numpy 2.4.1__pp311-pypy311_pp73-macosx_14_0_arm64.whl

numpy/lib/recfunctions.py

@@ -0,0 +1,1681 @@
+"""
+Collection of utilities to manipulate structured arrays.
+
+Most of these functions were initially implemented by John Hunter for
+matplotlib.  They have been rewritten and extended for convenience.
+
+"""
+import itertools
+
+import numpy as np
+import numpy.ma as ma
+import numpy.ma.mrecords as mrec
+from numpy._core.overrides import array_function_dispatch
+from numpy.lib._iotools import _is_string_like
+
+__all__ = [
+    'append_fields', 'apply_along_fields', 'assign_fields_by_name',
+    'drop_fields', 'find_duplicates', 'flatten_descr',
+    'get_fieldstructure', 'get_names', 'get_names_flat',
+    'join_by', 'merge_arrays', 'rec_append_fields',
+    'rec_drop_fields', 'rec_join', 'recursive_fill_fields',
+    'rename_fields', 'repack_fields', 'require_fields',
+    'stack_arrays', 'structured_to_unstructured', 'unstructured_to_structured',
+    ]
+
+
+def _recursive_fill_fields_dispatcher(input, output):
+    return (input, output)
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_recursive_fill_fields_dispatcher)
+def recursive_fill_fields(input, output):
+    """
+    Fills fields from output with fields from input,
+    with support for nested structures.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    input : ndarray
+        Input array.
+    output : ndarray
+        Output array.
+
+    Notes
+    -----
+    * `output` should be at least the same size as `input`
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> a = np.array([(1, 10.), (2, 20.)], dtype=[('A', np.int64), ('B', np.float64)])
+    >>> b = np.zeros((3,), dtype=a.dtype)
+    >>> rfn.recursive_fill_fields(a, b)
+    array([(1, 10.), (2, 20.), (0,  0.)], dtype=[('A', '<i8'), ('B', '<f8')])
+
+    """
+    newdtype = output.dtype
+    for field in newdtype.names:
+        try:
+            current = input[field]
+        except ValueError:
+            continue
+        if current.dtype.names is not None:
+            recursive_fill_fields(current, output[field])
+        else:
+            output[field][:len(current)] = current
+    return output
+
+
+def _get_fieldspec(dtype):
+    """
+    Produce a list of name/dtype pairs corresponding to the dtype fields
+
+    Similar to dtype.descr, but the second item of each tuple is a dtype, not a
+    string. As a result, this handles subarray dtypes
+
+    Can be passed to the dtype constructor to reconstruct the dtype, noting that
+    this (deliberately) discards field offsets.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> dt = np.dtype([(('a', 'A'), np.int64), ('b', np.double, 3)])
+    >>> dt.descr
+    [(('a', 'A'), '<i8'), ('b', '<f8', (3,))]
+    >>> _get_fieldspec(dt)
+    [(('a', 'A'), dtype('int64')), ('b', dtype(('<f8', (3,))))]
+
+    """
+    if dtype.names is None:
+        # .descr returns a nameless field, so we should too
+        return [('', dtype)]
+    else:
+        fields = ((name, dtype.fields[name]) for name in dtype.names)
+        # keep any titles, if present
+        return [
+            (name if len(f) == 2 else (f[2], name), f[0])
+            for name, f in fields
+        ]
+
+
+def get_names(adtype):
+    """
+    Returns the field names of the input datatype as a tuple. Input datatype
+    must have fields otherwise error is raised.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    adtype : dtype
+        Input datatype
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> rfn.get_names(np.empty((1,), dtype=[('A', int)]).dtype)
+    ('A',)
+    >>> rfn.get_names(np.empty((1,), dtype=[('A',int), ('B', float)]).dtype)
+    ('A', 'B')
+    >>> adtype = np.dtype([('a', int), ('b', [('ba', int), ('bb', int)])])
+    >>> rfn.get_names(adtype)
+    ('a', ('b', ('ba', 'bb')))
+    """
+    listnames = []
+    names = adtype.names
+    for name in names:
+        current = adtype[name]
+        if current.names is not None:
+            listnames.append((name, tuple(get_names(current))))
+        else:
+            listnames.append(name)
+    return tuple(listnames)
+
+
+def get_names_flat(adtype):
+    """
+    Returns the field names of the input datatype as a tuple. Input datatype
+    must have fields otherwise error is raised.
+    Nested structure are flattened beforehand.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    adtype : dtype
+        Input datatype
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> rfn.get_names_flat(np.empty((1,), dtype=[('A', int)]).dtype) is None
+    False
+    >>> rfn.get_names_flat(np.empty((1,), dtype=[('A',int), ('B', str)]).dtype)
+    ('A', 'B')
+    >>> adtype = np.dtype([('a', int), ('b', [('ba', int), ('bb', int)])])
+    >>> rfn.get_names_flat(adtype)
+    ('a', 'b', 'ba', 'bb')
+    """
+    listnames = []
+    names = adtype.names
+    for name in names:
+        listnames.append(name)
+        current = adtype[name]
+        if current.names is not None:
+            listnames.extend(get_names_flat(current))
+    return tuple(listnames)
+
+
+def flatten_descr(ndtype):
+    """
+    Flatten a structured data-type description.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> ndtype = np.dtype([('a', '<i4'), ('b', [('ba', '<f8'), ('bb', '<i4')])])
+    >>> rfn.flatten_descr(ndtype)
+    (('a', dtype('int32')), ('ba', dtype('float64')), ('bb', dtype('int32')))
+
+    """
+    names = ndtype.names
+    if names is None:
+        return (('', ndtype),)
+    else:
+        descr = []
+        for field in names:
+            (typ, _) = ndtype.fields[field]
+            if typ.names is not None:
+                descr.extend(flatten_descr(typ))
+            else:
+                descr.append((field, typ))
+        return tuple(descr)
+
+
+def _zip_dtype(seqarrays, flatten=False):
+    newdtype = []
+    if flatten:
+        for a in seqarrays:
+            newdtype.extend(flatten_descr(a.dtype))
+    else:
+        for a in seqarrays:
+            current = a.dtype
+            if current.names is not None and len(current.names) == 1:
+                # special case - dtypes of 1 field are flattened
+                newdtype.extend(_get_fieldspec(current))
+            else:
+                newdtype.append(('', current))
+    return np.dtype(newdtype)
+
+
+def _zip_descr(seqarrays, flatten=False):
+    """
+    Combine the dtype description of a series of arrays.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    seqarrays : sequence of arrays
+        Sequence of arrays
+    flatten : {boolean}, optional
+        Whether to collapse nested descriptions.
+    """
+    return _zip_dtype(seqarrays, flatten=flatten).descr
+
+
+def get_fieldstructure(adtype, lastname=None, parents=None,):
+    """
+    Returns a dictionary with fields indexing lists of their parent fields.
+
+    This function is used to simplify access to fields nested in other fields.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    adtype : np.dtype
+        Input datatype
+    lastname : optional
+        Last processed field name (used internally during recursion).
+    parents : dictionary
+        Dictionary of parent fields (used internally during recursion).
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> ndtype =  np.dtype([('A', int),
+    ...                     ('B', [('BA', int),
+    ...                            ('BB', [('BBA', int), ('BBB', int)])])])
+    >>> rfn.get_fieldstructure(ndtype)
+    ... # XXX: possible regression, order of BBA and BBB is swapped
+    {'A': [], 'B': [], 'BA': ['B'], 'BB': ['B'], 'BBA': ['B', 'BB'], 'BBB': ['B', 'BB']}
+
+    """
+    if parents is None:
+        parents = {}
+    names = adtype.names
+    for name in names:
+        current = adtype[name]
+        if current.names is not None:
+            if lastname:
+                parents[name] = [lastname, ]
+            else:
+                parents[name] = []
+            parents.update(get_fieldstructure(current, name, parents))
+        else:
+            lastparent = list(parents.get(lastname, []) or [])
+            if lastparent:
+                lastparent.append(lastname)
+            elif lastname:
+                lastparent = [lastname, ]
+            parents[name] = lastparent or []
+    return parents
+
+
+def _izip_fields_flat(iterable):
+    """
+    Returns an iterator of concatenated fields from a sequence of arrays,
+    collapsing any nested structure.
+
+    """
+    for element in iterable:
+        if isinstance(element, np.void):
+            yield from _izip_fields_flat(tuple(element))
+        else:
+            yield element
+
+
+def _izip_fields(iterable):
+    """
+    Returns an iterator of concatenated fields from a sequence of arrays.
+
+    """
+    for element in iterable:
+        if (hasattr(element, '__iter__') and
+                not isinstance(element, str)):
+            yield from _izip_fields(element)
+        elif isinstance(element, np.void) and len(tuple(element)) == 1:
+            # this statement is the same from the previous expression
+            yield from _izip_fields(element)
+        else:
+            yield element
+
+
+def _izip_records(seqarrays, fill_value=None, flatten=True):
+    """
+    Returns an iterator of concatenated items from a sequence of arrays.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    seqarrays : sequence of arrays
+        Sequence of arrays.
+    fill_value : {None, integer}
+        Value used to pad shorter iterables.
+    flatten : {True, False},
+        Whether to
+    """
+
+    # Should we flatten the items, or just use a nested approach
+    if flatten:
+        zipfunc = _izip_fields_flat
+    else:
+        zipfunc = _izip_fields
+
+    for tup in itertools.zip_longest(*seqarrays, fillvalue=fill_value):
+        yield tuple(zipfunc(tup))
+
+
+def _fix_output(output, usemask=True, asrecarray=False):
+    """
+    Private function: return a recarray, a ndarray, a MaskedArray
+    or a MaskedRecords depending on the input parameters
+    """
+    if not isinstance(output, ma.MaskedArray):
+        usemask = False
+    if usemask:
+        if asrecarray:
+            output = output.view(mrec.MaskedRecords)
+    else:
+        output = ma.filled(output)
+        if asrecarray:
+            output = output.view(np.recarray)
+    return output
+
+
+def _fix_defaults(output, defaults=None):
+    """
+    Update the fill_value and masked data of `output`
+    from the default given in a dictionary defaults.
+    """
+    names = output.dtype.names
+    (data, mask, fill_value) = (output.data, output.mask, output.fill_value)
+    for (k, v) in (defaults or {}).items():
+        if k in names:
+            fill_value[k] = v
+            data[k][mask[k]] = v
+    return output
+
+
+def _merge_arrays_dispatcher(seqarrays, fill_value=None, flatten=None,
+                             usemask=None, asrecarray=None):
+    return seqarrays
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_merge_arrays_dispatcher)
+def merge_arrays(seqarrays, fill_value=-1, flatten=False,
+                 usemask=False, asrecarray=False):
+    """
+    Merge arrays field by field.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    seqarrays : sequence of ndarrays
+        Sequence of arrays
+    fill_value : {float}, optional
+        Filling value used to pad missing data on the shorter arrays.
+    flatten : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to collapse nested fields.
+    usemask : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return a masked array or not.
+    asrecarray : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return a recarray (MaskedRecords) or not.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> rfn.merge_arrays((np.array([1, 2]), np.array([10., 20., 30.])))
+    array([( 1, 10.), ( 2, 20.), (-1, 30.)],
+          dtype=[('f0', '<i8'), ('f1', '<f8')])
+
+    >>> rfn.merge_arrays((np.array([1, 2], dtype=np.int64),
+    ...         np.array([10., 20., 30.])), usemask=False)
+     array([(1, 10.0), (2, 20.0), (-1, 30.0)],
+             dtype=[('f0', '<i8'), ('f1', '<f8')])
+    >>> rfn.merge_arrays((np.array([1, 2]).view([('a', np.int64)]),
+    ...               np.array([10., 20., 30.])),
+    ...              usemask=False, asrecarray=True)
+    rec.array([( 1, 10.), ( 2, 20.), (-1, 30.)],
+              dtype=[('a', '<i8'), ('f1', '<f8')])
+
+    Notes
+    -----
+    * Without a mask, the missing value will be filled with something,
+      depending on what its corresponding type:
+
+      * ``-1``      for integers
+      * ``-1.0``    for floating point numbers
+      * ``'-'``     for characters
+      * ``'-1'``    for strings
+      * ``True``    for boolean values
+    * XXX: I just obtained these values empirically
+    """
+    # Only one item in the input sequence ?
+    if (len(seqarrays) == 1):
+        seqarrays = np.asanyarray(seqarrays[0])
+    # Do we have a single ndarray as input ?
+    if isinstance(seqarrays, (np.ndarray, np.void)):
+        seqdtype = seqarrays.dtype
+        # Make sure we have named fields
+        if seqdtype.names is None:
+            seqdtype = np.dtype([('', seqdtype)])
+        if not flatten or _zip_dtype((seqarrays,), flatten=True) == seqdtype:
+            # Minimal processing needed: just make sure everything's a-ok
+            seqarrays = seqarrays.ravel()
+            # Find what type of array we must return
+            if usemask:
+                if asrecarray:
+                    seqtype = mrec.MaskedRecords
+                else:
+                    seqtype = ma.MaskedArray
+            elif asrecarray:
+                seqtype = np.recarray
+            else:
+                seqtype = np.ndarray
+            return seqarrays.view(dtype=seqdtype, type=seqtype)
+        else:
+            seqarrays = (seqarrays,)
+    else:
+        # Make sure we have arrays in the input sequence
+        seqarrays = [np.asanyarray(_m) for _m in seqarrays]
+    # Find the sizes of the inputs and their maximum
+    sizes = tuple(a.size for a in seqarrays)
+    maxlength = max(sizes)
+    # Get the dtype of the output (flattening if needed)
+    newdtype = _zip_dtype(seqarrays, flatten=flatten)
+    # Initialize the sequences for data and mask
+    seqdata = []
+    seqmask = []
+    # If we expect some kind of MaskedArray, make a special loop.
+    if usemask:
+        for (a, n) in zip(seqarrays, sizes):
+            nbmissing = (maxlength - n)
+            # Get the data and mask
+            data = a.ravel().__array__()
+            mask = ma.getmaskarray(a).ravel()
+            # Get the filling value (if needed)
+            if nbmissing:
+                fval = mrec._check_fill_value(fill_value, a.dtype)
+                if isinstance(fval, (np.ndarray, np.void)):
+                    if len(fval.dtype) == 1:
+                        fval = fval.item()[0]
+                        fmsk = True
+                    else:
+                        fval = np.array(fval, dtype=a.dtype, ndmin=1)
+                        fmsk = np.ones((1,), dtype=mask.dtype)
+            else:
+                fval = None
+                fmsk = True
+            # Store an iterator padding the input to the expected length
+            seqdata.append(itertools.chain(data, [fval] * nbmissing))
+            seqmask.append(itertools.chain(mask, [fmsk] * nbmissing))
+        # Create an iterator for the data
+        data = tuple(_izip_records(seqdata, flatten=flatten))
+        output = ma.array(np.fromiter(data, dtype=newdtype, count=maxlength),
+                          mask=list(_izip_records(seqmask, flatten=flatten)))
+        if asrecarray:
+            output = output.view(mrec.MaskedRecords)
+    else:
+        # Same as before, without the mask we don't need...
+        for (a, n) in zip(seqarrays, sizes):
+            nbmissing = (maxlength - n)
+            data = a.ravel().__array__()
+            if nbmissing:
+                fval = mrec._check_fill_value(fill_value, a.dtype)
+                if isinstance(fval, (np.ndarray, np.void)):
+                    if len(fval.dtype) == 1:
+                        fval = fval.item()[0]
+                    else:
+                        fval = np.array(fval, dtype=a.dtype, ndmin=1)
+            else:
+                fval = None
+            seqdata.append(itertools.chain(data, [fval] * nbmissing))
+        output = np.fromiter(tuple(_izip_records(seqdata, flatten=flatten)),
+                             dtype=newdtype, count=maxlength)
+        if asrecarray:
+            output = output.view(np.recarray)
+    # And we're done...
+    return output
+
+
+def _drop_fields_dispatcher(base, drop_names, usemask=None, asrecarray=None):
+    return (base,)
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_drop_fields_dispatcher)
+def drop_fields(base, drop_names, usemask=True, asrecarray=False):
+    """
+    Return a new array with fields in `drop_names` dropped.
+
+    Nested fields are supported.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    base : array
+        Input array
+    drop_names : string or sequence
+        String or sequence of strings corresponding to the names of the
+        fields to drop.
+    usemask : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return a masked array or not.
+    asrecarray : string or sequence, optional
+        Whether to return a recarray or a mrecarray (`asrecarray=True`) or
+        a plain ndarray or masked array with flexible dtype. The default
+        is False.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> a = np.array([(1, (2, 3.0)), (4, (5, 6.0))],
+    ...   dtype=[('a', np.int64), ('b', [('ba', np.double), ('bb', np.int64)])])
+    >>> rfn.drop_fields(a, 'a')
+    array([((2., 3),), ((5., 6),)],
+          dtype=[('b', [('ba', '<f8'), ('bb', '<i8')])])
+    >>> rfn.drop_fields(a, 'ba')
+    array([(1, (3,)), (4, (6,))], dtype=[('a', '<i8'), ('b', [('bb', '<i8')])])
+    >>> rfn.drop_fields(a, ['ba', 'bb'])
+    array([(1,), (4,)], dtype=[('a', '<i8')])
+    """
+    if _is_string_like(drop_names):
+        drop_names = [drop_names]
+    else:
+        drop_names = set(drop_names)
+
+    def _drop_descr(ndtype, drop_names):
+        names = ndtype.names
+        newdtype = []
+        for name in names:
+            current = ndtype[name]
+            if name in drop_names:
+                continue
+            if current.names is not None:
+                descr = _drop_descr(current, drop_names)
+                if descr:
+                    newdtype.append((name, descr))
+            else:
+                newdtype.append((name, current))
+        return newdtype
+
+    newdtype = _drop_descr(base.dtype, drop_names)
+
+    output = np.empty(base.shape, dtype=newdtype)
+    output = recursive_fill_fields(base, output)
+    return _fix_output(output, usemask=usemask, asrecarray=asrecarray)
+
+
+def _keep_fields(base, keep_names, usemask=True, asrecarray=False):
+    """
+    Return a new array keeping only the fields in `keep_names`,
+    and preserving the order of those fields.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    base : array
+        Input array
+    keep_names : string or sequence
+        String or sequence of strings corresponding to the names of the
+        fields to keep. Order of the names will be preserved.
+    usemask : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return a masked array or not.
+    asrecarray : string or sequence, optional
+        Whether to return a recarray or a mrecarray (`asrecarray=True`) or
+        a plain ndarray or masked array with flexible dtype. The default
+        is False.
+    """
+    newdtype = [(n, base.dtype[n]) for n in keep_names]
+    output = np.empty(base.shape, dtype=newdtype)
+    output = recursive_fill_fields(base, output)
+    return _fix_output(output, usemask=usemask, asrecarray=asrecarray)
+
+
+def _rec_drop_fields_dispatcher(base, drop_names):
+    return (base,)
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_rec_drop_fields_dispatcher)
+def rec_drop_fields(base, drop_names):
+    """
+    Returns a new numpy.recarray with fields in `drop_names` dropped.
+    """
+    return drop_fields(base, drop_names, usemask=False, asrecarray=True)
+
+
+def _rename_fields_dispatcher(base, namemapper):
+    return (base,)
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_rename_fields_dispatcher)
+def rename_fields(base, namemapper):
+    """
+    Rename the fields from a flexible-datatype ndarray or recarray.
+
+    Nested fields are supported.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    base : ndarray
+        Input array whose fields must be modified.
+    namemapper : dictionary
+        Dictionary mapping old field names to their new version.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> a = np.array([(1, (2, [3.0, 30.])), (4, (5, [6.0, 60.]))],
+    ...   dtype=[('a', int),('b', [('ba', float), ('bb', (float, 2))])])
+    >>> rfn.rename_fields(a, {'a':'A', 'bb':'BB'})
+    array([(1, (2., [ 3., 30.])), (4, (5., [ 6., 60.]))],
+          dtype=[('A', '<i8'), ('b', [('ba', '<f8'), ('BB', '<f8', (2,))])])
+
+    """
+    def _recursive_rename_fields(ndtype, namemapper):
+        newdtype = []
+        for name in ndtype.names:
+            newname = namemapper.get(name, name)
+            current = ndtype[name]
+            if current.names is not None:
+                newdtype.append(
+                    (newname, _recursive_rename_fields(current, namemapper))
+                    )
+            else:
+                newdtype.append((newname, current))
+        return newdtype
+    newdtype = _recursive_rename_fields(base.dtype, namemapper)
+    return base.view(newdtype)
+
+
+def _append_fields_dispatcher(base, names, data, dtypes=None,
+                              fill_value=None, usemask=None, asrecarray=None):
+    yield base
+    yield from data
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_append_fields_dispatcher)
+def append_fields(base, names, data, dtypes=None,
+                  fill_value=-1, usemask=True, asrecarray=False):
+    """
+    Add new fields to an existing array.
+
+    The names of the fields are given with the `names` arguments,
+    the corresponding values with the `data` arguments.
+    If a single field is appended, `names`, `data` and `dtypes` do not have
+    to be lists but just values.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    base : array
+        Input array to extend.
+    names : string, sequence
+        String or sequence of strings corresponding to the names
+        of the new fields.
+    data : array or sequence of arrays
+        Array or sequence of arrays storing the fields to add to the base.
+    dtypes : sequence of datatypes, optional
+        Datatype or sequence of datatypes.
+        If None, the datatypes are estimated from the `data`.
+    fill_value : {float}, optional
+        Filling value used to pad missing data on the shorter arrays.
+    usemask : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return a masked array or not.
+    asrecarray : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return a recarray (MaskedRecords) or not.
+
+    """
+    # Check the names
+    if isinstance(names, (tuple, list)):
+        if len(names) != len(data):
+            msg = "The number of arrays does not match the number of names"
+            raise ValueError(msg)
+    elif isinstance(names, str):
+        names = [names, ]
+        data = [data, ]
+    #
+    if dtypes is None:
+        data = [np.array(a, copy=None, subok=True) for a in data]
+        data = [a.view([(name, a.dtype)]) for (name, a) in zip(names, data)]
+    else:
+        if not isinstance(dtypes, (tuple, list)):
+            dtypes = [dtypes, ]
+        if len(data) != len(dtypes):
+            if len(dtypes) == 1:
+                dtypes = dtypes * len(data)
+            else:
+                msg = "The dtypes argument must be None, a dtype, or a list."
+                raise ValueError(msg)
+        data = [np.array(a, copy=None, subok=True, dtype=d).view([(n, d)])
+                for (a, n, d) in zip(data, names, dtypes)]
+    #
+    base = merge_arrays(base, usemask=usemask, fill_value=fill_value)
+    if len(data) > 1:
+        data = merge_arrays(data, flatten=True, usemask=usemask,
+                            fill_value=fill_value)
+    else:
+        data = data.pop()
+    #
+    output = ma.masked_all(
+        max(len(base), len(data)),
+        dtype=_get_fieldspec(base.dtype) + _get_fieldspec(data.dtype))
+    output = recursive_fill_fields(base, output)
+    output = recursive_fill_fields(data, output)
+    #
+    return _fix_output(output, usemask=usemask, asrecarray=asrecarray)
+
+
+def _rec_append_fields_dispatcher(base, names, data, dtypes=None):
+    yield base
+    yield from data
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_rec_append_fields_dispatcher)
+def rec_append_fields(base, names, data, dtypes=None):
+    """
+    Add new fields to an existing array.
+
+    The names of the fields are given with the `names` arguments,
+    the corresponding values with the `data` arguments.
+    If a single field is appended, `names`, `data` and `dtypes` do not have
+    to be lists but just values.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    base : array
+        Input array to extend.
+    names : string, sequence
+        String or sequence of strings corresponding to the names
+        of the new fields.
+    data : array or sequence of arrays
+        Array or sequence of arrays storing the fields to add to the base.
+    dtypes : sequence of datatypes, optional
+        Datatype or sequence of datatypes.
+        If None, the datatypes are estimated from the `data`.
+
+    See Also
+    --------
+    append_fields
+
+    Returns
+    -------
+    appended_array : np.recarray
+    """
+    return append_fields(base, names, data=data, dtypes=dtypes,
+                         asrecarray=True, usemask=False)
+
+
+def _repack_fields_dispatcher(a, align=None, recurse=None):
+    return (a,)
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_repack_fields_dispatcher)
+def repack_fields(a, align=False, recurse=False):
+    """
+    Re-pack the fields of a structured array or dtype in memory.
+
+    The memory layout of structured datatypes allows fields at arbitrary
+    byte offsets. This means the fields can be separated by padding bytes,
+    their offsets can be non-monotonically increasing, and they can overlap.
+
+    This method removes any overlaps and reorders the fields in memory so they
+    have increasing byte offsets, and adds or removes padding bytes depending
+    on the `align` option, which behaves like the `align` option to
+    `numpy.dtype`.
+
+    If `align=False`, this method produces a "packed" memory layout in which
+    each field starts at the byte the previous field ended, and any padding
+    bytes are removed.
+
+    If `align=True`, this methods produces an "aligned" memory layout in which
+    each field's offset is a multiple of its alignment, and the total itemsize
+    is a multiple of the largest alignment, by adding padding bytes as needed.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    a : ndarray or dtype
+       array or dtype for which to repack the fields.
+    align : boolean
+       If true, use an "aligned" memory layout, otherwise use a "packed" layout.
+    recurse : boolean
+       If True, also repack nested structures.
+
+    Returns
+    -------
+    repacked : ndarray or dtype
+       Copy of `a` with fields repacked, or `a` itself if no repacking was
+       needed.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> def print_offsets(d):
+    ...     print("offsets:", [d.fields[name][1] for name in d.names])
+    ...     print("itemsize:", d.itemsize)
+    ...
+    >>> dt = np.dtype('u1, <i8, <f8', align=True)
+    >>> dt
+    dtype({'names': ['f0', 'f1', 'f2'], 'formats': ['u1', '<i8', '<f8'], \
+'offsets': [0, 8, 16], 'itemsize': 24}, align=True)
+    >>> print_offsets(dt)
+    offsets: [0, 8, 16]
+    itemsize: 24
+    >>> packed_dt = rfn.repack_fields(dt)
+    >>> packed_dt
+    dtype([('f0', 'u1'), ('f1', '<i8'), ('f2', '<f8')])
+    >>> print_offsets(packed_dt)
+    offsets: [0, 1, 9]
+    itemsize: 17
+
+    """
+    if not isinstance(a, np.dtype):
+        dt = repack_fields(a.dtype, align=align, recurse=recurse)
+        return a.astype(dt, copy=False)
+
+    if a.names is None:
+        return a
+
+    fieldinfo = []
+    for name in a.names:
+        tup = a.fields[name]
+        if recurse:
+            fmt = repack_fields(tup[0], align=align, recurse=True)
+        else:
+            fmt = tup[0]
+
+        if len(tup) == 3:
+            name = (tup[2], name)
+
+        fieldinfo.append((name, fmt))
+
+    dt = np.dtype(fieldinfo, align=align)
+    return np.dtype((a.type, dt))
+
+def _get_fields_and_offsets(dt, offset=0):
+    """
+    Returns a flat list of (dtype, count, offset) tuples of all the
+    scalar fields in the dtype "dt", including nested fields, in left
+    to right order.
+    """
+
+    # counts up elements in subarrays, including nested subarrays, and returns
+    # base dtype and count
+    def count_elem(dt):
+        count = 1
+        while dt.shape != ():
+            for size in dt.shape:
+                count *= size
+            dt = dt.base
+        return dt, count
+
+    fields = []
+    for name in dt.names:
+        field = dt.fields[name]
+        f_dt, f_offset = field[0], field[1]
+        f_dt, n = count_elem(f_dt)
+
+        if f_dt.names is None:
+            fields.append((np.dtype((f_dt, (n,))), n, f_offset + offset))
+        else:
+            subfields = _get_fields_and_offsets(f_dt, f_offset + offset)
+            size = f_dt.itemsize
+
+            for i in range(n):
+                if i == 0:
+                    # optimization: avoid list comprehension if no subarray
+                    fields.extend(subfields)
+                else:
+                    fields.extend([(d, c, o + i * size) for d, c, o in subfields])
+    return fields
+
+def _common_stride(offsets, counts, itemsize):
+    """
+    Returns the stride between the fields, or None if the stride is not
+    constant. The values in "counts" designate the lengths of
+    subarrays. Subarrays are treated as many contiguous fields, with
+    always positive stride.
+    """
+    if len(offsets) <= 1:
+        return itemsize
+
+    negative = offsets[1] < offsets[0]  # negative stride
+    if negative:
+        # reverse, so offsets will be ascending
+        it = zip(reversed(offsets), reversed(counts))
+    else:
+        it = zip(offsets, counts)
+
+    prev_offset = None
+    stride = None
+    for offset, count in it:
+        if count != 1:  # subarray: always c-contiguous
+            if negative:
+                return None  # subarrays can never have a negative stride
+            if stride is None:
+                stride = itemsize
+            if stride != itemsize:
+                return None
+            end_offset = offset + (count - 1) * itemsize
+        else:
+            end_offset = offset
+
+        if prev_offset is not None:
+            new_stride = offset - prev_offset
+            if stride is None:
+                stride = new_stride
+            if stride != new_stride:
+                return None
+
+        prev_offset = end_offset
+
+    if negative:
+        return -stride
+    return stride
+
+
+def _structured_to_unstructured_dispatcher(arr, dtype=None, copy=None,
+                                           casting=None):
+    return (arr,)
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_structured_to_unstructured_dispatcher)
+def structured_to_unstructured(arr, dtype=None, copy=False, casting='unsafe'):
+    """
+    Converts an n-D structured array into an (n+1)-D unstructured array.
+
+    The new array will have a new last dimension equal in size to the
+    number of field-elements of the input array. If not supplied, the output
+    datatype is determined from the numpy type promotion rules applied to all
+    the field datatypes.
+
+    Nested fields, as well as each element of any subarray fields, all count
+    as a single field-elements.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    arr : ndarray
+       Structured array or dtype to convert. Cannot contain object datatype.
+    dtype : dtype, optional
+       The dtype of the output unstructured array.
+    copy : bool, optional
+        If true, always return a copy. If false, a view is returned if
+        possible, such as when the `dtype` and strides of the fields are
+        suitable and the array subtype is one of `numpy.ndarray`,
+        `numpy.recarray` or `numpy.memmap`.
+
+        .. versionchanged:: 1.25.0
+            A view can now be returned if the fields are separated by a
+            uniform stride.
+
+    casting : {'no', 'equiv', 'safe', 'same_kind', 'unsafe'}, optional
+        See casting argument of `numpy.ndarray.astype`. Controls what kind of
+        data casting may occur.
+
+    Returns
+    -------
+    unstructured : ndarray
+       Unstructured array with one more dimension.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> a = np.zeros(4, dtype=[('a', 'i4'), ('b', 'f4,u2'), ('c', 'f4', 2)])
+    >>> a
+    array([(0, (0., 0), [0., 0.]), (0, (0., 0), [0., 0.]),
+           (0, (0., 0), [0., 0.]), (0, (0., 0), [0., 0.])],
+          dtype=[('a', '<i4'), ('b', [('f0', '<f4'), ('f1', '<u2')]), ('c', '<f4', (2,))])
+    >>> rfn.structured_to_unstructured(a)
+    array([[0., 0., 0., 0., 0.],
+           [0., 0., 0., 0., 0.],
+           [0., 0., 0., 0., 0.],
+           [0., 0., 0., 0., 0.]])
+
+    >>> b = np.array([(1, 2, 5), (4, 5, 7), (7, 8 ,11), (10, 11, 12)],
+    ...              dtype=[('x', 'i4'), ('y', 'f4'), ('z', 'f8')])
+    >>> np.mean(rfn.structured_to_unstructured(b[['x', 'z']]), axis=-1)
+    array([ 3. ,  5.5,  9. , 11. ])
+
+    """  # noqa: E501
+    if arr.dtype.names is None:
+        raise ValueError('arr must be a structured array')
+
+    fields = _get_fields_and_offsets(arr.dtype)
+    n_fields = len(fields)
+    if n_fields == 0 and dtype is None:
+        raise ValueError("arr has no fields. Unable to guess dtype")
+    elif n_fields == 0:
+        # too many bugs elsewhere for this to work now
+        raise NotImplementedError("arr with no fields is not supported")
+
+    dts, counts, offsets = zip(*fields)
+    names = [f'f{n}' for n in range(n_fields)]
+
+    if dtype is None:
+        out_dtype = np.result_type(*[dt.base for dt in dts])
+    else:
+        out_dtype = np.dtype(dtype)
+
+    # Use a series of views and casts to convert to an unstructured array:
+
+    # first view using flattened fields (doesn't work for object arrays)
+    # Note: dts may include a shape for subarrays
+    flattened_fields = np.dtype({'names': names,
+                                 'formats': dts,
+                                 'offsets': offsets,
+                                 'itemsize': arr.dtype.itemsize})
+    arr = arr.view(flattened_fields)
+
+    # we only allow a few types to be unstructured by manipulating the
+    # strides, because we know it won't work with, for example, np.matrix nor
+    # np.ma.MaskedArray.
+    can_view = type(arr) in (np.ndarray, np.recarray, np.memmap)
+    if (not copy) and can_view and all(dt.base == out_dtype for dt in dts):
+        # all elements have the right dtype already; if they have a common
+        # stride, we can just return a view
+        common_stride = _common_stride(offsets, counts, out_dtype.itemsize)
+        if common_stride is not None:
+            wrap = arr.__array_wrap__
+
+            new_shape = arr.shape + (sum(counts), out_dtype.itemsize)
+            new_strides = arr.strides + (abs(common_stride), 1)
+
+            arr = arr[..., np.newaxis].view(np.uint8)  # view as bytes
+            arr = arr[..., min(offsets):]  # remove the leading unused data
+            arr = np.lib.stride_tricks.as_strided(arr,
+                                                  new_shape,
+                                                  new_strides,
+                                                  subok=True)
+
+            # cast and drop the last dimension again
+            arr = arr.view(out_dtype)[..., 0]
+
+            if common_stride < 0:
+                arr = arr[..., ::-1]  # reverse, if the stride was negative
+            if type(arr) is not type(wrap.__self__):
+                # Some types (e.g. recarray) turn into an ndarray along the
+                # way, so we have to wrap it again in order to match the
+                # behavior with copy=True.
+                arr = wrap(arr)
+            return arr
+
+    # next cast to a packed format with all fields converted to new dtype
+    packed_fields = np.dtype({'names': names,
+                              'formats': [(out_dtype, dt.shape) for dt in dts]})
+    arr = arr.astype(packed_fields, copy=copy, casting=casting)
+
+    # finally is it safe to view the packed fields as the unstructured type
+    return arr.view((out_dtype, (sum(counts),)))
+
+
+def _unstructured_to_structured_dispatcher(arr, dtype=None, names=None,
+                                           align=None, copy=None, casting=None):
+    return (arr,)
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_unstructured_to_structured_dispatcher)
+def unstructured_to_structured(arr, dtype=None, names=None, align=False,
+                               copy=False, casting='unsafe'):
+    """
+    Converts an n-D unstructured array into an (n-1)-D structured array.
+
+    The last dimension of the input array is converted into a structure, with
+    number of field-elements equal to the size of the last dimension of the
+    input array. By default all output fields have the input array's dtype, but
+    an output structured dtype with an equal number of fields-elements can be
+    supplied instead.
+
+    Nested fields, as well as each element of any subarray fields, all count
+    towards the number of field-elements.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    arr : ndarray
+       Unstructured array or dtype to convert.
+    dtype : dtype, optional
+       The structured dtype of the output array
+    names : list of strings, optional
+       If dtype is not supplied, this specifies the field names for the output
+       dtype, in order. The field dtypes will be the same as the input array.
+    align : boolean, optional
+       Whether to create an aligned memory layout.
+    copy : bool, optional
+        See copy argument to `numpy.ndarray.astype`. If true, always return a
+        copy. If false, and `dtype` requirements are satisfied, a view is
+        returned.
+    casting : {'no', 'equiv', 'safe', 'same_kind', 'unsafe'}, optional
+        See casting argument of `numpy.ndarray.astype`. Controls what kind of
+        data casting may occur.
+
+    Returns
+    -------
+    structured : ndarray
+       Structured array with fewer dimensions.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> dt = np.dtype([('a', 'i4'), ('b', 'f4,u2'), ('c', 'f4', 2)])
+    >>> a = np.arange(20).reshape((4,5))
+    >>> a
+    array([[ 0,  1,  2,  3,  4],
+           [ 5,  6,  7,  8,  9],
+           [10, 11, 12, 13, 14],
+           [15, 16, 17, 18, 19]])
+    >>> rfn.unstructured_to_structured(a, dt)
+    array([( 0, ( 1.,  2), [ 3.,  4.]), ( 5, ( 6.,  7), [ 8.,  9.]),
+           (10, (11., 12), [13., 14.]), (15, (16., 17), [18., 19.])],
+          dtype=[('a', '<i4'), ('b', [('f0', '<f4'), ('f1', '<u2')]), ('c', '<f4', (2,))])
+
+    """  # noqa: E501
+    if arr.shape == ():
+        raise ValueError('arr must have at least one dimension')
+    n_elem = arr.shape[-1]
+    if n_elem == 0:
+        # too many bugs elsewhere for this to work now
+        raise NotImplementedError("last axis with size 0 is not supported")
+
+    if dtype is None:
+        if names is None:
+            names = [f'f{n}' for n in range(n_elem)]
+        out_dtype = np.dtype([(n, arr.dtype) for n in names], align=align)
+        fields = _get_fields_and_offsets(out_dtype)
+        dts, counts, offsets = zip(*fields)
+    else:
+        if names is not None:
+            raise ValueError("don't supply both dtype and names")
+        # if dtype is the args of np.dtype, construct it
+        dtype = np.dtype(dtype)
+        # sanity check of the input dtype
+        fields = _get_fields_and_offsets(dtype)
+        if len(fields) == 0:
+            dts, counts, offsets = [], [], []
+        else:
+            dts, counts, offsets = zip(*fields)
+
+        if n_elem != sum(counts):
+            raise ValueError('The length of the last dimension of arr must '
+                             'be equal to the number of fields in dtype')
+        out_dtype = dtype
+        if align and not out_dtype.isalignedstruct:
+            raise ValueError("align was True but dtype is not aligned")
+
+    names = [f'f{n}' for n in range(len(fields))]
+
+    # Use a series of views and casts to convert to a structured array:
+
+    # first view as a packed structured array of one dtype
+    packed_fields = np.dtype({'names': names,
+                              'formats': [(arr.dtype, dt.shape) for dt in dts]})
+    arr = np.ascontiguousarray(arr).view(packed_fields)
+
+    # next cast to an unpacked but flattened format with varied dtypes
+    flattened_fields = np.dtype({'names': names,
+                                 'formats': dts,
+                                 'offsets': offsets,
+                                 'itemsize': out_dtype.itemsize})
+    arr = arr.astype(flattened_fields, copy=copy, casting=casting)
+
+    # finally view as the final nested dtype and remove the last axis
+    return arr.view(out_dtype)[..., 0]
+
+def _apply_along_fields_dispatcher(func, arr):
+    return (arr,)
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_apply_along_fields_dispatcher)
+def apply_along_fields(func, arr):
+    """
+    Apply function 'func' as a reduction across fields of a structured array.
+
+    This is similar to `numpy.apply_along_axis`, but treats the fields of a
+    structured array as an extra axis. The fields are all first cast to a
+    common type following the type-promotion rules from `numpy.result_type`
+    applied to the field's dtypes.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    func : function
+       Function to apply on the "field" dimension. This function must
+       support an `axis` argument, like `numpy.mean`, `numpy.sum`, etc.
+    arr : ndarray
+       Structured array for which to apply func.
+
+    Returns
+    -------
+    out : ndarray
+       Result of the reduction operation
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> b = np.array([(1, 2, 5), (4, 5, 7), (7, 8 ,11), (10, 11, 12)],
+    ...              dtype=[('x', 'i4'), ('y', 'f4'), ('z', 'f8')])
+    >>> rfn.apply_along_fields(np.mean, b)
+    array([ 2.66666667,  5.33333333,  8.66666667, 11.        ])
+    >>> rfn.apply_along_fields(np.mean, b[['x', 'z']])
+    array([ 3. ,  5.5,  9. , 11. ])
+
+    """
+    if arr.dtype.names is None:
+        raise ValueError('arr must be a structured array')
+
+    uarr = structured_to_unstructured(arr)
+    return func(uarr, axis=-1)
+    # works and avoids axis requirement, but very, very slow:
+    #return np.apply_along_axis(func, -1, uarr)
+
+def _assign_fields_by_name_dispatcher(dst, src, zero_unassigned=None):
+    return dst, src
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_assign_fields_by_name_dispatcher)
+def assign_fields_by_name(dst, src, zero_unassigned=True):
+    """
+    Assigns values from one structured array to another by field name.
+
+    Normally in numpy >= 1.14, assignment of one structured array to another
+    copies fields "by position", meaning that the first field from the src is
+    copied to the first field of the dst, and so on, regardless of field name.
+
+    This function instead copies "by field name", such that fields in the dst
+    are assigned from the identically named field in the src. This applies
+    recursively for nested structures. This is how structure assignment worked
+    in numpy >= 1.6 to <= 1.13.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    dst : ndarray
+    src : ndarray
+        The source and destination arrays during assignment.
+    zero_unassigned : bool, optional
+        If True, fields in the dst for which there was no matching
+        field in the src are filled with the value 0 (zero). This
+        was the behavior of numpy <= 1.13. If False, those fields
+        are not modified.
+    """
+
+    if dst.dtype.names is None:
+        dst[...] = src
+        return
+
+    for name in dst.dtype.names:
+        if name not in src.dtype.names:
+            if zero_unassigned:
+                dst[name] = 0
+        else:
+            assign_fields_by_name(dst[name], src[name],
+                                  zero_unassigned)
+
+def _require_fields_dispatcher(array, required_dtype):
+    return (array,)
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_require_fields_dispatcher)
+def require_fields(array, required_dtype):
+    """
+    Casts a structured array to a new dtype using assignment by field-name.
+
+    This function assigns from the old to the new array by name, so the
+    value of a field in the output array is the value of the field with the
+    same name in the source array. This has the effect of creating a new
+    ndarray containing only the fields "required" by the required_dtype.
+
+    If a field name in the required_dtype does not exist in the
+    input array, that field is created and set to 0 in the output array.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    a : ndarray
+       array to cast
+    required_dtype : dtype
+       datatype for output array
+
+    Returns
+    -------
+    out : ndarray
+        array with the new dtype, with field values copied from the fields in
+        the input array with the same name
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> a = np.ones(4, dtype=[('a', 'i4'), ('b', 'f8'), ('c', 'u1')])
+    >>> rfn.require_fields(a, [('b', 'f4'), ('c', 'u1')])
+    array([(1., 1), (1., 1), (1., 1), (1., 1)],
+      dtype=[('b', '<f4'), ('c', 'u1')])
+    >>> rfn.require_fields(a, [('b', 'f4'), ('newf', 'u1')])
+    array([(1., 0), (1., 0), (1., 0), (1., 0)],
+      dtype=[('b', '<f4'), ('newf', 'u1')])
+
+    """
+    out = np.empty(array.shape, dtype=required_dtype)
+    assign_fields_by_name(out, array)
+    return out
+
+
+def _stack_arrays_dispatcher(arrays, defaults=None, usemask=None,
+                             asrecarray=None, autoconvert=None):
+    return arrays
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_stack_arrays_dispatcher)
+def stack_arrays(arrays, defaults=None, usemask=True, asrecarray=False,
+                 autoconvert=False):
+    """
+    Superposes arrays fields by fields
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    arrays : array or sequence
+        Sequence of input arrays.
+    defaults : dictionary, optional
+        Dictionary mapping field names to the corresponding default values.
+    usemask : {True, False}, optional
+        Whether to return a MaskedArray (or MaskedRecords is
+        `asrecarray==True`) or a ndarray.
+    asrecarray : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return a recarray (or MaskedRecords if `usemask==True`)
+        or just a flexible-type ndarray.
+    autoconvert : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether automatically cast the type of the field to the maximum.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> x = np.array([1, 2,])
+    >>> rfn.stack_arrays(x) is x
+    True
+    >>> z = np.array([('A', 1), ('B', 2)], dtype=[('A', '|S3'), ('B', float)])
+    >>> zz = np.array([('a', 10., 100.), ('b', 20., 200.), ('c', 30., 300.)],
+    ...   dtype=[('A', '|S3'), ('B', np.double), ('C', np.double)])
+    >>> test = rfn.stack_arrays((z,zz))
+    >>> test
+    masked_array(data=[(b'A', 1.0, --), (b'B', 2.0, --), (b'a', 10.0, 100.0),
+                       (b'b', 20.0, 200.0), (b'c', 30.0, 300.0)],
+                 mask=[(False, False,  True), (False, False,  True),
+                       (False, False, False), (False, False, False),
+                       (False, False, False)],
+           fill_value=(b'N/A', 1e+20, 1e+20),
+                dtype=[('A', 'S3'), ('B', '<f8'), ('C', '<f8')])
+
+    """
+    if isinstance(arrays, np.ndarray):
+        return arrays
+    elif len(arrays) == 1:
+        return arrays[0]
+    seqarrays = [np.asanyarray(a).ravel() for a in arrays]
+    nrecords = [len(a) for a in seqarrays]
+    ndtype = [a.dtype for a in seqarrays]
+    fldnames = [d.names for d in ndtype]
+    #
+    dtype_l = ndtype[0]
+    newdescr = _get_fieldspec(dtype_l)
+    names = [n for n, d in newdescr]
+    for dtype_n in ndtype[1:]:
+        for fname, fdtype in _get_fieldspec(dtype_n):
+            if fname not in names:
+                newdescr.append((fname, fdtype))
+                names.append(fname)
+            else:
+                nameidx = names.index(fname)
+                _, cdtype = newdescr[nameidx]
+                if autoconvert:
+                    newdescr[nameidx] = (fname, max(fdtype, cdtype))
+                elif fdtype != cdtype:
+                    raise TypeError(f"Incompatible type '{cdtype}' <> '{fdtype}'")
+    # Only one field: use concatenate
+    if len(newdescr) == 1:
+        output = ma.concatenate(seqarrays)
+    else:
+        #
+        output = ma.masked_all((np.sum(nrecords),), newdescr)
+        offset = np.cumsum(np.r_[0, nrecords])
+        seen = []
+        for (a, n, i, j) in zip(seqarrays, fldnames, offset[:-1], offset[1:]):
+            names = a.dtype.names
+            if names is None:
+                output[f'f{len(seen)}'][i:j] = a
+            else:
+                for name in n:
+                    output[name][i:j] = a[name]
+                    if name not in seen:
+                        seen.append(name)
+    #
+    return _fix_output(_fix_defaults(output, defaults),
+                       usemask=usemask, asrecarray=asrecarray)
+
+
+def _find_duplicates_dispatcher(
+        a, key=None, ignoremask=None, return_index=None):
+    return (a,)
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_find_duplicates_dispatcher)
+def find_duplicates(a, key=None, ignoremask=True, return_index=False):
+    """
+    Find the duplicates in a structured array along a given key
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    a : array-like
+        Input array
+    key : {string, None}, optional
+        Name of the fields along which to check the duplicates.
+        If None, the search is performed by records
+    ignoremask : {True, False}, optional
+        Whether masked data should be discarded or considered as duplicates.
+    return_index : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return the indices of the duplicated values.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    >>> import numpy as np
+    >>> from numpy.lib import recfunctions as rfn
+    >>> ndtype = [('a', int)]
+    >>> a = np.ma.array([1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3],
+    ...         mask=[0, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 1]).view(ndtype)
+    >>> rfn.find_duplicates(a, ignoremask=True, return_index=True)
+    (masked_array(data=[(1,), (1,), (2,), (2,)],
+                 mask=[(False,), (False,), (False,), (False,)],
+           fill_value=(999999,),
+                dtype=[('a', '<i8')]), array([0, 1, 3, 4]))
+    """
+    a = np.asanyarray(a).ravel()
+    # Get a dictionary of fields
+    fields = get_fieldstructure(a.dtype)
+    # Get the sorting data (by selecting the corresponding field)
+    base = a
+    if key:
+        for f in fields[key]:
+            base = base[f]
+        base = base[key]
+    # Get the sorting indices and the sorted data
+    sortidx = base.argsort()
+    sortedbase = base[sortidx]
+    sorteddata = sortedbase.filled()
+    # Compare the sorting data
+    flag = (sorteddata[:-1] == sorteddata[1:])
+    # If masked data must be ignored, set the flag to false where needed
+    if ignoremask:
+        sortedmask = sortedbase.recordmask
+        flag[sortedmask[1:]] = False
+    flag = np.concatenate(([False], flag))
+    # We need to take the point on the left as well (else we're missing it)
+    flag[:-1] = flag[:-1] + flag[1:]
+    duplicates = a[sortidx][flag]
+    if return_index:
+        return (duplicates, sortidx[flag])
+    else:
+        return duplicates
+
+
+def _join_by_dispatcher(
+        key, r1, r2, jointype=None, r1postfix=None, r2postfix=None,
+        defaults=None, usemask=None, asrecarray=None):
+    return (r1, r2)
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_join_by_dispatcher)
+def join_by(key, r1, r2, jointype='inner', r1postfix='1', r2postfix='2',
+            defaults=None, usemask=True, asrecarray=False):
+    """
+    Join arrays `r1` and `r2` on key `key`.
+
+    The key should be either a string or a sequence of string corresponding
+    to the fields used to join the array.  An exception is raised if the
+    `key` field cannot be found in the two input arrays.  Neither `r1` nor
+    `r2` should have any duplicates along `key`: the presence of duplicates
+    will make the output quite unreliable. Note that duplicates are not
+    looked for by the algorithm.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    key : {string, sequence}
+        A string or a sequence of strings corresponding to the fields used
+        for comparison.
+    r1, r2 : arrays
+        Structured arrays.
+    jointype : {'inner', 'outer', 'leftouter'}, optional
+        If 'inner', returns the elements common to both r1 and r2.
+        If 'outer', returns the common elements as well as the elements of
+        r1 not in r2 and the elements of not in r2.
+        If 'leftouter', returns the common elements and the elements of r1
+        not in r2.
+    r1postfix : string, optional
+        String appended to the names of the fields of r1 that are present
+        in r2 but absent of the key.
+    r2postfix : string, optional
+        String appended to the names of the fields of r2 that are present
+        in r1 but absent of the key.
+    defaults : {dictionary}, optional
+        Dictionary mapping field names to the corresponding default values.
+    usemask : {True, False}, optional
+        Whether to return a MaskedArray (or MaskedRecords is
+        `asrecarray==True`) or a ndarray.
+    asrecarray : {False, True}, optional
+        Whether to return a recarray (or MaskedRecords if `usemask==True`)
+        or just a flexible-type ndarray.
+
+    Notes
+    -----
+    * The output is sorted along the key.
+    * A temporary array is formed by dropping the fields not in the key for
+      the two arrays and concatenating the result. This array is then
+      sorted, and the common entries selected. The output is constructed by
+      filling the fields with the selected entries. Matching is not
+      preserved if there are some duplicates...
+
+    """
+    # Check jointype
+    if jointype not in ('inner', 'outer', 'leftouter'):
+        raise ValueError(
+                "The 'jointype' argument should be in 'inner', "
+                "'outer' or 'leftouter' (got '%s' instead)" % jointype
+                )
+    # If we have a single key, put it in a tuple
+    if isinstance(key, str):
+        key = (key,)
+
+    # Check the keys
+    if len(set(key)) != len(key):
+        dup = next(x for n, x in enumerate(key) if x in key[n + 1:])
+        raise ValueError(f"duplicate join key {dup!r}")
+    for name in key:
+        if name not in r1.dtype.names:
+            raise ValueError(f'r1 does not have key field {name!r}')
+        if name not in r2.dtype.names:
+            raise ValueError(f'r2 does not have key field {name!r}')
+
+    # Make sure we work with ravelled arrays
+    r1 = r1.ravel()
+    r2 = r2.ravel()
+    (nb1, nb2) = (len(r1), len(r2))
+    (r1names, r2names) = (r1.dtype.names, r2.dtype.names)
+
+    # Check the names for collision
+    collisions = (set(r1names) & set(r2names)) - set(key)
+    if collisions and not (r1postfix or r2postfix):
+        msg = "r1 and r2 contain common names, r1postfix and r2postfix "
+        msg += "can't both be empty"
+        raise ValueError(msg)
+
+    # Make temporary arrays of just the keys
+    #  (use order of keys in `r1` for back-compatibility)
+    key1 = [n for n in r1names if n in key]
+    r1k = _keep_fields(r1, key1)
+    r2k = _keep_fields(r2, key1)
+
+    # Concatenate the two arrays for comparison
+    aux = ma.concatenate((r1k, r2k))
+    idx_sort = aux.argsort(order=key)
+    aux = aux[idx_sort]
+    #
+    # Get the common keys
+    flag_in = ma.concatenate(([False], aux[1:] == aux[:-1]))
+    flag_in[:-1] = flag_in[1:] + flag_in[:-1]
+    idx_in = idx_sort[flag_in]
+    idx_1 = idx_in[(idx_in < nb1)]
+    idx_2 = idx_in[(idx_in >= nb1)] - nb1
+    (r1cmn, r2cmn) = (len(idx_1), len(idx_2))
+    if jointype == 'inner':
+        (r1spc, r2spc) = (0, 0)
+    elif jointype == 'outer':
+        idx_out = idx_sort[~flag_in]
+        idx_1 = np.concatenate((idx_1, idx_out[(idx_out < nb1)]))
+        idx_2 = np.concatenate((idx_2, idx_out[(idx_out >= nb1)] - nb1))
+        (r1spc, r2spc) = (len(idx_1) - r1cmn, len(idx_2) - r2cmn)
+    elif jointype == 'leftouter':
+        idx_out = idx_sort[~flag_in]
+        idx_1 = np.concatenate((idx_1, idx_out[(idx_out < nb1)]))
+        (r1spc, r2spc) = (len(idx_1) - r1cmn, 0)
+    # Select the entries from each input
+    (s1, s2) = (r1[idx_1], r2[idx_2])
+    #
+    # Build the new description of the output array .......
+    # Start with the key fields
+    ndtype = _get_fieldspec(r1k.dtype)
+
+    # Add the fields from r1
+    for fname, fdtype in _get_fieldspec(r1.dtype):
+        if fname not in key:
+            ndtype.append((fname, fdtype))
+
+    # Add the fields from r2
+    for fname, fdtype in _get_fieldspec(r2.dtype):
+        # Have we seen the current name already ?
+        # we need to rebuild this list every time
+        names = [name for name, dtype in ndtype]
+        try:
+            nameidx = names.index(fname)
+        except ValueError:
+            #... we haven't: just add the description to the current list
+            ndtype.append((fname, fdtype))
+        else:
+            # collision
+            _, cdtype = ndtype[nameidx]
+            if fname in key:
+                # The current field is part of the key: take the largest dtype
+                ndtype[nameidx] = (fname, max(fdtype, cdtype))
+            else:
+                # The current field is not part of the key: add the suffixes,
+                # and place the new field adjacent to the old one
+                ndtype[nameidx:nameidx + 1] = [
+                    (fname + r1postfix, cdtype),
+                    (fname + r2postfix, fdtype)
+                ]
+    # Rebuild a dtype from the new fields
+    ndtype = np.dtype(ndtype)
+    # Find the largest nb of common fields :
+    # r1cmn and r2cmn should be equal, but...
+    cmn = max(r1cmn, r2cmn)
+    # Construct an empty array
+    output = ma.masked_all((cmn + r1spc + r2spc,), dtype=ndtype)
+    names = output.dtype.names
+    for f in r1names:
+        selected = s1[f]
+        if f not in names or (f in r2names and not r2postfix and f not in key):
+            f += r1postfix
+        current = output[f]
+        current[:r1cmn] = selected[:r1cmn]
+        if jointype in ('outer', 'leftouter'):
+            current[cmn:cmn + r1spc] = selected[r1cmn:]
+    for f in r2names:
+        selected = s2[f]
+        if f not in names or (f in r1names and not r1postfix and f not in key):
+            f += r2postfix
+        current = output[f]
+        current[:r2cmn] = selected[:r2cmn]
+        if (jointype == 'outer') and r2spc:
+            current[-r2spc:] = selected[r2cmn:]
+    # Sort and finalize the output
+    output.sort(order=key)
+    kwargs = {'usemask': usemask, 'asrecarray': asrecarray}
+    return _fix_output(_fix_defaults(output, defaults), **kwargs)
+
+
+def _rec_join_dispatcher(
+        key, r1, r2, jointype=None, r1postfix=None, r2postfix=None,
+        defaults=None):
+    return (r1, r2)
+
+
+@array_function_dispatch(_rec_join_dispatcher)
+def rec_join(key, r1, r2, jointype='inner', r1postfix='1', r2postfix='2',
+             defaults=None):
+    """
+    Join arrays `r1` and `r2` on keys.
+    Alternative to join_by, that always returns a np.recarray.
+
+    See Also
+    --------
+    join_by : equivalent function
+    """
+    kwargs = {'jointype': jointype, 'r1postfix': r1postfix, 'r2postfix': r2postfix,
+                  'defaults': defaults, 'usemask': False, 'asrecarray': True}
+    return join_by(key, r1, r2, **kwargs)
+
+
+del array_function_dispatch