Java - Aggregation
Java - Aggregation
Java Aggregation
An aggregation is a relationship between two classes where one class contains an instance of
another class. For example, when an object A contains a reference to another object B or we can
say Object A has a HAS-A relationship with Object B, then it is termed as Aggregation in Java
Programming.
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Example 1
In this example, we're creating few classes like Vehicle, Speed. A Van class is defined which extends
Vehicle class and has a Speed class object. Van class inherits properties from Vehicle class and
Speed being its property, we're passing it from caller object. In output, we're printing the details of
Van object.
Open Compiler
package com.tutorialspoint;
class Vehicle{
private String vin;
van.setVin("abcd1233");
van.setSpeed(speed);
van.print();
}
}
Output
Example 2
In this example, we're creating few classes like Student, Address. A student can has a address. So
we've defined an address as an instance variable in Student class. In output, we're printing the
student details.
Open Compiler
package com.tutorialspoint;
class Address {
int strNum;
String city;
String state;
String country;
Address stAddr;
Student(int roll, String name, Address address){
this.rno = roll;
this.stName = name;
this.stAddr = address;
}
}
Output
Roll no: 1
Name: Aashi
Street: 10
City: Bareilly
State: UP
Country: India
In a unique sense, this is a type of association. Aggregation is a one way directed relationship that
precisely expresses HAS-A relationship between classes. Additionally, when two classes are
aggregated, terminating one of them has no effect on the other. When compared to composition, it
is frequently designated as a weak relationship. In comparison, the parent owns the child entity,
which means the child entity cannot be accessed directly and cannot exist without the parent
object. Contrarily, in an association, the parent and child entities may both exist in their own right.
HAS-A Relationship
These relationships are mainly based on the usage. This determines whether a certain class HAS-A
certain thing. This relationship helps to reduce duplication of code as well as bugs.
Example
public class Vehicle{}
public class Speed{}
In Object-Oriented feature, the users do not need to bother about which object is doing the real
work. To achieve this, the Van class hides the implementation details from the users of the Van
class. So, basically what happens is the users would ask the Van class to do a certain action and the
Van class will either do the work by itself or ask another class to perform the action.