BrainRing: An Interactive Web-Based Tool for Brain Connectivity Chord Diagram Visualization

TL;DR

BrainRing is a user-friendly, browser-based tool for creating high-quality brain connectivity chord diagrams without complex setup or programming, supporting multiple atlases and real-time customization.

Contribution

It introduces an accessible, open-source web tool for visualizing brain connectivity with interactive features and broad atlas support, streamlining the visualization process.

Findings

Supports 8 major brain atlases.

Enables real-time parameter adjustment.

Produces publication-quality figures instantly.

Abstract

Visualizing brain functional connectivity (FC) patterns is essential for understanding neural organization, yet existing tools such as Circos and BrainNet Viewer require complex configuration files or proprietary software environments. We present BrainRing, a free, open-source, browser-based interactive tool for generating publication-quality chord diagrams of brain connectivity data. BrainRing requires no installation, backend server, or programming knowledge. Users simply open a single HTML file in any modern browser. The tool supports 8 widely-used brain atlases (Brainnetome 246, AAL-90/116, Schaefer 100/200/400, Power 264, and Dosenbach 160), provides real-time parameter adjustment through an intuitive graphical interface, and offers comprehensive edge management including click-to-connect, per-edge color customization, and Circos link file import. BrainRing supports both Chinese and English interfaces and enables researchers to produce publication-ready SVG and PNG figures with full control over visual styling, all within seconds rather than the minutes-to-hours workflow typical of script-based approaches. BrainRing is freely available at https://github.com/XiuFan719/brain-connectivity-viz with a live demo at https://XiuFan719.github.io/brain-connectivity-viz/.