Design of an Internet accessible visual human brain database system

We present the ECHBD system as a new approach to the neuroscientific discipline of brainmapping. The complexity of the brain and the potentially vast amount of brain measurement data collected, shared, and analyzed by many different research groups make experimental brain research a key area for use of multimedia database systems in the role of environments for experimental science. The neuroscientific research community has created a demand for such a system, capable of supporting analysis of 3D images of the brain, where ease of use and visual navigation are key issues. The focus of the paper is on how to handle large raster data sets in object oriented databases, visual interaction and Internet accessible research environments.