[SEOCoder]

Hi All,

Be looking, but cannot find a formula or script to convert

this: 51°31'N 03°12'W
to
this: 51.516701, -3.199526

anyone have any idea?

[Synook]

The fractional portion is just minutes / 1 degree (e.g., 31/60 for 51°31'). The numbers are positive for North/East. You could use a regular expression to grab the relevant information, apply the rules, and output the result.

[SEOCoder]

I am afraid you lost me there. 31/60 = 0.516666666666666666666666666...

How does 31/60 get me from 51°31 to 51.516701?

Originally Posted by SEOCoder

Hi All,

Be looking, but cannot find a formula or script to convert

this: 51°31'N 03°12'W
to
this: 51.516701, -3.199526

anyone have any idea?

You'll have to make sure there are no spaces.

Not tested, so likely has bugs. Edit: Aw, hell, I went and tested it for ya... no bugs now.

PHP Code:

<?php
// Examples of use
echo convertLatLong("52°N") . "<br>";
echo convertLatLong("52°31'N") . "<br>";
echo convertLatLong("52°31'46\"W") . "<br>";

function convertLatLong($coords) {
    $coords  = preg_split("/[\\\"\'°]+/", $coords);
    if (empty($coords) || count($coords) < 2) {
        return false;
    } else {
        $direction = $coords[count($coords)-1];
        for ($i = 0; $i < count($coords)-1; $i++) {
            $value += $coords[$i]/pow(60, $i);
        }
        switch (strtoupper($direction)) {
            case "N":
            case "E":
                return $value;
                break;
            case "S":
            case "W":
                return -$value;
                break;
            default:
                return false;
                break;
        }
    }
}
?>

[SEOCoder]

That is awesome!!

I had just started trying to create a formula. Thanks Smoseley, you have saved me a lot of time and hassle.

Nice one!!

Welcome.