7.1. Accessing the data

The types you use to write or read data may include nested structs, sequences and arrays of primitive types or structs, etc.

These types are defined in XML following the format of RTI’s XML-Based Application Creation feature.

To access the data, Instance() and SampleIterator() provide setters and getters that expect a fieldName string, used to identify specific fields within the type. This section describes the format of this string.

We will use the following XML type definition of MyType:

<types>
    <enum name="Color">
        <enumerator name="RED"/>
        <enumerator name="GREEN"/>
        <enumerator name="BLUE"/>
    </enum>
    <struct name= "Point">
        <member name="x" type="int32"/>
        <member name="y" type="int32"/>
    </struct>
    <union name="MyUnion">
        <discriminator type="nonBasic" nonBasicTypeName="Color"/>
        <case>
          <caseDiscriminator value="RED"/>
          <member name="point" type="nonBasic"  nonBasicTypeName= "Point"/>
        </case>
        <case>
          <caseDiscriminator value="GREEN"/>
          <member name="my_long" type="int32"/>
        </case>
    </union>
    <struct name= "MyType">
        <member name="my_long" type="int32"/>
        <member name="my_double" type="float64"/>
        <member name="my_enum" type="nonBasic"  nonBasicTypeName= "Color" default="GREEN"/>
        <member name="my_boolean" type="boolean" />
        <member name="my_point" type="nonBasic"  nonBasicTypeName= "Point"/>
        <member name="my_union" type="nonBasic"  nonBasicTypeName= "MyUnion"/>
        <member name="my_int_sequence" sequenceMaxLength="10" type="int32"/>
        <member name="my_point_sequence" sequenceMaxLength="10" type="nonBasic"  nonBasicTypeName= "Point"/>
        <member name="my_point_array" type="nonBasic"  nonBasicTypeName= "Point" arrayDimensions="3"/>
        <member name="my_optional_point" type="nonBasic"  nonBasicTypeName= "Point" optional="true"/>
        <member name="my_optional_long" type="int32" optional="true"/>
    </struct>
</types>

Which corresponds to the following IDL definition:

enum Color {
    RED,
    GREEN,
    BLUE
};

struct Point {
    long x;
    long y;
};

union MyUnion switch(Color) {
    case RED: Point point;
    case GREEN: string<512> my_string;
};

struct MyType {
    long my_long;
    double my_double;
    Color my_enum;
    boolean my_boolean;
    string<512> my_string;
    Point my_point;
    MyUnion my_union;
    sequence<long, 10> my_int_sequence;
    sequence<Point, 10> my_point_sequence;
    Point my_point_array[3];
    @optional Point my_optional_point;
    @optional long my_optional_long;
};

Hint

You can get the XML definition of an IDL file with rtiddsgen -convertToXml MyType.idl.

We will refer to an Output named output and Input named input such that input.samples.length > 0.

7.1.1. Using JSON objects vs accessing individual members

On an Input or an Output, you can access the data all at once by using a JSON object, or member-by-member. Using a JSON object is usually more efficient if you intend to access most or all of the data members of a large type.

On an Output, Instance.setFromJson() receives a JSON object with all, or some, of the Output type members, and in an Input, SampleIterator.getJson() retrieves all of the members.

It is also possible to provide a memberName to SampleIterator.getJson() to obtain a JSON object containing the fields of that nested member only.

On the other hand, the methods described in the following section receive a fieldName argument to get or set a specific member.

7.1.2. Accessing basic members (numbers, strings and booleans)

To set a field in an Output(), use the appropriate setter.

To set any numeric type, including enumerations:

output.instance.setNumber('my_long', 2)
output.instance.setNumber('my_double', 2.14)
output.instance.setNumber('my_enum', 2)

To set booleans:

output.instance.setBoolean('my_boolean', True)

To set strings:

output.instance.setString('my_string', 'Hello, World!')

As an alternative to the previous setters, the type-independent method set can be used as follows:

// The set method works on all basic types
output.instance.set('my_double', 2.14)
output.instance.set('my_boolean', true)
output.instance.set('my_string', 'Hello, World!')

In all cases, the type of the assigned value must be consistent with the type of the field, as defined in the configuration file.

Similarly, to get a field in a Input() sample, use the appropriate getter: SampleIterator.getNumber(), SampleIterator.getBoolean(), SampleIterator.getString(), or the type-independent SampleIterator.get(). SampleIterator.getString() also works with numeric fields, returning the number as a string:

for (const sample of input.samples.validDataIter) {
    // Use the basic type specific getters
    let value = sample.getNumber('my_double')
    value = sample.getBoolean('my_boolean')
    value = sample.getString('my_string')

    // or alternatively, use the type-independent get method
    value = sample.get('my_double')
    value = sample.get('my_boolean')
    value = sample.get('my_string')

    // get a number as string:
    value = sample.getString('my_double')
}

Note

The typed getters and setters perform better than Instance.set() and SampleIterator.get() in applications that write or read at high rates. Also, prefer SampleIterator.getJson() and Instance.setFromJson() over Instance.set() and SampleIterator.get() when accessing all or most of the fields of a sample (see previous section).

Note

If a field my_string, defined as a string in the configuration file, contains a value that can be interpreted as a number, sample.get('my_string') returns a number, not a string.

7.1.3. Accessing 64-bit integers

Internally, Connector relies on a framework that only contains a single number type, an IEEE-754 floating-point number. Additionally, Connector does not use JavaScript’s BigInt representation for numbers, meaning JavaScript has this same limitation. As a result, not all 64-bit integers can be represented with exact precision using all APIs. If your type contains uint64 or int64 members, and you expect them to be larger than Number.MAX_SAFE_INTEGER (or smaller than Number.MIN_SAFE_INTEGER), then you must take the following into account.

64-bit values with an absolute value greater or equal to 2^53 can be set via:

  • The type-agnostic setter, Instance.set(). The values must be supplied as strings, e.g., the_output.instance.set('my_uint64', '18446744073709551615').

  • Instance.setString(), e.g., the_output.instance.setString('my_uint64', '18446744073709551615').

  • Instance.setFromJson(), if the values are provided as strings, e.g., the_output.instance.setFromJson({my_uint64: '18446744073709551615'}).

64-bit values with an absolute value greater than 2^53 can be retrieved via:

  • The type-agnostic getter, SampleIterator.get(). If the absolute value of the field is less than 2^53 it will be returned as a number; otherwise it will be returned as a string, e.g., sample.get(0).get('my_int64') // '9223372036854775807' OR 1234.

  • Using SampleIterator.getString(). The value will be returned as a string, e.g., sample.getString(my_int64') // '9223372036854775807' OR '1234'.

Warning

If SampleIterator.getNumber() is used to retrieve a value > 2^53 it will throw a DDSError().

Warning

If Instance.setNumber() is used to set a value >= 2^53 it will throw a DDSError().

Warning

The SampleIterator.getJson() method should not be used to retrieve integer values larger than Number.MAX_SAFE_INTEGER (or smaller than Number.MIN_SAFE_INTEGER). The values returned may be corrupted but no error will be thrown.

Note

The Instance.setNumber() operation can safely handle abs(value) < 2^53, whereas the SampleIterator.getNumber() operation can safely handle abs(value) <= 2^53.

Note

The use of “Infinity”, “-Infinity” and “-0” has some potential pitfalls and is not recommended. If your application must use these values, refer to this knowledge base article for more information.

7.1.4. Accessing structs

To access a nested member, use . to identify the fully-qualified fieldName and pass it to the corresponding setter or getter.

output.instance.setNumber('my_point.x', 10)
output.instance.setNumber('my_point.y', 20)

// alternatively:
output.instance.set('my_point.x', 10)
output.instance.set('my_point.y', 20)

It is possible to reset the value of a complex member back to its default:

output.instance.clearMember('my_point') // x and y are now 0

It is also possible to reset members using the set method:

output.instance.set('my_point', null)

Structs are set via JSON objects as follows:

output.instance.setFromJson({ 'my_point': { 'x':10, 'y':20 } })

When an member of a struct is not set, it retains its previous value. If we run the following code after the previous call to setFromJson:

output.instance.setFromJson({ 'my_point': { 'y': 200 } })

The value of my_point is now { 'x': 10, 'y':200 }. If you do not want the values to be retained you must clear the value first (as described above).

It is possible to obtain the JSON object of a nested struct:

for (const sample of input.samples.validDataIter) {
   let point = sample.getJson('my_point')
}

memberName must be one of the following types: array, sequence, struct, value or union. If not, the call to getJson will fail:

 for (let sample of input.samples.validDataIter) {
    try {
       let long = sample.getJson('my_long')
    } catch (err) {
       // Error was thrown since my_long is a basic type
    }
}

It is also possible to obtain the JSON of a struct using the SampleIterator.get() method:

 for (const sample of input.samples.validDataIter) {
     let point = sample.get('my_point')
     // point is a JSON object
}

The same limitations described in Accessing basic members (numbers, strings and booleans) of using SampleIterator.get() apply here.

7.1.5. Accessing arrays and sequences

Use fieldName[index] to access an element of a sequence or array, where 0 <= index < length:

let value = input.samples.get(0).getNumber('my_int_sequence[1]')
value = input.samples.get(0).getNumber('my_point_sequence[2].y')

To obtain the length of a sequence in an Input() sample, append # to the fieldName:

let length = input.samples[0].getNumber('my_int_sequence#')

Another option is to use SampleIterator.getJson('fieldName') to obtain a JSON object containing all of the elements of the array or sequence with name fieldName:

for (let sample of input.samples.validDataIter) {
    let thePointSequence = sample.getJson('my_point_sequence')
}

You can also get a specific element as a dictionary (if the element type is complex):

for (let sample of input.samples.validDataIter) {
   let pointElement = sample.getJson('my_point_sequence[1]')
}

In an Output(), sequences are automatically resized:

output.instance.setNumber('my_int_sequence[5]', 10) // length is now 6
output.instance.setNumber('my_int_sequence[4]', 9) // length still 6

You can clear a sequence:

output.instance.clearMember('my_int_sequence') // my_int_sequence is now empty

In JSON objects, sequences and arrays are represented as lists. For example:

output.instance.setFromJson({
    my_int_sequence: [1, 2],
    my_point_sequence: [{ x: 1, y: 1 }, { x: 2, y: 2 }]
})

Arrays have a constant length that can’t be changed. When you don’t set all the elements of an array, the remaining elements retain their previous values. However, sequences are always overwritten. See the following example:

output.instance.setFromJson({
    my_point_sequence: [{ x: 1, y: 1 }, { x: 2, y: 2 }],
    my_point_array: [{ x: 1, y: 1 }, { x: 2, y: 2 }, { x: 3, y: 3 }] })

output.instance.setFromJson({
    my_point_sequence: [{ x: 100 }],
    my_point_array: [{ x: 100}, { y: 200}] })

After the second call to setFromJson, the contents of my_point_sequence are [{ x: 100, y: 0 }], but the contents of my_point_array are: [{ x: 100, y: 1 }, { x: 2, y: 200 }, {x: 3, y: 3 }].

7.1.6. Accessing optional members

A optional member is a member that applications can decide to send or not as part of every published sample. Therefore, optional members may have a value or not. They are accessed the same way as non-optional members, except that null is a possible value.

On an Input, any of the getters may return null if the field is optional:

if (input.samples.get(0).getNumber('my_optional_long') == null) {
    console.log('my_optional_long not set')
}

if (input.samples.get(0).getNumber('my_optional_point.x') == null) {
    console.log('my_optional_point not set')
}

SampleIterator.getJson() returns a JSON object that doesn’t include unset optional members.

To set an optional member on an Output:

output.instance.setNumber('my_optional_long', 10)

If the type of the optional member is not primitive, when any of its members is first set, the rest are initialized to their default values:

output.instance.setNumber('my_optional_point.x', 10)

If my_optional_point was not previously set, the previous code also sets y to 0.

There are several ways to reset an optional member. If the type is primitive:

output.instance.setNumber('my_optional_long', null) // Option 1
output.instance.clearMember('my_optional_long') // Option 2
output.instance.set('my_optional_long', null) // Option 3

If the member type is complex, all the above options except option 1 are available:

output.instance.clearMember('my_optional_point')
output.instance.set('my_optional_point', null)

Note that Instance.setFromJson() doesn’t clear those members that are not specified; their values remain. For example:

output.instance.setNumber('my_optional_long', 5)
output.instance.setFromJson({ my_double: 3.3, my_long: 4 })
// my_optional_long is still 5

To clear a member, set it to null explicitly:

output.instance.setFromJson({ my_double: 3.3, my_long: 4, my_optional_long: null })

For more information about optional members in DDS, see Optional Members in the Extensible Types Guide.

7.1.7. Accessing unions

In an Output(), the union member is automatically selected when you set it:

output.instance.setNumber('my_union.point.x', 10)

You can change it later:

output.instance.setNumber('my_union.my_long', 10)

In an Input(), you can obtain the selected member as a string:

if (input.samples.get(0).getString('my_union#') == 'point') {
    value = input.samples.get(0).getNumber('my_union.point.x')
}

7.1.8. Accessing key values of disposed samples

Using Output.write(), an Output() can write data, or dispose or unregister an instance. Depending on which of these operations is performed, the instance_state of the received sample will be 'ALIVE', 'NOT_ALIVE_NO_WRITERS' or 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED'. If the instance was disposed, this instance_state will be 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED'. In this state, it is possible to access the key fields of the instance that was disposed.

Note

SampleInfo.valid_data will be false when the SampleInfo.instance_state is 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED'. In this situation it’s possible to access the key fields in the received sample.

The key fields can be accessed as follows:

// The output and input are using the following type:
// struct ShapeType {
//     @key string<128> color;
//     long x;
//     long y;
//     long shapesize;
// }

output.instance.set('x', 4)
output.instance.set('color', 'Green')
// Assume that some data associated with this instance has already been sent
output.write({ action: 'dispose' })
await input.wait()
input.take()
let sample = input.samples.get(0)

if (sample.info.get('instance_state') === 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED') {
    // sample.info.get('valid_data') will be false in this situation
    // Only the key-fields should be accessed
    let color = sample.get('color') // 'Green'
    // The fields 'x','y' and 'shapesize' cannot be retrieved because they're
    // not part of the key
    // You can also call getJson() to get all of the key fields in a JSON object.
    // Again, only the key fields returned within the JSON object should
    // be used.
    let keyValues = sample.getJson() // { color: 'Green', x: 0, y: 0, shapesize: 0 }
}

Warning

When the sample has an instance state of 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED' only the key fields should be accessed.

7.1.9. Accessing key values of disposed samples

Using Output.write(), an Output() can write data, or dispose or unregister an instance. Depending on which of these operations is performed, the instance_state of the received sample will be 'ALIVE', 'NOT_ALIVE_NO_WRITERS' or 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED'. If the instance was disposed, this instance_state will be 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED'. In this state, it is possible to access the key fields of the instance that was disposed.

Note

SampleInfo.valid_data will be false when the SampleInfo.instance_state is 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED'. In this situation it’s possible to access the key fields in the received sample.

The key fields can be accessed as follows:

// The output and input are using the following type:
// struct ShapeType {
//     @key string<128> color;
//     long x;
//     long y;
//     long shapesize;
// }

output.instance.set('x', 4)
output.instance.set('color', 'Green')
// Assume that some data associated with this instance has already been sent
output.write({ action: 'dispose' })
await input.wait()
input.take()
let sample = input.samples.get(0)

if (sample.info.get('instance_state') === 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED') {
    // sample.info.get('valid_data') will be false in this situation
    // Only the key-fields should be accessed
    let color = sample.get('color') // 'Green'
    // The fields 'x','y' and 'shapesize' cannot be retrieved because they're
    // not part of the key
    // You can also call getJson() to get all of the key fields in a JSON object.
    // Again, only the key fields returned within the JSON object should
    // be used.
    let keyValues = sample.getJson() // { color: 'Green', x: 0, y: 0, shapesize: 0 }
}

Warning

When the sample has an instance state of 'NOT_ALIVE_DISPOSED' only the key fields should be accessed.