Entity-relationship Modeling Tools and DSLs: Is It Still Possible to Advance the State of the Art from Observations in Practice?

The variety of database system technologies that became available in recent years makes difficult the selection of tools for modeling entity-relationship (ER). The published mapping studies on this topic date back to 2000, thus outdated and limited to guide designers towards the recent innovations selection for the design and implementation of databases. In this sense, we contribute with an overview of the recent innovations through a systematic literature mapping complemented by research in the gray literature. This paper scopes ten (10) primary studies focused on Domain-Specific Languages (DSL) and identifies fifty-five (55) tools already applied in industry and academia for ER modeling at the conceptual, logical, and physical level. Hence, as a significant increment to existing mapping studies, this presents the state-of-the-art and practice for ER modeling, including its characterization and research gaps.