How to import excel sheet with Dates/Time in the first column

Hello,

In the first column I have the dates written as 01.12.2019 00:00 in the other column I have datas as floating numbers.

If I import the excel sheet with "Data=xlsread('Filename') " I don't get the dates and times in the first column instead some random floating numbers.

I need the dates to make a graph with them on the X axis.

please help

[Sudhakar Shinde]

can you add example data cloumn here.

[Giancarlo Meccariello]

A B C

1 01.12.2019 00:00 48 20

2 01.12.2019 00:15 47 21

3 01.12.2019 00:30 49 20.5

Answer 1

[Sudhakar Shinde]

1. try

[num,txt,raw] = xlsread(filename)

2. check also readtable, readmatrix, or readcell

[Giancarlo Meccariello]

doesn't work.

I get 3 files

first just with numbers -> same as I had

second just text -> date and time is not written as text

and third is kinda mix between 1st and 2nd.

this is the format in excel of my date and time "TT.MM.JJ hh:mm"

[Sudhakar Shinde]

[~,~,raw] = xlsread(filename);
%Extract date column if date is 2 nd column in excel 
Date = raw(:,2);
%ignore Date header 
Date = raw(2:end,2);

Answer 2

[Giancarlo Meccariello]

I found a solution.

basically when the format for the date in excel is TT.MM.JJ hh:mm and you import the excel as a matrix you get the serial number of the date. that's something linke 44380.

then you have to add a constant, that's the deviation between matlab and excel in the serial number of the dates

date_matrix=DATA(:,1) + 693960

and finally it has to be converted to date

date_for_plots = datetime(date_matrix,'ConvertFrom','datenum')

Now graphs can be plotted with this vector for the X-axis

[Sudhakar Shinde]

Yup. You can also look for datestr

[Walter Roberson]

date_for_plots = datetime(DATA(:,1), 'convertfrom', 'excel');