A functional database system for road accident analysis

A database system for a road accident analysis application has been developed using the new functional database language PFL. This application requires extensive data validation and restructuring, and queries (and hence data retrieval patterns) tend to be of a complex and ad hoc nature. PFL adapts functional programming to deductive databases and possesses features that are desirable for applications characterised by large volumes of both data and programs, and by complex structures of both data and queries. In this paper we describe the application domain and provide an overview of the salient features of PFL. We then discuss the development of a road accident database using PFL and comment upon the insight this has provided in terms of both the application and the language.