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Entity

The document discusses the Entity-Relationship (E-R) data model. The E-R model represents conceptual database designs graphically and supports entities, attributes, and relationships. An entity represents a real-world object like a person, place, or thing. Entities can be strong or weak depending on whether their instances can exist independently. Relationships define connections between entities.

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Ismail Zeb
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
38 views

Entity

The document discusses the Entity-Relationship (E-R) data model. The E-R model represents conceptual database designs graphically and supports entities, attributes, and relationships. An entity represents a real-world object like a person, place, or thing. Entities can be strong or weak depending on whether their instances can exist independently. Relationships define connections between entities.

Uploaded by

Ismail Zeb
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Entity-Relationship Data Model

It is a data model that is used for the graphical representation of the conceptual
database design. With a data model, it becomes easier to design the database, at
the first place, and secondly it is easier to understand later.

The E-R data model supports following major constructs:


A. Entity
B. Attribute
C. Relationship

The Entity
An entity is a person, place thing or event for which data is collected, and
maintained. For example a library system may contain data about different
entities like Books and Member. A college may include entities like Student,
teacher and class etc.

The entity is used as three different meanings that are as follows.


 Entity type
 Entity instance
 Entity set

1. Entity Type
The entity type can be defined as a name/label assigned to
items/objects that exist in an environment and that have similar properties.
It could be person, place, event or even concept, that is, an entity type can
be defined for physical as well as not-physical things. An entity type is
distinguishable from other entity types on the basis of properties and the
same thing provides the basis for the identification of an entity type. It is
also known as entity class.
Generally, the entity types and their distinguishing properties are
established by nature, by very existence of the things. For example, a bulb
is an electric accessory, a cricket bat is a sports item, a computer is an
electronic device, a shirt is a clothing item etc.
2. Entity Instance
A member of an entity class is known as entity instance or a
particular object belonging to a particular entity type. For example,
following table lists the entity types and their defining properties:

Entity Types Properties Instances


EMPLOYEE Human being, has name, has father M. Sharif, Sh. Akmal
name, and many others
has a registration number, has
qualification,
designation
FURNITURE Used to sit or work on, different Chair, table etc.
material,
having legs, cost, purchased
ELECTRIC Need electricity to work, purchased Bulb, fan, AC
APPLIANCES

Each entity instance possesses certain values against the properties


with the entity type to which it belongs. For example, in the above table we
have identified that entity type EMPLOYEE has name, father name,
registration number, qualification, designation. Now an instance of this
entity type will have values against each of these properties, like (M. Sajjad,
Abdul Rehman, EN-14289, BCS, and Programmer) may be one instance of
entity type EMPLOYEE. There could be many others.

3. Entity Set
A set of all entities of a particular entity type in the database is called
an entity set or A group of entity instances of a particular entity type is
called an entity set. For example, all employees of an organization form an
entity set. Like all students, all courses, all of them form entity set of
different entity types

Classification of entity types


Entity types (ETs) can be classified into regular ETs or weak ETs.
Regular ETs are also called strong or independent ETs, whereas weak ETs
are also called dependent ETs.
 Weak Entity Type
An entity that can exist only if another entity exists is known as weak
entity or an entity type whose instances cannot exist without being
linked with instances of some other entity type, i.e., they cannot exist
independently. For example, in an organization we want to maintain
data about the vehicles owned by the employees. Now a particular
vehicle can exist in this organization only if the owner already exists
there as employee. Similarly, if employee leaves the job and the
organization decides to delete the record of the employee then the
record of the vehicle will also be deleted since it cannot exist without
being linked to an instance of employee. The entity on which the weak
entity depends is called owner or identifying owner.

 Strong Entity Type


An entity type whose instances can exist independently, that is,
without being linked to the instances of any other entity type is called
strong entity type. A major property of the strong entity types is that
they have their own identification, which is not always the case with
weak entity types. For example, employee in the previous example is an
independent or strong entity type, since its instances can exist
independently.

Symbols for Entity Types

A rectangle is used to represent an entity type in E-R data model. For strong
entity types rectangle with a single line is used whereas double lined rectangle is
drawn to represent a weak entity type as is shown below:

Employee
Strong entity

Weak entity
Vehicle

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