Data Model

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A Data Model is a Model of Data. It represents selected aspects of how Data is identified, organized, related, constrained, and used for a defined purpose.

A Data Model may describe:

• Data elements and their identities
• Data types and permitted values
• Structures and compositions
• Relationships among Data elements
• Constraints governing valid Data
• Identifiers, keys, and references
• Rules for representing, storing, or exchanging Data
• Associations with governed semantic meaning

A Data Model can be expressed at different levels of abstraction. A conceptual Data Model identifies the principal kinds of Data and their relationships without prescribing an implementation. A logical Data Model provides additional Structure, types, Constraints, and relationships. A physical Data Model describes how the Data is realized using a particular storage, exchange, or processing technology.

In the SIP-RA context, a Data Model does not silently combine Data, Structure, semantics, Interpretation, and Governance. It identifies its represented concerns and the relationships among them so that each concern can evolve under appropriate control.

a Model that represents selected Data elements, Structures, relationships, Constraints, and associated meaning for a defined purpose

Derived from the Dido Solutions definitions of Data and Model, informed by Model Driven Architecture (MDA) and ISO/IEC 11179 metadata-registry concepts.

A Data Model is distinct from the Data that conforms to it. For example, a Data Model may define the Structure, type, relationships, and Constraints of a transaction record, while an individual transaction record contains the Data values.

A Data Model may reference semantic definitions and Interpretation rules, but those references do not make the Data Model the sole governing source for semantics or Interpretation.

A logistics-readiness Data Model identifies units, personnel, equipment, supplies, locations, readiness observations, and reporting periods. It specifies the relationships and Constraints among those elements without requiring a particular database product, message format, or implementation platform.