SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR REMOTE VIEWING OF PATIENT IMAGES

• US 20080059233A1
• Filed: 10/31/2007
• Published: 03/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: Stryker Corporation
• Inventors: Tipirneni, Kishore
• Granted Patent: US 7,564,579 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6245 Protecting personal data, e.g. for financial or medical purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/083 using passwords cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using a predetermined code H04L9/3226

Abstract

A digital camera containing patient images is connected to an uploader computer and the patient'"'"'s name or history is entered into the uploader computer. The uploader computer then connects to the Internet, connects to the secure host server, uploads the images to the host server and shuts down the Internet connection. After the physician selects a medical facility and the system verifies the physician'"'"'s user I.D. and password, the host server constructs an HTML web page which includes a list of patients whose images were previously uploaded by the medical facility and are available for viewing The physician simply selects the name of a patient and the host server displays the patient information and images on the physician'"'"'s computer. The system is password-protected at all levels and the operator for each medical facility determines who may have access to the medical facility images.

Claims

1. An uploader device for facilitating the transmission of data from a facility to a host server for remote viewing from a computer, said uploader device configured to:

receive data from a data acquisition device at said facility, wherein said data acquisition device is configured to acquire data; and

,

transmit said data over a network to said host server, wherein said host communicates with a plurality of said uploader devices through said network and said host communicates with said computer, wherein said host server is configured to construct and transmit to said computer a web page containing said data.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said data acquisition device is a digital camera.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said network is at least one of a public, packet-switched Internet and an Ethernet.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said data includes text and an image.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein said image includes at least one of:

a radiological image, x-ray image, MR image, CT image, direct picture of patient pathology, lab data, EKG data, and a document.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said host server is configured to request and validate a user identification and password from said computer.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said facility is at least one of a hospital, clinic, emergency room, film room, x-ray facility, medical office and sports facility.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said uploader device is removably connected to said data acquisition device.

9. A data acquisition device for facilitating the transmission of data from a facility to a host server for remote viewing from a computer, said data acquisition device configured to:

acquire data from an uploader device at said facility; and

,

transmit said data over a network to said host server, wherein said host communicates with a plurality of said data acquisition devices through said network and said host communicates with said computer, wherein said host server is configured to construct and transmit to said computer a web page containing said data.

10. A host server for facilitating the transmission of data from a facility to said host server for remote viewing from a computer, said host configured to:

communicate with a plurality of a uploader devices through said network;

acquire data from said uploader devices, wherein said uploader devices acquired said data from a data acquisition device;

construct a webpage containing said data;

communicate with said computer; and

,

transmit to said computer said web page containing said data.

11. A method for facilitating the transmission of data from a facility via a host server to a computer, said method comprising:

communicating, by said host server, with a plurality of a uploader devices through said network;

acquiring, by said host server, data from said uploader devices, wherein said uploader devices acquired said data from a data acquisition device;

constructing, by said host server, a webpage containing said data;

communicating, by said host server, with said computer; and

,

transmitting, by said host server, to said computer said web page containing said data.

12. A method for facilitating the transmission of data from a facility to a host server for remote viewing from a computer, said method comprising:

acquiring data from at least one of an uploader device and a data acquisition device at said facility; and

,

transmitting said data over a network to said host server, wherein said host communicates with a plurality of said at least one of uploader devices and data acquisition devices through said network and said host communicates with said computer; and

,

causing said host server to construct and transmit to said computer a web page containing said data.