thrillwiki_laravel/memory-bank/models/RideModels.md

Ride System Models Documentation

Overview

The rides system is implemented through a set of interconnected Eloquent models that handle different aspects of ride management. The implementation maintains feature parity with the Django original while leveraging Laravel's conventions and features.

Model Structure

RideModel

• Purpose: Templates for specific ride types/products
• Key Features:
  • Manufacturer relationship
  • Category type from RideCategory enum
  • Has many Rides
  • Full name accessor for manufacturer + model name
• File: app/Models/RideModel.php

Ride

• Purpose: Individual ride installations at parks
• Key Features:
  • Complex relationships to:
    • Park (required)
    • ParkArea (optional)
    • Manufacturer (optional)
    • Designer (optional)
    • RideModel (optional)
    • RollerCoasterStats (optional one-to-one)
  • Status tracking with dates
  • Automatic slug generation
  • Type safety through enums
• File: app/Models/Ride.php

RollerCoasterStats

• Purpose: Extended statistics for roller coaster type rides
• Key Features:
  • One-to-one relationship with Ride
  • Physical measurements with decimal precision
  • Track material and type enums
  • Train configuration tracking
  • Total seats calculation
• File: app/Models/RollerCoasterStats.php

Designer

• Purpose: Track ride designers and their work
• Key Features:
  • Basic information storage
  • Automatic slug generation
  • Has many relationship to rides
• File: app/Models/Designer.php

Key Design Decisions

1. Type Safety

• Used PHP 8.1 enums for all constrained choices:
  • RideCategory
  • RideStatus
  • TrackMaterial
  • RollerCoasterType
  • LaunchType

2. Data Integrity

• Proper foreign key constraints
• Appropriate nullOnDelete vs cascadeOnDelete choices
• Unique constraints where needed

3. Automatic Features

• Slug generation on model creation
• Proper cast declarations for:
  • Dates
  • Decimals
  • Enums
  • Integers

4. Optimization Choices

• No timestamps on RollerCoasterStats (reduces overhead)
• Appropriate indexes on foreign keys
• Efficient relationships setup

5. Laravel Conventions

• Followed naming conventions
• Used protected properties for configurations
• Proper method return type declarations
• Relationship method naming

Usage Examples

Creating a New Ride

$ride = Ride::create([
    'name' => 'Thunderbolt',
    'park_id' => $park->id,
    'category' => RideCategory::ROLLER_COASTER,
    'status' => RideStatus::OPERATING,
]);

Adding Roller Coaster Stats

$ride->coasterStats()->create([
    'height_ft' => 120.5,
    'track_material' => TrackMaterial::STEEL,
    'roller_coaster_type' => RollerCoasterType::SITDOWN,
]);

Getting Ride with All Relations

$ride = Ride::with([
    'park',
    'parkArea',
    'manufacturer',
    'designer',
    'rideModel',
    'coasterStats',
])->find($id);

Relationship Maps

RideModel

• ← belongs to → Manufacturer
• ← has many → Ride

Ride

• ← belongs to → Park
• ← belongs to → ParkArea
• ← belongs to → Manufacturer
• ← belongs to → Designer
• ← belongs to → RideModel
• ← has one → RollerCoasterStats

RollerCoasterStats

• ← belongs to → Ride

Designer

• ← has many → Ride

Future Enhancements

1. Add review relationships
2. Implement photo relationships
3. Add history tracking
4. Consider adding composite indexes for common queries