Juan Trujillo, Sergio Luján-Mora, Il-Yeol Song. In K. Siau (Ed.), Advanced Topics in Database Research, vol. 2, Hershey, PA: IGI Global, p. 13-36. ISBN: 1-59140-063-5. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-59140-063-9.ch002
Multidimensional (MD) modeling is the basis for Data warehouses (DW), multidimensional databases (MDB) and On-Line Analytical Processing (OLAP) applications. In this chapter, we present how the Unified Modeling Language (UML) can be successfully used to represent both structural and dynamic properties of these systems at the conceptual level. The structure of the system is specified by means of a UML class diagram that considers the main properties of MD modeling with minimal use of constraints and extensions of the UML. If the system to be modeled is too complex, thereby leading us to a considerable number of classes and relationships, we sketch out how to use the package grouping mechanism provided by the UML to simplify the final model. Furthermore, we provide a UML-compliant class notation (called cube class) to represent OLAP initial user requirements. We also describe how we can use the UML state and interaction diagrams to model the behavior of a data warehouse system. We believe that our innovative approach provides a theoretical foundation for simplifying the conceptual design of multidimensional systems and our examples illustrate the use of our approach.
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