Data Model Design: Hydroinformatics: Data Management and Analysis Spring 2021

U.S.
-Pakistan Centers for Advanced Studies in Water
Hydroinformatics: Data Management and Analysis

Spring 2021
Lecture 4
Data model design
Waqas Ahmed USPCAS-W, MUET, Jamshoro
Partnering Universities:
1
U.S.-Pakistan Centers for Advanced Studies in Water
Learning Objectives
• Identify and describe important entities
and relationships to model data
• Develop data models to represent,

organize, and store data
2
Data Model Design
Data model design – the blueprint for

creating a physical implementation of a
database
3
Data Model Design
Our focus – relational data model

design
Three stages:
Conceptual data model
Logical data model
Physical data model
4
Conceptual Data Model

(AKA – The Information Model)
• High-level description of the data domain

• Does not constrain how that description is mapped to an
actual implementation in software
• There may be many mappings
– Relational database
– Object model
– XML schema, etc.
Apple/Tree/Orchard Conceptual Model
Grows In
Apple Apple Tree Orchard
Grows On
Hydrologic Time Series

• An organization operates a network of monitoring sites. At
each site they collect data for a number of time series, and
each time series contains a set of observations
Conceptual Data Model

• Defines scope of the domain
• Defines and organizes data requirements
• Defines entities and relationships among
them Entities
Site
1
*
TimeSeries
1
*
Observations
Relationships
Defining Entities and Relationships

• Instead of beginning with this:
Site
1
*
TimeSeries
1
Observations
*
• Sometimes its easier to write statements:
– Many TimeSeries are measured at a Site.
– Each TimeSeries contains one or more
Observations.
• The nouns become entities and the verbs
become relationships.
Logical Data Model

• Technology independent
• Contains more detail than the Conceptual Data Model
• Considered by many to be just an expanded conceptual
data model
• Defines
• Entities AND their attributes
• Relationships AND cardinality
• Constraints (think Business Rules)
• Generally completed as a documented Entity Relationship
(ER) Model or diagram
10
Logical Data Model: E-R Diagram
11
Logical Data Model: E-R Diagram
• Documentation of the structure of the data

• Used to communicate the design
• Serve as the basis for data model
implementation Relationship
Entity
12
E-R Diagram
• Entities effectively become tables

• Attributes describe entities and become fields
(columns) in tables
• Relationships link tables on a common
attribute or “key” and become formal
constraints (part of the business rules)
13
E-R Diagram Notation

Entity
Entity Name
Data Type
Attributes
14
E-R Diagram Relationship Notation

• Multiple notation systems are used
• Each software program is a little different
• Most common is “Crows Foot”
Crows Foot Alternative
0 .. *
1 .. *
1 .. 1
0 .. 1
15
Reading Relationships
Left to Right: A site has 0 or more time series of data.

Right to Left: A time series is measured at 1 and only
1 site.
Left to Right: A variable has 0 or more time series of

data.
Right to Left: A time series can have 1 andPartnering
only 1 Universities:
variable.
16
Primary and Foreign Keys

• Each row in a table should have an attribute that is a
persistent, unique identifier – the “Primary Key”
• Primary key in “parent” table

• Foreign key in “child” table
17
Primary and Foreign Key Example

OrchardID OwnerName Area_acres
1 John Appleseed 5.5 Orchards
2 Daryl Appleseed 15
AppleTreeID Species Size DatePlanted OrchardID
Apple 1 Honeycrisp 5 4/15/2010 1

2 Honeycrisp 6 4/15/2010 1
Trees 3 Honeycrisp 3 4/15/2010 1
AppleID Color Weight AppleTreeID

1 Green 200 2
2 Green 180 2
Apples
3 Green 195 2
18
Lets stop and see what we have

covered so far
Steps in Data Model Design
1. Identify entities
2. Identify relationships among entities
3. Determine the cardinality and participation of
relationships
4. Designate keys / identifiers for entities
5. List attributes of entities
6. Identify constraints and business rules
19
Normalization
• Organizing the fields and tables in a relational
database to minimize redundancy and
dependency
• Dividing large tables into smaller tables
(with relationships)
• Isolate data so that additions, deletions, and
modifications of a field or record can be made
in one place
• Reduce the need for restructuring the
database as new types of data are introduced
20
Normalization
SiteID SiteName VariableID VariableName DateTime Value
1 Indus River 1 Temperature 1/1/2012 5
1 Indus River 1 Temperature 1/2/2012 5
1 Indus River 2 pH 1/1/2012 8
1 Indus River 2 pH 1/2/2012 8
INSERT: The fact that a site or variable exists cannot be asserted until a measurement has been
loaded into the database.
DELETE: If a row is deleted, information may be lost about not only the measurement, but also the
Variable and the Site.
UPDATE: If a SiteName or VariableName changes, multiple records have to be updated with the new
information
21
Normalization Example
1
* *
SiteID SiteName SiteID VariableID DateTime Value
1 Indus River 1 1 1/1/2012 5
2 Nara canal 1 1 1/2/2012 5
Sites Table 1 2 1/1/2012 8
1 2 1/2/2012 8
1
2 1 1/1/2012 7
VariableID VariableName
2 1 1/2/2012 7
1 Temperature
2 2 1/1/2012 7.5
2 pH
2 2 1/2/2012 7.5
Variables Table DataValues Table
22
Normalization Tradeoffs
• Pros:
– Eliminates redundant data
– Saves space and can improve storage efficiency
– Inserts and updates are done in one place
– Can improve efficiency
• Cons:
– May complicate the code of common queries
– Abstracts tables using keys – can be harder for a
human to “see” the data
23
Do Demo on SQL Work Bench

Data Integrity Rules

• Entity Integrity
– Primary key must exist, be unique, and not null
ValueID SiteID VariableID DateTime Value

SiteID SiteName
101 1 1 1/1/2012 5
1 Indus River
102 1 1 1/2/2012 5
2 Nara
103 1 2 1/1/2012 8
104 1 2 1/2/2012 8
105 2 1 1/1/2012 7
1 Temperature
106 2 1 1/2/2012 7
2 pH
107 2 2 1/1/2012 7.5
108 2 2 1/2/2012 7.5
25

• Referential Integrity
– Every foreign key value must match a primary key
value in an associated table
– Ensures that we can navigate relationships
SiteID SiteName 101 1 1 1/1/2012 5
1 Indus River 102 1 1 1/2/2012 5
2 Nara Canal 103 1 2 1/1/2012 8
104 1 2 1/2/2012 8
105 2 1 1/1/2012 7
106 2 1 1/2/2012 7
1 Temperature
107 2 2 1/1/2012 7.5
2 pH
108 2 2 1/2/2012 7.5
26

• Insert and Delete Rules
• What happens to a parent entity when child entities are deleted?
• What happens to child entities when a parent is deleted?

SiteID SiteName 101 1 1 1/1/2012 5
1 Indus River 102 1 1 1/2/2012 5
2 Nara canal 103 1 2 1/1/2012 8
104 1 2 1/2/2012 8
105 2 1 1/1/2012 7
106 2 1 1/2/2012 7
1 Temperature
107 2 2 1/1/2012 7.5
2 pH
108 2 2 1/2/2012 7.5

• Value Domains
– Valid set of values for an attribute
– Controlled vocabulary, data type, length, range,
constraints, default value
Integer
Date Field Double
Fields
Controlled ValueID SiteID VariableID DateTime Value

Domain
101 1 1 1/1/2012 5.5
VariableID VariableName 102 1 1 1/2/2012 5.678
1 Temperature 103 1 2 1/1/2012 8.0
2 pH 104 1 2 1/2/2012 8.9

Summary
• Data model design is a 3 step process –
conceptual, logical, physical (future topic)
• Conceptual and logical data models can be
expressed using Entity Relationship (ER) diagrams
• ER diagrams capture the entities, attributes, and
relationships to model your information domain
• ER diagrams are a powerful way to document the
design of your data model
Steps in Data Model Design

1. Identify entities
2. Identify relationships among entities
3. Determine the cardinality and participation of
relationships
4. Designate keys / identifiers for entities
5. List attributes of entities
6. Identify constraints and business rules
Exercise-2
• Work alone or in groups of 2-3
• Use MySQL Workbench to begin creating an
Entity Relationship diagram
– Identify entities
– Specify attributes
– Create relationships

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U.S.

-Pakistan Centers for Advanced Studies in Water

Hydroinformatics: Data Management and Analysis

Waqas Ahmed USPCAS-W, MUET, Jamshoro

• Develop data models to represent,

Data Model Design

Data model design – the blueprint for

Data Model Design

Our focus – relational data model

Conceptual Data Model

• High-level description of the data domain

Apple/Tree/Orchard Conceptual Model

Apple Apple Tree Orchard

Hydrologic Time Series

Conceptual Data Model

Defining Entities and Relationships

Logical Data Model

Logical Data Model: E-R Diagram

Logical Data Model: E-R Diagram

• Documentation of the structure of the data

• Entities effectively become tables

E-R Diagram Notation

E-R Diagram Relationship Notation

Left to Right: A site has 0 or more time series of data.

Left to Right: A variable has 0 or more time series of

Primary and Foreign Keys

• Primary key in “parent” table

Primary and Foreign Key Example

AppleTreeID Species Size DatePlanted OrchardID

Apple 1 Honeycrisp 5 4/15/2010 1

AppleID Color Weight AppleTreeID

Lets stop and see what we have

Do Demo on SQL Work Bench

Data Integrity Rules

ValueID SiteID VariableID DateTime Value

Data Integrity Rules

Data Integrity Rules

ValueID SiteID VariableID DateTime Value

Data Integrity Rules

Controlled ValueID SiteID VariableID DateTime Value

VariableID VariableName 102 1 1 1/2/2012 5.678

1 Temperature 103 1 2 1/1/2012 8.0

2 pH 104 1 2 1/2/2012 8.9

Steps in Data Model Design

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