A Guide to Bridge Design Pattern

Hi everyone, in the last article we learned about the Adapter Design pattern, in this one we will go through another Structural Design Pattern which is the Bridge Pattern.

What is a Bridge Pattern?

A bridge Pattern is a structural design pattern that lets you split a large class or a set of closely related classes into two separate hierarchies—abstraction and implementation—which can be developed independently.

Does the definition Sounds Scary? Let us understand more with an example

Suppose we have a Device Class with a couple of subclasses: TV and DVDPlayer.

Now we want to add a hierarchy to it by introducing remotes: Basic and Advanced remotes. This will lead to the creation of 4 different Classes: BasicRemoteTv, AdvancedRemoteTv, BasicRemoteDvd, and AdvancedRemoteDvd.

Adding a new device or remote type, the number of classes will grow exponentially. For example, adding a new device will need to create 2 new subclasses for each remote type and then adding a remote will need 3 more subclasses

This is a classic inheritance issue because we are trying to extend the Device class into 2 independent directions: type of device and remote

Why should we use Bridge Pattern?

Bridge Pattern solves the problem by switching from inheritance to composition.

With the Bridge Pattern, we create separate hierarchies for devices and remotes. The speciality lies in the Bridge—a connector that brings them together. The Device class and the Remote class become friends, working together through composition rather than a rigid parent-child relationship.

How it Works:

We start by defining the Device interface, which represents the common operations for turning on and off.

  public interface Device {
      void turnOn();
      void turnOff();
      void setChannel(int channel);
  }

We implement device classes like TV and DVDPlayer that implements this interface, each with its unique behaviour.

  public class TV implements Device {
      @Override
      public void turnOn() {
          System.out.println("TV is ON");
      }

      @Override
      public void turnOff() {
          System.out.println("TV is OFF");
      }

      @Override
      public void setChannel(int channel) {
          System.out.println("Setting TV channel to " + channel);
      }
  }

  public class DVDPlayer implements Device {
      @Override
      public void turnOn() {
          System.out.println("DVD Player is ON");
      }

      @Override
      public void turnOff() {
          System.out.println("DVD Player is OFF");
      }

      @Override
      public void setChannel(int channel) {
          // DVD player does not have channels
          System.out.println("DVD Player does not have channels");
      }

      public void play() {
          System.out.println("DVD Player is playing");
      }

      public void pause() {
          System.out.println("DVDPlayer Player is Paused");
      }
  }

Next, we create the Remote class, our abstraction, which contains a reference to a Device (the Bridge).

  public abstract class RemoteControl {
      protected Device device;

      protected RemoteControl(Device device) {
          this.device = device;
      }

      public abstract void powerOn();
      public abstract void powerOff();
      public abstract void setChannel(int channel);
  }

We then have concrete implementations of the Remote class – BasicRemote and AdvancedRemote

  public class BasicRemoteControl extends RemoteControl{
      public BasicRemoteControl(Device device) {
          super(device);
      }

      @Override
      public void powerOn() {
          device.turnOn();
      }

      @Override
      public void powerOff() {
          device.turnOff();
      }

      @Override
      public void setChannel(int channel) {
          device.setChannel(channel);
      }
  }

  public class AdvancedRemoteControl extends RemoteControl {
      public AdvancedRemoteControl(Device device) {
          super(device);
      }

      @Override
      public void powerOn() {
          device.turnOn();
      }

      @Override
      public void powerOff() {
          device.turnOff();
      }

      @Override
      public void setChannel(int channel) {
          device.setChannel(channel);
      }

      public void play() {
          if (device instanceof DVDPlayer) {
              ((DVDPlayer) device).play();
          } else {
              System.out.println("This functionality is only available for DVDPlayer");
          }
      }

      public void pause() {
          if (device instanceof DVDPlayer) {
              ((DVDPlayer) device).pause();
          } else {
              System.out.println("This functionality is only available for DVDPlayer");
          }
      }
  }

Now let us understand

What is Abstraction and Implementor in the context of Bridge Design Pattern?

Abstraction (Remoteclass):
- The abstraction is the high-level part of the system. It defines the interface that clients interact with. Here, the Remote class provides methods like powerOn() and powerOff(). This class is abstract because it doesn't provide the concrete implementation of these methods. Instead, it delegates the actual work to its bridge, which is the implementor.
Implementor (Device):
- The implementor is the low-level part of the system. It provides the concrete implementation of the methods declared in the abstraction. In this example, the Device interface (or its implementations like TV and DVDPlayer) defines the actual behavior for turning on and off.
Bridge:
- The Device instance held by the Remote class acts as the bridge, connecting the high-level abstraction (remote) with its low-level implementation (device).
- This indicates that the Device interface or class is responsible for carrying out the actual work defined in the Remote class. When a method like powerOn() is called on a Remote object, it delegates the task to the connected Device object, allowing the concrete implementation in TV or DVDPlayer to execute.
- Device is the one doing the real work, and the Remote is orchestrating and providing a simplified interface for clients to interact with. The bridge (Device) connects these two parts, allowing them to work together while remaining independent and flexible for future changes.
```
   public class BridgePatternDemo {
       public static void main(String[] args) {
           DVDPlayer dvdPlayer = new DVDPlayer();
           AdvancedRemoteControl advancedRemoteControl = new AdvancedRemoteControl(dvdPlayer);
           advancedRemoteControl.powerOn();
           advancedRemoteControl.play();
           advancedRemoteControl.powerOff();

           TV tv = new TV();
           advancedRemoteControl = new AdvancedRemoteControl(tv);
           advancedRemoteControl.powerOn();
           advancedRemoteControl.play();
       }
   }
```
- An instance of DVDPlayer is created, and an AdvancedRemoteControl is instantiated with the DVDPlayer.
- The powerOn() method of the AdvancedRemoteControl is called, which, in turn, calls the turnOn() method of the associated DVDPlayer.
- The play() method of the AdvancedRemoteControl is called, which, in turn, calls the play() method of the associated DVDPlayer. Note that play() is an additional method specific to the DVDPlayer class.
- The powerOff() method of the AdvancedRemoteControl is called, which calls the turnOff() method of the associated DVDPlayer.
- An instance of TV is created, and the AdvancedRemoteControl is reused with the TV.
- The powerOn() method of the AdvancedRemoteControl is called, which calls the turnOn() method of the associated TV.
- The play() method of the AdvancedRemoteControl is called, which, in this case, does nothing since the TV class doesn't have a play() method. The method is called for illustration purposes.
- ```
      OUTPUT
      DVD Player is ON
      DVD Player is playing
      DVD Player is OFF
      TV is ON
      This functionality is only available for DVDPlayer
```
- This code demonstrates the flexibility of the Bridge Pattern. The AdvancedRemoteControl class can be associated with different devices (DVDPlayer, TV) without modifying its code, providing a way to control devices independently of their specific implementations.

If you find this helpful, do give it a like and share it with your peers.

Till then, happy coding!

Complete implementations can be found over Github

A Guide to Bridge Design Pattern

Table of contents

What is a Bridge Pattern?

Why should we use Bridge Pattern?

How it Works:

What is Abstraction and Implementor in the context of Bridge Design Pattern?