Entity relationship (ER) Model is a software engineering model that was developed to represent databases.
They were first developed by Peter Chen and published in the paper “The Entity Relationship Model –
Toward a Unified View of Data” in 1976.
Methods representing ER Models
Methods or modeling languages to represent ER Models:
- Chen
- EER
- IDEF1X
- Bachman
- Martin / IE / Crow’s
- Min-Max ISO
- UML
Chen
In Chen’s notation, entities are represented with rectangles, attributes with circles and relationships with diamonds. Primary keys are underlined.
Enhanced Entity-Relationship (EER) Model
It latest update was in 2019.
Crow’s Foot
As of 2023, Crow’s Foot diagrams can be used in diagrams.net by going to Software > Entity Relationship Diagram.
They are very close to relational databases design, indicating tables with their primary and foreign keys.
UML
UML Class Diagram
UML Class diagrams can be used to represent database entities and their relationship.
UML Data Profile Model
The Data Model Profile is a UML extension to support the modelling of relational databases in UML.
You might also be interested in…
- Process Modeling Tools
- Relational Databasees.
External References
- SPARX Systems; “Database Modeling in UML“; SPARX Systems