Storage management based on worklist

• US 7,502,891 B2
• Filed: 10/30/2003
• Issued: 03/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Shachor, Gal
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah; Sanjiv
• Assistant Examiner(s): Campos; Yaima
• Application Number:
  US10/697,183
• Publication Number:
  US 20050096942A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,958 Days
• Field of Search: 711/113, 711/118, 711/135, 711/141, 711/154, 711161-162, 711170-173, 711/137, 707/10, 707/3, 707/200, 707203-204, 705/2
• US Class Current: 711/137
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0611 in relation to response time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0638 Organizing or formatting or addressing of data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability

Abstract

Systems and methods of storage management which are based on a worklist are described. The storage typically although not necessarily includes a faster access part and a slower access part. One of the described methods includes: examining a worklist which schedules at least one modality to perform at least one task; and ensuring that in the faster access part there is available at least some data which based on at least one predetermined rule is deemed likely to be accessed in connection to the at least one task to be performed by the at least one modality scheduled by the worklist. In one application the worklist conforms to a Digital Image Communications in Medicine (DICOM) modality worklist.

Claims

1. A method of managing a storage, wherein the storage includes a faster access part and a slower access part, the method comprising:

periodically querying by a prefetcher, using a Digital Image Communications in Medicine (DICOM) communications protocol, a DICOM modality worklist for information regarding at least one task scheduled to be performed by at least one modality listed in said DICOM modality worklist;

querying said DICOM modality worklist by said at least one modality, at a configurable query rate, using said DICOM communications protocol, for information regarding at least one task scheduled to be performed by said at least one modality,

wherein said configurable query rate is based on at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of;

time of day, and workload of said at least one modality;

determining, based on information received by said prefetcher and at least one predetermined rule, at least one type of data likely to be accessed in connection with said at least one task; and

using said DICOM communications protocol to communicate directly with said storage for prefetching at least some data of said type from the slower access part to the faster access part of said storage.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein querying by the prefetcher comprises examining a task description of said at least one task, said task description included in said DICOM modality worklist.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein querying by the prefetcher comprises examining information about said at least one modality, said information about said at least one modality included in said DICOM modality worklist.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one predetermined rule is tailored to at least one specific information consumer.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein prefetching includes:

transferring data from the slower access part of the storage to the faster access part of the storage.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein prefetching includes:

copying data from the slower access part of the storage to the faster access part of the storage.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said at least one type of data comprises reference data, and wherein prefetching includes:

ensuring that reference data which is deemed likely to be accessed is available in the faster access part of the storage.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said at least one type of data comprises historical data, and wherein prefetching includes:

ensuring that historical data which is deemed likely to be accessed is available in the faster access part of the storage.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said historical data is about a specific object on which said task is to be performed.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein said object is a body part of a patient.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said modality is an image acquisition machine.