A structural model for database systems

Munich Personal RePEc Archive (Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich)Published 1 February 1979

Gio Wiederhold, Ramez Elmasri

Citations25

TL;DR

The structural model can be used to represent the data relationships within the conceptual schema of the ANSI/SPARC DBMS model since it can support database submodels, also called external schema, and maintain the integrity of the submodels with respect to the integrity constraints expressable in the structural model.

Abstract

This report presents a model to be used for database design. Because our motivation extends to providing guidance for the structured implementation of a database, we call out model the Structural Model. We derive the design using criteria of correctness, relevance, and performance from semantic and operational specifications obtained from multiple sources. These sources typically correspond to prospective users or user groups of the database. The integration of such specifications is a central issue in the development of an integrated structural database model. The structural model is used for the design of the logical structures that represent a real-world situation. However, it is not meant to represent all possible real-world semantics, but a subset of the semantics which are important in database modelling.

Keywords

Computer Science

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