JSON deserialization class with varying member names

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I have some json for live bus stop arrivals and departures.

{
    "atcocode": "269030083",
    "smscode": "lecdgpja",
    "request_time": "2019-05-25T13:45:14+01:00",
    "name": "St Margaret's Bus Station (Stand SM)",
    "stop_name": "St Margaret's Bus Station",
    "bearing": "",
    "indicator": "Stand SM",
    "locality": "Leicester",
    "location": {
        "type": "Point",
        "coordinates": [
            -1.1339,
            52.6397
        ]
    },
    "departures": {
        "153": [
            {
                "mode": "bus",
                "line": "153",
                "line_name": "153",
                "direction": "Market Bosworth, Terminus (unmarked)",
                "operator": "AMID",
                "date": "2019-05-25",
                "expected_departure_date": null,
                "aimed_departure_time": "13:45",
                "expected_departure_time": null,
                "best_departure_estimate": "13:45",
                "source": "NextBuses",
                "dir": "outbound",
                "id": "https://transportapi.com/v3/uk/bus/route/AMID/153/outbound/269030083/2019-05-25/13:45/timetable.json?app_id=ID&app_key=KEY",
                "operator_name": "Arriva Midlands"
            },
            {
                "mode": "bus",
                "line": "153",
                "line_name": "153",
                "direction": "Market Bosworth, Terminus (unmarked)",
                "operator": "AMID",
                "date": "2019-05-25",
                "expected_departure_date": null,
                "aimed_departure_time": "14:45",
                "expected_departure_time": null,
                "best_departure_estimate": "14:45",
                "source": "NextBuses",
                "dir": "outbound",
                "id": "https://transportapi.com/v3/uk/bus/route/AMID/153/outbound/269030083/2019-05-25/14:45/timetable.json?app_id=ID&app_key=KEY",
                "operator_name": "Arriva Midlands"
            },
            {
                "mode": "bus",
                "line": "153",
                "line_name": "153",
                "direction": "Market Bosworth, Terminus (unmarked)",
                "operator": "AMID",
                "date": "2019-05-25",
                "expected_departure_date": null,
                "aimed_departure_time": "15:45",
                "expected_departure_time": null,
                "best_departure_estimate": "15:45",
                "source": "NextBuses",
                "dir": "outbound",
                "id": "https://transportapi.com/v3/uk/bus/route/AMID/153/outbound/269030083/2019-05-25/15:45/timetable.json?app_id=ID&app_key=KEY",
                "operator_name": "Arriva Midlands"
            }
        ]
    },
    "source": "NextBuses"
}

In this example departures has a member "153" but obviously as the bus names change, the member name will change for example to "N1" etc.

What I have tried:

I have tried making depatures a dictionary but when I foreach through the dictionary I just get null values....

C#

public class Departures
{
    public Dictionary<string, listing_details> listing { get; set; }
}

public class listing_details
{
    public string mode { get; set; }
    public string line { get; set; }
    public string line_name { get; set; }
    public string direction { get; set; }
    public string @operator { get; set; }
    public string date { get; set; }
    public string expected_departure_date { get; set; }
    public string aimed_departure_time { get; set; }
    public string expected_departure_time { get; set; }
    public string best_departure_estimate { get; set; }
    public string source { get; set; }
    public string dir { get; set; }
    public string id { get; set; }
    public string operator_name { get; set; }
}

Can someone suggest how I would iterate through different name bus lists please? In this example it will be departures.153 but for the N1 bus but it might be departures.N1 . Sadly I won't know the bus names until I get the JSON so I am competely perplexed. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks.

Posted 25-May-19 3:25am

jerry0davis

Updated 29-May-19 6:11am

v4

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Comments

F-ES Sitecore 25-May-19 9:34am

It's impossible to give specific help if we don't know what you're using to deserialise the json. I believe newtonsoft's json.net can cope with dynamic json.

jerry0davis 25-May-19 9:39am

As you predited - NewtonsoftJSON

BusTimeTable resultsBTT = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject<BusTimeTable>(responseString);

How do I itterate through dynamic JSON using NewtonsoftJSON?

Thanks

3 solutions

Solution 3

There are multiple listings for each bus. The simplest solution would be:

C#

public class Departures
{
    public Dictionary<string, List<listing_details>> departures { get; set; }
}

Posted 29-May-19 6:11am

Richard Deeming

Updated 29-May-19 6:14am

v2

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F-ES Sitecore · Accepted Answer · 2019-05-25T04:52:00

Might need to play around with this a bit but this is the basics

JObject o = JObject.Parse(responseString);

// one way to read the values of the main object
string atcocode = o.Value<string>("atcocode");

JToken departures = o["departures"];

// your departures node only has one property (eg "153") so get it using First
JToken departure = departures.First;

JProperty prop = ((JProperty)departure);
string number = prop.Name; // 153

// get the items in 153 as a list
List<listing_details> details = prop.Value.ToObject<List<listing_details>>();

Graeme_Grant · Accepted Answer · 2019-05-26T14:14:00

Solution 2

What you can do is write a custom converter and shape the results into a format that you can work with. I discuss working with custom converters in details here:
Working with JSON in C# & VB > Non-Standard Types and Data Structure Types[^]

Posted 26-May-19 14:14pm

Graeme_Grant