# # Levenshtein distance algorithm implementation for Ruby, with UTF-8 support. # # The Levenshtein distance is a measure of how similar two strings s and t are, # calculated as the number of deletions/insertions/substitutions needed to # transform s into t. The greater the distance, the more the strings differ. # # The Levenshtein distance is also sometimes referred to as the # easier-to-pronounce-and-spell 'edit distance'. # # Author: Paul Battley (pbattley@gmail.com) # module Text # :nodoc: module Levenshtein # Calculate the Levenshtein distance between two strings +str1+ and +str2+. # # The optional argument max_distance can reduce the number of iterations by # stopping if the Levenshtein distance exceeds this value. This increases # performance where it is only necessary to compare the distance with a # reference value instead of calculating the exact distance. # # The distance is calculated in terms of Unicode codepoints. Be aware that # this algorithm does not perform normalisation: if there is a possibility # of different normalised forms being used, normalisation should be performed # beforehand. # def distance(str1, str2, max_distance = nil) if max_distance distance_with_maximum(str1, str2, max_distance) else distance_without_maximum(str1, str2) end end private def distance_with_maximum(str1, str2, max_distance) # :nodoc: s = str1.encode(Encoding::UTF_8).unpack("U*") t = str2.encode(Encoding::UTF_8).unpack("U*") n = s.length m = t.length big_int = n * m # Swap if necessary so that s is always the shorter of the two strings s, t, n, m = t, s, m, n if m < n # If the length difference is already greater than the max_distance, then # there is nothing else to check if (n - m).abs >= max_distance return max_distance end return 0 if s == t return m if n.zero? return n if m.zero? # The values necessary for our threshold are written; the ones after must # be filled with large integers since the tailing member of the threshold # window in the bottom array will run min across them d = (m + 1).times.map { |i| if i < m || i < max_distance + 1 i else big_int end } x = nil e = nil n.times do |i| # Since we're reusing arrays, we need to be sure to wipe the value left # of the starting index; we don't have to worry about the value above the # ending index as the arrays were initially filled with large integers # and we progress to the right if e.nil? e = i + 1 else e = big_int end diag_index = t.length - s.length + i # If max_distance was specified, we can reduce second loop. So we set # up our threshold window. # See: # Gusfield, Dan (1997). Algorithms on strings, trees, and sequences: # computer science and computational biology. # Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-58519-8. # pp. 263–264. min = i - max_distance - 1 min = 0 if min < 0 max = i + max_distance max = m - 1 if max > m - 1 min.upto(max) do |j| # If the diagonal value is already greater than the max_distance # then we can safety return: the diagonal will never go lower again. # See: http://www.levenshtein.net/ if j == diag_index && d[j] >= max_distance return max_distance end cost = s[i] == t[j] ? 0 : 1 insertion = d[j + 1] + 1 deletion = e + 1 substitution = d[j] + cost x = insertion < deletion ? insertion : deletion x = substitution if substitution < x d[j] = e e = x end d[m] = x end if x > max_distance return max_distance else return x end end def distance_without_maximum(str1, str2) # :nodoc: s = str1.encode(Encoding::UTF_8).unpack("U*") t = str2.encode(Encoding::UTF_8).unpack("U*") n = s.length m = t.length return m if n.zero? return n if m.zero? d = (0..m).to_a x = nil n.times do |i| e = i + 1 m.times do |j| cost = s[i] == t[j] ? 0 : 1 insertion = d[j + 1] + 1 deletion = e + 1 substitution = d[j] + cost x = insertion < deletion ? insertion : deletion x = substitution if substitution < x d[j] = e e = x end d[m] = x end return x end extend self end end