Node-RED

Date Picker adding odd time

#1

HI - I've added a date picker node to my dashboard. When I look at the output and convert that unix timestamp to a real date time (e.g. on unixtimestamp.com), it always seems to set the time to 9:10am (UTC). I was assuming that the date picker would output the timestamp with the time set to midnight.

What I am trying to do is build a dashboard where you can specify the start date/time and end date/time for a filter - date picker gives date, then I have dropdowns allowing choice of hour (in 24 hour format). I then simply add the selected hours to the selected date. But since the timestamp from the date picker already has hours set (at 9:10 am), of course the output is then wrong.

What is causing the date picker to set this odd hour/minute?

#2

Could you export your flow and attach it to a reply - see this thread for instructions

#3

Are you injecting anything into the date picker? If an inject node is set to timestamp and you inject that into the date picker I think it will be set to your current time, and remain like that, until you inject something else.

#4

HI sorry had been on a short vacation!

OK - so nothing being injected. I have just created a basic flow with a date picker going to a debug.

[
{
"id": "7f86ea3e.47f1a4",
"type": "tab",
"label": "Flow 4"
},
{
"id": "496ddd9e.1fb564",
"type": "ui_date_picker",
"z": "7f86ea3e.47f1a4",
"name": "",
"label": "date",
"group": "d9f24c8.aec10b",
"order": 0,
"width": 0,
"height": 0,
"passthru": true,
"topic": "",
"x": 180,
"y": 60,
"wires": [
[
"961a0b42.4c34f8"
]
]
},
{
"id": "961a0b42.4c34f8",
"type": "debug",
"z": "7f86ea3e.47f1a4",
"name": "",
"active": true,
"console": "false",
"complete": "false",
"x": 300,
"y": 60,
"wires":
},
{
"id": "d9f24c8.aec10b",
"type": "ui_group",
"z": "",
"name": "Data",
"tab": "d6e76239.d1ed8",
"order": 3,
"disp": true,
"width": "12",
"collapse": false
},
{
"id": "d6e76239.d1ed8",
"type": "ui_tab",
"z": "",
"name": "Historian",
"icon": "dashboard",
"order": 3
}
]

#5

Unfortunately your flow isn't currently importable.Please read the following post How to share code or flow json and then edit the above message.

#6 
[
    {
        "id": "496ddd9e.1fb564",
        "type": "ui_date_picker",
        "z": "7f86ea3e.47f1a4",
        "name": "",
        "label": "date",
        "group": "d9f24c8.aec10b",
        "order": 0,
        "width": 0,
        "height": 0,
        "passthru": true,
        "topic": "",
        "x": 180,
        "y": 60,
        "wires": [
            [
                "961a0b42.4c34f8"
            ]
        ]
    },
    {
        "id": "961a0b42.4c34f8",
        "type": "debug",
        "z": "7f86ea3e.47f1a4",
        "name": "",
        "active": true,
        "console": "false",
        "complete": "false",
        "x": 300,
        "y": 60,
        "wires": []
    },
    {
        "id": "d9f24c8.aec10b",
        "type": "ui_group",
        "z": "",
        "name": "Data",
        "tab": "d6e76239.d1ed8",
        "order": 3,
        "disp": true,
        "width": "12",
        "collapse": false
    },
    {
        "id": "d6e76239.d1ed8",
        "type": "ui_tab",
        "z": "",
        "name": "Historian",
        "icon": "dashboard",
        "order": 3
    }
]
#7

If you add a function node with

msg.payload = new Date(msg.payload)
return msg;

then for me when I select a date it is providing that date but setting the time to the time the node was deployed, or first displayed, or something like that. I would have thought that was at least a deficiency if not a bug.
However, as a workaround, if you just want the date then all you have to do is to clear the time of day before adding in your extra offset.

#8

ok that makes sense - could not understand why the time was being set as would have thought it should have been set to midnight on the date selected. As you say, not ideal but not necessarily a bug.