[FIXED] aligning multiple labels below xaxis using matplotlib at equi-distances

Issue

I am trying to add a few labels below the x-axis using matplotlib. I have 5-6 labels which I want to plot below the xaxis. The text of these labels will vary hence, having a single setting to render the labels is not possible. I have a minimal example given below.

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
import pandas as pd
import numpy as np

# Generate sample data

frame_width = 1920
frame_height =1080 

##plotting function begins
fig, ax = plt.subplots(1,1,figsize=(frame_width/100,frame_height/100))

ax = plt.gca()
fig = plt.gcf()
fig_width = fig.get_figwidth() * fig.dpi

txtcolor='White'
text_font_size=12
textfont='Arial'

# Show only the x-axis
ax.set_xlim(1, 20)

txt1="ATTENTION"
a1 = plt.figtext(0.15, 0.070, txt1, ha='left',va='center',weight='bold',c=txtcolor,family=textfont ,fontsize=text_font_size, bbox=dict(facecolor='g', edgecolor='g'))
txt1_width = a1.get_window_extent().width / fig_width
txt2_x = txt1_width + 0.15 + 0.02 

txt2="CONVICTION"
a2=plt.figtext(txt2_x, 0.070, txt2, ha='left',va='center',weight='bold',c=txtcolor,family=textfont ,fontsize=text_font_size, bbox=dict(facecolor='c', edgecolor='c'))
txt2_width = a2.get_window_extent().width / fig_width
txt3_x = txt2_width + 0.15 + 0.03 + txt1_width

txt3="INTEREST IN SPORTS"
a3=plt.figtext(txt3_x, 0.070, txt3, ha='left',va='center',weight='bold',c=txtcolor,family=textfont ,fontsize=text_font_size, bbox=dict(facecolor='m', edgecolor='m'))
txt3_width = a3.get_window_extent().width / fig_width
txt4_x = txt2_width + 0.15 + 0.03 + txt1_width + txt3_width

plt.show()

I am trying to take the width of the text + add a padding so that the next text does not overlap. However, as the text varies in length, I have to change the setting to avoid overlapping or creating a larger gap between the text labels. How can I dynamically render it so that the text labels look uniformly spaced irrespective of the size of the text.

Solution

If you use annotate, you can place text relative to any other artist, including another annotation. Here I place the first text relative to the axes. Subsequent annotations are placed by putting the text 1.5 font sizes (xytext=(1.5, 0)) to the right of the righthand side of the previous annotation (xy=(1, 0)).

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

# Generate sample data

frame_width = 1920
frame_height =1080 

##plotting function begins
fig, ax = plt.subplots(1,1,figsize=(frame_width/100,frame_height/100))

ax = plt.gca()
fig = plt.gcf()
fig_width = fig.get_figwidth() * fig.dpi

txtcolor='White'
text_font_size=12
textfont='Arial'

# Show only the x-axis
ax.set_xlim(1, 20)

txt1="ATTENTION"
ann = ax.annotate(txt1, (0, -0.1), ha='left',va='center',weight='bold',
                  c=txtcolor, family=textfont, fontsize=text_font_size,
                  xycoords='axes fraction',
                  bbox=dict(facecolor='g', edgecolor='g'))

for txt, color in zip(["CONVICTION", "INTEREST IN SPORTS"], ['c', 'm']):
    ann = ax.annotate(txt, (1, 0.5), xycoords=ann, xytext=(1.5, 0), 
                      textcoords='offset fontsize', va='center', weight='bold',
                      c=txtcolor, family=textfont, fontsize=text_font_size,
                      bbox=dict(facecolor=color, edgecolor=color))

plt.show()

Answered By - RuthC