How Entity Clusters Are Used To Represent Multiple Entities

How Entity Clusters Are Used To Represent Multiple Entities And Relationships

Developing an ER diagram involves the discovery of probably hundreds of entity types and their respective relationships. As a design nears completion, the ERD will contain hundreds of entities and relationships that crowd the diagram to the point of making it unreadable and inefficient as a communication tool. In such cases, entity clusters are used to minimize the number of entities shown in the ERD. An entity cluster is formed by consolidating multiple interrelated entities into a single abstract entity object. An entity cluster is considered “virtual” or “abstract” in the sense that it is not actually an entity in the final ERD. It is a temporary entity used to depict multiple entities and relationships, with the purpose of simplifying the ERD and thus improving its readability.