Pattern Matching

Use this converter step in Robots to manipulate a text using patterns. A pattern can be used to extract parts of a text.

The Pattern Matching step is only available inside a converter group. In the Robot workflow, add one of the converter group steps and expand the step. Right-click the flow point inside the converter and select Pattern Matching. See Data Conversion for details.

Each pattern matches against the built-in $current variable, and the execution enters the first pattern branch that matches $current.

The robot throws a MatchIssue exception in the following cases.

If none of the patterns matches $current.
If any branch evaluates for too long.

The default timeout is 60 seconds. You can set the timeout in the RegEx.timeout.seconds environment variable.

Use the Try-Catch step to handle exceptions.

Properties

Click the plus sign to create a branch in the Pattern Matching step. The Regular Expression branch appears.

Regular Expression

A Regular Expression is a pattern that matches the entire input text. If the pattern matches, the execution will generate local variables in the branch for each group, such as $0, $1, $2, and so on up to $99, depending on how many groups the pattern contains. When you add the Pattern Matching step, $0 matches the input text value, namely $current.

When using alternation patterns, such as a(.*)|(.*), the local variable may be created in the branch, but is left undefined. One of the groups ($1 or $2) is not used in the match.

We recommend that you check availability of the variables in the State pane.

If Ignore Case is selected, the pattern matching is not case-sensitive, meaning that the pattern is matched against the input without regards for character case.

Pattern

Click inside the box to open the editor and evaluate a regular expression.

Use the Sample Input box for testing purposes only. If the execution is at the flow point before the Pattern Matching step, the default value is $current, but you can change it to anything without consequences for the robot.

Frequently used regular expression patterns

See the list of frequently used regular expression patterns. In RPA, we follow the syntax of Java regular expressions.

Working with the Pattern Matching step requires prior knowledge of regular expressions. Examples are provided for demonstration only. To test your regular expressions, use a regular expression syntax checker, such as https://regex101.com/.

See also Patterns.

Pattern type	Description and input text example	Pattern example
Date	Matches a valid date in YYYY-MM-DD format. 2024-01-01	^(?:19\|20)\d\d-(?:0[1-9]\|1[0-2])-(?:0[1-9]\|[12][0-9]\|3[01])$
Email	Matches a valid email address. name.lastname@mail.com	^[A-Za-z0-9._%+-]+@[A-Za-z0-9.-]+\.[A-Za-z]{2,}$
File extension	Matches common image and document file extensions, such as .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .gif, or .pdf Filename.pdf	^.+\.(jpg\|jpeg\|png\|gif\|pdf)$
Fiscal year	Matches a valid date in MM/DD/YYYY format from 10/01/2023 to 9/30/2024. 01/02/2024	1[0-2]/\d?\d/2023\|0?[1-9]/\d?\d/2024
IP address	Matches a valid IPv4 address in xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx format. Includes four groups of numbers separated by dots. Can range from 0 to 255. 01.234.0.255	^(?:(?:25[0-5]\|2[0-4][0-9]\|[01]?[0-9][0-9]?)\.){3}(?:25[0-5]\|2[0-4][0-9]\|[01]?[0-9][0-9]?)$
Name	Matches a valid name in the "Last name, First name" format. Allows hyphens in the last name and underscores in both last and first name. Smith-Anderson, John	([\w\-]+)\s,\s(\w+)\s*
Numeric input	Validates numeric input, including decimal and integer values. 1234.55	^\d+(?:\.\d+)?$
Password	Matches a valid password that is 8-24 symbols long, contains one lowercase and one uppercase character, and one special symbol. myPassword12@	((?=.\d)(?=.[a-z])(?=.[A-Z])(?=.[@#$%]).{8,24})
Phone number	Validates a phone number. Contains an optional "+" sign. +123456789	^\+?[1-9]\d{1,14}$
Time in 12-hour format	Matches a time in 12-hour format. Contains AM or PM designation. 12:12 AM	^(1[0-2]\|0?[1-9]):[0-5][0-9] (AM\|PM)$
Time in 24-hour format	Matches a time in 24-hour format. 22:22	([01]?[0-9]\|2[0-3]):[0-5][0-9]
URL	Matches a valid URL that starts with http or https. https://www.tungstenautomation.com/	^(https?:\/\/)?([a-z0-9]+([\-\.]{1}[a-z0-9]+)\.[a-z]{2,5})(:[0-9]{1,5})?(\/.)?$
User name	Matches a valid user name that is 8-24 symbols long. myusername_1	^[a-z0-9_-]{8,24}$