set_cell: Add text elements to a gridify cell

In gridify: Enrich Figures and Tables with Custom Headers and Footers and More

Add text elements to a gridify cell

Description

This function sets a text element for a specific cell in a gridify object. The element can be positioned and rotated as desired, and its graphical parameters can be customized.

Usage

set_cell(
  object,
  cell,
  text,
  mch = NULL,
  x = NULL,
  y = NULL,
  hjust = NULL,
  vjust = NULL,
  rot = NULL,
  gpar = NULL,
  ...
)

## S4 method for signature 'gridifyClass'
set_cell(
  object,
  cell,
  text,
  mch = NULL,
  x = NULL,
  y = NULL,
  hjust = NULL,
  vjust = NULL,
  rot = NULL,
  gpar = NULL,
  ...
)

Arguments

object	A gridifyClass object. (See note)
cell	A single character string specifying the name of the cell.
text	A single character string specifying the text of the element. When setting your string within the text argument, you can add new lines by using the newline character, ⁠\n⁠.
mch	A positive numeric value specifying the maximum number of characters per line. The functionality is based on the strwrap() function. By default, it avoids breaking up words and only splits lines when specified.
x	A numeric value specifying the x (horizontal) location of the text element in the cell. Takes values between 0 and 1; 0 places the text element at the left side of the cell and 1 at the right side.
y	A numeric value specifying the y (vertical) location of the text element in the cell. Takes values between 0 and 1; 0 places the text element at the bottom of the cell and 1 at the top.
hjust	A numeric value specifying which part of the text element lines up with the x value. Adjusting this value changes how the text element is positioned horizontally relative to the x coordinate specified before. Takes values between 0 and 1; 0 aligns the left side of the text element with the x coordinate and 1 aligns the right side.
vjust	A numeric value specifying which part of the text element lines up with the y value. Adjusting this value changes how the text element is positioned vertically relative to the y coordinate specified before. Takes values between 0 and 1; 0 aligns the bottom of the text element with the y coordinate and 1 aligns the top.
rot	A numeric value specifying the rotation of the text element anticlockwise from the x-axis.
gpar	A grid::gpar() object specifying the graphical parameters of the text element.
...	Additional arguments.

Details

set_cell() can also make minor adjustments to the positioning of the text elements in the layout.

If the existing layouts generally meet your needs and you only require additional lines in certain cells, there is no need to create a new layout. By using the newline character, ⁠\n⁠, within your text, you can add as many new lines as desired. For all layouts with the default scales = "fixed", the layout will automatically adjust to fit the new lines, ensuring no elements overlap.

For applying more substantial changes to a layout or when applying adjustments across multiple objects and projects, it is recommended to create a custom layout instead. This will promote reproducibility and consistency across projects. See vignette("create_custom_layout", package = "gridify") for more information on how to create a custom layout.

Value

The gridifyClass object with the added text element.

Note

The object argument has to be passed directly only when adding set_cell() after a gridify object has already been defined. We do NOT need to pass the object directly when using pipes. See first example.

See Also

gridify()

Examples

# using set_cell() without the pipe operator
object <- ggplot2::ggplot(data = mtcars, ggplot2::aes(x = mpg, y = wt)) +
  ggplot2::geom_line()

g <- gridify(object = object, layout = simple_layout())
g <- set_cell(g, "title", "TITLE")
g

# using set_cell() with the pipe operator
# (to use |> version 4.1.0 of R is required, for lower versions we recommend %>% from magrittr)
library(magrittr)

gridify(object = object, layout = simple_layout()) %>%
  set_cell("title", "TITLE")

# using multiple lines in set_cell()
gridify(object, layout = simple_layout()) %>%
  set_cell(cell = "title", text = "THIS IS THE MAIN TITLE\nA Second Title\nSubtitle") %>%
  set_cell(
    cell = "footer", text = "This is a footer.\nWe can have multiple lines here as well.",
    x = 0, hjust = 0
  )

# using mch in set_cell()
long_footer_string <- paste0(
  "This is a footer. We can have a long description here.",
  "We can have another long description here.",
  "We can have another long description here."
)
gridify(object, layout = simple_layout()) %>%
  set_cell(
    cell = "footer", long_footer_string, mch = 60, x = 0, hjust = 0
  )

# using the location and alignment arguments
# the left side of the text is on the left side of the cell
gridify(object = object, layout = simple_layout()) %>%
  set_cell("title", "TITLE", x = 0, hjust = 0)

# the right side of the text is on the right side of the cell
gridify(object = object, layout = simple_layout()) %>%
  set_cell("title", "TITLE", x = 1, hjust = 1)

# the right side of the text is 30% from the right side of the cell
gridify(object = object, layout = simple_layout()) %>%
  set_cell("title", "TITLE", x = 0.7, hjust = 1)

# using the rotation argument
gridify(object = object, layout = simple_layout()) %>%
  set_cell("title", "TITLE", x = 0.7, rot = 45)

# using the graphical parameters argument
gridify(object = object, layout = simple_layout()) %>%
  set_cell("title", "TITLE", x = 0.7, rot = 45, gpar = grid::gpar(fontsize = 20)) %>%
  set_cell("footer", "FOOTER", x = 0.2, y = 1, gpar = grid::gpar(col = "blue"))

gridify documentation built on Feb. 5, 2026, 5:09 p.m.