Server-Aided 3D DICOM Viewer for Mobile Platforms

Abstract

Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) is an international standard to transfer, store, retrieve, print, process and display medical imaging information. It provides a standardized method to store medical images from many types of imaging devices. Typically, CT and MRI scans, which are composed of 2D slice images in DICOM format, can be inspected and analyzed with DICOM-compatible imaging software. Additionally, the DICOM format provides important information to assemble cross-sections into 3D volumetric datasets. Not many DICOM viewers are available for mobile platforms (smartphones and tablets), and most of them are 2D-based with limited functionality and user interaction. This paper reports on our efforts to design and implement a volumetric 3D DICOM viewer for mobile devices with real-time rendering, interaction, a full transfer function editor and server access capabilities. 3D DICOM image sets, either loaded from the device or downloaded from a remote server, can be rendered at up to 60 fps on Android devices. By connecting to our server, users can a) get pre-computed image quality metrics and organ segmentation results, and b) share their experience and synchronize views with other users on different platforms.