Conformance testing of DICOM image objects

Andrew J. Hewett; Hermann Grevemeyer; Andreas Barth; Marco Eichelberg; Peter F. Jensch

doi:10.1117/12.274604

22 May 1997 Conformance testing of DICOM image objects

Andrew J. Hewett, Hermann Grevemeyer, Andreas Barth, Marco Eichelberg, Peter F. Jensch

Proceedings Volume 3035, Medical Imaging 1997: PACS Design and Evaluation: Engineering and Clinical Issues; (1997) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.274604
Event: Medical Imaging 1997, 1997, Newport Beach, CA, United States

Abstract

The DICOM standard contains information object definitions (IODs) for images generated by each modality type. In order to test if a specific image conforms to its specification it is necessary to formalize the IODs, their mandatory and optional aspects, including the associated natural language conditions. The approach described in this paper is to define a IOD language capable of representing the attribute collections and conditional expressions found in DICOM IODs. The syntax of the IOD language retains as far as possible the familiar tabular form of the DICOM documents allowing easy translation. The set of condition primitives contained in the IOD language is based on an analysis of the types of conditions found in DICOM IODs. The testing of a specific image follows a two level process. First, the description of each IOD defined using the IOD language is compiled into an efficient representation. Second, an image instance is compared against the compiled IOD representation by an image parser and a detailed description of any errors is generated. Formal IOD descriptions have been constructed for CT, MR and SC DICOM IODs and used to evaluate several sets of test images generated by a range of manufacturers during the period 1993 to 1996. All images of the same type, produced using the same software version, normally contain the same kind of errors. We found that overall 92 percent of CT studies, 91 percent of MR studies and 64 percent of SC studies contained at least one violation of their corresponding IOD. Most errors are caused by only a small number of common situations.

Citation Download Citation

Andrew J. Hewett, Hermann Grevemeyer, Andreas Barth, Marco Eichelberg, and Peter F. Jensch "Conformance testing of DICOM image objects", Proc. SPIE 3035, Medical Imaging 1997: PACS Design and Evaluation: Engineering and Clinical Issues, (22 May 1997); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.274604

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available