How do I add a value to a field in each element of a struct array?

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Say I have a struct array with a numeric field:
>> a=struct('bar',{47 52})
I want to increment that field across each element of the array, something like the following:
>> [a.bar] = [a.bar] + 1; % this fails
The nearest I can figure out is the following, which is cumbersome:
>> inc = num2cell([a.bar]+1);
>> [a.bar] = inc{:};
Is there a way to do this without creating an intermediate variable? Thanks in advance.

Answers (1)

Image Analyst
Image Analyst on 29 Apr 2014
Well why are you messing around with cell arrays? Why make it way more complicated than it needs to be??? I don't see any reason for a cell array. I think you need to read the FAQ: http://matlab.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ#What_is_a_cell_array.3F
Try using just regular numerical arrays:
% Create structure.
a=struct('bar',[47 52])
a.bar % Report to command window.
% Add 1
a.bar = a.bar+1
a.bar % Report to command window.
In the command window:
a =
bar: [47 52]
ans =
47 52
a =
bar: [48 53]
ans =
48 53
  2 Comments
Brandon Kuczenski
Brandon Kuczenski on 29 Apr 2014
Your 'a' is not a struct array- it is a struct with one field whose contents are an array. In my version, a(1).bar = 47, a(2).bar=52, and a.bar(2) gives an error.
Image Analyst
Image Analyst on 29 Apr 2014
Sorry, I misunderstood. A fast, straightforward and intuitive solution is to simply use a for loop:
for k = 1:length(a)
a(k).bar = a(k).bar+1;
end
Don't believe the hype about a for loop being slow. It's not. Assuming you have less than several million structures in the array, it should be very fast.

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