Section- 2(Part-2)
Database Design Using the EER Model
Chapter Outline
EER stands for Enhanced ER or Extended ER
EER Model Concepts
• Includes all modeling concepts of basic ER
• Additional concepts:
subclasses/superclasses
specialization/generalization
categories (UNION types)
attribute and relationship inheritance
• These are fundamental to conceptual modeling
The additional EER concepts are used to model
applications more completely and more accurately
• EER includes some object-oriented concepts, such as
inheritance
2.2
Subclasses and Superclasses (1)
An entity type may have additional meaningful
subgroupings of its entities
• Example: EMPLOYEE may be further grouped into:
SECRETARY, ENGINEER, TECHNICIAN, …
• Based on the EMPLOYEE’s Job
MANAGER
• EMPLOYEEs who are managers
SALARIED_EMPLOYEE, HOURLY_EMPLOYEE
• Based on the EMPLOYEE’s method of pay
EER diagrams extend ER diagrams to represent
these additional subgroupings, called subclasses or
subtypes
2.3
Subclasses and Superclasses
2.4
Subclasses and Superclasses (2)
Each of these subgroupings is a subset of
EMPLOYEE entities
Each is called a subclass of EMPLOYEE
EMPLOYEE is the superclass for each of these
subclasses
These are called superclass/subclass relationships:
• EMPLOYEE/SECRETARY
• EMPLOYEE/TECHNICIAN
• EMPLOYEE/MANAGER
• …
Slide 4- 5
2.5
Subclasses and Superclasses (3)
These are also called IS-A relationships
• SECRETARY IS-A EMPLOYEE, TECHNICIAN IS-A
EMPLOYEE, ….
Note: An entity that is member of a subclass
represents the same real-world entity as some
member of the superclass:
• The subclass member is the same entity in a distinct
specific role
• An entity cannot exist in the database merely by being
a member of a subclass; it must also be a member of
the superclass
• A member of the superclass can be optionally included
as a member of any number of its subclasses
2.6
Subclasses and Superclasses (4)
Examples:
• A salaried employee who is also an engineer belongs
to the two subclasses:
ENGINEER, and
SALARIED_EMPLOYEE
• A salaried employee who is also an engineering
manager belongs to the three subclasses:
MANAGER,
ENGINEER, and
SALARIED_EMPLOYEE
It is not necessary that every entity in a superclass
be a member of some subclass
2.7
Representing Specialization in EER
Diagrams
2.8
Attribute Inheritance in Superclass /
Subclass Relationships
An entity that is member of a subclass inherits
• All attributes of the entity as a member of the superclass
• All relationships of the entity as a member of the superclass
Example:
• In the previous slide, SECRETARY (as well as TECHNICIAN and
ENGINEER) inherit the attributes Name, SSN, …, from EMPLOYEE
• Every SECRETARY entity will have values for the inherited attributes
2.9
Specialization (1)
Specialization is the process of defining a set of subclasses of a
superclass
The set of subclasses is based upon some distinguishing characteristics of
the entities in the superclass
• Example: {SECRETARY, ENGINEER, TECHNICIAN} is a
specialization of EMPLOYEE based upon job type.
May have several specializations of the same superclass
2.10
Specialization (2)
Example: Another specialization of EMPLOYEE
based on method of pay is
{SALARIED_EMPLOYEE, HOURLY_EMPLOYEE}.
• Superclass/subclass relationships and specialization
can be diagrammatically represented in EER diagrams
• Attributes of a subclass are called specific or local
attributes.
For example, the attribute TypingSpeed of SECRETARY
• The subclass can also participate in specific
relationship types.
For example, a relationship BELONGS_TO of
HOURLY_EMPLOYEE
2.11
Specialization (3)
2.12
Generalization
Generalization is the reverse of the specialization
process
Several classes with common features are
generalized into a superclass;
• original classes become its subclasses
Example: CAR, TRUCK generalized into VEHICLE;
• both CAR, TRUCK become subclasses of the
superclass VEHICLE.
• We can view {CAR, TRUCK} as a specialization of
VEHICLE
• Alternatively, we can view VEHICLE as a
generalization of CAR and TRUCK
2.13
Generalization (2)
2.14
Generalization and Specialization (1)
Diagrammatic notation are sometimes used to distinguish between
generalization and specialization
• Arrow pointing to the generalized superclass represents a
generalization
• Arrows pointing to the specialized subclasses represent a
specialization
• We do not use this notation because it is often subjective as to which
process is more appropriate for a particular situation
• We advocate not drawing any arrows
2.15
Generalization and Specialization (2)
Data Modeling with Specialization and Generalization
• A superclass or subclass represents a collection (or set or grouping) of
entities
• It also represents a particular type of entity
• Shown in rectangles in EER diagrams (as are entity types)
• We can call all entity types (and their corresponding collections)
classes, whether they are entity types, superclasses, or subclasses
2.16
Constraints on Specialization and
Generalization (1)
If we can determine exactly those entities that will become members of
each subclass by a condition, the subclasses are called predicate-defined
(or condition-defined) subclasses
• Condition is a constraint that determines subclass members
• Display a predicate-defined subclass by writing the predicate condition
next to the line attaching the subclass to its superclass
2.17
Constraints on Specialization and
Generalization (2)
If all subclasses in a specialization have membership
condition on same attribute of the superclass,
specialization is called an attribute-defined
specialization
• Attribute is called the defining attribute of the
specialization
• Example: JobType is the defining attribute of the
specialization {SECRETARY, TECHNICIAN,
ENGINEER} of EMPLOYEE
If no condition determines membership, the subclass
is called user-defined
• Membership in a subclass is determined by the
database users by applying an operation to add an
entity to the subclass
• Membership in the subclass is specified individually for
each entity in the superclass by the user
2.18
Displaying an attribute-defined
specialization in EER diagrams
2.19
Constraints on Specialization and
Generalization (3)
Two basic constraints can apply to a specialization/generalization:
• Disjointness Constraint:
• Completeness Constraint:
2.20
Constraints on Specialization and
Generalization (4)
Disjointness Constraint:
• Specifies that the subclasses of the specialization must be disjoint:
an entity can be a member of at most one of the subclasses of the
specialization
• Specified by d in EER diagram
• If not disjoint, specialization is overlapping:
that is the same entity may be a member of more than one
subclass of the specialization
• Specified by o in EER diagram
2.21
Constraints on Specialization and
Generalization (5)
Completeness Constraint:
• Total specifies that every entity in the superclass must be a member of
some subclass in the specialization/generalization
• Shown in EER diagrams by a double line
• Partial allows an entity not to belong to any of the subclasses
• Shown in EER diagrams by a single line
2.22
Constraints on Specialization and
Generalization (6)
Hence, we have four types of specialization/generalization:
• Disjoint, total
• Disjoint, partial
• Overlapping, total
• Overlapping, partial
Note: Generalization usually is total because the superclass is derived
from the subclasses.
2.23
Example of disjoint partial Specialization
2.24
Example of overlapping total Specialization
2.25
Specialization/Generalization
Hierarchies, Lattices & Shared
Subclasses (1)
A subclass may itself have further subclasses specified on it
• forms a hierarchy or a lattice
Hierarchy has a constraint that every subclass has only one superclass
(called single inheritance); this is basically a tree structure
In a lattice, a subclass can be subclass of more than one superclass
(called multiple inheritance)
2.26
Shared Subclass “Engineering_Manager”
2.27
Specialization/Generalization
Hierarchies, Lattices & Shared
Subclasses (2)
In a lattice or hierarchy, a subclass inherits attributes
not only of its direct superclass, but also of all its
predecessor superclasses
A subclass with more than one superclass is called a
shared subclass (multiple inheritance)
Can have:
• specialization hierarchies or lattices, or
• generalization hierarchies or lattices,
• depending on how they were derived
We just use specialization (to stand for the end result
of either specialization or generalization)
2.28
Specialization/Generalization
Hierarchies, Lattices & Shared
Subclasses (3)
In specialization, start with an entity type and then define subclasses of the
entity type by successive specialization
• called a top down conceptual refinement process
In generalization, start with many entity types and generalize those that
have common properties
• Called a bottom up conceptual synthesis process
In practice, a combination of both processes is usually employed
2.29
Specialization / Generalization Lattice
Example (UNIVERSITY)
2.30
Categories (UNION TYPES) (1)
All of the superclass/subclass relationships we have
seen thus far have a single superclass
A shared subclass is a subclass in:
• more than one distinct superclass/subclass
relationships
• each relationships has a single superclass
• shared subclass leads to multiple inheritance
In some cases, we need to model a single
superclass/subclass relationship with more than one
superclass
Superclasses can represent different entity types
Such a subclass is called a category or UNION
TYPE
2.31
Categories (UNION TYPES) (2)
Example: In a database for vehicle registration, a
vehicle owner can be a PERSON, a BANK (holding a
lien on a vehicle) or a COMPANY.
• A category (UNION type) called OWNER is created to
represent a subset of the union of the three
superclasses COMPANY, BANK, and PERSON
• A category member must exist in at least one of its
superclasses
Difference from shared subclass, which is a:
• subset of the intersection of its superclasses
• shared subclass member must exist in all of its
superclasses
2.32
Two categories (UNION types): OWNER,
REGISTERED_VEHICLE
2.33
Alternative Diagrammatic Notations
2.34
Summary
Introduced the EER model concepts
• Class/subclass relationships
• Specialization and generalization
• Inheritance
These augment the basic ER model concepts EER diagrams and
alternative notations were presented
2.35
