System and method for visual annotation and knowledge representation

Abstract

A method and system for visually annotating an image. Annotations and notes to images, such as digital medical and healthcare images, may be stored in a structured vector representation alongside image information in a single, non-volatile and portable file or in a separate file from the image. The annotations may be composed of point, line and polygon drawings and text symbols, labels or definitions and captions or descriptions. The annotations may be structured in a manner that facilitates grouping and manipulation as user defined groups. The annotations may be related to an image but not inextricably bound such that the original image is completely preserved. Annotations may further be selectively displayed on the image for context appropriate viewing. The annotations may be retrieved for purposes such as editing, printing, display, indexing and reporting for example, and may be displayed on an image for interactive use with an embedded self-contained user interface.

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       18 . A method for interactively displaying annotations linked to a digital image, the annotations stored as vector information, said method comprising the steps of:
 selecting and displaying the digital image on a display; and   generating a graphical user interface on the display to accept user preferences, said graphical user interface allowing a user to toggle on and off any grouping of the annotations through the graphical user interface, the annotations being visible when toggled on and hidden from view when toggled off.   
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 18  wherein the digital image is a raster based image. 
   
   
       20 . The method of  claim 18  wherein the graphical user interface further allows a user to activate and deactivate spatial contextual labels. 
   
   
       21 . The method of  claim 18  wherein the graphical user interface allows a user to pan the digital image and zoom in and out. 
   
   
       22 . The method of  claim 18  wherein the graphical user interface allows a user to toggle on and off annotations from a particular author. 
   
   
       23 . The method of  claim 18  wherein the graphical user interface allows a user to toggle on and off annotations from a particular specialty. 
   
   
       24 . The method of  claim 18  wherein the groupings are predefined by the user. 
   
   
       25 . The method of  claim 18  wherein the digital image remains in a substantially unaltered format. 
   
   
       26 . The method of  claim 18  wherein said annotations comprise at least one member selected from the group consisting of a region of interest, a pointer, a symbol, a caption, a label and an abbreviation. 
   
   
       27 . The method of  claim 26  wherein the annotations comprise entries from a previously defined lexicon. 
   
   
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