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CHAPTER 2 - Database Requirements and ER
Modeling
Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press
INTRODUCTION
Entity-relationship (ER) modeling - conceptual database
modeling technique
• Enables the structuring and organizing of the requirements collection
process
• Provides a way to graphically represent the requirements
ER diagram (ERD) - the result of ER modeling
• Serves as a blueprint for the database
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DATA MODELS
Data Model:
A set of concepts to describe the structure of a database, the
operations for manipulating these structures, and certain constraints
that the database should obey.
Data Model Structure and Constraints:
Constructs are used to define the database structure
Constructs typically include elements (and their data types) as well
as groups of elements (e.g. entity, record, table), and relationships
among such groups
Constraints specify some restrictions on valid data; these constraints
must be enforced at all times
Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press
DATA MODELS (CONTINUED)
Data Model Operations:
These operations are used for specifying database retrievals and updates by
referring to the constructs of the data model.
Operations on the data model may include basic model operations (e.g.
generic insert, delete, update) and user-defined operations (e.g.
compute_student_gpa, update_inventory)
Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press
ENTITIES
Entities - constructs that represent what the database keeps track
of
• The basic building blocks of an ER diagram
• Represent various real world notions, such as people, places, objects,
events, items, and other concepts
• Within one ERD each entity must have a different name
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ENTITIES
Two entities
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ENTITIES
Entity instances (entity members) - occurrences of an entity
• Entities themselves are depicted in the ER diagrams while entity instances
are not
• Entity instances are eventually recorded in the database that is created
based on the ER diagram
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ATTRIBUTES
Attribute - depiction of a characteristic of an entity
• Represents the details that will be recorded for each entity instance
• Within one entity, each attribute must have a different name
Unique Attribute - attribute whose value is different for each
entity instance
• Every regular entity must have at least one unique attribute
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ATTRIBUTES
An entity with attributes
• For entity CUSTOMER, we may decide to keep track of the following
attributes: CustID (customer’s identification number), CustName
(customer’s name), CustBdate (customer’s birth date), and CustGender
(customer’s gender)."
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RELATIONSHIPS
Relationship - ER modeling construct depicting how entities are
related
• Within an ER diagram, each entity must be related to at least one other
entity via a relationship
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RELATIONSHIPS
Cardinality constraints - depict how many instances of one
entity can be associated with instances of another entity
• Maximum cardinality
o One (represented by a straight bar: I)
o Many (represented by a crow’s foot symbol)
• Minimum cardinality (participation)
o Optional (represented by a circular symbol: 0)
o Mandatory (represented by a straight bar: I)
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RELATIONSHIPS
A relationship between two entities
The database will keep track of employees and departments.
• For each employee, we will keep track of his or her name and unique
employee ID.
• For each department, we will keep track of the unique department ID and
the location.
• Each employee reports to exactly one department. A department has
between zero and many employees reporting to it.
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RELATIONSHIPS
Four possible cardinality constraints
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RELATIONSHIPS
Several possible versions of the relationship ReportsTo
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RELATIONSHIPS
Several possible versions of the relationship ReportsTo
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RELATIONSHIPS
Types of Relationships (maximum cardinality-wise)
• One-to-one relationship (1:1)
• One-to-many relationship (1:M)
• Many-to-many relationship (M:N)
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RELATIONSHIPS
Three types of relationships (maximum cardinality-wise)
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RELATIONSHIPS
A 1:M Relationship
A M:N Relationship
A 1:1 Relationship
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RELATIONSHIPS
Relationship instances - occurrences of a relationship
• Occur when an instance of one entity is related to an instance of another
entity via a relationship
• Relationship themselves are depicted in the ER diagrams while relationship
instances are not
• Relationship instances are eventually recorded in the database that is
created based on the ER diagram
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RELATIONSHIPS
A relationship and its instances
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RELATIONSHIPS
Relationship attributes
• In some cases M:N relationships can actually have attributes of their own
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RELATIONSHIPS
A 1:M relationship with and without an attribute
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RELATIONSHIPS
A 1:M relationship with and without an attribute
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ER diagram example: ZAGI Retail Company Sales Department Database
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ZAGI RETAIL COMPANY SALES DEPARTMENT DATABASE
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ATTRIBUTES
Composite attribute – attribute that is composed of several
attributes
• Not an additional attribute of an entity
• Its purpose is to indicate a situation in which a collection of attributes has
an additional meaning, besides the individual meanings of each attribute
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ATTRIBUTES
An entity with a composite attribute
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ATTRIBUTES
Another entity with a composite attribute
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ATTRIBUTES
Composite attributes sharing components
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ATTRIBUTES
Composite unique attribute – attribute that is composed of several attributes
and whose value is different for each entity instance.
An entity with a unique composite attribute
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ATTRIBUTES
Multiple unique attributes (candidate keys) - when an entity
has more than one unique attribute each unique attribute is also
called a candidate key.
An entity with multiple unique attributes (candidate keys)
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ATTRIBUTES
An entity with a regular and composite candidate key
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ATTRIBUTES
Multivalued attribute - attribute for which instances of an entity
can have multiple values for the same attribute.
A multivalued attribute
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ATTRIBUTES
A scenario that does not use multivalued attributes
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ATTRIBUTES
Derived attribute - attribute whose values are calculated and not
permanently stored in a database.
A derived attribute example
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ATTRIBUTES
Another derived attribute example
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ATTRIBUTES
Optional attribute - attribute that is allowed to not have a value.
An optional attribute example
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ATTRIBUTES
EXAMPLE: An entity with various types of attributes
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ATTRIBUTES
EXAMPLE: An entity with various types of attributes
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RELATIONSHIPS
Exact minimum and maximum cardinality in relationships
• In some cases the exact minimum and/or maximum cardinality in relationships is
known in advance
• Exact minimum/and or maximum cardinalities can be depicted in ER diagrams.
A relationship with specific minimum and maximum cardinalities
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RELATIONSHIPS
A relationship with a mixture of specific and non-specific
cardinalities
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RELATIONSHIPS
Degree of a relationship - reflects how many entities are
involved in the relationship
Binary relationship - relationship between two entities
(degree 2 relationship)
Unary relationship (recursive relationship) - occurs when an
entity is involved in a relationship with itself
(degree 1 relationship)
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RELATIONSHIPS
Unary relationship examples
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RELATIONSHIPS
Relationship roles - additional syntax that can be used in ER
diagrams at the discretion of a data modeler to clarify the role of
each entity in a relationship
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RELATIONSHIPS
Unary relationships with role names
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RELATIONSHIPS
A binary relationship with role names
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RELATIONSHIPS
Multiple relationships between same entities
• Same entities in an ER diagram can be related via more than one relationship .
Multiple relationships between the same entities
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WEAK ENTITY
Weak entity - ER diagram construct depicting an entity that does
not have a unique attribute of its own
Owner entity - entity whose unique attribute provides a
mechanism for identifying instances of a weak entity
Identifying relationship - relationship between a weak entity and
its owner entity in which each instance of a weak entity is
associated with exactly one instance of an owner entity
• Each weak entity must be associated with its owner entity via an identifying
relationship
• Unique attribute from the owner entity uniquely identifies every instance of
the weak entity via an identifying relationship
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 48
WEAK ENTITY
Partial key - attribute of a weak entity that combined with the
unique attribute of the owner entity uniquely identifies the weak
entity's instances
• Combination of the partial key and the unique attribute from the owner
entity uniquely identifies every instance of the weak entity
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 49
WEAK ENTITY
A weak entity example with entity instances
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WEAK ENTITY
A weak entity versus a multivalued composite attribute
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WEAK ENTITY
A weak entity with an identifying and regular relationship
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WEAK ENTITY
Identifying relationship is either 1:M or 1:1 relationship
• In case of 1:M identifying relationship, a weak entity must have a partial
key attribute
• In case of 1:1 identifying relationship, a weak entity doesn’t need to have a
partial key attribute
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WEAK ENTITY
A weak entity with a 1:1 identifying relationship
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 54
NAMING CONVENTIONS FOR ER DIAGRAMS
Entities and attributes
• Use singular (rather than plural) nouns
Relationships
• Use verbs or verb phrases, rather than nouns
Names should be as brief as possible, without being too
condensed as to obscure the meaning of the construct
If possible, give all attributes in the entire ER diagram different
names
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MULTIPLE ER DIAGRAMS
When depicting multiple ER diagrams, each diagram should be
visualized separately
Instead of multiple ER diagrams in one schema a better choice is
to present each ER diagram separately
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 56
MULTIPLE ER DIAGRAMS
A schema with two separate ER diagrams (potentially misleading)
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 57
MULTIPLE ER DIAGRAMS
Separate ER diagrams in separate schemas
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 58
MULTIPLE ER DIAGRAMS
Separate ER diagrams in separate schemas
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 59
HAFH Realty Company Property Management Database
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HAFH Realty Company Property Management Database
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 61
DATABASE REQUIREMENTS AND ER MODEL USAGE
One of the common mistakes that beginners make when engaging in ER modeling for
the first time is not recognizing the difference between an entity and the ER diagram
itself.
An ER diagram incorrectly and correctly interpreting requirements
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 62
DATABASE REQUIREMENTS AND ER MODEL USAGE
An ER diagram incorrectly and correctly interpreting requirements.
In this case, entity COLLEGE would be unnecessary.
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 63
DATABASE REQUIREMENTS AND ER MODEL USAGE
Another common database requirements collection and ER
modeling mistake made by novices is not distinguishing between:
Modeling of the data that is wanted and can be kept track of
versus
Modeling of everything that takes place in an organization
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DATABASE REQUIREMENTS AND ER MODEL USAGE
ER diagrams based on unfeasible vs. proper requirements
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 65
DATABASE REQUIREMENTS AND ER MODEL USAGE
ER diagrams based on unfeasible vs. proper requirements
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VARIOUS ER NOTATIONS
There is no universally adopted ER notation to which all database
projects conform
Instead, there is a variety of available ER notations in use
However, if a designer is familiar with one ER notation, other
alternative ER notations are easy to understand and use
Jukić, Vrbsky, Nestorov, Sharma – Database Systems Copyright (c) 2020 Nenad Jukic and Prospect Press Chapter 2 – Slide 67
VARIOUS ER NOTATIONS
Examples of various ER notations
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TERNARY RELATIONSHIP
Ternary relationship - relationship involving three entities (degree 3 relationship)
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TERNARY RELATIONSHIP
Three binary relationships that are insufficient for depicting given requirements.
A ternary relationship
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TERNARY (AND HIGHER DEGREE) RELATIONSHIPS
In practice, ternary relationships are relatively rare, and
relationships of degree higher than 3 are rarer still
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REDUCING THE NUMBER OF ATTRIBUTES
Reducing the number of attributes by treating some attributes as
attribute values
• In some cases, it may be appropriate to consider whether an originally
designed attribute can be treated as an attribute value instead
• Valid alternative in some circumstances (but not always)
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REDUCING THE NUMBER OF ATTRIBUTES
Example of reducing the number of attributes by treating some
attributes as attribute values:
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REDUCING THE NUMBER OF ATTRIBUTES
Example of reducing the number of attributes by treating some
attributes as attribute values:
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