Medical Data Harmonization via Intermediary Server

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Solution Overview

Problem

In medical applications, the heterogeneity of vendor-specific semantic data structures and legacy systems complicates data harmonization, making it difficult to add new features while ensuring compatibility with existing data and adhering to standards like DICOM and IHE, especially due to antiquated scanner protocols and varying data formats.

Innovation Solution

A medical server and data harmonization system that utilize a Data Variability Template (DVT) to transform and harmonize medical data by identifying templates within headers, sending un-harmonized data to a data harmonization server for anonymization and template updates, ensuring compatibility with various medical applications and standards.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If vendor-specific semantic data structures are used to meet business needs and application features, then application functionality is improved, but data compatibility and standardization deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveapplication functionalityVSAvoiddata compatibility

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a harmonization server as an intermediary component that receives data from multiple vendor-specific systems, transforms it into a standardized format, and makes it available to applications. This mediator resolves the contradiction by allowing vendor-specific implementations to maintain their functionality while ensuring standardized data exchange through the harmonization layer.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system segments the data handling process into distinct layers: vendor-specific data generation, harmonization/standardization layer, and application consumption layer. This segmentation allows each layer to operate independently with its own requirements, enabling vendor-specific functionality while ensuring standardized data compatibility through the intermediate harmonization layer.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

2Reliability

If standards like DICOM and IHE are updated to improve data standardization, then data compatibility is improved, but legacy systems and existing applications cannot be updated, leading to increased variability

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata standardizationVSAvoidsystem variability

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The harmonization server performs preliminary transformation of vendor-specific data into standardized formats before the data reaches applications. This preliminary action ensures that even though legacy systems continue to operate with older standards, the data is pre-converted to current standards, maintaining both legacy compatibility and standardized output.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates a standardized copy of vendor-specific data through the harmonization process. The original vendor-specific data structures are preserved in their source systems, while a standardized copy is generated by the harmonization server for use by applications, allowing both old and new standards to coexist.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Adaptability or versatility

If new features are added to applications to meet evolving business needs, then application capabilities are improved, but compatibility with existing data structures deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveapplication capabilitiesVSAvoiddata compatibility

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The harmonization server provides a universal interface that can handle multiple vendor-specific data formats and transform them into a standardized format that supports new application features. This universal layer allows applications to gain new capabilities while maintaining compatibility with existing data structures through the standardized transformation process.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

4Duration of action of stationary object

If legacy scanners and PACS with long lifecycles are maintained, then system stability is improved, but data structure variability increases due to antiquated standards

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem lifecycleVSAvoiddata structure variability

Core Design Contradiction:

Duration of action of stationary objectVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The harmonization server acts as a mediator between legacy systems with long lifecycles and modern standardized requirements. It allows legacy scanners and PACS to continue operating with their antiquated standards while the harmonization layer handles the complexity of data structure variability by transforming this diverse data into a unified standardized format.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentUS10521554B2Harmonization of cross-vendor data

Publication Date: 2019.12.31 SIEMENS HEALTHINEERS AG

AI summary

A data harmonization system including a data harmonization server; and one or more client devices configured to communicate with the data harmonization server. The one or more client devices may have a processor configured to transform, using a template, medical data having a first format to transformed medical data having a second format, determine whether the transformed medical data is harmonized medical data or un-harmonized medical data based on the transformed medical data and a medical imaging standard, and send the transformed medical data to a data harmonization server, if the processor determines that the medical data is un-harmonized medical data. The medical data may have a vendor specific dialect of the medical imaging standard and the harmonized medical data may have a generic version of the medical imaging standard.