Database Design

2-3
Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs

Copyright © 2015, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.

Objectives

This lesson covers the following objectives:

• Define the meaning of “implementation-free” as it relates to
data models and database design implementation
• List the four goals of entity relationship modeling
• Identify an entity relationship diagram (ERD)

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
Purpose

• An entity relationship diagram (ERD) is a consistent tool that

can be used to represent the data requirements of a business
regardless of the type of database that is used, and even in
the absence of one!

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
Implementation-Free Models

• A good conceptual data model stays the same regardless of

the type of database the system is eventually built—or
implemented—on.
Database Types
• This is what we mean when we ER Model
say that the model is
“implementation-free.”

Hierarchical Network
Database Database
Relational
Database

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
Implementation-Free Models

• The data model should stay the same even if a database is

not used at all.
• For example: when the data is Database Types
eventually stored on pieces of ER Model
paper in a filing cabinet.

Hierarchical Network
Database Database
Relational
Database

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
What is an Entity Relationship Model?

An Entity Relationship Model:

• Is a list of all entities and attributes as well as all relationships
between the entities that are of importance.
• Provides background information such as entity descriptions,
data types, and constraints.
• Note: The model does not require a diagram, but the diagram
is typically a very useful tool.

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
Goals of ER Modeling

There are four goals of ER modeling:

• Capture all required information
• Ensure that information appears only once
• Model no information that is derivable from other
information already modeled
• Locate information in a predictable, logical place

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
Goals of ER Modeling

• Imagine your school record—from your earliest days in

school, data about you was captured.
• Your absences, discipline history, classes taken, and grades
earned are probably part of your record.
• This data needs to be stored in a logical way, to allow
accessing and updating records to be carried out easily and
efficiently.
• Following the goals of ER Modeling helps to achieve this.

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
H.R. Department Business Scenario

Read the complete business scenario for the Human Resource

Department below. Then examine the completed ERD.
• I manage the Human Resources Department for a large
company. We need to store data about each of our
company’s employees. We need to track each employee's
first name, last name, job or position, hire date and salary. For
each employee on commission, we also need to track his/her
potential commission.
• Each employee is assigned a unique employee number.

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
H.R. Department Business Scenario

• Our company is divided into departments. Each employee

reports to a department -- for example, accounting, sales, or
development. We need to know the department responsible
for each employee and the department location. Each
department has a unique number.
• Some of the employees are managers. We need to know each
employee's manager and all of the employees that are
managed by each manager.

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
 H.R Department ERD
EMPLOYEE LOCATION
# Employee ID # Location ID
* First Name works in
DEPARTMENT located in * First Name
* Last Name # Department ID * Last Name
responsible for * Name address of
* Hire Date * Hire Date
* Salary manager of * Salary
O Commission O Commission

assigned situated

managed by site of

JOB COUNTRY
# Job ID # Department ID
* Title * Name
assigned to * Max Salary
* Min Salary part of

comprised of

REGION
# Department ID
* Name

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
Terminology

Key terms used in this lesson included:

• Entity relationship diagram (ERD)
• Implementation-free

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs
Summary

In this lesson, you should have learned how to:

• Define the meaning of “implementation-free” as it relates to
data models and database design implementation
• List the four goals of entity relationship modeling
• Identify an entity relationship diagram (ERD)

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Entity Relationship Modeling and ERDs