DicomQuery

MacroModule

genre	DICOM
author	MeVis Medical Solutions AG
package	MeVisLab/Standard
definition	dicommacros.def
keywords	DICOM, server, query, retrieve, PACS

Purpose

The module DicomQuery provides a simple browser for a DICOM Query/Retrieve Service Class Provider, aka “PACS”.

It allows for predefining queries and PACS servers and retrieving data from a selected item to a local DICOM server (provided by the DicomReceiver module), or moving the data to a remote server.

Usage

Results Panel

• Select a Server and a Query from the pre-defined entries, then click Refresh to start the query.

• The content list will fill with results from the query.

• If a query takes to long, you can press Cancel to abort the query.

• Expand study-level and series-level items to start subqueries and see the subitems of these items.

• Select any item, a C-Store target and press Retrieve to initiate a C-Move request. If you selected a local DICOM Server that is currently running, the data will appear in the designated file system location.

• By clicking Refresh again, the content list will be cleared before the query is run again.

Note: You can have several subqueries running at once.

Servers Panel

• Enter the parameters that are needed for DICOM communication. The parameters are:

  • Name: A name to identify the setup. You can enter any string that helps you to remember to which DICOM Entity this setup refers.

  • Server Host: The Hostname or IP Address of the PACS system (not needed for Local Server).

  • Server Port: The port on which the PACS Server listens.

  • Server AET: The Application Entity Title that is used by your remote PACS system. If you use the wrong AET here, communication will most likely fail.

  • Server Type: Define if this setup is a browsable PACS only or if this server can also act as C-Store location.

  • Server Encoding: Different PACS implementations have different behavior how extended character sets ( e.g., umlauts or Chinese characters) are handled. If in doubt simply try queries with all options.

  • Client AET: The Application Entity Title that is used by the caller. Some PACS systems only allow certain AETs to connect, so you can enter something here that your PACS allows.

• Click Test to test general connectivity of a setting. You will receive a notification window if the test was successful.

• The settings are automatically saved when you change the tab card to a file called mlabDICOMQuery.xml in your settings directory.

• If the settings have been changed by another instance of this module, they are also loaded when the tab card is changed.

• You can define several server configurations. Click Add to add another server to the list.

• You can edit a configuration by selecting it in the list box on the left.

• The Remove button allows you to remove a configuration set from your list.

Note: Selecting an entry on the Servers tab does not automatically select the server for the Results tab.

Queries Panel

• Handling is the same as with the Servers tab.

• The settings are automatically saved when you change the tab card to a file called mlabDICOMQuery.xml in your home directory (as with the server settings).

• The following search criteria are available:

  • Patient name: Specify patient name, ? and * are allowed as wildcards. Leave empty to ignore.

  • Patient ID: Specify patient ID, ? and * are allowed as wildcards. Leave empty to ignore.

  • Patient birthday: You have the option to ignore this or search for patients born before, after or at a certain date, or between two dates.

  • Study date: Same as with patient birthday, but additionally, you can search for studies conducted today (as retrieved from system time), in the last 3 days, the last week, the last two weeks, the last month, the last 3 months, or the last year.

  • Study modalities: Specify any DICOM modality specifier.

• You will receive only those patient/studies as results who/that match all criteria.

• Press Execute to execute the query directly from that tab card.

Note: Selecting an entry on the Queries tab does not automatically select the query for the Results tab, but pressing Execute does!

Output Fields

results

name: results, type: MLBase

Parameter Fields

Field Index

Cancel: Trigger

debug: Bool

Execute: Trigger

Refresh: Trigger

Retrieve: Trigger

runningQueries: Integer

selectedItems: String

Visible Fields

Refresh

name: refreshResult, type: Trigger

When pressed, the module retrieves items from the selected DICOM server with the selected query. The previous results are cleared and the new results are received asynchronously.

Retrieve

name: retrieveData, type: Trigger

When pressed, the module retrieves the data of the currently selected item. The data is sent to the currently selected C-Store target.

Execute

name: executeQuery, type: Trigger

When pressed, the module executes the currently edited query.

Cancel

name: cancelQueries, type: Trigger

When pressed, the module cancels the currently running queries.

Hidden Fields

selectedItems

name: selectedItems, type: String

runningQueries

name: runningQueries, type: Integer, persistent: no

debug

name: debug, type: Bool, default: FALSE