ddbs_read_table: Reads a vectorial table from DuckDB into R

In duckspatial: R Interface to 'DuckDB' Database with Spatial Extension

Reads a vectorial table from DuckDB into R

Description

Retrieves the data from a DuckDB table, view, or Arrow view with a geometry column, and converts it to an R sf object. This function works with both persistent tables created by ddbs_write_table and temporary Arrow views created by ddbs_register_table.

Usage

ddbs_read_table(conn, name, clauses = NULL, quiet = FALSE)

Arguments

conn	A DBIConnection object to a DuckDB database
name	A character string of length one specifying the name of the table, or a character string of length two specifying the schema and table names. If NULL (the default), the function returns the result as an sf object
clauses	character, additional SQL code to modify the query from the table (e.g. "WHERE ...", "ORDER BY...")
quiet	A logical value. If TRUE, suppresses any informational messages. Defaults to FALSE.

Value

an sf object

Examples

## Not run: 
## load packages
library(duckspatial)
library(sf)

# create a duckdb database in memory (with spatial extension)
conn <- ddbs_create_conn(dbdir = "memory")

## create random points
random_points <- data.frame(
  id = 1:5,
  x = runif(5, min = -180, max = 180),
  y = runif(5, min = -90, max = 90)
)

## convert to sf
sf_points <- st_as_sf(random_points, coords = c("x", "y"), crs = 4326)

## Example 1: Write and read persistent table
ddbs_write_vector(conn, sf_points, "points")
ddbs_read_table(conn, "points")

## Example 2: Register and read Arrow view (faster, temporary)
ddbs_register_vector(conn, sf_points, "points_view")
ddbs_read_table(conn, "points_view")

## disconnect from db
ddbs_stop_conn(conn)

## End(Not run)

duckspatial documentation built on June 22, 2026, 9:08 a.m.