Sample RDBMS Milestone Format for Milestones 1 and 2 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Case Description: Auto-Rent Car Rental Agency

(Sample Case Description) General Description Auto-Rent is a car rental agency that operates within one state. It has 50 locations where cars may be picked up or dropped off. Your project is to design the database application for the central computing facility. The agency has a fleet of 750 cars, all registered in the state. It handles almost 40,000 reservations per year. There are 500 corporate accounts, which account for about half of the reservations. The remaining reservations are made by individual customers. Basic Operations Customers or their travel agents usually make reservations about a week in advance by dialing a toll-free number. If there are sufficient available cars, some last minute rentals are arranged. Reservations can also be made in person at any location. All reservations are sent to the central computer. Each location can generate lists of reservations for that site as needed. A car can be picked up at one location and returned in another. It is the responsibility of the central office to ensure that cars are dispatched to sites where they will be needed to fill reservations. The sites are responsible for notifying the central location as soon as cars are returned. All rentals require a credit card number or corporate account number. Customers can choose from a variety of car models, mileage plans, and insurance coverage options. There are daily, weekly or monthly rates. Corporate accounts receive a negotiated reduction of up to 15% of the normal rates. Every car is rented out with a full tank of gasoline. When a car is returned, the mileage and the amount of gasoline are checked. If the tank is not full, the customer is charged for the missing gasoline. If the customer has chosen a plan other than unlimited mileage, the mileage is used to calculate mileage charges. The car is also checked for damage, and the customer may be liable for repairs unless the damage occurred and was reported before the rental began. Auto-Rent contracts with garages to perform routine maintenance and do repairs on its cars. Maintenance jobs such as oil changes and tune-ups are scheduled at regular intervals for all cars in the fleet. Repairs are performed as needed, using authorized garages. If a car needs repairs during a rental, the customer normally calls Auto-Rent to report the problem, and representatives bring a replacement car to the customer, arrange to bring the defective car to an authorized garage, and obtain an estimate of repairs. If a problem is spotted while the car is not rented, the car is brought to an authorized garage and an estimate is obtained. A garage must have written authorization from Auto-Rent before it performs a repair job. Cars are normally kept active for about two years. After that time they are sold as used cars and new cars are purchased to replace them. Information Needs

All data relating to cars, rentals, maintenance and repair are to be stored at the central site. Local sites are responsible for sending updates of the information they generate. They make up tentative bills for clients who return cars to their sites, based on the customers report of mileage and gasoline level. The final bill is generated from the central site, once mileage, gasoline level, and damage checks have been made locally. Local sites can download information they need. For example, each site requests data about reservations made for that location, and each can request records of cars rented elsewhere and returned to their site, so that they can generate tentative bills. The following reports are needed:

1.

Reservations for Location X for Date MM/DD/YY: Reservation#, Date, Customer Name, Customer Address, Customer Phone, Credit Card Type, Credit Card Number, Corporation Name, Corporation Account Number, Car Make, Car Model, Mileage Plan, Insurance Plan, Rate Period, Rate, Discount, Estimated Length of Rental.

If the customer is renting under a corporate account, the Corporation Name, Account Number and Discount Rate are given. Car make and Car model are the details of the car required, for example the Car make to be Toyota and the Car model Corolla. Mileage Plan and Insurance Plan are codes indicating the choices the customer has made. Rate Period is day, week, or month, and Rate is the actual amount per day, week, or month before any discount is taken. The Estimated Length is included to help Auto-Rent in its planning. However, any rental can be extended beyond the estimated length if the customer notifies the agency and provides a new estimate.

2.

Individual Customer Bill: Customer Name, Customer Address, Customer Phone, Corporation Name, Corporation Address, Corporate Account Number, Rental#, Bill Date, Credit Card Type, Credit Card Number, Car Make, Car Model, Car Registration#, Mileage Plan, Insurance Plan, Rate Period, Rate, Date Rented, Time Rented, Date Returned, Time Returned, Starting Miles, Ending Miles, Gasoline Level, Basic Charge, Mileage Charge, Insurance Charge, Gasoline Charge, Tax, Final Charge.

The individual customer bill is prepared for customers. If they are corporate clients, the Corporation Name, Corporation Address and Corporate Account Number appear. If they are individual customers, the Credit card Type and Credit Card Number appear. Both the tentative bill and the final bill have the same format.

3.

Corporate Customer Bill: Corporation Name, Corporation Address, Account Number, Bill Date, Contract Number, Customer Name, Customer Address, Date Rented, Time Rented, Date Returned, Time Returned, Rate Period, Rate, Discount, Car Registration#, Car Make, Car Model, Mileage Plan, Insurance Plan, Starting Miles, Ending Miles, Gasoline Level, Basic Charge, Mileage Charge, Insurance Charge, Discount, Tax, Final Charge.

The first four items appear only once on the bill, while the rest of the data is repeated for each rental made by anyone from the corporation during the billing period. In addition, each of the corporate customers receives an individual statement that contains all the data in the individual bill described above.

4.

Available Cars Report: Todays Date, Make, Model, Color, Car Registration#, Vehicle Identification Number, Mileage, Condition, Location.

This report lists every car not currently rented and identifies the location of the car. It can be used to plan reservations and to provide cars for last minute requests. The condition is described by a code; for example, 1=new, 2=excellent, 3=good, and so on. The cars are all licensed in a single state, so the Car Registration# is sufficient to identify each car uniquely. The Vehicle Identification Number is a unique number stamped on the engine of a car at the time it is manufactured.

5.

Maintenance Report: Car Registration#, Vehicle Identification Number, Car Make, Car Model, Color, Date of Procedure, Procedure Name, Cost, Garage Name, Garage Address, Mileage, Condition.

This report lists a single car and gives details of maintenance procedures performed on it. The first five items appear only once and the remaining items are repeated for each date on which maintenance was performed on the car.

6.

Repairs Report: Car Registration#, Vehicle Identification Number, Car Make, Car Model, Color, Date of Repair, Repair Name, Garage Name, Garage Address, Estimate, Final Cost, Mileage, Condition.

This report details al the repairs done on a single car. The condition is the state of the car after the repair is performed. The estimate and final cost are stored to allow the agency to spot garages that routinely underestimate costs.

7.

Activity by Location: Location, Manager Name, Starting Date, Ending Date, Number of Daily Rentals, Number of Weekly Rentals, Number of Monthly Rentals, Total Income.

This report provides information about the activity of any location during the period desired.

8.

Activity by Corporation: Corporation Name, Corporation Address, Representative Name, Representative Phone, Account Number, Corporate Discount, Starting Date, Ending Date, Number of Daily Rentals, Number of Weekly Rentals, Number of Monthly Rentals, Total Income.

This report allows us to obtain information about rental income from corporate clients during any period desired. You can make assumptions concerning the details of the operation of the organization which are not stated in the case description. Include any assumptions made in your reports. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------