Simulation languages and database theory: some considerations from the entity-relationship model

Entity-relationship (ER) database modeling techniques are applied to discrete event simulation. The ER model provides a logical way to organize the data from a simulation run. When the output data are stored using this organization, a relational database can be used to make queries in a database language that should answer virtually any question about the simulation performance and facilitate the statistical analysis of the data. The ER modeling approach is contrasted with the models which are used in the simulation language SIMAN. This comparison provides insight into both approaches and suggests some modifications and additions to the SIMAN language which should improve its flexibility and make it more consistent with the ER theory