International Journal of Computer Applications |
Foundation of Computer Science (FCS), NY, USA |
Volume 37 - Number 7 |
Year of Publication: 2012 |
Authors: Suja Ramachandran, S. Rajeswari, S.A.V. Satya Murty |
10.5120/4617-4834 |
Suja Ramachandran, S. Rajeswari, S.A.V. Satya Murty . Dimensional Modeling of Indian Materials Database. International Journal of Computer Applications. 37, 7 ( January 2012), 1-8. DOI=10.5120/4617-4834
The Indian Materials Database (IMDB) is a national project aiming to develop a database through compilation of materials property data available in different laboratories in India. The database contains data on mechanical, corrosion, nondestructive evaluation, thermal and optical properties of a wide variety of materials. Selecting the appropriate data modeling technique is crucial for the successful deployment of such a database. Dimensional modeling is a logical design technique to present data in a standard, intuitive framework that allows for high-performance access. Dimensional modeling of data results in a ‘Star Schema’, where the data constitutes a central fact table surrounded by dimension tables. This paper discusses the model and architecture of the material database using a ‘Snowflake Schema’, which is a variation of ‘Star Schema’, where some of the dimensions are normalized into multiple related tables. The database contains a central fact table linked to multiple dimensions namely, 1) Materials 2) Properties of materials 3) Details of experiments conducted on materials and 4) Source from which data is obtained.