A workstation network for cardiac electrophysiology

A system based on a network of engineering workstations has been developed for data acquisition and analysis in multichannel cardiac mapping. The system consists of a microcomputer-controlled data-acquisition front end, the network of workstations, and the necessary software for display and analysis of cardiac activations. The system has been designed for ease of use in experimental and clinical studies by investigators with little computer expertise. The expandability of the system allows the accommodation of more users without major increases in cost and complexity. The network consists of monochrome, color, and high-performance graphics workstations at several campus locations. The compatibility of nodes allows the efficient and convenient sharing of software and data among groups; all of the stations have the ability to run the suite of data analysis programs. This network has proved to be extremely useful in support of research efforts, offering extensive shared file storage and software access. Each user has dedicated processing power and bit-mapped graphics capability, allowing data analysis and display program development, as well as document preparation, with little impact on others