PHP ActiveX Requires Chilkat v11.7.0+

Fill a PDF Template: Replace {{placeholders}} with Values

See more PDF Text Replacement Examples

Demonstrates the TextReplace method on an invoice template whose values are written as placeholders such as {{customer}} and {{total}}. The "placeholders" object names each placeholder and the text to put in; every occurrence on the page is replaced, including a placeholder inside a sentence or inside a label such as "Tax ({{taxRate}}):". The text is redrawn with the font the template used, so the result looks like the template, and a value that is right-aligned in the template stays right-aligned. The changes are written by WriteFile. PHP ActiveX

<?php

$success = 0;

//  This example requires the Chilkat API to have been previously unlocked.
//  See Global Unlock Sample for sample code.

//  The PDF used in this example is available at invoice_template.pdf

$pdf = new COM("Chilkat.Pdf");
$success = $pdf->LoadFile('qa_data/pdf/invoice_template.pdf');
if ($success == 0) {
    print $pdf->LastErrorText . "\n";
    exit;
}

//  The template has these placeholders in its page text:
//    {{customer}} (twice: "Bill To:" and the closing sentence), {{date}}, {{po}},
//    two item rows: {{qty1}} {{desc1}} {{price1}} {{amount1}} and {{qty2}} {{desc2}} {{price2}} {{amount2}},
//    {{subtotal}}, "Tax ({{taxRate}}):" with {{tax}}, and {{total}}.
$json = new COM("Chilkat.JsonObject");
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.customer','Acme Corp');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.date','2026-10-18');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.po','PO-88213');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.qty1','2');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.desc1','Cordless drill, 18 V');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.price1','$460.00');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.amount1','$920.00');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.qty2','6');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.desc2','Galvanized hinge, 4 inch');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.price2','$12.50');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.amount2','$75.00');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.subtotal','$995.00');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.taxRate','7.35%');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.tax','$73.13');
$json->UpdateString('placeholders.total','$1,068.13');

//  "apply" makes every replacement, or none: if any value cannot be drawn with the
//  template's font, the method returns false, the PDF is unchanged, and jsonOut says why.
$jsonOut = new COM("Chilkat.JsonObject");
$success = $pdf->TextReplace('apply',$json,$jsonOut);
if ($success == 0) {
    print 'Not applied: ' . $jsonOut->emit() . "\n";
    if ($success == 0) {
        print $pdf->LastErrorText . "\n";
        exit;
    }

}

//  One entry per placeholder: the pages it was found on and how many times it was replaced.
$i = 0;
$count_i = $jsonOut->SizeOfArray('replacements');
while ($i < $count_i) {
    $jsonOut->I = $i;
    print $jsonOut->stringOf('replacements[i].field') . ': ' . $jsonOut->IntOf('replacements[i].count') . ' on page(s) ' . $jsonOut->stringOf('replacements[i].pages') . "\n";
    $i = $i + 1;
}

//  The replacements stay in memory until the PDF is written.
$success = $pdf->WriteFile('qa_output/invoice_filled.pdf');
if ($success == 0) {
    print $pdf->LastErrorText . "\n";
    exit;
}

print 'Wrote qa_output/invoice_filled.pdf' . "\n";

//  Sample output:

//  customer: 2 on page(s) 1
//  date: 1 on page(s) 1
//  po: 1 on page(s) 1
//  qty1: 1 on page(s) 1
//  desc1: 1 on page(s) 1
//  price1: 1 on page(s) 1
//  amount1: 1 on page(s) 1
//  qty2: 1 on page(s) 1
//  desc2: 1 on page(s) 1
//  price2: 1 on page(s) 1
//  amount2: 1 on page(s) 1
//  subtotal: 1 on page(s) 1
//  taxRate: 1 on page(s) 1
//  tax: 1 on page(s) 1
//  total: 1 on page(s) 1
//  Wrote qa_output/invoice_filled.pdf

?>