Data Models

Extended or Enhanced ER Model

Asif Sohail
University of the Punjab
Punjab University College of Information Technology (PUCIT)

Database Systems Slide 1

 Extended or Enhanced ER Model
• The model that has resulted from extending the original E-R
model with new modeling constructs.
• Used to cope with the dynamic and complex business
environment.
• It uses the representations for supertypes and subtypes.

Database Systems Slide 2

 E-R Model

Super Types, Subtypes - Example

EMPLOYEE TYPE ATTRIBUTES
1. Hourly ENo, EName, Address, Hire_Date, Hourly_Rate

2. Salaried ENo, EName, Address, Hire_Date, Salary

3. Contract ENo, EName, Address, Hire_Date, Rate

• We have three choices for ER diagram:

1. Define a single entity type Employee with all the possible attributes in it.
2. Define a separate entity type for each employee type.
3. Define a supertype with all the common attributes and introduce its
subtypes having only the applicable attributes.
ER Diagram

Database Systems Slide 3

 E-R Model

Super Types, Subtypes

• A Super type is a generic entity type that is subdivided into subtypes.
• A Subtype is a subset of a super type that shares the common attributes of
the super type plus it has some of its own attributes that distinguish it from
other subtypes.
• The super type and subtypes employ the concept of Generalization and
Categorization.
• Generalization is the concept that some entities are subtypes of other more
general entities. E.g. Bird, Vehicle etc.
• Categorization is the concept that an entity comes in various subtypes.
• Super type & Subtype representation is used to represent the entities that
are very much similar.
• Attribute Inheritance:
– Subtype entities inherit values of all attributes of the supertype
– Subtype entities inherit their primary key from their supertype
– An instance of a subtype is also an instance of the supertype
Database Systems Slide 4
Database Systems Slide 5
 Basic Notations for Super Type/Subtype

Different modeling tools may have different notation for the same
modeling constructs
Database Systems Slide 6
 Figure 4-2 – Employee supertype with three subtypes

All employee subtypes

will have emp nbr, name,
address, and date-hired

Each employee subtype

will also have its own
attributes

Database Systems Slide 7

 E-R Model

Super Types, Subtypes

• The relationship between each subtype and its super type is
called ISA relationship.
• The relationship is read from the subtype to the super type.
• The cardinality of the relationship from subtype to super type is
always mandatory one and from super type to subtype is
optionally one. Henceforth, cardinality may be omitted in
diagram.

Database Systems Slide 8

 Supertype/subtype relationships in a hospital
Both outpatients and
resident patients are
cared for by a
responsible physician

Only resident patients are

assigned to a bed

Database Systems Slide 9

 Example of generalization
Three entity types: CAR, TRUCK, and MOTORCYCLE

All these types

of vehicles
have common
attributes

Database Systems Slide 10

 Generalization to VEHICLE supertype

So we put
the shared
attributes in
a supertype

Note: no subtype for motorcycle, since it has no unique attributes

Database Systems Slide 11
 Example of specialization
Entity type PART
Applies only to purchased parts

Only applies to
manufactured
parts

Database Systems Slide 12

 Specialization to MANUFACTURED PART and PURCHASED PART

Created 2 subtypes

Note: multivalued attribute was replaced by a relationship to another entity

Database Systems Slide 13

 E-R Model

Types of Subtypes
• There are the following types of subtypes:
a) Exhaustive & Non-Exhaustive subtypes (Completeness
Constraint)
b) Exclusive & Non-Exclusive subtypes.
• Exhaustive subtypes mean that all the subtypes have been
defined and there can’t be any further subtypes.
• Exclusive subtypes mean that each instance of a super type is
categorized as exactly one subtype.

Database Systems Slide 14

 E-R Model

Types of Subtypes
a) Exhaustive & Non-Exhaustive subtypes
• Exhaustive subtypes mean that all the subtypes have been
defined and there can’t be any further subtypes.
• It is used for enforcing completeness constraint, which
determines, Whether an instance of a super type must also be
a member of at least one subtype
– Total Specialization Rule: Yes (double line)
– Partial Specialization Rule: No (single line)

Database Systems Slide 15

 Total Specialization Rule

A patient must be either

an outpatient or a
resident patient

Database Systems Slide 16

 Partial Specialization Rule

A vehicle could be a car,

a truck, or neither

Database Systems Slide 17

 E-R Model

Types of Subtypes
b) Exclusive & Non-Exclusive subtypes
• Exclusive subtypes mean that each instance of a super type is
categorized as exactly one subtype.
• It is used for enforcing Disjointness Constraints, which
determines, Whether an instance of a super type may
simultaneously be a member of two (or more) subtypes
– Disjoint Rule: An instance of the super type can be only
ONE of the subtypes
– Overlap Rule: An instance of the super type could be more
than one of the subtypes

Database Systems Slide 18

 Disjoint Rule

A patient can either be outpatient

or resident, but not both

Database Systems Slide 19

 Overlap Rule

A part may be both

purchased and
manufactured

Database Systems Slide 20

 Subtype Discriminators
• An attribute of the super type whose values determine the
target subtype(s)
– Disjoint – a simple attribute with alternative values to
indicate the possible subtypes
– Overlapping – a composite attribute whose subparts
pertain to different subtypes. Each subpart contains a
Boolean value to indicate whether or not the instance
belongs to the associated subtype

Database Systems Slide 21

 Subtype Discriminator (disjoint Rule)

A simple attribute with

different possible values
indicating the subtype

Database Systems Slide 22

 Subtype discriminator (Overlap Rule)

A composite attribute
with sub-attributes
indicating “yes” or “no”
to determine whether it
is of each subtype

Database Systems Slide 23

Database Systems Slide 24
Database Systems Slide 25
 Entity Clustering
• Entity clustering is a useful way to present a data model a
large and complex systems involving hundreds of entities.
• An entity cluster is a virtual entity type formed by combining
multiple related entities.
• Referring to the examples discussed, the entities related
employee, patient, part can be clustered together.
• The cardinalities of the relationships of the clustered entities
with the other entities remain the same.

Database Systems Slide 26

 Reading Material

Book Chapter Sections / Pages

Text Book 5 Sections 5.1, 5.2

Ref. Book A 3 Pages 114-134

Ref. Book B 12 Sections 12.1 to 12.3

Database Systems Slide 27

 Thank you for your attention.

Asif Sohail

Assistant Professor
University of the Punjab
Punjab University College of Information Technology (PUCIT)
Allama Iqbal (Old) Campus, Anarkali
Lahore, Pakistan
Tel: +92-(0)42-111-923-923 Ext. 154
E-mail: [email protected]

Database Systems Slide 28