The CARMEN software as a service infrastructure

Abstract

The CARMEN platform allows neuroscientists to share data, metadata, services and workflows, and to execute these services and workflows remotely via a Web portal. This paper describes how we implemented a service-based infrastructure into the CARMEN Virtual Laboratory. A Software as a Service framework was developed to allow generic new and legacy code to be deployed as services on a heterogeneous execution framework. Users can submit analysis code typically written in Matlab, Python, C/C++ and R as non-interactive standalone command-line applications and wrap them as services in a form suitable for deployment on the platform. The CARMEN Service Builder tool enables neuroscientists to quickly wrap their analysis software for deployment to the CARMEN platform, as a service without knowledge of the service framework or the CARMEN system. A metadata schema describes each service in terms of both system and user requirements. The search functionality allows services to be quickly discovered from the many services available. Within the platform, services may be combined into more complicated analyses using the workflow tool. CARMEN and the service infrastructure are targeted towards the neuroscience community; however, it is a generic platform, and can be targeted towards any discipline.

Ontology-driven information system and management of heterogeneous research data

“…Data import is possible through upload by web page only, so you could not use other data sources. [1] It is not optimal solution when you have a huge data amount. The Global Research Platform (GRP) project support study types like registries, clinical trials, clinical research, feasibility studies and quality improvement initiatives.…”

“…The CARMEN Virtual Laboratory project was described by Michael Weeks et al and published in 2013 [1]. This project aims on software as a service paradigm and its infrastructure.…”

Why sharing matters for electrophysiological data analysis

“…The CARMEN project (funded by the UK EPSRC and BBSRC; Austin et al, 2011;Weeks et al, 2013) is a multi-University UK eScience project set up in 2006. It was designed to be a portal-based system that users could interact with through their browser.…”

A data repository and analysis framework for spontaneous neural activity recordings in developing retina

“…Useful neuroscience analysis routines can be converted into CARMEN services [35]. Service code can be written in a range of programming languages (including Matlab, Python, R, C/C++, Java), and can be easily wrapped into a service using the CARMEN Service Builder tool.…”