Laravel convert input name array to dot notation

Question

How do I convert an input name array to dot notation, similar to the way the validator handles keys? I'd like it to work for non-arrays as well.

For example, say I have:

$input_name_1 = 'city';
$input_name_2 = 'locations[address][distance]';

How would I convert that to:

$input_dot_1 = 'city';
$input_dot_2 = 'locations.address.distance';

What have you tried? Stackoverflow is not a code-writing service; you're expected to make an effort to solve your own issue, and we'll assist with debugging. — Tim Lewis, May 14 '20 at 19:35
Laravel have method for it. Its called array_get() and inverse method array_set(). Mode here: https://stackoverflow.com/a/39118759/4771277 — Autista_z, May 14 '20 at 19:36
Not sure why all the hate on this question. It cropped up for me yesterday and unfortunately there are no helpful answers on this post yet. I have added the solution I came to as an answer. — benjaminhull, Jun 02 '21 at 07:55

benjaminhull · Answer 1 · 2022-09-12T12:19:47.577

If we're just talking about converting the string representation, e.g. converting strings as follows...

'foo[1]' -> 'foo.1'
'foo[bar]' -> 'foo.bar'
'foo[bar][baz]' -> 'foo.bar.baz'

The following code does it just fine...

$string = str_replace('[', '.', $string); // Replace [ with .
$string = str_replace(']', '', $string); // Remove ]

NOTE: I could not find anyway to achieve this within the Laravel framework using existing Laravel classes/methods - but would love to know if there is a way.

score -2 · Answer 2 · answered May 14 '20 at 20:45

Here is a hint, you could remove ] and then replace [ with a dot:

psuedocode:

$input_name_2 = 'locations[address][distance]';
$halfway = removeClosingBracket($input_name_2); // locations[address[distance
$result = replaceOpeningBracektWithDot($halfway); // locations.address.distance

Laravel convert input name array to dot notation

2 Answers2