KIT119 2025

Tutorial 2: ER diagram Design

Aim

In this tutorial, students will learn the fundamentals of Entity-Relationship (ER) diagram
design, a crucial step in conceptualizing and planning relational database systems. Through
a series of interactive exercises and case studies, students will explore the principles of
entity identification, relationship representation, and attribute definition. Additionally,
specifying the tool (Lucidchart) that students will use adds clarity to the learning process.

Task 1: Getting Started using Lucidchart (10 mins)

In this task, students will be introduced to Lucidchart, a cloud-based diagramming tool used
for creating various types of diagrams, including Entity-Relationship (ER) diagrams。

Lucidchart is a web-based proprietary platform that is used to allow users to collaborate on

drawing, revising and sharing charts and diagrams. If you do not have Visio this is a good
alternative. Lucidchart runs on browsers that support HTML5. It can run on a Windows,
Android or Apple OS computer running a browser like Google. It has besides the paid
version also a freeware version that is free forever provided you do use it only for personal
needs (that is not the same as a trial version for the paid software that is only available for 7
days and we do not need that).

Sign up for Lucidchart

To start: Click on [Link]

Click the “sign-up for free” tab on the upper-left of the page. Then select “Free” option. Free
includes:

 3 editable Lucidchart documents

 60 shapes per Lucidchart document

 100 templates

 Basic Visual Activities

 Basic data linking

 Presentation mode

 Commenting

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Later you can sign in with your email and password.

Note: Be careful not to select the trial version of the paid program as it is free only for 7
days. If you get a message that you are trying a feature from the paid premium version of
the software while you followed the instructions, then most likely you have already three
open current documents-see the last note at the end of this file. Once you login, you may be
taken to your account. Do not elect to try the free trial.

Explore the Lucidchart Interface

After signing in, take a moment to explore the Lucidchart interface. Familiarize yourself with
the toolbar, canvas area, shape libraries, and properties panel. Hover over the icons in the
toolbar to view tooltips explaining their functions.

Access Templates and Resources: Click on the "Template", explore the available categories
and templates to see the variety of diagrams you can create with Lucidchart.
Start a New Document: Click on the "+ Document" button in the top left corner of the
interface to start a new Lucidchart document. Choose a blank document or select a
template from the gallery to begin working on your diagram.

Fig.1. Create a blank document.

For drawing an ERD: Click “More shapes” and scroll down the left “Standard
Libraries” menu and select “Entity Relationship”, and click “Use selected shapes”, then you
should see Entity Relationship in the “Shapes” penal.
Fig.2. Select ER from standard libararies.

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Fig.3. Initial ER Diagram interface

Task 2: ER Diagram Creation (50 mins)

The Pet Clinic Management System (PCMS) is a software solution designed to efficiently
manage customer information, pet records, staff details, and visit records within a pet clinic
setting. Customers register with the clinic, providing personal details and payment
information, while their pets are associated with them through unique identifiers. Staff
members, assigned unique IDs, provide veterinary services and administrative support. Each
staff member may be assigned to multiple charges, and each staff member may care for
several pets. Visits made by customers to the clinic are recorded, detailing the date, time,
services provided, attending staff, billing information, and payment status.

Basic Entity Identification

Customers: Customers are pet owners who seek veterinary services at the clinic.

Pets: Pets are animals owned by customers and receive medical care at the clinic. Each pet
is associated with a customer and has its own details.

Staff: Staff members are employed by the clinic to provide veterinary services and
administrative support.

Visits: Visits represent instances when customers bring their pets to the clinic for medical
treatment or consultation.

Attributes Definition
Customers: Each customer is identified by a unique CustomerID and provides essential
personal details such as FirstName, LastName, Address, Email, Phone, Date of Birth (DoB),

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and Payment Information. The JoinDate attribute indicates the date when the customer first
registered with the clinic.

Pets: Each pet is associated with a customer through the CustomerID attribute and is further
identified by a unique Pet#. Pet records include details such as NickName, Category,
Address, Email, Breed, BreedDescription, Gender, Date of Birth (DoB), and any additional
Notes provided by the owner.

Staff: Each staff member is assigned a unique EmployeeID and provides personal
information such as FirstName, LastName, Social Security Number (SSN), Address, Email,
Phone, and Date of Birth (DoB).

Visits: Each visit is assigned a unique VisitID and includes details such as the Date and Time
of the visit, the associated Customer, the Service provided (identified by ServiceID,
ServiceName, ServicePrice, and ServiceDescription), the attending Staff member, billing
information (Bill), and payment status (Paid/UnPaid).

Now, based on the information provided above, here is what you summarized about the
entities:

 Customers: CustomerID, FirstName, LastName, Address, Email, Phone, DoB,

PaymentInfo, JoinDate. CustomerID is primary key.
 Pets: CustomerID, Pet#, NickName, Address, Email, Category, Breed,
BreedDescription, Gender, DoB, Notes. Pet# is primary key and CustomerID is
foreign key.
 Staff: EmployeeID, FirstName, LastName, SSN, Address, Email, Phone, DoB.
EmployeeID is primary key.
 Visit: VisitID, VisitDateTime, CustomerID, ServiceID, ServiceName, ServicePrice,
ServiceDescription, EmployeeID, Bill, paymentStatus. VisitID is the primary key and
CustomerID and EmployeeID are foreign keys.

Relationship Representation

Customer-Pet Relationship: A customer may own multiple pets, while each pet belongs to
only one customer.

Staff-Pet Relationship: Staff members may provide treatment for multiple pets, and each
pet may interact with multiple staff members.

Customer-Visit Relationship: Customers may visit the clinic multiple times, with each visit
linked to a single customer.

Staff-Visit Relationship: Staff members are responsible for conducting visits, with each visit
assigned to a single staff member.

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Their relationships are:

 A customer may have one to many (zero to many) pets; A pet must belong to one
and only one customer.
 A staff may treat one to many pets (zero to many); and A pet may interact with one
to many (zero to many) staff.
 A customer may have one to many (zero to many) visits; and each visit must be done
by one customer.
 A staff may be in charge of one to many (zero to many) visits; and a visit is charged
by only one staff.

Final Creation

Now you have collected the information needed for the ER Model, and you are ready to
draw the ERD.

Fig.3. Sample solution of ER Diagram

Export ER diagram

Click "File" and select "Export." You can export the completed ERD into various formats
using Lucidchart, including PDF, PNG, JPEG, and SVG. This flexibility allows you to share the
ERD with colleagues and stakeholders in the format that best suits their needs.

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Fig.4. Export ED diagram into various formats (using PDF as sample)

Challenge 1:

Your client is a local fast-food restaurant - TassieBite. The background story is as below:

TassieBite is a beloved local fast-food restaurant nestled in the heart of Tasmania. Recently,
TassieBite has set its sights on expanding its presence beyond its flagship location and
establishing a chain of restaurants across Tasmania. To support this ambitious growth
strategy, TassieBite recognizes the need for a robust database system for internal
management. This system will play a crucial role in streamlining operations, managing
resources efficiently, and maintaining the high standards of quality and service.

The basic information needed is:

 Stores: including ID, name, location

 Employees: including ID, SSN, name, gender, DoB, position, salary, AffiliateStore.
 Vendors: including ID, name, address, contactInfo
 Products: including ID, name, Vendor, price, quantity

Each store has many employees, and each employee works for one store. Additionally, each
store can sell many different products, and products can be available in many stores.
Furthermore, each vendor provides on specific products.

Based on your understanding so far, what are the entities, attributes, identifiers, and
relationships in the Entity Relationship Model? Please create an ER diagram using
Lucidchart and present it to your tutor for review.

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Challenge 2:

ER quiz on MyLO. It has 2 questions, and the duration is 10 minutes.

Bonus Challenge:

EcoGreen is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting environmental conservation

and sustainability. The organization operates various programs and projects aimed at
educating the public, conserving natural resources, and supporting green initiatives. With a
growing number of programs and an expanding network of volunteers, EcoGreen needs a
robust database system to efficiently manage its operations, track volunteer activities, and
monitor project progress. This database system will be crucial for organizing information,
improving communication, and enhancing the overall effectiveness of EcoGreen's efforts.
The basic information needed is:

 Programs: including ProgramID, Name, Description, Start_Date, End_Date.

 Projects: including projectID, Name, Description, Start_Date, End_Date
 Volunteers: including VolunteerID, Name, ContactInfo, Address, Email.
 Activities: including ActivityID, Name, Description, Date, Time, Location

Each program can have many projects, but each project belongs to only one program. Each
project can have many volunteers, and each volunteer can participate in multiple projects.
Each activity can have multiple volunteers, and each volunteer can participate in multiple
activities.

Based on your understanding so far, please create an ER diagram using Lucidchart and
present it to your tutor for review.

Tutor Checklist
Challenge Completed (Y/N/Notes) Marks
1
2
Bonus