Network-bandwidth and archive-storage requirements model for PACS

摘要

Abstract: In designing a picture archival and communications network, it is necessary to take into account the specific rates of flow of information from source devices (acquisition nodes) to destination devices (diagnostic workstations and clinical review stations) and to archival storage. It is also important to consider variations in the flow of data throughout the day to build an accurate model of network activity. Studying the distribution of data generated per patient for all imaging modalities in a radiology department permits analysis of the potential impact on the radiology PACS network. The Radiology Department at the University of Florida performs approximately 150,000 examinations per year. In this study, we investigated the pattern of data generation for fifteen acquisition nodes based on all examinations performed by the department for a four week period. For each acquisition node, the number of studies, types of studies, and number of films per study for discrete hours during the day were recorded. The size of these images in MBytes were calculated based on current computed radiography and film scanner technology. These data provide valuable insights into both the image data storage and image data flow bandwidth needs within our Radiology Department. These data are also useful for evaluating the feasibility and limitations of possible PACS network designs. !6