Medical imaging monitors get bigger, add color

The rise of large-scale volumetric imaging studies has spurred medical display vendors to upsize viewing screens and to enhance brightness to support diagnostic quality color as well as gray-scale image viewing. This year's RSNA meeting reflected not only this trend in technology but also a surge in vendors with substantial offerings seeking to expand into the medical imaging arena.

Barco

Known for its high-grade diagnostic display systems, Barco has added a 3-megapixel color display to its high-end Coronis line of monitors for multimodality imaging and a 4-MP monitor to the Nio large-screen color display system.

• With brightness of 500 cd/m², the Coronis Color 3MP Diagnostic Luminance is suitable for viewing both color and gray-scale 2D and 3D multimodality images.

• Nio Fusion 4MP seamlessly fuses two-portrait, 2-MP displays into a single 30-inch integrated desktop monitor to permit side-by-side viewing without distracting bezels. The large-screen display has a resolution of 2560 x 1600.

Broadwest

A leader in producing mammography viewing devices for the last 20 years, Broadwest has introduced a pair of 5-MP liquid crystal displays for viewing each breast, as well as an ergonomic viewing table. The company's LumiVue series of flat-panel displays includs the 1.5-inch-thick LVA, which has a luminance of 3500 nits and a uniformity greater than 90%, and the less than three-inch-thick LVM, which has fully masking shutters and a luminance of 8000 cd/m².

• The LumiMed 5-MP LCD, shown as a prototype at the 2004 RSNA meeting, uses backlight technology to improve contrast and uniformity.

• The ergonomic display table can be lowered, raised, and tilted at a variety of angles so radiologists can adjust viewing to their position, whether they are seated, standing, or sitting back in a chair.

Double Black Imaging

A distributor and service provider for WIDE-branded LCD systems in North America, Double Black Imaging has expanded its product line by adding two new color monitors to its series of 2-, 3-, 4-, and 5-MP front-sensing monochrome displays. All of the LCDs provided by Double Black Imaging have an electronic front sensor that emerges from the bezel and retracts when DICOM calibration is complete to adjust to changes in graphic controller driving levels and instabilities in liquid crystal pixel cells or ambient light and backlight. The monitors also have integrated backlight sensors to assure the consistency of backlight and to reduce fluctuations in brightness caused by internal and environmental temperature differences.

• The 2-MP color LCD has a resolution of 1200 x 1600, screen size of 21.3 inches, brightness of 250 cd/m², and contrast ratio of 500:1.

• The 3-MP color LCD has a resolution of 1536 x 2048, screen size of 20.8 inches, brightness of 235 cd/m², and contrast ratio of 300:1.

Eizo Nanao Technologies

A subsidiary of Eizo Nanao, the global manufacturer of high-end LCDs and Windows-based thin-client terminals, Eizo Nanao Technologies markets a range of monochrome and color monitors that feature in-plane-switching LCD panels and dual-headed graphics boards.

• The monochrome RadiForce G33 for imaging with PACS, chest radiography, CT, MRI, and angiography produces a palette of 8161 gray-scale tones, 4096 (12 bits) of which can be displayed simultaneously. The unit incorporates Eizo's aperture modulation technology, which intensifies the differences between black and white tones by enabling a different area ratio for each subpixel. The G33 has a built-in sensor, which allows precise remote calibration, and the Digital Uniformity Equalizer (DUE), which unifies the luminance of the backlight.

• RadiForce R31 for CT, MRI, PET, and 3D rendering has a 10-bit color input compatibility that can display as many as a trillion colors simultaneously. The R31 has image rotation technology, which permits users to switch easily from landscape to portrait mode and eliminates the need for special software for gray-scale rendering without banding or color seepage.

National Display Systems

A leader in developing monitors for the operating room, National Display Systems also manufacturers the Axis high-performance, high-resolution monochrome series for radiology reading. A new PrimeVue 3-MP display has been designed as a primary reading device for cross-sectional and fusion images. The PrimeVue 4-MP high-definition TV format monitor accommodates cross-sectional as well as ultrasound image viewing. Both the Axis gray-scale and the new PrimeVue displays can be used in any combination, since they are powered by an NVIDIA high-speed graphics card.

• PrimeVue 3-MP DICOM display provides 400 cd/m² peak luminance, a 400:1 contrast ratio, and a gray-scale palette derived from 6631 gray levels stored in 12-bit precision tables.

• PrimeVue 4-MP color display delivers 250 cd/m² peak luminance with a 450:1 contrast ratio on an HDTV (16:9) format of 2560 x 1600.

NEC Display Solutions of America

Formerly NEC-Mitsubishi, NEC Display Solutions of America provides visual technology for the consumer, enterprise, professional, medical, and digital signage markets. As an adjunct to its medical display product line, which includes 2- and 3- MP gray-scale thin-frame monitors, NEC has released a light-emitting diode (LED) backlit desktop color LCD.

• The SpectraView LCD2180WG LED monitor uses a combination of red, green, and blue LEDs to produce a white-light backlight source that covers a wide range of color scales without losing luminance. SpectraView displays more than 100% of the Adobe and National Television System Committee (NTSC) red, green, and blue color scales.

Planar Systems

An entirely new line of color and enhanced gray-scale Dome diagnostic imaging displays supplements Planar Systems' low-cost Dome P1 and P2 Bundles and the mobile Dome Surgery Review Cart. The Dome EX monitors have been designed for visualization of 2D color imaging, image fusion, and 3D imaging in radiology and PET/CT as well as cardiology, dermatology, and the OR.

• Dome E4c has a wide-screen 16:9 format with 4-MP resolution, 1786 shades of gray, 330 cd/m² typical brightness, and a 600:1 contrast ratio.

• Dome E3c has 3-pixel resolution, 1786 shades of gray, 400 cd/m² brightness, and a 400:1 contrast ratio.

• Dome E2c has 2-MP resolution, 1786 shades of gray, 500 cd/m² brightness, and a 600:1 contrast ratio.

• Dome E5 has 5-MP resolution, 3061 shades of gray, 850 cd/m² operating brightness, and a 600:1 contrast ratio.

Quest International

The newest i-Series of medical displays with integrated front sensors from Totoku has been added to the Quest International portfolio. Also available from Quest is NEC's new line of large-screen LCDs.

• Totoku's i-Series include the ME251i 2-MP and ME351i 3-MP gray-scale displays and the CCL2501 2-MP and CCL350i 3-MP monitors. All have a digital interface and high luminance and contrast, and all are DICOM-compliant.

• Large-screen LCDs from NEC are the 32-inch MultiSync LCD3210, 40-inch MultiSync LCD4010, and 46-inch MultiSync LCD4610.

Siemens Display Technologies

Siemens SMD series of digital flat-panel gray-scale monitors is characterized by continuous backlight control to stabilize luminance over time and independent DICOM-compliant gray-scale control. The SCD series of color displays has a horizontal scan range of 30 to 100 kHz, a vertical range of 50 to 100 Hz, and high contrast even under bright ambient light conditions.

• SMD 21302 3-MP gray-scale flat-panel display offers a clear base backlight and five user-defined lookup tables to suit diverse reading and viewing environments.

• SMD 18101 1-MP gray-scale monitor produces sharp images by means of a blue-tinted backlight.

• SCD 19100 1-MP 19-inch color flat-panel display has a viewing angle greater than 170°, backlight control of luminance, and control of 256 shades of red, green, and blue.

• SCD 21205 2-MP 21.3-inch color monitor has a display area of 432 x 324 mm and a response time of 8 msec for contrast changes.

TeraRecon

The developer of the Aquarius 2D, 3D, and 4D imaging workstations for diagnostic radiologic, cardiac, and oncologic image viewing, TeraRecon showcased the i-View 3D real-time workstation and personal digital light box (PDLB) large-format video display solutions.

• The i-View offers interactive volumetric data analysis for industrial x-ray inspection. The workstation provides real-time interactive double-oblique multiplanar reformatting, slab maximum intensity projection, and curved MPR views. It also allows on-the-fly switching between axial, 3D, MPR/MIP, and perspective views, and includes tools for measuring distances and segmented volumes.

• The PDLB integrates 2D, 3D-volume, and MIP/MPR views in a single digital display. The display area has as many as 48 million pixels, and it simultaneously displays and compares multiple series or studies.

US Electronics

Providing medical displays to hospitals as well as PACS companies, US Electronics has introduced two new LCDs from Totoku of Japan.

• CCL350i color display has a 2048 x 1536 native resolution, maximum brightness of 400 nits, 10-bit palette (a 1021-shade gray scale), and a viewing angle of 170° in all directions. The monitor displays 16.8 million colors and provides a contrast ratio of 450:1, digital visual interface, and portrait and landscape views.

• Model ME351i monochrome LCD has the same large-screen size and image resolution as the CCL350i color display. With a maximum brightness of 700 nits and contrast ratio of 900:1, 11.9-bit palette (a 3826-shade gray scale), and digital visual interface, the Model ME 351i is intended for viewing general radiology scans.