JPH05143700A - Image managing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent an image from being erased and to hold the image at hand for a required period without storing and saving the image in an external auxiliary memory device when a required image is present. CONSTITUTION:This method is comprised of a selection means 101 to select the image of an arbitrary patient required and desired to hold, a storage means 102 to store the image attribute information of a selected image, an information setting means 103 to attach newly information representing the fact that the selected image is set in an erasure inhibited state, an information erasing means 104 to cancel the erasure inhibited state of an unrequired image, and a display means 105 to display whose patient or which image is set in the erasure inhibited state.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention According to the present invention, when an image area cannot be secured in an image file by newly receiving an image, the image is erased in order from the oldest received date and time to the newest one. The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus, for example, a medical image diagnostic apparatus, in which only an image of an arbitrarily selected patient is erased and remains even if it comes to an erased order.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A medical image diagnostic apparatus accepts many images per day, and the accepted images are stored in an image file. However, the number of images that can be stored in the image file is limited. Therefore, images are automatically deleted in order from the image with the oldest received date to the newer image, and the maximum number of storable image files is kept. Therefore, even if an image is necessary and should be retained, it will be automatically erased when the order turns. Therefore, normally, necessary images are stored in an external auxiliary storage device so that they may be erased in order.

[0003]

The above-mentioned conventional method has the following problems.

That is, to view the image again, it is necessary to read it from the external auxiliary storage device, which is troublesome. Also, it takes time to search for an image.

It is an object of the present invention to prevent a necessary image from being erased without storing the image in an external auxiliary storage device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for canceling the protection of image erasure for an image for which it is unnecessary to prevent the image erasure.

Another object of the present invention is to inform, on a list, which patient or which image is in a state in which image deletion is not permitted.

[0008]

The above object is to provide information for determining whether or not it is necessary to protect the image attribute information from erasing the image, a determining means for determining the information, and the information. Information setting means to be newly added, and information erasing means for permitting image erasing of the information.
Further, it is achieved by display means for displaying the information on a list and notifying outside which patient or which image is currently in the image erasure disapproval state.

[0009]

In the image attribute information of the image, information indicating that the selected image is in the deletion disapproval state is newly added,
When erasing an image, by determining the erasure based on the information, it is possible to keep the required image at hand for the required period of time, making it easier to search for the image. It is possible to save the trouble of reading from the auxiliary storage device.

In addition, since the information in the erasure disabling state of the attribute information can be changed to the information in the erasing permitting state, unnecessary images are automatically erased when the turn comes around. .

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG.

Reference numeral 101 is a means for selecting an image which is required and should be retained by an arbitrary patient. For example, there is a method of displaying a list of patients or a list of images and making a selection using a cursor or the like. The image attribute information of the image selected by the selection unit 101 is stored in the storage unit 102. By the information setting means 103, the image attribute information stored by the storage means 102
Information indicating that the selected image is not permitted to be erased is newly added. With respect to the images that are no longer needed, the information erasing unit 104 instead of the information setting unit 103 erases the information set in 103 and cancels the image erasure disallowed state. In addition, which patient or which image is in the erase-disabled state is
It is displayed on the list by the display means 105.

An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus will be described below with reference to FIG. 201 denotes a static magnetic field generation system for generating a uniform static magnetic field, and 202 denotes
Transmitting system for generating high frequency pulse for exciting spin, 20
Reference numeral 3 denotes a gradient magnetic field generation system capable of linearly changing the intensity independently in the X, Y, and Z directions, and 204, a reception system that receives an electromagnetic wave generated from a subject and performs A / D conversion after detection. Reference numeral 205 denotes a processing device that performs various calculations necessary for image reconstruction based on measurement data from the reception system.
Reference numeral 6 denotes a CRT for displaying an image such as a reconstruction result, 207.
Is a pulse sequence file that stores the control procedure of the operation of each system in the above configuration, 208 is a sequence control unit that controls the operation timing of each system based on the pulse sequence file 207,
Reference numeral 209 is an image file for storing the reconstructed image, 210 is means for adding information for protecting image deletion to attribute information of the image, and means for putting the information into the image deletion permission state, An image management unit that manages images by including means for determining the information,
It consists of the above.

FIG. 3 is an operation explanatory diagram when an image is newly stored. Processing step 301 for inputting a command to store an image, including an image to be newly received and stored,
Processing step 302 for determining whether the maximum number of image files to be stored exceeds the limit, processing step 3 for searching for an image having the oldest reception date among the currently stored images
03, processing step 304 for determining whether or not the image retrieved in 303 is in an image erasing permission state, 30
As a result of the determination in step 4, if the image is in the image erasing permission state, processing for erasing the image from the image file, step 305, processing for storing the image for which a new storage command is received in the image file 301 in the image file. It consists of step 306.

[0015]

According to the present invention, if there is a required image,
Even if you don't bother to store it in an external auxiliary storage device and save it
You can prevent image deletion and keep it on hand for as long as you need it. Therefore, it is possible to save the trouble of reading the necessary image from the external auxiliary storage device and to easily retrieve the necessary image.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus.

FIG. 3 is an operation explanatory diagram when an image is newly stored.

[Explanation of symbols]

101 ... Selection means, 102 ... Storage means, 103 ... Information setting means, 104 ... Information erasing means, 105 ... Display means.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A means for selecting a desired image arbitrarily and newly adding information indicating that the selected image is in a non-erasable state to the image attribute information of the selected image. An image management method characterized by preventing deletion of necessary images. 2. An image management apparatus using the image management method according to claim 1. 3. A medical image diagnostic apparatus and an image processing apparatus, which are equipped with the image management apparatus according to claim 2. 4. The image management method according to claim 1, further comprising displaying on the list that the image is in a deletion-disabled state. 5. The image management method according to claim 1, further comprising means for changing the information indicating that the image is in the erasure disapproval state to the information indicating that the erasure permit state. How to manage images.