JP2007044264A - Medical image processing system, program and method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system, a method and a program digitizing images of a medical image film and dividing them with appropriate clipping frames. <P>SOLUTION: This medical image processing system reads images with a digitizer, displays the images read by a CPU on a screen of a computer and, when a horizontal straight line including the highest point of a tomographic image on the highest row of the images displayed on the screen, a horizontal straight line including the lowest point of a tomographic image on the highest row, a horizontal straight line including the highest point of a tomographic image on the second row from the top, a vertical straight line including the leftmost point of a tomographic image on the leftmost column, and a vertical straight line including the rightmost point of a tomographic image on the leftmost column, and a vertical straight line including the leftmost point of a tomographic image at the second column from the left are specified, allows the CPU to calculate the clipping frames of the respective tomographic images displayed based on the positional relations of the straight lines. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing system, an image processing program, and an image processing method for a film on which results of CT (Computed Tomography) inspection, MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) inspection and the like are printed, and in particular, converts a printed image into digital data. The present invention relates to an image processing system, an image processing method, and an image processing program for dividing a plurality of tomographic images printed on one film into individual tomographic images and storing them.

  Medical images used for diagnosis are obliged to be stored. In the conventional image storage method, a film on which a plurality of images are printed is stored as a film. Recently, the medical images are stored as digital data.

  However, for example, DICOM (Dietary Imaging Communication in Medicine), which is a standard for digital communication of medical images, employs a method of storing tomographic images one by one. For this reason, it is necessary to generate a digital image obtained by dividing an image into one tomographic image from one film on which a plurality of tomographic images are displayed.

In the conventional image dividing method, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, in order to divide and save a plurality of tomographic images printed on one film, the film is first read by a digitizer, and the dispersion of the pixel values of the digital data is determined. A method of calculating the cut-out position of each image from the position where the pixel value greatly changes is read.
JP 2000-342539 A

  However, for example, the method of calculating the cut-out position of each tomographic image with a pixel value as in Patent Document 1 recognizes that part as a cut-out position when there is a part where the pixel value changes significantly in one image. There was a bug that it was.

  The present invention eliminates the problems caused by the prior art described above, and a medical image processing system and a medical image processing program capable of calculating a cutout position by inputting a reference position of the cutout position in the vertical and horizontal directions And a medical image processing method.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention described in claim 1 is a CPU for controlling the entire system and performing various arithmetic processes, a display for displaying an image, a storage device for storing data, and converting the image into digital data. In a medical image processing system comprising a digitizer and image registration software for dividing and registering an image stored in the storage device, and reading a film in which a plurality of tomographic images are arranged vertically and horizontally as an image,
The image is read by the digitizer, the image read by the CPU is displayed on the display, and the horizontal straight line l including the uppermost point of the uppermost tomographic image of the image displayed on the display and the lowermost point of the uppermost tomographic image are included. A horizontal straight line k, a horizontal straight line j including the uppermost point of the tomographic image in the second stage from the top, a vertical straight line a including the leftmost point of the leftmost column of tomographic images, and a rightmost point b of the leftmost column of the tomographic image are included. When the position of the vertical line and the vertical line c including the leftmost point of the tomographic image in the second column from the left is specified, the CPU calculates the vertical width of the tomographic image from the position of the horizontal line l and the horizontal line k. A vertical gap width of the tomographic image adjacent vertically from the position of the horizontal line k and the horizontal line j, and a horizontal width of the tomographic image from the position of the vertical line a and the horizontal line b, Faults adjacent to the left and right from the position of the horizontal line b and the horizontal line c Calculate the horizontal gap of the image, calculate the cutout frame of each image from the horizontal width and vertical width and horizontal gap width and vertical gap width of these calculated tomographic images, cut out the tomographic image according to the cutout frame, A medical image processing system characterized by transmitting to a medical image server.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a CPU for controlling the entire system and various arithmetic processes, a display for displaying an image, a storage device for storing data, a digitizer for converting an image into digital data, and the storage. An image registration software that divides and registers an image stored in the apparatus, and a program for a medical image processing system that reads a film in which a plurality of tomographic images are arranged vertically and horizontally as an image,
In the medical image processing system,
A function for reading an image with a digitizer, a function for displaying an image read by a CPU on a display, and a horizontal straight line l including the highest point of the uppermost tomographic image of the image displayed on the display and the highest of the uppermost tomographic image. The horizontal straight line k including the lower point, the horizontal straight line j including the uppermost point of the tomographic image in the second stage from the top, the vertical straight line a including the leftmost point of the leftmost tomographic image, and the rightmost of the tomographic image in the leftmost column When the position of the vertical straight line including the point b and the vertical straight line c including the leftmost point of the tomographic image in the second column from the left is specified, the CPU calculates the tomographic image from the position of the horizontal straight line l and the horizontal straight line k. A function of calculating a vertical width, a function of calculating a vertical gap width of a tomographic image adjacent vertically from the position of the horizontal line k and the horizontal line j, and a tomogram from the positions of the vertical line a and the horizontal line b A function of calculating the width of the image, and the horizontal line b The function of calculating the horizontal gap between the tomographic images adjacent to the left and right from the position of the horizontal line c, and cutting out each image from the calculated horizontal width, vertical width, horizontal gap width, and vertical gap width of the tomographic image A medical image processing program that realizes a function of calculating a frame, a function of cutting out a tomographic image according to the cutout frame, and a function of transmitting to a medical image server.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a CPU for controlling the entire system and various arithmetic processes, a display for displaying an image, a storage device for storing data, a digitizer for converting an image into digital data, and the storage. An image registration software for dividing and registering an image stored in the apparatus, and a medical image processing method for reading a film in which a plurality of tomographic images are arranged vertically and horizontally as an image,
The image is read by the digitizer, the image read by the CPU is displayed on the display, and the horizontal straight line l including the uppermost point of the uppermost tomographic image of the image displayed on the display and the lowermost point of the uppermost tomographic image are included. A horizontal straight line k, a horizontal straight line j including the uppermost point of the tomographic image in the second stage from the top, a vertical straight line a including the leftmost point of the leftmost column of tomographic images, and a rightmost point b of the leftmost column of tomographic images are included. When the position of the vertical line and the vertical line c including the leftmost point of the tomographic image in the second column from the left is specified, the CPU calculates the vertical width of the tomographic image from the position of the horizontal line l and the horizontal line k. A vertical gap width of the tomographic image adjacent vertically from the position of the horizontal line k and the horizontal line j, and a horizontal width of the tomographic image from the position of the vertical line a and the horizontal line b, Faults adjacent to the left and right from the position of the horizontal line b and the horizontal line c Calculate the horizontal gap of the image, calculate the cutout frame of each image from the horizontal width and vertical width and horizontal gap width and vertical gap width of these calculated tomographic images, cut out the tomographic image according to the cutout frame, A medical image processing method characterized by transmitting to a medical image server.

  According to the medical image processing system, the medical image processing program, and the medical image processing method according to the present invention, the tomographic image clipping frame is calculated based on the reference line designated by the operator. Can be determined with less effort, and the tomographic images can be transmitted one by one after being converted into an appropriate format for a DICOM medical server or the like.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of a medical image processing system, a medical image processing program, and a medical image processing method according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Needless to say, the embodiment is not limited thereto.
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a print example of a medical image.
FIG. 2 is an overall view of a computer system that implements the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the image division registration program.
FIG. 4 is an operation screen for division registration displayed on the display.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a reference line for image division displayed on the display.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a cutout frame of a tomographic image displayed on the display.
<Explanation of terms>
The image displayed on the film refers to the entire image displayed on one film.
A tomographic image refers to an individual tomographic image displayed on one film.

<Description of configuration>
FIG. 2 shows a main part of a medical image processing system that implements the medical image processing program and the medical image processing method of the present invention.

  The main part of the computer system includes a CPU 12 for executing various processes, a keyboard 6 and a mouse 7 and a display 8 connected to the CPU 12, a digitizer 9 for reading a film in which a plurality of tomographic images are aligned vertically and horizontally, Other company's DICOM medical image server 17, other company's film imager 18, communication controller 11 for connecting to other company's DICOM medical image server 17 and / or other company's film imager 18, and stored image and image software Storage device 13 and image registration software 14 stored in the storage device. If necessary, an optical disk device 15 connected to the CPU and an optical disk 16 for installing the software recording the image software 14 can be added. Further, the system of this embodiment is configured to read the image film 10 with a digitizer.

<Screen description>
A configuration example of the division registration operation screen displayed by the division registration processing program of this system will be described with reference to FIG.
The division registration operation screen includes patient information, a drop-down list division type 27, a drop-down list division number 28, a reference line display button 19, a frame line reflection button 20, a frame line display button 21, and a division. The frame line confirmation button 22, the frame line initialization button 23, the frame line deletion button 24, the image registration button 25, and the close button 26 are configured.

Each element will be described below.
The patient information displays the patient ID, patient name, date of birth, and sex on the upper left of the division registration operation screen.
The drop-down list division type 27 is a menu for selecting whether to record the divided tomographic images in the same size, or to enlarge or reduce the cut-out frame. This is a menu for selecting how many tomographic images are displayed vertically and horizontally.
When the reference line display button 19 is pressed, the division registration processing program displays the reference line on the display, and when the frame reflection button 20 is pressed, the division registration processing program calculates and displays all the frame lines from the specified reference line. When the frame line display button 21 is pressed, the division registration processing program displays a cutout frame as shown in FIG. 6, and when the division line determination button 22 is pressed, the division registration processing program saves the cutout frame in the storage device 13. When the line initialization button 23 is pressed, the division registration processing program returns the displayed frame line to the state at the start of the work, and when the frame line deletion button 24 is pressed, the division registration processing program deletes the displayed frame line and displays the screen. When the registration button 25 is pressed, the division registration processing program cuts out the tomographic image, and further extracts the cut out tomographic image from another company's DICOM medical service. Send to 17, the division registration processing program and presses the close button 26 ends the process.

<Description of image film>
A film 10 to be read by the present system will be described with reference to FIG. The film 10 to be read by this system is a medical film used in a hospital or the like. There are X-ray examinations, CT (Computed Tomography) examinations, MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) examinations, etc. as examinations using image films performed in hospitals. In the X-ray examination image film, one tomographic image is displayed on one film as shown in FIG.

  In CT examination and MRI examination, a plurality of tomographic images are displayed on the image film 10 vertically and horizontally at a predetermined interval as shown in 10 (b) and 10 (c) of FIG. (B) is an example in which 25 tomographic images are displayed on one film 10, and (c) is an example in which 20 tomographic images are displayed on one film.

<Explanation of flowchart>
The division registration processing program of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
The division registration processing program reads the image film 10 from the digitizer 9 connected to the image registration terminal 2 [step 41].

  Next, the division registration processing program digitally converts the read image and displays a preview screen and a division registration operation screen on the display 8 of the image terminal 2 [step 42].

  Next, the division registration processing program determines whether or not the position of the clipping frame has already been saved [step 43]. If the cutout frame has been saved, the saved cutout frame is displayed on the display 8 [step 44]. If the clipping frame has not been saved, the initialized reference line is displayed [step 45]. The number of reference lines displayed by initialization is displayed based on the number of divisions selected by the user using the number of divisions 28 in the drop-down list on the division registration operation screen. In the division number 28, for example, nine types of 1 × 1, 2 × 1, 2 × 2, 3 × 3, 3 × 4, 3 × 5, 4 × 4, 4 × 5, and 5 × 5 can be selected. is there.

  Following step 45, a reference line location designation is received [step 46]. In this step, the operator operates the reference line, moves the reference line to a predetermined position with the mouse, and presses the frame line reflection button 20 when the movement is completed. Receive position.

  Following step 46, the cutout frame is saved [step 47]. In this step, first, the division registration processing program calculates a cutting frame from the position of the reference line designated in step 45 and displays it on the display 8. When the operator presses the frame confirmation button 22, the division registration processing program stores the position information in the storage device 13.

  Subsequent to step 44 or step 47, the division registration processing program transfers tomographic image data to the DICOM server. This step is started when the operator presses the image registration button 25 with a mouse. When the image registration button 25 is pressed with the mouse, the division registration processing program cuts out the tomographic image in accordance with the stored cutout frame, converts the cut out tomographic image into a format to be transmitted to the other company's DICOM medical image processing server 17, and The image is transmitted to another company's DICOM medical image processing server 17.

<Cutting frame calculation procedure>
The cutout frame calculation procedure in step 46 will be described in detail with reference to FIG.
When the reference line display button 19 is pressed after the division number is selected by the division number button 28 on the division registration operation screen, the division registration processing program displays the reference line as shown in FIG. 5 on the preview screen.

  The reference lines are the horizontal straight lines l, k, j and the vertical straight lines a, b, c in FIG. 5, and the division registration processing program determines the vertical width of the tomographic image on the film based on the position of the reference line. The horizontal width, the width of the gap between the tomographic images adjacent on the left and right, and the width of the gap between the tomographic images adjacent on the upper and lower sides are calculated, and the cutout frame is calculated based on these calculated numerical values.

  Using the mouse, the operator first moves and corrects the position of the horizontal straight line l so as to include the highest point of the uppermost tomographic image displayed on the screen. Next, the position of the horizontal straight line k is moved and corrected so as to include the lowest point of the uppermost tomographic image displayed on the screen. Next, the position of the horizontal straight line j is moved and corrected so as to include the uppermost point of the second tomographic image displayed on the screen. Next, the position of the vertical straight line a is moved and corrected so as to include the leftmost point of the leftmost tomographic image displayed on the screen. Next, the position of the vertical line b is moved and corrected so as to include the rightmost point of the tomographic image in the leftmost column displayed on the screen next time. Finally, the position of the vertical line c is moved and corrected so as to include the leftmost point of the tomographic image in the second column from the left displayed on the screen.

  Since the tomographic images on the image film are regularly arranged in the vertical and horizontal intervals, the above-described operation allows the division registration processing program to calculate the vertical width of each tomographic image from the position of the horizontal line l and the position of the horizontal line K. From the position of the vertical line a and the position of the vertical line b, the horizontal width from the position of the horizontal line k to the position of the horizontal line k from the position of the horizontal line k and the position of the horizontal line l And the position of the vertical line c. When the position specification of the reference line is completed, when the operator presses the frame reflection button 20 on the division registration operation screen, the division registration processing program calculates the cutout frame as described above from the position of the reference line. Then, a clipping frame as shown in FIG. 6 is displayed on the display.

  With the above configuration, the medical image processing system, the medical image processing program, and the medical image processing method according to the present invention determine the cutout frame by visual confirmation by the operator. It can be performed.

FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically illustrating a print example of a medical image. 1 is an overall view of a computer system that implements the present invention. It is a flowchart of an image division registration program. It is a division registration operation screen displayed on the display. It is the figure which showed the reference line of the image division displayed on a display. It is the figure which showed the cutout frame of the tomographic image displayed on a display.

Explanation of symbols

6: Keyboard, 7: Mouse, 8: Display, 9: Digitizer, 10: Image film, 11: Communication control device, 12: CPU, 13: Storage device, 14: Image registration software, 15: Optical disk device, 16: Optical disk, 17: Other company's DICOM medical server, 18: Other company's film imager.

Claims (3)

CPU for controlling the entire system and various arithmetic processes, a display for displaying an image, a storage device for storing data, a digitizer for converting the image into digital data, and dividing and registering the image stored in the storage device In a medical image processing system comprising image registration software and reading a film in which a plurality of tomographic images are arranged vertically and horizontally as an image,
The image is read by the digitizer, the image read by the CPU is displayed on the display, and the horizontal straight line l including the top point of the topmost tomographic image of the image displayed on the display and the bottom point of the topmost tomographic image are included. A horizontal straight line k, a horizontal straight line j including the uppermost point of the tomographic image in the second stage from the top, a vertical straight line a including the leftmost point of the leftmost column of tomographic images, and a rightmost point b of the leftmost column of the tomographic image are included. When the position of the vertical line and the vertical line c including the leftmost point of the tomographic image in the second column from the left is specified, the CPU calculates the vertical width of the tomographic image from the position of the horizontal line l and the horizontal line k. A vertical gap width of the tomographic image adjacent vertically from the position of the horizontal line k and the horizontal line j, and a horizontal width of the tomographic image from the position of the vertical line a and the horizontal line b, Faults adjacent to the left and right from the position of the horizontal line b and the horizontal line c Calculate the horizontal gap of the image, calculate the cutout frame of each image from the horizontal width and vertical width and horizontal gap width and vertical gap width of these calculated tomographic images, cut out the tomographic image according to the cutout frame, A medical image processing system, which transmits to a medical image server. CPU for controlling the entire system and various arithmetic processes, a display for displaying an image, a storage device for storing data, a digitizer for converting the image into digital data, and dividing and registering the image stored in the storage device In a program for a medical image processing system comprising image registration software and reading a film in which a plurality of tomographic images are arranged vertically and horizontally as an image,
In the medical image processing system,
A function for reading an image with a digitizer, a function for displaying an image read by a CPU on a display, and a horizontal straight line l including the highest point of the uppermost tomographic image of the image displayed on the display and the highest of the uppermost tomographic image. The horizontal straight line k including the lower point, the horizontal straight line j including the uppermost point of the tomographic image in the second stage from the top, the vertical straight line a including the leftmost point of the leftmost tomographic image, and the rightmost of the tomographic image in the leftmost column When the position of the vertical straight line including the point b and the vertical straight line c including the leftmost point of the tomographic image in the second column from the left is specified, the CPU calculates the tomographic image from the position of the horizontal straight line l and the horizontal straight line k. A function of calculating a vertical width, a function of calculating a vertical gap width of a tomographic image adjacent vertically from the position of the horizontal line k and the horizontal line j, and a tomogram from the positions of the vertical line a and the horizontal line b A function of calculating the width of the image, and the horizontal line b The function of calculating the horizontal gap between the tomographic images adjacent to the left and right from the position of the horizontal line c, and cutting out each image from the calculated horizontal width, vertical width, horizontal gap width, and vertical gap width of the tomographic image A medical image processing program that realizes a function of calculating a frame, a function of cutting out a tomographic image according to the cutout frame, and a function of transmitting to a medical image server. CPU for controlling the entire system and various arithmetic processes, a display for displaying an image, a storage device for storing data, a digitizer for converting the image into digital data, and dividing and registering the image stored in the storage device In a medical image processing method comprising image registration software and reading a film in which a plurality of tomographic images are arranged vertically and horizontally as an image,
The image is read by the digitizer, the image read by the CPU is displayed on the display, and the horizontal straight line l including the uppermost point of the uppermost tomographic image of the image displayed on the display and the lowermost point of the uppermost tomographic image are included. A horizontal straight line k, a horizontal straight line j including the uppermost point of the tomographic image in the second stage from the top, a vertical straight line a including the leftmost point of the leftmost column of tomographic images, and a rightmost point b of the leftmost column of the tomographic image are included. When the position of the vertical line and the vertical line c including the leftmost point of the tomographic image in the second column from the left is specified, the CPU calculates the vertical width of the tomographic image from the position of the horizontal line l and the horizontal line k. A vertical gap width of the tomographic image adjacent vertically from the position of the horizontal line k and the horizontal line j, and a horizontal width of the tomographic image from the position of the vertical line a and the horizontal line b, Faults adjacent to the left and right from the position of the horizontal line b and the horizontal line c Calculate the horizontal gap of the image, calculate the cutout frame of each image from the horizontal width and vertical width and horizontal gap width and vertical gap width of these calculated tomographic images, cut out the tomographic image according to the cutout frame, A medical image processing method characterized by transmitting to a medical image server.

Images