System and method for collaboratively communicating on images and saving those communications and images in a standard known format

• US 8,924,864 B2
• Filed: 11/23/2009
• Issued: 12/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Foresight Imaging, Llc
• Original Assignee: Foresight Imaging, Llc
• Inventors: Mariotti, Mark, Molinari, Anthony, Smurro, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Abdul-Ali, Omar
• Assistant Examiner(s): PAN, PHOEBE X
• Application Number:
  US12/592,328
• Publication Number:
  US 20110126127A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,863 Days
• Field of Search: 715/753
• US Class Current: 715/753
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/40 for processing medical images, e.g. editing
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 80/00 ICT specially adapted for facilitating communication between medical practitioners or patients, e.g. for collaborative diagnosis, therapy or health monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0027 Collaboration services where a computer is used for data transfer and the telephone is used for telephonic communication

Abstract

A network apparatus system and method of use adapted for viewing, illustrating, consulting and collaborating on medical images and saving images and illustrations in acceptable DICOM format. Specifically, a Consultant Client or a plurality of Consultant Clients having the capability to view still and streaming video medical images, then illustrating over those images with the ability to save those images. Also a Collaborator Client, a person user or a plurality of Collaborator Clients having the ability to remotely view streaming or still medical images and illustrating over those images. The Collaborator Clients can draw, telestrate and annotate over those images with the ability to save those images. The Collaborator Client also has the ability to work in partnership with other Collaborator Clients, each Collaborator Client viewing the same medical image and each illustrating on the image and each being able to view all users illustrations and medical image simultaneously.

Claims

1. A network system apparatus allowing participant clients, to capture, retrieve and concurrently view both real time and archived medical images for synchronous or asynchronous communication, collaboration and consultation by one or more participant clients using participant client input illustrations over the medical images, comprising:

a central processing unit;

a telemedicine image management system server including at least one associated database having capability to communicate with a local area network;

at least one telemedicine image management system streamer in network communication with a telemedicine image management system server via a local area network wherein the telemedicine image management system streamers capture one or more medical images and provide the medical images via the network communication to the telemedicine image management system server the local area network as it receives medical images from at least one source; and

,

a client software application enabling a multiplicity of participant roles, including consultant, collaborator and combinations thereof, in communication with a local area network, allowing the participant clients to input illustrations over medical images, the network system apparatus having the capability of appending the medical images periodically to the telemedicine image management system server, and saving participant client input illustrations over the medical images and sending those medical images to the telemedicine image management server for use with digital imaging and communications in medicine file structures;

wherein one or more participant clients retrieve and view the medical images, creating illustrations over the medical images including, but not limited to drawing, annotating, telestrating and storing the medical images with the illustrations, and concurrently viewing all of the participant client'"'"'s input illustrations as they happen and can save all the input illustrations from all participant clients on their local respective computer storage devices, on the telemedicine image management system server, on the picture archiving and communications system server, in a known digital imaging and communications in medicine format.

2. A network system apparatus allowing participant clients, to capture, retrieve and concurrently view both real time and archived medical images for synchronous or asynchronous communication, collaboration and consultation by one or more participant clients using participant client input illustrations over the medical images, as in claim 1 wherein, participant client input illustrations over the medical images are shared amongst a group of remotely located participant clients located on a local area network, wide area network, including world wide web, including combinations thereof.

3. A method for allowing one or more participant clients to capture, retrieve and concurrently view both real time and archived medical images for synchronous or asynchronous communication, collaboration and consultation by one or more participant clients using participant client illustrations over the medical images comprising;

running a computer program, storing the program on each of the participant client'"'"'s computers, displaying the graphical user interface output of that program on a computer display;

linking each participant client computer to a telemedicine image management system server using a local area network, each participant client communicating with the telemedicine image management system server, the telemedicine image management system server providing permission to each participant client wherein linking the participant client to a digital imaging and communications in medicine modality worklist utility, a medical image archive server, and telemedicine image management system streamers for capturing, retrieving and concurrently viewing medical images, participant client'"'"'s illustrating over the medical images, telemedicine image management system server managing all illustration file sharing wherein new participant client input illustrations are appending periodically to the telemedicine image management system server, maintaining the file on the participant client'"'"'s computer, the telemedicine image management system server linking to the interne and other participant clients, wherein the images remain on the telemedicine image management system server and the participant client input illustrations are appended to that server;

streaming image into a local area network wherein the telemedicine image management system server having associated database in communication with telemedicine image management system streamers connected directly to medical imaging modalities for acquiring one or more medical images, streaming those medical images to the local area network;

acquiring a list of available medical image sources from the telemedicine image management system server having associated database, identifying on each participant client computer one or more sources of both real time and archived medical images available to each participant client for capture, retrieval and concurrent viewing;

identifying on each participant client computer one or more sources of both real time and archived streaming data that is available for synchronous or asynchronous communication, collaboration, and consultation on each client computer;

participant clients selecting from available medical image streams to initiate a synchronous or asynchronous collaboration session,

providing updates to each participant client computer, telemedicine image management system server periodically updating the medical images to each of the participant client'"'"'s computers with synchronized signals sent over the network such that all medical images on all participant client computer displays are the same, including sending participant client'"'"'s telestrations, drawings, annotations, and input illustrations over the medical images whenever a participant client appends to the medical images allowing all participant clients to synchronize to the same frame whenever the initiator pauses the medical image streams by broadcasting the frame identifier to all participant clients wherein each participant client views the same medical image that every other authorized participant client in that session view;

allowing at least one participant client to telestrate, draw, annotate, and input illustrations over the medical images in a synchronous or asynchronous collaboration session wherein the participant client is telestrating, drawing, annotating, telestrating and inputting illustrations over the medical images, and saving participant client input illustrations over the medical images to the telemedicine image management system server for use with digital imaging and communications in medicine file structures;

the telemedicine image management system server working over the network replicating the medical images along with the drawings, annotations, telestrations and input illustrations on all other participant client computer displays, and;

replicating the medical images to all participant clients, managing participant client annotations.

4. A method for allowing participant clients, to capture, retrieve and concurrently view both real time and archived medical images for synchronous or asynchronous communication, collaboration and consultation by one or more participant clients using participant client input illustrations over the medical images, as in claim 3 wherein, participant client input illustrations over the medical images are shared amongst a group of remotely located participant clients located on a local area network, wide area network, including world wide web, including combinations thereof.

5. A method for system allowing participant clients to capture, retrieve and concurrently view both real time and archived medical imagery streams for synchronous or asynchronous communication, collaboration and consultation by one or more participant clients using participant client participant input illustrations over the medical images as in claim 3 wherein;

one or more participant clients retrieve and view the medical images, creating illustrations over the medical images such as, but not limited to drawing, annotating, telestrating and storing the medical images with the illustrations, and concurrently viewing all of the participant client'"'"'s input illustrations as they happen and can save all the input illustrations from all participant clients on their local respective computer storage devices, on the telemedicine image management system server, on the picture archiving and communications system server, in a known digital imaging and communications in medicine format.