Method and apparatus for distributed software architecture for medical diagnostic systems

• US 6,350,239 B1
• Filed: 12/28/1999
• Issued: 02/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: GE Medical Systems Global Technology Company LLC (GE Healthcare Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: GE Medical Systems Global Technology Company LLC (GE Healthcare Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Ohad, Nimrod, Moshkovich, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Lateef, Marvin M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Imam, Ali M.
• Application Number:
  US09/473,400
• Time in Patent Office: 791 Days
• Field of Search: 600/437, 600/300, 600/407, 600/459, 600/443, 600/447, 395/200.32, 370/421
• US Class Current: 600/437
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/00 Diagnosis using ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves imaging of objects using sonar G01S15/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/56 Details of data transmission or power supply
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/565 involving data transmission via a network
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 15/00 ICT specially adapted for medical reports, e.g. generation or transmission thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/40 for processing medical images, e.g. editing
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems

Abstract

A distributed medical diagnostic system is implemented using one or more first computers that execute one or more instances of a first medical diagnostic system software module and one or more second computers that execute one or more instances of a second medical diagnostic system software module. The first and second medical diagnostic system software modules are members of a system software set (including any number of such system software modules) that implements any chosen medical diagnostic system. One or more communication links are present to provide communication between the system software modules that exchange data.

Claims

1. A distributed medical diagnostic system comprising:

a first computer executing a first medical diagnostic system software module;

a second computer separate from the first computer, the second computer executing a second medical diagnostic system software module;

a first communication interface in the first computer in communication with a second communication interface in the second computer, the first and second communication interfaces providing communication capability between the first and second medical diagnostic system software modules; and

wherein the first and second medical diagnostic system software modules are different medical software system diagnostic modules and are members of a system software set to implement a predetermined medical diagnostic system.

2. The medical diagnostic system of claim 1, wherein the medical diagnostic system is one of an ultrasound imaging system, Magnetic Resonance Imaging system, and an X-ray imaging system.

3. The medical diagnostic system of claim 2, wherein the system software set comprises a system operation module and an image-processing module.

4. The medical diagnostic system of claim 3, wherein the set of system software further comprises an archiving module and at least one of a report module, volume rendering module, beamforming module, scanning module, acquisition module, user interface module, signal processing module, scan conversion module, and presentation module.

5. The medical diagnostic system of claim 2, wherein the first computer is primarily adapted for execution of the first medical diagnostic system software module.

6. The medical diagnostic system of claim 5, wherein the first medical diagnostic system software module is an image processing software module, and the first computer is adapted for image processing functions.

7. The medical diagnostic system of claim 6, wherein the first computer is adapted for image processing functions by providing at least one of a large screen monitor, high capacity image memory, parallel processing system, and image processing graphical user interface.

8. The medical diagnostic system of claim 5, wherein the first medical diagnostic system software module is a system operation module for the medical diagnostic system, and the first computer is adapted for control over the electromechanical subsystem of the medical diagnostic system separate from the first computer system.

9. The medical diagnostic system of claim 8, wherein the first computer is adapted for control over the electromechanical subsystem of the medical diagnostic system by providing an interface to control at least one of feedback sensors, servo motors, or digital x-ray detector readout.

10. The medical diagnostic system of claim 5, wherein the first medical diagnostic system software module is a report module for the medical diagnostic system, and the first computer is adapted for generating at least one of patient, maintenance, and operational reports for the medical diagnostic system.

11. The medical diagnostic system of claim 10, wherein the first computer is adapted for generating at least one of patient, maintenance, and operational reports by providing at least one of a high speed printer interface, ergonomic user interface, and a large screen monitor.

12. The medical diagnostic system of claim 5, wherein the first medical diagnostic system software module is an archiving module for the medical diagnostic system, and the first computer is adapted for storing at least one of patient, maintenance, and operational records for the medical diagnostic system.

13. The medical diagnostic system of claim 12, wherein the first computer is adapted for storing at least one of patient, maintenance, and operational records by providing at least one of a high capacity disk drive, high capacity removable media disk drive, and a redundant disk array.

14. The medical diagnostic system of claim 1, wherein the communication link is selected from the group consisting of serial, parallel, token ring, TCP/IP, and ATM protocol communication links.

15. The medical diagnostic system of claim 1, wherein the first medical diagnostic system software module processes data subsequently transmitted to the second medical diagnostic system software module for additional processing.

16. A method for implementing a distributed medical diagnostic system, the method comprising:

separating a system software set for a predetermined medical diagnostic system into software modules;

distributing different software modules among at least first and second separate computers;

connecting the first and second computers through a first communication interface associated with the first computer and a second communication interface associated with the second computer; and

connecting the first computer to an electromechanical subsystem of the predetermined medical diagnostic system.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising the step of determining an allocation of the software modules to the first and second computers, and wherein the step of distributing comprises distributing in accordance with the allocation.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the step of separating comprises separating the system software into at least a system operation module and an image processing module.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of separating further comprises separating the system software into at least a report module and an archiving module.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of distributing comprises distributing the system software module to the first computer, optimized for execution of the system software module with at least one of a sensor interface, or a servo motor controller, and distributing the image processing software module to the second computer, optimized for the image processing software module with at least one of a large screen monitor, high capacity image memory, high speed processing subsystem, and image processing graphical user interface.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein the step of distributing comprises distributing a first software module to the first computer, optimized for the first software module, and distributing a second software module to the second computer, optimized for the second software module.

22. A distributed medical diagnostic ultrasound system comprising:

a first computer executing a first ultrasound system software module;

a second computer separate from the first computer, the second computer executing a second ultrasound system software module, the second ultrasound system software module being different than the first ultrasound system software module;

a first communication interface in the first computer in communication with a second communication interface in the second computer, the first and second communication interfaces providing communication capability between the first and second ultrasound system software modules; and

an ultrasound electromechanical subsystem coupled to the communication interface.

23. The medical diagnostic system of claim 22, wherein the ultrasound electromechanical subsystem includes an acoustic power unit coupled to an ultrasound scanner.

24. The medical diagnostic system of claim 22 wherein the first ultrasound system software module and the second ultrasound system software module are selected from a predetermined ultrasound system software set.

25. The medical diagnostic system of claim 24 wherein the ultrasound system software set comprises a beamforming module, a system operation module, a scanning module, a user interface module, and a presentation module.

26. The medical diagnostic system of claim 25 wherein the ultrasound system software set further comprises a report module, an archiving module, and an image processing module.

27. The medical diagnostic system of claim 25 wherein the ultrasound system software set further comprises a measurement and analysis module.

28. The medical diagnostic system of claim 25 wherein the ultrasound system software set further comprises a configuration and maintenance module.

29. The medical diagnostic system of claim 25 wherein the first ultrasound system software module is a system operation module, and wherein the first computer is specifically adapted to execute the system operation module.

30. The medical diagnostic system of claim 26 wherein the second ultrasound system software module is an image processing module, and wherein the second computer is specifically adapted to execute the image processing module by providing at least one of a large screen monitor, high capacity image memory, parallel processing system, and image processing graphical user interface.

31. A method of operating a distributed medial diagnostic system, the method comprising:

acquiring raw patient examination data;

processing the raw patient examination data in accordance with a first medical diagnostic software module to form partially processed patient examination data;

transmitting the partially processed patient examination data over a communication link to a second medical diagnostic software module remotely located from the first medical diagnostic software module, wherein the first and second medical diagnostic software modules are different medical software system diagnostic modules and are selected from a system software set to implement a single medical diagnostic system; and

processing the partially processed patient examination data with the second medical diagnostic software module to form resultant patient examination data.

32. A method according to claim 31, wherein the step of processing the raw patient examination data comprises beamforming the raw patient examination data.

33. A method according to claim 31, wherein the step of processing the partially processed patient examination data comprises at least one of Doppler processing, archiving, scan converting, image processing, and measurement and analysis processing the partially processed patient examination data.

34. A method according to claim 32, wherein the step of processing the partially processed patient examination data comprises at least one of Doppler processing, archiving, scan converting, image processing, and measurement and analysis processing the partially processed patient examination data, and wherein the medical diagnostic system is an ultrasound system.