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Data Flow Diagrams

Diagrams
A Data Flow diagram is a graphical technique used to abstract the operation of a system in a given environment. They explicitly show how information flows to and from the system and how this information is transformed along the way. The following Data Flow diagrams have been created to provide such an overview for IFESS.

3.1 How To Read a Data Flow Diagram


Data Flow diagrams are drawn in nested layers. They start with the most general representation of the system and work down into specific sections. In the following diagrams, there are labeled bubbles representing different components of the system. For each bubble, a more detailed description will be given in the individual diagram corresponding to the component name. For clarity, a legend of the symbols used in Data Flow diagrams is given below. In addition, the following generic rules are the main guidelines: - Arrowheads indicate which way the data is flowing. - Processes have at least one input and one output. - Any two data stores are never directly connected to each other. - Any two external entities are never directly connected to each other. - Transitions between processes are legal.

3.1.1 Legend

3.2 Level 0 Diagram


This high-level view shows how IFESS will interact with its environment; such a schematic is also referred to as a context diagram. The entire IFESS system is represented by a central bubble, which has directed arcs specifying its general input and output. In this diagram it is also easy to see the many entities that supply input to IFESS and its many facets for output.

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3.3 Level 1 Diagram


The level one diagram is an expansion of the singular IFESS bubble in the previous schematic. It shows all of the major components of the system and indicates which of these components the input and output arcs from the level zero diagram belong to. Also, the input and output arcs are more specific, and now the label indicates what specific data is flowing. The purpose of this level is to clarify the breakdown of the entire software system into its major components.

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Data Flow Diagrams

3.4 Level 2 Diagrams


3.4.1 Level 2A: The Internet
This simple diagram describes how IFESS provides access to the Internet. Passengers input information into the IFESS Internet browsing tool, prompting IFESS to retrieve the content from the Internet and output it to the Display system.

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Data Flow Diagrams

3.4.2 Level 2B: Food Ordering


Illustrated here is the system functionality that deals with food orders and meal reservations. Passengers and pilots are able to reserve a meal from a list of available choices, as well as order individual food items. Also shown is how they can change their selection meals anytime before the cutoff. Flight attendants can both view pending orders and mark them as delivered. All information storage is done through the food data store, which gets revised regularly by the update system.

3.4.3 Level 2C: Games


Another simple diagram showing how IFESS provides the passengers with access to basic games such as hearts and FreeCell. Passengers select the game that they want to play and IFESS displays the game on the passengers terminal. It then takes inputs from the user and outputs the visual and audio game information to the display system and headphones respectively.

3.4.4 Level 2D: Billing System


This diagram describes the comprehensive IFESS billing and account tracking system. This system accepts billing information from both the food and movie systems, and updates the passenger-specific billing information in the billing/account information data store. The diagram shows how passengers can view their individual account information and how flight attendants can access passenger information, add a payment to an account, and print a permanent account record. The arc leading to the billing/account information data store from the update system depicts this update of information.

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Data Flow Diagrams

3.4.5 Level 2E: Movies


This diagram shows the data flow to and from the movie system. The functionality includes selecting a movie, watching it, and controlling the playback. When a movie is selected, the system sends the movie and passenger information to the billing system in order to update the account balance. It also internally determines if the passenger is required to pay for watching the selected movie. From there, the movie file is found in the data store and played on the passengers terminal, the audio information going to the headphones while the video stream goes to the display. During play, the system also handles passenger control of the movies progress through standard stop, pause, re-wind, and fast-forward commands.

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Data Flow Diagrams

3.4.6 Level 2F: Display


Shown here is how various IFESS components access the display system to output information to the user. There are nine components accessing the display system: information update, music, food, in-flight info, billing/accounts, movies, games, Internet, and help. There is also functionality to display core information, which involves the display of core items such as the IFESS user interface.

3.4.7 Level 2G: Music


This diagram describes the data flow to and from the music system. If covers all related functionality, including listening to pre-recorded music tracks and listening to the radio. Radio stations interact with IFESS by sending the radio station stream via the web. Passengers send requests for stations or music type, which sends the appropriate audio to the headphones. For pre-recorded music tracks, track progress is also sent to the video display.

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Data Flow Diagrams

3.4.8 Level 2H: Flight Information


This diagram describes how passengers interact with the flight information system. A passenger request on the status of the flight prompts IFESS to retrieve the information from the data store and generate a status report. This report is formatted into readable display information and sent to the terminal. The data store is constantly updated by the in-flight information, so passengers can always see an up-to-date outlook of the flight status.

3.4.9 Level 2I: Update Information


This is a simple diagram that depicts how the information in all of the IFESS systems data stores is updated. For clarity, all of the IFESS data stores have been represented as one universal data store. This is merely an abstract representation, and is not meant to imply any implementation choices. It is to this universal data store that the administrator inputs updated information. The updated information is then sent to the appropriate local data store.

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Data Flow Diagrams

3.4.10 Level 2J: Help


This straightforward diagram shows how the various IFESS users can access help files for all IFESS operations. Passengers, Flight Attendants, Pilots and Administrators can all access this system. When they input a help section to view, the system retrieves the help files from the data store, and the information is sent to the display.

3.5 Data Flow Diagrams Data Dictionary


Term Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Movie Item Movie, Billing/Accounts IFESS representation of a movie. Administrator Inputs Level 0 All the possible inputs the Administrator may use. Altitude Level 0, In-flight Info Current Altitude of the plane
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Data Flow Diagrams

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Audio Level 0 All sound that is output to the headphones. Audio Signal Level 0, Movies, Music Movies and Music both generate Audio output in the form of an Audio Signal Billing display data Display The information from Billing that is to be displayed. Billing info Level 0 All the information that is pertinent to Billing. Information such as Seat Number and Passenger ID are a couple of examples. Billing/Account info Level 0, Billing/Accounts, Display The accumulated information from Billing/Accounts that is to be displayed. Browsing instructions Level 0, Internet Instructions from the user to control the browsing of the Internet. Category Level 0, Help A subsection of the Help File. Confirmation Billing/Accounts Action to ensure correct data input. Core Display data Display Display data corresponding to the representation of information in the data store. Cost Level 0, Food, Billing/Accounts, Movie The price of an item. Database output Level 0 Information transferred from the plane to the airport. Deliver Orders Food Message indicating that a food order has been delivered. Description Food, Billing/Accounts General description of an item.
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Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

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Data Flow Diagrams

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Detailed account info Billing/Accounts Account information to be processed. Detailed account record Level 0, Billing/Accounts Account information to be printed. Displayable flight info Level 0, Display, In-Flight Info Data required for displaying the flight status.

ETA Level 0, In-Flight Info Estimated Time of Arrival of the flight. Fast Forward Movie, Music Fast Forward a movie or music option. Files Information Update The physical files needed to be updated during administrative maintenance. Flight attendant inputs Level 0 All possible inputs the Flight Attendant will need to enter. Flight Data In-Flight Info All flight data pertinent to the Flight status, such as Altitude and ETA. Food Adjustments Level 0 Adjustments made to the way food is represented on the system. Food display data Display All data required for displaying food information. Food info Level 0, Food, Display All data associated with Food. Food item Level 0, Food, Billing/Accounts Individual item of food, eg. A turkey sandwich.

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term:

Food Order Level 0, Food Contains a collection of Food Items. Game display data
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Data Flow Diagrams

Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Display Data required to display games. Game Info Display, Information Update All pertinent information relating to Games, eg. The name of the game. Game List Information Update List of games available. Game play instructions Level 0 Input from user to control the game play. Help Display data Level 0, Help, Display Data required to display Help. Help Files Help Physical files containing the text for help. Help request Level 0 Request for help on a topic. Help Section Request Help Section of help desired.

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

IFESS core data Display Main data at the heart of the IFESS system. In-flight display data Display Data required to display the in-flight status of the plane. Internet Content Display, Internet Visual data retrieved from the Internet. Meal Food Prearranged grouping of Food Items. Meal Adjustments Information Update Adding, removing, adjusting meal listings. Meal ID Food Identification of a type of meal.

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Data Flow Diagrams

Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description: Term: Location(s) of Use: Description:

Movie Movies Data representation of a movie. Movie audio Level 0 Audio emitted from a movie. Movie Info Display Movie description information to be displayed. Movie Item Movie, Billing/Accounts IFESS representation of a movie. Movie Name Movie Name of a movie. Movie Request Level 0, Movie User request for a movie to be played. Movie Video Stream Level 0, Movie, Display Video display generated from a movie. Music Display data Display Information describing Music to be displayed. Music Info Information Update Information for updating the status of the music list. Music List Information Update List of all available music.

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