Algebraic semantics of ER-models in the context of the calculus of relations: I: Static view

Abstract

Entity-Relationship modeling is a popular technique for data modeling. Despite its popularity and wide spread use, it lacks a firm semantic foundation. We propose a translation of an ER-model into the formalism provided by the calculus of relations, suggesting that this calculus does provide suitable mechanisms for establishing a formal semantics of entity-relationship modeling. This paper deals with the techniques necessary for the translation and provides a static view of an ER-model.