CHAPTER 3

CLASSES, INHERITANCE AND

POLYMORPHISMS
3.4 Apply Inheritance in Java programs

The objectives of this chapter are:

1. Describe inheritance in Java
programs.
2. Apply keyword super in Java
programs.
3. Explain overriding method in Java
programs.
4. Implement overriding method in Java
programs.

Terminology
Inheritance is a fundamental Object Oriented concept.
A class can be defined as a "subclass" of another class.
The subclass inherits all data attributes of its superclass
The subclass inherits all methods of its superclass
The subclass inherits all associations of its superclass

The subclass can:

superclass:

Add new functionality

Use inherited functionality
Override inherited functionality
subclass:

Person
name:String
dob:Date

Employee
employeeID:int
salary:int
startDate:Date

What Really Happens?

When an object is created using new, the system must
allocate enough memory to hold all its instance variables.
This includes any inherited instance variables

In this example, we can say that an Employee "is a kind of"

Person.
An Employee object inherits all of the attributes, methods and
associations of Person
Person
name:String
dob:Date
isakindof
Employee
employeeID:int
salary:int
startDate:Date

Person
name="JohnSmith"
dob=Jan13,1954
Employee
name="SallyHalls"
dob=Mar15,1968
employeeID=37518
salary=65000
startDate=Dec15,
2000

Inheritance in Java
Inheritance is declared using the "extends" keyword

If inheritance is not defined, the class extends a class called Object

publicclassPerson
{
privateStringname;
privateDatedob;
[...]

publicclassEmployeeextendsPerson
{
privateintemployeID;
privateintsalary;
privateDatestartDate;
[...]

EmployeeanEmployee=newEmployee();

Person
name:String
dob:Date

Employee
employeeID:int
salary:int
startDate:Date

Inheritance Hierarchy
Each Java class has one (and only one) superclass.
Inheritance creates a class hierarchy

Classes higher in the hierarchy are more general and more abstract
Classes lower in the hierarchy are more specific and concrete

There is no limit to the

number of subclasses a class
can have
There is no limit to the depth
of the class tree.

Class

Class

Class

Class

Class

Class

Class

Class

The Class Called Object

At the very top of the inheritance tree is a class called Object
All Java classes inherit from Object.

All objects have a common ancestor (moyang)

This is different from C++

The Object class is defined in the java.lang package

Examine it in the Java API Specification

Object

The Class Called Object

At the very top of the inheritance tree is a class called Object
All Java classes inherit from Object.

All objects have a common ancestor (moyang)

This is different from C++

The Object class is defined in the java.lang package

Examine it in the Java API Specification

Object

Advantages of Inheritance are:

The variables and methods that are common to two
or more classes can be defined in one class and
used in other classes. This is called as code
reusability.
When there is any modification in the common
information, it will apply to all the inherited
classes.
Inheritance avoids code redundancy.

Types of Inheritance:

1. Single Inheritance
2. Multiple Inheritance
3. Multi-Level Inheritance

Single Inheritance
When a class is inherited from only one
existing class, then it is single inheritance.
The inherited class is a sub class and the
existing class from which a sub class is
created is the super class.
In single inheritance a super
class can have any number of
sub classes but a sub class can
have only one super class.

Multiple Inheritance
When a class is inherited from
more than one existing class.
The inherited class is a sub class
and all the existing classes from
which the sub class is created are super classes.
Java supports Multiple Inheritance through a
concept called Interface.
Any class that implements an interface is required
to override the methods presented in them.

Multi-Level Inheritance
Multi-Level Inheritance is the extension of
Single Inheritance.
When a class is inherited from another sub class,
then it is Multi-Level Inheritance.
The sub class at the lowest level
can access the member variables
and methods of all the super classes
at the higher level.

Super Class
A new class can be inherited from an
existing class.
The existing class from which a new class is
created is known as the Super class.
It is also called as Base class / Parent

Sub Class
The new class that is inherited from an existing
class is known as Subclass.
This class is also called as Derived class / Child
The subclass inherits all the accessible
methods and member variables of the super
class.
A subclass is created using the extends
keyword.

Sub Class
The new class that is inherited from an existing
class is known as Subclass.
This class is also called as Derived class / Child
The subclass inherits all the accessible
methods and member variables of the super
class.
A subclass is created using the extends
keyword.

Creating Subclass
Syntax
class <class_name> extends <existing_class_name>
{
}

Example
class Cylinder extends Sphere
{
}
An object of the sub class can access the variables and methods of the super class.

Accessing Objects of Super Class

An object of the subclass can access the variables and
methods of the super class using the dot operator.
Syntax for accessing a super class variable and method:
Object.variable
Object.method()

Hands-On!
Program Shape.java illustrates how an object of a subclass can access the variables
and methods of a super class.

Constructors and Initialization

Classes use constructors to initialize instance
variables

When a subclass object is created, its constructor is called.

It is the responsibility of the subclass constructor to invoke
the appropriate superclass constructors so that the instance
variables defined in the superclass are properly initialized

Superclass constructors can be called using the

"super" keyword in a manner similar to "this"
It must be the first line of code in the constructor
If a call to super is not made, the system will
automatically attempt to invoke the no-argument
constructor of the superclass.

Constructors - Example
publicclassBankAccount
{
privateStringownersName;
privateintaccountNumber;
privatefloatbalance;
publicBankAccount(intanAccountNumber,StringaName)
{
accountNumber=anAccountNumber;
ownersName=aName;
}
[...]
}
publicclassOverdraftAccountextendsBankAccount
{
privatefloatoverdraftLimit;
publicOverdraftAccount(intanAccountNumber,StringaName,floataLimit)
{
super(anAccountNumber,aName);
overdraftLimit=aLimit;
}
}

Method Overriding
Subclasses inherit all methods from their superclass

Sometimes, the implementation of the method in the

superclass does not provide the functionality required by the
subclass.
In these cases, the method must be overridden.

To override a method, provide an implementation in

the subclass.
The method in the subclass MUST have the exact same
signature as the method it is overriding.

Method overriding - Example

publicclassBankAccount
{
privateStringownersName;
privateintaccountNumber;
protectedfloatbalance;
publicvoiddeposit(floatanAmount)
{
if(anAmount>0.0)
balance=balance+anAmount;
}
publicvoidwithdraw(floatanAmount)
{
if((anAmount>0.0)&&(balance>anAmount))
balance=balanceanAmount;
}
publicfloatgetBalance()
{
returnbalance;
}
}

Method overriding - Example

publicclassOverdraftAccountextendsBankAccount
{
privatefloatlimit;
publicvoidwithdraw(floatanAmount)
{
if((anAmount>0.0)&&(getBalance()+limit>anAmount))
balance=balanceanAmount;
}
}

Object References and Inheritance

Inheritance defines "a kind of" relationship.

In the previous example, OverdraftAccount "is a kind of" BankAccount

Because of this relationship, programmers can "substitute"

object references.

A superclass reference can refer to an instance of the superclass OR

an instance of ANY class which inherits from the superclass.
BankAccountanAccount=newBankAccount(123456,"Craig");
BankAccountaccount1=newOverdraftAccount(3323,"John",1000.0);

anAccount

BankAccount
name="Craig"
accountNumber=123456

account1

OverdraftAccount
name="John"
accountNumber=3323
limit=1000.0

Final Methods and Final Classes

Methods can be qualified with the final modifier
Final methods cannot be overridden.
This can be useful for security purposes.

publicfinalbooleanvalidatePassword(Stringusername,StringPassword)
{
[...]

Classes can be qualified with the final modifier

The class cannot be extended

This can be used to improve performance. Because there an be no
subclasses, there will be no polymorphic overhead at runtime.
publicfinalclassColor
{
[...]

Review
What is inheritance? What is a superclass? What is a
subclass?
Which class is at the top of the class hierarchy in Java?
What are the constructor issues surrounding inheritance?
What is method overriding?
What is a final method? What is a final class?