CHEST RADIOGRAPHY

NIOSH BViewer System Requirements

The NIOSH BViewer software is designed to run on a personal computer running Windows XP and Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit)..

The BViewer program should be run on a computer system with three display monitors:

• Primary Monitor: The Windows desktop monitor for displaying the Control Panel, the Standard Image Selector Panel and the Report Display Window.
• Medical Display Monitor #1: A calibrated high-resolution grayscale monitor for displaying the Standard Image Display Window.
• Medical Display Monitor #2: A calibrated high-resolution grayscale monitor for displaying the Subject Study Display Window.

The two medical display monitors should be arranged side-by-side to facilitate comparing the subject study image with the various standard images.

DVI Switches and Medical Displays

If you have a closed PACS that will not allow the installation of the NIOSH BViewer, you may either install the BViewer on a dedicated workstation or buy an additional computer, graphics adapter, and DVI Switch. The DVI switch will allow the two computers to share the same monitors. Please consult with your display manufacturer to obtain a compatible graphics adapter and DVI switch. In some cases you may need a standard KVM switch (keyboard, video, and mouse) and a DVI switch for the medical displays.

The Computer

• CPU: dual-core (or better) running at 3 Gigahertz (or better).
• Memory: 3 Gigabytes of ram (or better).
• PCI Express: At least 2 slots for graphics controller cards.
• Hard Drive: 150 Gigabytes of storage (or better).
• CD/DVD Drive: Able to read or write image files on a removable CD or DVD platter.
• USB 2 Ports: Able to read or write image file on a removable flash drive.
• Network Adapter: A high-speed network adapter card or motherboard connector.
• Mouse: Should have a left and right button and a wheel, or equivalent.
• Keyboard.
• Desktop Display Monitor - A conventional color display panel about 20-inch diameter or greater.

Medical Display Monitors

The reader should use two side-by-side flat panel color-matched diagnostic quality medical displays capable of monochrome display and compliant with the DICOM® Grayscale Standard
Display Function (GSDF) standard. The viewing devices should be of the identical make and model. Color displays may be used if the devices demonstrate adherence to the above specifications.

The NIOSH BViewer can function with fewer than three display monitors and with less than 10-bit grayscale resolution. In this situation, image quality and reading facility will obviously be reduced. Ordinary display monitors typically support only 8-bit grayscale. This leads to a reduction to 256 distinct shades of gray from the optimum 1024 shades.

Specifications of the displays and graphics controllers used at NIOSH

NIOSH does not recommend specific brands or models of hardware for use with NIOSH BViewer software. NIOSH only recommends the use of sufficiently powerful computers running the Windows operating system (XP or later) and equipped with appropriate graphics cards for users’ medical display monitors (ideally, 3 displays should be used, 2 medical displays for viewing images and a conventional display for operating the software). However, for informational purposes, the configuration indicated below has worked successfully with the NIOSH BViewer and is able to display 10-bit images (up to 1024 shades of gray). Please inform NIOSH if you find additional configurations that work well for this application.