How to resolve the algorithm Generate random chess position step by step in the C++ programming language

Published on 7 June 2024 03:52 AM

How to resolve the algorithm Generate random chess position step by step in the C++ programming language

Table of Contents

Problem Statement

Generate a random chess position in FEN format.
The position does not have to be realistic or even balanced,  but it must comply to the following rules:

No requirement is made regarding the probability distribution of your method, but your program should be able to span a reasonably representative sample of all possible positions. For instance, programs that would always generate positions with say five pieces on the board, or with kings on a corner, would not be considered truly random.

Let's start with the solution:

Step by Step solution about How to resolve the algorithm Generate random chess position step by step in the C++ programming language

The provided C++ code generates random chessboard configurations and prints them in two different formats: a traditional chess notation and a visual representation of the board.

Here's a detailed explanation of the code:

  1. Class chessBoard: This class encapsulates the logic for generating random chessboards and printing them.

    • generateRNDBoard(int brds): This method takes the number of boards to generate (brds) as an argument and creates that many random chessboards.
    • print(): This method prints a chessboard in two formats: traditional chess notation and a visual representation.
    • search(char c, int a, int b): This is a helper method used to check if there is a piece of type 'c' near the position specified by (a, b).
    • brd[8][8] is a 2D array representing the chessboard. Each element initially contains 0, indicating an empty square.
  2. Main Function (main):

    • It seeds the random number generator with the current time.
    • It creates an instance of the chessBoard class named c.
    • It calls the generateRNDBoard method of the c instance, passing 2 as the argument to generate two random chessboards.
  3. Random Chessboard Generation (generateRNDBoard):

    • It iterates through the specified number of boards (brds).
    • For each board, it clears the brd array to start with an empty board.
    • It creates a string pieces containing all the chess pieces (uppercase for white, lowercase for black).
    • It shuffles the pieces string to randomize the order of the pieces.
    • It then iterates through the shuffled pieces and places them randomly on the board.
      • It generates random coordinates (a, b) for each piece.
      • It checks if the square at (a, b) is empty (brd[a][b] == 0) and if it's a valid move for the piece (e.g., pawns can't start on the first or last rank).
      • If these checks pass, it places the piece on the board and removes it from the pieces string.
    • After placing all the pieces, it prints the board using the print method.
  4. Chessboard Printing (print):

    • It prints the board in traditional chess notation, where empty squares are represented by numbers indicating how many consecutive empty squares there are.
    • It then prints a visual representation of the board, where each piece is represented by its symbol (e.g., 'P' for pawn, 'K' for king) or a period for empty squares.

In short, this code can generate and print random chessboard configurations, providing both a traditional chess notation and a visual representation of the board.

Source code in the cpp programming language

#include <ctime>
#include <iostream>
#include <string>
#include <algorithm>

class chessBoard {
public:
    void generateRNDBoard( int brds ) {
        int a, b, i; char c;
        for( int cc = 0; cc < brds; cc++ ) {
            memset( brd, 0, 64 );
            std::string pieces = "PPPPPPPPNNBBRRQKppppppppnnbbrrqk";
            random_shuffle( pieces.begin(), pieces.end() );

            while( pieces.length() ) {
                i = rand() % pieces.length(); c = pieces.at( i );
                while( true ) {
                    a = rand() % 8; b = rand() % 8;
                    if( brd[a][b] == 0 ) {
                        if( c == 'P' && !b || c == 'p' && b == 7 || 
                          ( ( c == 'K' || c == 'k' ) && search( c == 'k' ? 'K' : 'k', a, b ) ) ) continue;
                        break;
                    }
                }
                brd[a][b] = c;
                pieces = pieces.substr( 0, i ) + pieces.substr( i + 1 );
            }
            print();
        }
    }
private:
    bool search( char c, int a, int b ) {
        for( int y = -1; y < 2; y++ ) {
            for( int x = -1; x < 2; x++ ) {
                if( !x && !y ) continue;
                if( a + x > -1 && a + x < 8 && b + y >-1 && b + y < 8 ) {
                    if( brd[a + x][b + y] == c ) return true;
                }
            }
        }
        return false;
    }
    void print() {
        int e = 0;
        for( int y = 0; y < 8; y++ ) {
            for( int x = 0; x < 8; x++ ) {
                if( brd[x][y] == 0 ) e++;
                else {
                    if( e > 0 ) { std::cout << e; e = 0; }
                    std::cout << brd[x][y];
                }
            }
            if( e > 0 ) { std::cout << e; e = 0; } 
            if( y < 7 ) std::cout << "/";
        }
        std::cout << " w - - 0 1\n\n";

        for( int y = 0; y < 8; y++ ) {
            for( int x = 0; x < 8; x++ ) {
                if( brd[x][y] == 0 ) std::cout << ".";
                else std::cout << brd[x][y];
            }
            std::cout << "\n";
        }

        std::cout << "\n\n";
    }
    char brd[8][8];
};
int main( int argc, char* argv[] ) {
    srand( ( unsigned )time( 0 ) );
    chessBoard c;
    c.generateRNDBoard( 2 );
    return 0;
}


  

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