
public static void main(String args[]){
Bike obj = new Honda4();
obj.run();
}
}
Test it Nowrunning safely
abstract class Shape{
abstract void draw();
}
//In real scenario, implementation is provided by others i.e. unknown by end
user
class Rectangle extends Shape{
void draw(){System.out.println("drawing rectangle");}
}
class Circle1 extends Shape{
void draw(){System.out.println("drawing circle");}
}
//In real scenario, method is called by programmer or user
class TestAbstraction1{
public static void main(String args[]){
Shape s=new Circle1();//In a real scenario, object is provided through method
, e.g., getShape() method
s.draw();
}
}
Test it Nowdrawing circle
• Abstract class having constructor, data member and methods
• An abstract class can have a data member, abstract method, method body (non-abstract method),
constructor, and even main() method.
• File: TestAbstraction2.java
• //Example of an abstract class that has abstract and non-abstract methods
abstract class Bike{
Bike(){System.out.println("bike is created");}
abstract void run();
void changeGear(){System.out.println("gear changed");}
}
//Creating a Child class which inherits Abstract class
class Honda extends Bike{
void run(){System.out.println("running safely..");}
}
//Creating a Test class which calls abstract and non-abstract methods
class TestAbstraction2{
public static void main(String args[]){
Bike obj = new Honda();
obj.run();
obj.changeGear();
}
}
Test it Nowbike is created running safely.. gear changed
 Interface in Java
• An interface in java is a blueprint of a class. It has static
constants and abstract methods.
• The interface in Java is a mechanism to achieve abstraction.
There can be only abstract methods in the Java interface,
not method body. It is used to achieve abstraction and
multiple inheritance in Java.
• In other words, you can say that interfaces can have
abstract methods and variables. It cannot have a method
body.
• Java Interface also represents the IS-A relationship.
• It cannot be instantiated just like the abstract class.
• Since Java 8, we can have default and static methods in an
interface.
• Since Java 9, we can have private methods in an interface.
 Why use Java interface?
• There are mainly three reasons to use
interface. They are given below.
• It is used to achieve abstraction.
• By interface, we can support the functionality
of multiple inheritance.
• It can be used to achieve loose coupling.
 How to declare an interface?
• An interface is declared by using the interface keyword.
It provides total abstraction; means all the methods in
an interface are declared with the empty body, and all
the fields are public, static and final by default. A class
that implements an interface must implement all the
methods declared in the interface.
• Syntax:
interface <interface_name>{

// declare constant fields

// declare methods that abstract
// by default.
}
• Java Interface Example
• In this example, the Printable interface has only one method, and
its implementation is provided in the A6 class.
interface printable{
void print();
}
class A6 implements printable{
public void print(){System.out.println("Hello");}

public static void main(String args[]){

A6 obj = new A6();
obj.print();
}
}
Test it NowOutput:
Hello
• Java Interface Example: Drawable
• In this example, the Drawable interface has only one method. Its implementation is provided by
Rectangle and Circle classes. In a real scenario, an interface is defined by someone else, but its
implementation is provided by different implementation providers. Moreover, it is used by
someone else. The implementation part is hidden by the user who uses the interface.
File: TestInterface1.java
//Interface declaration: by first user
interface Drawable{
void draw();
}
//Implementation: by second user
class Rectangle implements Drawable{
public void draw(){System.out.println("drawing rectangle");}
}
class Circle implements Drawable{
public void draw(){System.out.println("drawing circle");}
}
//Using interface: by third user
class TestInterface1{
public static void main(String args[]){
Drawable d=new Circle();//In real scenario, object is provided by method e.g. getDrawable()
d.draw();
}}
Test it NowOutput:
drawing circle
• Java Interface Example: Bank
• Let's see another example of java interface which provides the implementation of
Bank interface.
File: TestInterface2.java
interface Bank{
float rateOfInterest();
}
class SBI implements Bank{
public float rateOfInterest(){return 9.15f;}
}
class PNB implements Bank{
public float rateOfInterest(){return 9.7f;}
}
class TestInterface2{
public static void main(String[] args){
Bank b=new SBI();
System.out.println("ROI: "+b.rateOfInterest());
}}
Test it NowOutput:
ROI: 9.15
 Multiple inheritance in Java by interface
• If a class implements multiple interfaces, or an interface extends multiple
interfaces, it is known as multiple inheritance.
interface Printable{
void print();
}
interface Showable{
void show();
}
class A7 implements Printable,Showable{
public void print(){System.out.println("Hello");}
public void show(){System.out.println("Welcome");}

public static void main(String args[]){

A7 obj = new A7();
obj.print();
obj.show();
}
}
Test it NowOutput:Hello Welcome
 Q) Multiple inheritance is not supported through class in java,
but it is possible by an interface, why?
• As we have explained in the inheritance chapter, multiple inheritance is not supported in the case
of class because of ambiguity. However, it is supported in case of an interface because there is no
ambiguity. It is because its implementation is provided by the implementation class. For example:
interface Printable{
void print();
}
interface Showable{
void print();
}

class TestInterface3 implements Printable, Showable{

public void print(){System.out.println("Hello");}
public static void main(String args[]){
TestInterface3 obj = new TestInterface3();
obj.print();
}
}
Test it NowOutput:
Hello

• As you can see in the above example, Printable and Showable interface have same methods but its
implementation is provided by class TestTnterface1, so there is no ambiguity.
 Interface inheritance
• A class implements an interface, but one interface extends another interface.
interface Printable{
void print();
}
interface Showable extends Printable{
void show();
}
class TestInterface4 implements Showable{
public void print(){System.out.println("Hello");}
public void show(){System.out.println("Welcome");}

public static void main(String args[]){

TestInterface4 obj = new TestInterface4();
obj.print();
obj.show();
}
}
Test it NowOutput:
Hello Welcome
 Java 8 Default Method in Interface
• Since Java 8, we can have method body in interface. But we need to make it
default method. Let's see an example:
• File: TestInterfaceDefault.java
interface Drawable{
void draw();
default void msg(){System.out.println("default method");}
}
class Rectangle implements Drawable{
public void draw(){System.out.println("drawing rectangle");}
}
class TestInterfaceDefault{
public static void main(String args[]){
Drawable d=new Rectangle();
d.draw();
d.msg();
}}
Test it NowOutput:
drawing rectangle default method
 Java 8 Static Method in Interface
• Since Java 8, we can have static method in interface. Let's see an example:
• File: TestInterfaceStatic.java
interface Drawable{
void draw();
static int cube(int x){return x*x*x;}
}
class Rectangle implements Drawable{
public void draw(){System.out.println("drawing rectangle");}
}

class TestInterfaceStatic{
public static void main(String args[]){
Drawable d=new Rectangle();
d.draw();
System.out.println(Drawable.cube(3));
}}
Test it NowOutput:
drawing rectangle 27
 Difference between abstract class and interface
• Abstract class and interface both are used to achieve abstraction where we can
declare the abstract methods. Abstract class and interface both can't be
instantiated.
• But there are many differences between abstract class and interface that are given
below.

• 1) Abstract class can have abstract and non-abstract methods.

• Interface can have only abstract methods. Since Java 8, it can have default and
static methods also.

• 2) Abstract class doesn't support multiple inheritance.Interface supports multiple

inheritance.

• 3) Abstract class can have final, non-final, static and non-static variables.Interface
has only static and final variables.

• 4) Abstract class can provide the implementation of interface.Interface can't

provide the implementation of abstract class.
• 5) The abstract keyword is used to declare abstract class.The interface
keyword is used to declare interface.

• 6) An abstract class can extend another Java class and implement multiple
Java interfaces.An interface can extend another Java interface only.

• 7) An abstract class can be extended using keyword

"extends".An interface can be implemented using keyword "implements".

• 8) A Java abstract class can have class members like private, protected,
etc.Members of a Java interface are public by default.

• 9)Example:
public abstract class Shape{
public abstract void draw();
}Example:
public interface Drawable{
void draw();
}Simply, abstract class achieves partial abstraction (0 to 100%) whereas
interface achieves fully abstraction (100%).
 Example of abstract class and interface in Java
• Let's see a simple example where we are using interface and
abstract class both.
• //Creating interface that has 4 methods
interface A{
void a();//bydefault, public and abstract
void b();
void c();
void d();
}

//Creating abstract class that provides the implementation of one met

hod of A interface
abstract class B implements A{
public void c(){System.out.println("I am C");}
}
• //Creating subclass of abstract class, now we need to provide the impleme
ntation of rest of the methods
class M extends B{
public void a(){System.out.println("I am a");}
public void b(){System.out.println("I am b");}
public void d(){System.out.println("I am d");}
}

//Creating a test class that calls the methods of A interface

class Test5{
public static void main(String args[]){
A a=new M();
a.a();
a.b();
a.c();
a.d();
}}
Test it NowOutput:
I am a I am b I am c I am d