Minimum Cost to Set Cooking Time — LeetCode 2162 Python Solution

The problem

A generic microwave supports cooking times for: at least 1 second. at most 99 minutes and 99 seconds.

Example

Input

startAt = 1, moveCost = 2, pushCost = 1, targetSeconds = 600

Output

6

Explanation

The following are the possible ways to set the cooking time.

Python solution

class Solution:
    def minCostSetTime(
        self, startAt: int, moveCost: int, pushCost: int, targetSeconds: int
    ) -> int:
        def f(m, s):
            if not 0 <= m < 100 or not 0 <= s < 100:
                return inf
            arr = [m // 10, m % 10, s // 10, s % 10]
            i = 0
            while i < 4 and arr[i] == 0:
                i += 1
            t = 0
            prev = startAt
            for v in arr[i:]:
                if v != prev:
                    t += moveCost
                t += pushCost
                prev = v
            return t

        m, s = divmod(targetSeconds, 60)
        ans = min(f(m, s), f(m - 1, s + 60))
        return ans

Complexity

Pattern: Math and Number Theory

Find the closed form, the invariant, or the modular identity — and skip the loop entirely. LeetCode 2162. Minimum Cost to Set Cooking Time is filed here on both counts: the reference solution below belongs to the algorithm family this hub collects, and LeetCode tags it Math.

The math and number theory guide has the Python template for the pattern and the 485 LeetCode problems that use it.

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