TECHNOLOGY

Teleconsult

Fig.1.Teleconsult user interface

TeleConsult is a stand-alone application running on Windows 2000/XP. The application is able to acquire medical images from any ultrasound device through a video grabber attached to the computer. Furthermore, DICOM based agents would store medical images from any DICOM compliant device (DICOM is a worldwide standard for the representation of medical imaging data).TeleConsult application is a combination of a 2D/3D DICOM Viewer, an image grabbing software, medical annotation tools and a medical telecommunication tool. Figure 1 illustrates the user interface of TeleConsult. The largest part of the user interface is used for the display of the images. On the left side of the software all images, currently loaded into TeleConsult are listed. In the centre of the user interface, there is place for showing the details of one or more images.(Fig.1) All operations, a user of the software can operate can be assigned to following eight modules:

• The Database Interface menu
• The Image View menu
• The File I/O menu
• The Geometry menu
• The Greylevels/Colors menu
• The Tools menu
• The Cine menu
• The Teleconsultation menu
  

Teleconsult is currently used in several European locations, and provides an excellent, proven communication tool for telemedicine systems. The system provides also easy localization options for Spanish and Portuguese

Medical database/Health care records

	Fig.2. Database client user interface

Our medical imaging application offers a patient management database with the following possible operations:

• Creation, modification and deletion of patients.
• Creation, modification and deletion of studies.
• Storing of images, configurations, videos and other (additional) files assigned to a patient and study.
• Swapping out data (images) to other storage medias, whereby the purpose is to prohibit the local hard disk of getting full.
• Export and Import of patients/studies and images to external files, whereby the purpose is the exchange of data between several databases.
• Loading of images, configurations and videos into TeleConsult.
• Importing of DICOM images into the Database.
• Sending and receiving of messages, together with patient, study and image information from and to other TeleConsult workstations (Offline Messaging)
• Importing/exporting of vital signals (ECG, BP, SPO2, Glucose) into the Database.
  
  
  

Satellite Communication / AmerHis

The selected regions in Amazon have no access to broadband communications. Therefore, AmerHis system is going to be utilized. AmerHis is making use of DVB-RCS bi-direction European standard.

Thales Alenia Space España has leaded the AMERHIS project within the Hispasat Amazonas satellite. AmerHis is an advanced communication system, supported and co-funded by ESA and the Industry, to deploy an advanced communications system based on a regenerative payload on board the Amazonas satellite.

	Fig.3. AMERHIS full multi-spot satellite system

The AMERHIS system integrates a Broadcasting Multi-Media network with an Interaction network by combining two standards, the DVB-S and DVB-RCS, into one unique regenerative and multi-spot satellite system. In this manner, the users calling for broadband and interactive services will be able to utilize standard stations (RCSTs) at both transmitting and receiving sides. Next figure illustrates the concept.

In this system, the DVB-RCS return channel standard is applied by all users to access through a standard uplink to the satellite. On board, the regenerative payload (OBP) is in charge of multiplexing that information from diverse sources into one or more DVB-S data streams capable of being received by any standard IRD equipment. The on board repeater is not only capable of multiplexing signals coming from the same uplink, but also cross-connecting and/or broadcasting channels coming from separate uplink coverage areas to different downlink coverage areas.