Float and QString: Strange problem

Marce

I have a function that returns two double values: Latitude and Longitude and I want to convert it to the format: degrees (integer) and minutes (double).

I have the following code.

grade_lat = abs (Lat);
grade_long = abs(Long);
min_lat = 60*(abs (Lat) - grade_lat);
min_long = 60*(abs (Long) - grade_long);

if (min_long >= 60)
     {
      min_long -= 60;
      grade_long++;
     }

if (min_lat >= 60)
     {
      min_lat -= 60;
      grade_lat++;
     }

qDebug() << "long calculated: "+QString::number(Long,'f',7)+" grade_long: "+QString::number(grade_long,'f',7)+" min_long: "+QString::number(min_long,'f',7);

qDebug() << "lat calculated: "+QString::number(Lat,'f',7)+" grade_lat: "+QString::number(grade_lat,'f',7)+" min_lat: "+QString::number(min_lat,'f',7);

At one point the QDebug has written the following:

"long calculated: -61.0000000 grade_long: 60.0000000 min_long: 60.0000000"
"lat calculated: -31.0000000 grade_lat: 31.0000000 min_lat: 0.0000000"

It is strange that 61 degrees are written as 60 degrees and 60 minutes and for 31 degrees work well.

If I initialize the variables in 61.0f and 31.0f the QDebug writes well so I guess that in the variable of 61.0 degrees there are actually 60.9999999999999999999999 degrees but I need the Qdebug to write "61 degrees 0 minutes" or write "60 degrees 59.99999999999 minutes".

How can I implement this without failing?

Tanks

Marcelo

aha_1980

@Marce

Please update your code so it actually contains the data types of all involved variables.

I guess you're converting a double to an int which would explain that truncation. I you really want to do it, then simply add 0.5 to the double before conversion. Otherwise calculate everything in double.

Regards

kshegunov

double coordinate;

int degrees = int(coordinate);
coordinate = (coordinate - degrees) * 60;
int minutes = int(coordinate);
int seconds = (coordinate - minutes) * 60;

PS.
Usually the seconds are taken as a floating point, not as int as here.

Marce

@kshegunov I use grade (int) and minutes (double) only.

Marce

@aha_1980 Thanks for your reply. If I add 0.5 + 0.499999999999 a failure also occurs as in this case with 0.999999999999999- My guess is that the start value is 60.99999999999999999999999999999 but the Qdebug shows it as 61.

The problem is that 60 grade 60 minutes as a 61 ° replacement is unacceptable.

aha_1980

@Marce

Please give us compileable code and test data.

Otherwise it's just guessing from our side.

Regards

Pablo J. Rogina

@Marce said in Float and QString: Strange problem:

have a function that returns two double values: Latitude and Longitude and I want to convert it to the format: degrees (integer) and minutes (double).

What about using the class QGeoCoordinate? In particular the toString() method... From documentation:

Returns this coordinate as a string in the specified format.

fcarney

@Marce said in Float and QString: Strange problem:

if (min_long >= 60)
{
min_long -= 60;
grade_long++;
}

if (min_lat >= 60)
{
min_lat -= 60;
grade_lat++;
}

Is it possible min_lat or min_long are longer than 120?
Consider changing to while loops to be more robust:

while (min_long >= 60)
     {
      min_long -= 60;
      grade_long++;
     }


while (min_lat >= 60)
     {
      min_lat -= 60;
      grade_lat++;
     }

Marce

@fcarney Thanks for your reply. It's not possible. I have added it on purpose so that the problem is well observed.

Marce

@Pablo-J.-Rogina Thanks for your reply. My goal is to express the coordinates in degrees in the format:
gg mm.mmmmmmm
g: degrees
m: minutes
and with that library it is not possible.

fcarney

Works for me:

#include <QCoreApplication>
#include <QDebug>

void double_string(double Long, double Lat){
    int grade_lat;
    int grade_long;
    double min_lat;
    double min_long;

    grade_lat = abs (Lat);
    grade_long = abs(Long);
    min_lat = 60*(abs (Lat) - grade_lat);
    min_long = 60*(abs (Long) - grade_long);

    qDebug() << "min_long:" << min_long;
    qDebug() << "min_lat:" << min_lat;

    if (min_long >= 60)
         {
          min_long -= 60;
          grade_long++;
         }

    if (min_lat >= 60)
         {
          min_lat -= 60;
          grade_lat++;
         }

    qDebug() << "long calculated: "+QString::number(Long,'f',7)+" grade_long: "+QString::number(grade_long,'f',7)+" min_long: "+QString::number(min_long,'f',7);

    qDebug() << "lat calculated: "+QString::number(Lat,'f',7)+" grade_lat: "+QString::number(grade_lat,'f',7)+" min_lat: "+QString::number(min_lat,'f',7);
}

int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
    QCoreApplication a(argc, argv);

    double_string(-31.0f,-61.0f);
    double_string(31.0f,61.0f);
    double_string(-31.0,-61.0);
    double_string(31.0,61.0);

    return a.exec();
}

Result:

min_long: 0
min_lat: 0
"long calculated: -31.0000000 grade_long: 31.0000000 min_long: 0.0000000"
"lat calculated: -61.0000000 grade_lat: 61.0000000 min_lat: 0.0000000"
min_long: 0
min_lat: 0
"long calculated: 31.0000000 grade_long: 31.0000000 min_long: 0.0000000"
"lat calculated: 61.0000000 grade_lat: 61.0000000 min_lat: 0.0000000"
min_long: 0
min_lat: 0
"long calculated: -31.0000000 grade_long: 31.0000000 min_long: 0.0000000"
"lat calculated: -61.0000000 grade_lat: 61.0000000 min_lat: 0.0000000"
min_long: 0
min_lat: 0
"long calculated: 31.0000000 grade_long: 31.0000000 min_long: 0.0000000"
"lat calculated: 61.0000000 grade_lat: 61.0000000 min_lat: 0.0000000"

kshegunov

@Marce said in Float and QString: Strange problem:

Thanks for your reply. It's not possible. I have added it on purpose so that the problem is well observed.

I don't understand the problem. You've just said that the domain is -60 to +60, yet you feed invalid input to the algorithm. There's no algorithm that's consistently going to produce valid data out of invalid input.

Marce

Tanks for your reply. My problem is that a function is returning (supposedly 61 degrees). I need to convert it to the format gg mm.mmmmmmm, that is, 61 ° 00.00000000min, but the attached code shows 60 ° 60.00000000min. Although, 60 ° + 60 minutes = 61 ° is poorly expressed in the QDebug. If I initialize the variable with 61.0 ° the result is correct so I assume that the variable is stored in 60.9999999999999999999999999.

fcarney

I can reproduce:

    double_string(30.9999999999999999,60.9999999999999999);
    double_string(30.99999999999999,60.99999999999999);
    double_string(30.999999999999,60.999999999999);

"long calculated: 31.0000000 grade_long: 31.0000000 min_long: 0.0000000"
"lat calculated: 61.0000000 grade_lat: 61.0000000 min_lat: 0.0000000"
"long calculated: 31.0000000 grade_long: 30.0000000 min_long: 60.0000000"
"lat calculated: 61.0000000 grade_lat: 60.0000000 min_lat: 60.0000000"
"long calculated: 31.0000000 grade_long: 30.0000000 min_long: 60.0000000"
"lat calculated: 61.0000000 grade_lat: 60.0000000 min_lat: 60.0000000"

You will need to round the number to a lesser precision than the displayed number of 7.

    Long = double(int(Long*1000000)/1000000.0);
    Lat = double(int(Lat*1000000)/1000000.0);

Result:

"lat calculated: 61.0000000 grade_lat: 61.0000000 min_lat: 0.0000000"
"long calculated: 30.9999990 grade_long: 30.0000000 min_long: 59.9999400"
"lat calculated: 60.9999990 grade_lat: 60.0000000 min_lat: 59.9999400"
"long calculated: 30.9999990 grade_long: 30.0000000 min_long: 59.9999400"
"lat calculated: 60.9999990 grade_lat: 60.0000000 min_lat: 59.9999400"

kshegunov

@Marce said in Float and QString: Strange problem:

I need to convert it to the format gg mm.mmmmmmm

Which I gave you the solution for. Truncate once to get the degrees and then subtract the whole part, multiply by 60 to get the minutes and that's it.

If I initialize the variable with 61.0 ° the result is correct so I assume that the variable is stored in 60.9999999999999999999999999

You should realize first that flotaing point numbers are approximations. No real number can be represented exactly, and to add insult to injury not every rational number can be represented exactly. Take the simplest - 1/3, how do you suppose is this represented. Firstly, even in decimal it's 0.33(3), secondly the floating point numbers in computers are powers of 2. There are no common divisors of 2 and 3, so you can get an approximation of 0.33 only, much less something that's infinitely long sequence of 3s. Exactly representable numbers are 1/2 (0.5), 1/4 (0.25), 1/8 (0.125), so any number that can be stored is a sum of such things, nothing more, nothing less.

@fcarney said in Float and QString: Strange problem:

You will need to round the number to a lesser precision than the displayed number of 7.

Long = double(int(Long*1000000)/1000000.0);
Lat = double(int(Lat*1000000)/1000000.0);

Before doing a multiplication, truncation and division, which is terribly inefficient, have you considered making a simple addition?

Long += 0.0000005;

Display up to 6 digits and you get your rounding correctly.

J.Hilk

Theres also qRound to add my 2 cents :)

fcarney

@kshegunov said in Float and QString: Strange problem:

Long += 0.0000005;

Doesn't that just move the problem though? If it was close to the rounding, adding to the value could put it right at the rounding location. Somehow the value needs to be rounded/truncated to less precision than the display precision or the problem will persist.

JonB

@fcarney

If it was close to the rounding, adding to the value could put it right at the rounding location

I don't get what you mean by that. So far as I am aware, like @kshegunov I believe that will always mean that truncating the result after the addition at 6 decimal places will give the correctly-rounded result.

fcarney

@JonB said in Float and QString: Strange problem:

I don't get what you mean by that.

Here is a value in which the value output from the function will produce grade 60 min 60:

60.99999999999999

Yes, adding to that value will produce 61 instead. However if I have this value:

60.99999949999999

adding 0.0000005 will result in 60.99999999999999

The problem is just moved to a different location.

JonB

@fcarney
Somewhere we're talking at cross-purposes.

60.99999949999999 truncate at 6 dps => 60.999999 => correct
60.99999959999999 truncate at 6 dps => 60.999999 => wrong (assuming it's supposed to round to nearest 6 dps)

OTOH :
60.99999949999999 + 0.0000005 = 60.99999999999999 truncate at 6 dps => 60.999999 => correct
60.99999959999999 + 0.0000005 = 61.00000099999999 truncate at 6 dps => 61.000000 => correct too (assuming it's supposed to round to nearest 6 dps)