JPH01178184A - Image retrieving device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten the retrieval time of image data by storing a retrieval table for individual in an external storage medium, connecting the external storage medium to an image processing device at the time of retrieving an image, and retrieving the image by using the retrieval table for individual. CONSTITUTION:The retrieval table, for example, the retrieval table dedicated for a specific patient can be obtained by generating the retrieval table for individual by extracting specific identification information from the retrieval table in which identification information to retrieve the image data is registered. And the retrieval table for individual is stored in the external storage medium 17. Next, in case of retrieving the image of a specific patient, a desired image can be read out by retrieving a required image file dedicated for the specific patient without retrieving an unnecessary image file by loading the external storage medium 17 on the image processing device 3 and inputting the retrieval table for individual. In such a way, it is possible to retrieve desired image data in a short period.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention stores and manages digitized image data such as medical images in a large-capacity external storage device, and retrieves desired image data using a search command. The present invention relates to an image search device that searches and reads out images from the external storage device, and particularly relates to an image search device that can search for a specific image file from among a large number of image files in a short time.

[Conventional technology]

A conventional image search device includes a large-capacity external storage device that stores digitized image data, a console that inputs search commands for the image data in this external storage device, and identification information for searching the image data. an image processing device that has a search table in which images are registered and searches for and reads out specific image data in response to a search command from the console; and a display device that displays the image data read out by the image processing device. According to a command, desired image data is retrieved from the external storage device and displayed.

Here, as shown in FIG. 6, the search table T provided in the image processing device is used for each image data of a patient when storing a large number of image data such as medical images in an external storage device. Identification information IDs such as patient number ■, patient name ■2, gender 3, date of birth 4, etc. are registered sequentially in the order of occurrence of the image data by assigning serial numbers equal to the number of image data mentioned above. It is created by When searching for specific image data, all files registered in the search table T are referred to and the corresponding image file is extracted.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, in such an image retrieval device, the retrieval table T is only created by sequentially registering the identification information ID for each image data in the order of occurrence for the number of image data. In order to search for image data, all files in the search table T had to be referred to. For example, in FIG. 6, the patient number is "12345" and the patient name is "HITACHI T".
To search for the image data of "ARO", refer to all the serial numbers from 1 to N on the above search table T, extract the one with the serial number 1.3.6.50, and use it as the search result. Therefore, even if the accumulated image files are used frequently for a specific patient, such as an inpatient or an outpatient requiring long-term treatment, the same search can be performed without distinguishing them from other image files that are rarely used. Therefore, it takes time to search for desired image data.

As a result, diagnostic efficiency is reduced when image diagnosis of a specific patient is performed using the image data stored in the external storage device.

Therefore, one object of the present invention is to provide an image retrieval device that can solve such problems.

[Means to solve the problem]

The above purpose is to provide a large-capacity external storage device for storing digitized image data, a console for inputting search commands for the image data in this external storage device, and registration of identification information for searching image data. an image processing device that has a search table configured to search for and read out specific image data in response to a search command from the operation console; and a display device that displays the image data read out by the image processing device; An individual search table is created by extracting specific identification information from the identification information in the search table, and this individual search table is stored in an external storage medium. This is achieved by an image retrieval device which connects a storage medium to the image processing device and searches for images using the individual retrieval table.

[For production]

The image search device configured in this manner extracts specific identification information from a search table in which identification information for searching image data is registered, and creates an individual search table.

This results in, for example, a search table dedicated to a specific patient. This individual search table is stored in an external storage medium, for example, a small portable storage medium such as a floppy disk or a card type memory. Next, when searching for images of a specific patient, load the external storage medium and input the individual search table.
To read out a desired image by searching for image files of only a necessary specific patient without searching for unnecessary image files. This makes it possible to search for desired image data in a short time.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of an image search device according to the present invention. This image retrieval device stores and manages digitized image data such as medical images in a large-capacity external storage device, and retrieves and reads desired image data from the external storage device using a search command. , as shown in FIG. 1, has a large-capacity external storage device 1, an operation console 2, an image processing device 3, and a display device 4.

The external storage device 1 is a large-capacity storage device for storing digitized image data, and is composed of, for example, an optical disk device, and includes various external image devices, such as a CT device 5 for obtaining an X-ray tomogram and an angiography device. Digital inspection
subtraction angiography device (rDS)
A large amount of image data has been accumulated from the nuclear magnetic resonance tomographic bag W (hereinafter abbreviated as rMRI device J) 7, which obtains tomographic images using nuclear magnetic resonance phenomena. ing. The operation console 2 is used to input search commands and the like regarding the image data stored in the external storage device 1, and includes control keys, switches, a display, and the like.

The image processing device 3 has a search table in which identification information for searching image data in the external storage device 1 is registered, and searches and reads out specific image data in response to a search command from the operation console 2. A magnetic disk 8 in which the above-mentioned search table is always stored, a memory 9 in which the search table is transferred from the magnetic disk 8 and stored when actually searching for an image, and a display device 4 (described later) to display the searched image. An image memory 10 temporarily stores the image data when performing the image processing, an input/output interface 11 for exchanging data with the operation console 2, and an external storage medium 17 to be described later. an external media interface 12 for
A network interface 13 for exchanging data with the A device 6, the MHI device 7, etc.
a.

13b and 13c, and a central processing unit (CPU) 14 that controls each of the above-mentioned components, the i-display w4 displays the image data read out by the image processing device 3, and is composed of a CRT display or the like. . Note that in FIG. 1, reference numeral 15 is a data bus.

Here, the search table T stored in the magnetic disk 8 is stored in an external storage device 1 as shown in FIG.
When storing image data such as a large number of medical images from the T device 5, the DSAlilj device 6, the HI device 7, etc., for each image data, the patient number I□, patient name I2, gender I3, and date of birth are stored. Identification information ID for engineering 4 etc.
are created by sequentially registering the image data in the order of generation with serial numbers corresponding to the number of the above-mentioned large number of image data.

In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2, specific identification information, for example, only the identification information ID of a specific patient, is extracted from the identification information ID of the search table T to create an individual search table T'. create. This is because images of specific patients, such as inpatients or outpatients requiring long-term treatment, are used frequently, so a search table dedicated to the specific patient is created in advance.

For example, in Figure 2, the patient number is "12345" and the patient name is "HITACHI TARO" as a specific patient.
To create an individual search table T' for , extract the serial number 1.3, 6°50 from the search table T, and enter patient number 11, patient name I2, gender, date of birth, and date of birth. Common information such as
An individual search table T' is created by storing the items necessary for searching, such as (Ray, DSA, MRI, etc.), storage medium name (volume name of optical disk, etc. that stores image data), etc., in the data section Dt. be done.

The individual search table T′ created in this way is
As shown in FIG. 3, the data is stored in the individual search buffer memory B within the magnetic disk 8. Then, the individual search table T' stored in this individual search buffer memory B
is an external storage medium 1 loaded into an external medium driver 16 via an external medium interface 12 shown in FIG.
7. For example, the data is transferred and stored on a floppy disk, which is a small portable storage medium. Furthermore, in the search table T of FIG. 2, a specific patient is appropriately selected and designated as the first, second, . As shown in the figure,
First external storage medium 17a, second external storage medium 1
7b, . . . are sequentially stored in the M-th external storage medium 17m (in this case, the external storage media 17a, 17b
,...17m is a small, portable storage medium that is easy to store, so it can be stored together with the medical record of the particular patient.

In addition, when searching for a specific image, for example, an image about a specific patient, the individual search table T for that specific patient is used.
' is stored on the external storage medium 17, and the external storage medium 17 is transferred to the external medium driver 1 in FIG.
6 and connect it to the image processing device 3. Then, the individual search table T' for the specific patient is transferred to the individual search buffer memory B in the magnetic disk 8 shown in FIG. 3 via the external medium interface 12. This results in
The image processing device 3 uses the individual search table T' to search and read out an image to be observed from the image data of that particular patient.

Next, the operation of the image retrieval device configured as described above will be explained with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. First, the operation of creating the individual search table T' and storing it in the external storage medium 17 will be explained with reference to FIG. First, operate the console 2 in Fig. 1,
Specifying a specific patient for which an individual search table T' is to be created (step ■) 0 For example, in FIG. 2, the patient number is "12345" and the patient name is "HITACHI TAR".
Next, search for a specific patient "HITACHITARO" from the search table T stored in the magnetic disk 8.
”, and create an individual search table T' as shown in the lower part of Figure 2 (step ■). This creates a search table that stores image data only for a specific patient. is obtained and stored in the individual search buffer memory B in the magnetic disk 8 as shown in FIG. 3. Next, the creation result of the individual search table T' obtained in this way is shown in FIG. Operation console 2 shown in
The individual search table T' is displayed on the display (step 2), and the displayed individual search table T' is checked to determine whether this table is suitable (step 2).

If all the items for the above-mentioned specific patient have not been extracted yet and the extraction is insufficient, step (2) proceeds to the 11 N Q 71 side and returns to before step (2). And step ■→■
Repeat →■→■. In this way, when all the items for a specific patient are extracted and the individual search table T' is completed, step (2) advances to the "YES" side, and this completed individual search table T' is From the individual search buffer memory B in the magnetic disk 8 to the external medium driver 16 via the external medium interface 12 shown in FIG.
Transfer to and store in the external storage medium 17 loaded in the
Step ■). As a result, an individual search table T' exclusively for a specific patient is created from the large search table T stored on the magnetic disk 8 in the apparatus, and can be stored in a small portable floppy disk or the like.

Next, the operation of searching and displaying an image of a specific patient using the individual search table T' stored in the external storage medium 17 as described above will be explained with reference to FIG. First, the external storage medium 17 in which the individual search table T' for a specific patient is stored is taken out from the storage location, loaded into the external medium driver 16 in FIG. 1, and connected to the image processing device 3. Individual search table T′ for patients
(Step A). Next, this imported individual search table T' is transferred to the individual search buffer memory B in the magnetic disk 8 shown in FIG. 3 via the external medium interface 12 (step B). Next, the individual search table T' for the specific patient is read out from this individual search buffer memory B, and its contents are displayed on the display of the console 2 shown in FIG. 1 (step C). Then, looking at the displayed individual search table T', the user manually selects an image of the particular patient that he or she wishes to view using the ° key from the console 2 (step D).

Next, the image data of the selected image is read from the external storage device 1 or the magnetic disk 8 and transferred to the image memory 10 shown in FIG. 1 (step E). and,
The image data transferred to the image memory 1o is displayed as a search image on the screen of the display device 4 (step F
). Next, it is determined whether the image search for the specific patient is complete (step G). If you still want to observe other images, step G advances to IIN○'' side and returns to before step C. Then, step C→D→E-4
Repeat F→G to sequentially search for and display images you want to observe. In this way, once you have viewed all the images you want to observe for a particular patient, step G is "Y E S
” side and completes the search operation. As a result, the large search table T stored in the magnetic disk 8 in the device
A desired image can be displayed in a short time simply by searching the individual search table T' dedicated to that particular patient, without directly searching for it.

In addition, in the above description, a case is shown in which a floppy disk is used as the external storage medium 17, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention is not limited to this, but may also be implemented using, for example, an IC card, an optical card, a digital audio tape (DAT), or the like. Good too. Furthermore, although the image data has mainly been described in the case of medical images, the present invention can be similarly applied to various types of image data other than that. Furthermore, in the above explanation, the individual search table T' was explained as being for searching images of a specific patient, but the invention is not limited to this, and it is not limited to this. The same can be applied when searching.

〔Effect of the invention〕

Since the present invention is configured as described above, an individual search table T' for searching for a specific image file from among a large number of image files is created, and this table is stored in the external storage medium 17. When searching for a specific image, the external storage medium 17 is connected to the image processing device 3, and the desired image can be searched using the individual search table T'. Therefore, desired image data can be searched and displayed in a short time without searching for unnecessary image files among a large amount of image files.

For example, in medical images, desired images can be searched for in a short time from image files that are frequently used for specific patients such as inpatients and outpatients requiring long-term treatment. From this.

It is possible to improve the diagnostic efficiency when performing image diagnosis of a specific patient using the image data stored in the external storage device 1. Furthermore, if a small portable storage medium such as a floppy disk, IC card, optical card, DAT, etc. is used as the external storage medium 17, storage becomes extremely easy, and for example, it can be stored as a medical record of the particular patient. Can be stored together.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the image retrieval device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which an individual search table is created from a search table, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of an individual search table created as described above. FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing the operation of creating an individual search table and storing it in the external storage medium. A flowchart showing the operation of searching and displaying a specific image using an individual search table stored in an external storage medium. FIG. 6 shows a state of searching for an image using a search table in a conventional image search device. It is an explanatory diagram. 1... External storage device, 2... Operation console, 3...
Image processing device, 4... Display device, 8... Magnetic disk, 9... Memory, 10... Image memory, 11... Input/output interface, 12.
...external medium interface, 14...CPU,
16...External media driver, 17.17a to 17m
...external storage medium, ID...identification information, T
...Search table, T'...Individual search table.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A large-capacity external storage device that stores digitized image data, a console that inputs search commands for the image data in this external storage device, and a search register that registers identification information for searching image data. In the image retrieval device, the image processing device has an image processing device that has a table and searches for and reads out specific image data in response to a search command from the operation console, and a display device that displays the image data read out by the image processing device. An individual search table is created by extracting specific identification information from the table identification information, and this individual search table is stored in an external storage medium, and when searching for a specific image, the external storage is used. An image search device, characterized in that a medium is connected to the image processing device, and images are searched using the individual search table. (2) The image search device according to claim 1, wherein the external storage medium is a small, portable storage medium.