Software upgrades with centralized preparation

• US 7,770,164 B2
• Filed: 05/31/2005
• Issued: 08/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Healthineers AG (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Strobl, Gerhard, Gartner, Klaus, Schuelein, Horst
• Primary Examiner(s): Bullock, Jr.; Lewis A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mills; Paul
• Application Number:
  US11/141,618
• Publication Number:
  US 20060271925A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,890 Days
• Field of Search: 717/168
• US Class Current: 717/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44505 Configuring for program initiating, e.g. using registry, configuration files

Abstract

Interactive software applications are upgraded at a remote service center. The software applications are used at customer locations. Each software application may rely upon customer specific data and customer protocols. Periodically, a revised version of a software application becomes available for use. The customer specific data and/or customer protocols that the previous version of the software application implemented at a customer location may be identified at the remote service center. Subsequently, the revised version of the software application may be modified at the remote service center using the customer specific data and/or customer protocols. The modified revised software application may be transferred to the customer location for installation. The customer specific data may pertain to user interface settings of the software application. The customer protocols may pertain to the type of machines on which the software application operates or specific imaging or other modules of the software application.

Claims

1. A method for upgrading medical imaging software at a remote service center, the method comprising:

receiving customer specific data related to a previous version of a medical imaging software application from a customer location at a remote service center, wherein the customer location is a medical facility and the customer specific data comprising individual customer data and customer specific user-interface customizations associated with the previous version of the medical imaging software application;

receiving customer protocols related to the previous version of the medical imaging software application from the customer location at the remote service center, the customer protocols dependent upon a type of machine at the customer location on which the medical imaging software application operates, a type of imaging process that the medical imaging software application supports, and include settings for medical imaging modules required to generate medical image data;

modifying a revised version of the medical imaging software application at the remote service center using (1) the customer specific data and (2) the customer protocols received from the customer location at the remote service center;

transferring the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application to the customer location; and

executing the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application at the customer location such that the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application is operable at the customer location without further modifications being performed at the customer location that account for customer specific data or customer protocols, and the user-interface employed by the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application at the customer location is substantially identical to the customized user-interface of the previous version of the medical imaging software application.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the medical imaging software application displays medical images on a screen located at the customer location.

3. The method of claim 1, comprising reissuing software license agreements at the remote service center.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application that is transferred to the customer location is an executable version of the revised version of the medical imaging software application.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application is transferred to the customer location via remote connection.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application is transferred to the customer location via storage medium.

7. A data processing system for upgrading medical imaging software at a remote service center, the system comprising:

a memory unit located at a remote service center operable to store a revised version of a medical imaging software application; and

a processing unit located at the remote service center operable to

(1) receive customer specific data related to a previous version of the medical imaging software application from a customer location and store the customer specific data in the memory unit, wherein the customer location is a medical facility and the customer specific data comprising customer specific user-interface customizations associated with the previous version of the medical imaging software application;

(2) receive customer protocol data related to the previous version of the medical imaging software application from the customer location and store the customer protocol data in the memory unit, the customer protocol data dependent upon a type of machine at the customer location on which the medical imaging software application operates, a type of imaging process that the medical imaging software application supports, and comprising settings for imaging devices and medical imaging modules associated with the medical imaging software application required to generate medical imaging data;

(3) modify the revised version of the medical imaging software application using the customer specific data and the customer protocol data;

(4) create an executable version of the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application; and

(5) transfer the executable version to the customer location such that the revised version of the medical imaging software application as modified using the customer specific data and the customer protocol data is executable at the customer location on a customer machine without further modification at the customer location, and the user-interface employed by the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application at the customer location is substantially identical to the customized user-interface of the previous version of the medical imaging software application.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the processing unit is operable to generate an updated software license agreement.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the processing unit is operable to transfer the executable version of the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application to the customer location via remote connection.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the processing unit at the remote service center is operable to receive customer specific data and customer protocol data from a plurality of customer locations and produce a modified revised version of the medical imaging software application for each set of customer specific data and customer protocol data received, each modified revised version of the medical imaging software application being unique.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the processing unit at the remote service center is operable to transmit the executable version of the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application to the customer location via a network.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions executable on a computer stored thereon, the instructions comprising:

receiving customer specific data from a customer location, wherein the customer location is a medical facility, and the customer specific data is related to a customized user interface of a previous version of a medical imaging software application;

receiving customer protocol data from the customer location identifying customer protocols related to the previous version of the medical imaging software application, the customer protocol data identifying a type of machine at the customer location on which the medical imaging software application operates, a type of imaging process that the medical imaging software application supports, and settings required to acquire medical images at the customer location;

modifying a revised version of the medical imaging software application using the customer specific data and to become compatible with the customer protocols received from the customer location; and

transferring the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application to the customer location, wherein, when the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application is run on a machine located at the customer location, the user interface employed by the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application is substantially identical to the customized user interface of the previous version of the medical imaging software application, and the modified revised version of the medical imaging software application is operable without further modifications being performed at the customer location that account for customer specific data or customer protocols.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the medical imaging software application displays medical images on a screen located at the customer location and the customer protocols further identify the medical imaging modules of the medical imaging software application.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the type of machine is a magnetic resonance imaging or a computer tomography device.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the medical images include angiographic or orthopedic images.