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A workable PACS system consists of several discrete assemblies which are linked together by data communication links for terminal and image data input and output. Two phases of development of a PACS system can be identified and labeled: emulation and enhancement. The latter is characterized by the observation "you do that so well, can you also do this?" Emulation, on the other hand, assures an accepted and working system. One of the key components of a PACS system is the emulation of the classical and ubiquitous "lightbox". This paper presents an emulation of the lightbox using a highspeed digital disk and video display on multiple high resolution monitors capable of 1024 x 1024 or 512 x 512 resolution pixel display. The emulation features are: a) loading and reloading in less than one second, b) access to between 800 and 3200 digital radiographs, and c) highspeed review forward and backward through this list of radiographs at rates up to 30 new images/second. Operation is under manual control both in rate and direction. This stresses the speed. The feature which makes this "lightbox" emulation desirable is the ability to dwell on a presently viewable display of digital radiographs with access to previous and following images in the study. One of the features desired in an emulation is that the components be "off the shelf". This means that existing hardware is used in the emulation. Software can then be generated based on known hardware. The emulation has flexibility of size: multi-image displays ranging from 2 or 3 images side by side to the piano-roll type endless display of an array with 4 images side-by-side and 3 rows visible at any one time. In addition, it has flexibility of resolution: radiographs displayable within a 256 x 256 pixel region to those displayable within a 1024 x 1024 pixel array as well as images which are much larger (4000 pixel by 4000 line chest radiograph scans) using a 1024 pixel by 1024 line window into the radiograph. The emulation of the "lightbox" finds application at both radiology review stations and at locations for consultation with attending physicians.
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