1. A method for creating one or more color-coded magnetic resonance images, comprising:
acquiring a digitally-stored first gray tone series of images of a region of interest at a first predetermined time on a predetermined plane using a predetermined pulse sequence parameter;
applying a first color mask to the first gray tone series of images to create a first color masked series of images, wherein the first color masked series of images represent a first state of a biophysical property of interest;
acquiring a digitally-stored second gray tone series of images of the region of interest at a second predetermined time on the predetermined plane using the predetermined pulse sequence parameter, wherein the second predetermined time is subsequent to the first predetermined time;
applying a second color mask to the second gray tone series of images to create a second color masked series of images, wherein the second color masked series of images represent a second state of the biophysical property of interest; and
spatially-aligning and combining the first color masked series of images and the second color masked series of images to create one or more full color images.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein a contrast material has been introduced into the region of interest prior to obtaining the first gray tone series of images of the region of interest at the first predetermined time.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the one or more full color images illustrate the wash-inwash-out of the contrast material intoout of the region of interest.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined plane comprises one of sagittal, axial, and coronal.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined pulse sequence parameter comprises one of longitudinal relaxation rate (T1), transverse relaxation rate (T2), proton density (PD), gradient recovery (GR), inversion recovery (IR), magnetic susceptibility, and flow velocity and direction.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first color mask and the second color mask each comprise one of a red-green-blue (RGB) color mask, a hue-saturation-intensity (HSI) color mask, and a cyan-magenta-yellow (CMY).
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first gray tone series of images and the second gray tone series of images each comprise a series of image slices on the predetermined plane.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more full color images each comprise a two-dimensional grid of pixels.
9. The method of claim 1, further comprising stacking the one or more full color images to form a three dimensional full color image.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the region of interest comprises at least a portion of one of a human breast and a human liver.
11. A system for creating one or more color-coded magnetic resonance images, comprising:
acquisition means for acquiring a digitally-stored first gray tone series of images of a region of interest at a first predetermined time on a predetermined plane using a predetermined pulse sequence parameter;
processing means for applying a first color mask to the first gray tone series of images to create a first color masked series of images, wherein the first color masked series of images represent a first state of a biophysical property of interest;
acquisition means for acquiring a digitally-stored second gray tone series of images of the region of interest at a second predetermined time on the predetermined plane using the predetermined pulse sequence parameter, wherein the second predetermined time is subsequent to the first predetermined time;
processing means for applying a second color mask to the second gray tone series of images to create a second color masked series of images, wherein the second color masked series of images represent a second state of the biophysical property of interest; and
processing means for spatially-aligning and combining the first color masked series of images and the second color masked series of images to create one or more full color images.
12. The system of claim 11, wherein a contrast material has been introduced into the region of interest prior to obtaining the first gray tone series of images of the region of interest at the first predetermined time.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein the one or more full color images illustrate the wash-inwash-out of the contrast material intoout of the region of interest.
14. The system of claim 11, wherein the predetermined plane comprises one of sagittal, axial, and coronal.
15. The system of claim 11, wherein the predetermined pulse sequence parameter comprises one of longitudinal relaxation rate (T1), transverse relaxation rate (T2), proton density (PD), gradient recovery (GR), inversion recovery (IR), magnetic susceptibility, and flow velocity and direction.
16. The system of claim 11, wherein the first color mask and the second color mask each comprise one of a red-green-blue (RGB) color mask, a hue-saturation-intensity (HSI) color mask, and a cyan-magenta-yellow (CMY).
17. The system of claim 11, wherein the first gray tone series of images and the second gray tone series of images each comprise a series of image slices on the predetermined plane.
18. The system of claim 11, wherein the one or more full color images each comprise a two-dimensional grid of pixels.
19. The system of claim 11, further comprising processing means for stacking the one or more full color images to form a three dimensional full color image.
20. The system of claim 11, wherein the region of interest comprises at least a portion of one of a human breast and a human liver.
21. A method for creating one or more color-coded magnetic resonance images, comprising:
acquiring a digitally-stored first gray tone series of images of a region of interest at a first predetermined time on a plurality of predetermined planes using a plurality of predetermined pulse sequence parameters;
applying one or more first color masks to the first gray tone series of images to create a first color masked series of images, wherein the first color masked series of images represent a first state of one or more biophysical properties of interest;
acquiring a digitally-stored second gray tone series of images of the region of interest at a second predetermined time on the plurality of predetermined planes using the plurality of predetermined pulse sequence parameters, wherein the second predetermined time is subsequent to the first predetermined time;
applying one or more second color masks to the second gray tone series of images to create a second color masked series of images, wherein the second color masked series of images represent a second state of the one or more biophysical properties of interest; and
spatially-aligning and combining the first color masked series of images and the second color masked series of images to create one or more full color images.
22. The method of claim 21, wherein the one or more full color images each comprise a three-dimensional matrix of voxels.
23. A system for creating one or more color-coded magnetic resonance images, comprising:
acquisition means for acquiring a digitally-stored first gray tone series of images of a region of interest at a first predetermined time on a plurality of predetermined planes using a plurality of predetermined pulse sequence parameters;
processing means for applying one or more first color masks to the first gray tone series of images to create a first color masked series of images, wherein the first color masked series of images represent a first state of one or more biophysical properties of interest;
acquisition means for acquiring a digitally-stored second gray tone series of images of the region of interest at a second predetermined time on the plurality of predetermined planes using the plurality of predetermined pulse sequence parameters, wherein the second predetermined time is subsequent to the first predetermined time;
processing means for applying one or more second color masks to the second gray tone series of images to create a second color masked series of images, wherein the second color masked series of images represent a second state of the one or more biophysical properties of interest; and
processing means for spatially-aligning and combining the first color masked series of images and the second color masked series of images to create one or more full color images.
24. The system of claim 23, wherein the one or more full color images each comprise a three-dimensional matrix of voxels.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A computer system for displaying a business process comprising a plurality of workflow events, said system comprising:
an interface module comprising a graphical interface configured to be responsive to user actions for inputting and managing data, wherein said data comprises data associated with each of the plurality of workflow events, and said data including a workflow event date for each the plurality of workflow events;
a processor, implemented at least in part in hardware, configured for processing said data and generating a graphical representation for the user comprising a timeline and a graphical element for each of the plurality of workflow events and said processor being configured to generate a single activity date for each of said graphical elements based on said workflow event date said processor being configured to display each of said graphical elements on said timeline based on said activity date for each of said graphical elements; and
wherein said processor is configured to be responsive to one or more parameters specified by the user for individually arranging on said timeline one or more of said graphical elements for each of the plurality of workflow events based on said activity date for each of said graphical elements corresponding to the plurality of workflow events, and wherein individually arranging comprises arranging the one or more of said graphical elements based on said one or more specified parameters and without regard to any relationship between the one or more of the plurality of workflow events.
2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said activity date comprises one of an activity start time, an activity status time or an activity end time.
3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said graphical element for each of the workflow events comprises an activity icon, and said processor is configured to expand said timeline and align two or more overlapping graphical elements in a non-overlapping vertical display configuration on said timeline.
4. The system as claimed in claim 3, wherein one or more of said activity icons are configured to be responsive to an input from the user and present additional information for the activity associated with the activity icon.
5. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the business process comprises a plurality of business processes and wherein said processor is configured to generate a timeline for each of said business processes and individually arrange said graphical element for each of the plurality of workflow events associated with said business process based on the associated activity date for each of the plurality of workflow events, and said processor being configured to generate a graphical representation comprising said timelines for each of said business processes, and said timelines being arranged in relation to a graph start time.
6. The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein said processor is configured to align each of said timelines to said graph start time, and generate a graphical representation for comparing durations of two or more of the plurality of workflow events.
7. The system as claimed in claim 6, wherein the two or more of said plurality of workflow events belong to two or more of said business processes.
8. The system as claimed in claim 6, wherein said processor is configured to align each of said timelines to said graph start time, and generate a graphical representation for comparing durations of one or more of said plurality of activities belonging to one or more of said instances.
9. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the business process comprises a plurality of instances, and each of said instances comprises a plurality of the workflow events wherein said plurality of workflow events are the same for each of said instances, and said processor is configured to process said data and generate a graphical representation for each of said instances comprising a timeline and a graphical element for each of the workflow events associated with said instance, and said processor is further configured to individually arrange each of said graphical elements on said timeline for each of said instances according to the associated activity date for each of the workflow events.
10. The system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the processor is configured to generate a comparative display comprising the timelines for one or more of said instances for the business process.
11. A computer-implemented method for analyzing a plurality of workflow events, said computer-implemented method comprising the steps of:
inputting data comprising data associated with the plurality of workflow events, and said data including a workflow event date for each the plurality of workflow events;
processing said data and generating a graphical representation comprising a graphical timeline and a graphical element for each of the plurality of workflow events and generating a single activity date for each of said graphical elements based on said workflow event date;
independently arranging each of said graphical elements on said graphical timeline in chronological order based on said activity date for each of the graphical elements, and wherein independently arranging comprises arranging one or more of said graphical elements without regard to any relationship between the one or more of the plurality of workflow events; and
displaying a time-based graphical representation comprising said graphical elements and said graphical timeline.
12. The computer-implemented method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said graphical element for each of the activities comprises an activity icon, and further including the step of expanding said graphical timeline and aligning two or more overlapping graphical elements in a non-overlapping vertical display configuration on said graphical timeline.
13. The computer-implemented method as claimed in claim 12, wherein said activity date comprises one of an activity start time, an activity status time or an activity end time.
14. A computer-implemented method for generating a time-based graphical representation of a business process, said computer-implemented method comprising the steps of:
inputting data comprising data associated with the business process;
processing said data and determining one or more instances associated with the business process, and each of said one or more instances comprising a subset of a plurality of the activities;
generating a graphical representation for each of said instances comprising a timeline and a graphical element for each of the activities associated with said instance, and wherein said graphical element for each of the activities comprises an activity date;
arranging each of said graphical elements for each of said instances on said associated timeline independently of each other and in a chronological order based on said activity date for each of the activities, and without regard to any relationship between said plurality of the activities; and
arranging each of said timelines into a display to generate the time-based graphical representation of the business process.
15. The computer-implemented method as claimed in claim 14, further including a graph start time, and said timelines being arranged in relation to said graph start time.
16. The computer-implemented method as claimed in claim 15, further including the step of aligning each of said timelines to said graph start time, and the time-based graphical representation comprising a comparative representation for comparing durations of one or more of said plurality of activities belonging to two or more of said instances belong to the business process.
17. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 16, wherein said graphical element for each of the activities comprises an activity icon, and further including the step of expanding said timeline and aligning two or more overlapping graphical elements in a non-overlapping vertical display configuration on said timeline.
18. A computer program product for generating a time-based graphical representation of a business process, the business process comprising a plurality of activities, said computer program product comprising:
a non-transitory storage medium configured to store computer readable instructions;
said computer readable instructions including instructions for,
inputting data comprising data associated with the plurality of activities;
processing said data and generating a graphical timeline associated with the business process and generating a graphical element for each of the activities and an activity date associated with each of the activities, wherein said activity date comprises a single date associated with a state of the activity;
independently arranging each of said graphical elements on said graphical timeline in a chronological order based on said activity date for each of the associated activities, and wherein individually arranging comprises arranging each of said graphical elements without regard to any relationship between the associated activities; and
displaying the time-based graphical representation comprising said graphical elements and said graphical timeline.
19. The computer program product as claimed in claim 18, wherein said graphical element for each of the activities comprises an activity icon, and further including instructions for expanding said graphical timeline and aligning two or more overlapping graphical elements in a non-overlapping vertical display configuration on said graphical timeline.
20. The computer-implemented method as claimed in claim 19, wherein said graphical element for each of the activities comprises an activity icon, and said instructions for displaying the time-based graphical representation comprises displaying a plurality of icons comprising selected activities.
21. The computer-implemented method as claimed in claim 20, wherein said selected activities include activities yet to occur in time.
22. A computer system for generating a graphical representation for one or more business processes, each of the business processes comprising a plurality of activities, said system comprising:
an interface module comprising a graphical interface configured to be responsive to user actions for inputting data, wherein said data comprises data associated with the plurality of activities;
a processor, implemented at least in part in hardware, configured for processing said data and generating a graphical representation for the user, said graphical representation comprising a first graphical object, and a second graphical object, and said processor being configured to generate a timeline associated with the business process, and said processor being further configured to assign an activity date for one of the plurality of activities to said first graphical object and another activity date for said one of the plurality of activities to said second graphical object;
wherein said processor is configured to independently arrange said first and said second graphical objects for each of the activities on said timeline in chronological order based on the associated activity date for each of the activities, and wherein said processor is configured to arrange said first and said second graphical objects without regard to any relationship between the activities; and
wherein said activity date associated with said first graphical object can occur after said activity date associated with said second graphical object.
23. The system as claimed in claim 22, further including a third graphical object, said processor being configured to generate said third graphical object and said third graphical object comprising a linear graphical element for joining said first and said second graphical objects associated with one of said plurality of activities.
24. The system as claimed in claim 23, wherein said linear graphical element represents a duration of time associated with the one of the said plurality of activities.
25. The system as claimed in claim 24, wherein said activity date associated with said second graphical object has occurred and said activity date associated with said first graphical object comprises a time still to occur.
26. A computer system comprising:
a graphical user interface display system operatively coupled to a processor, implemented at least in part in hardware, for generating a graphical representation of one or more business processes comprising data retrieved from a database, said graphical user interface display system including,
a business process entry screen comprising a user responsive component configured to define a business process for display in a chart screen;
said business process entry screen comprising a user responsive component configured to select one or more activities associated with said business process;
said processor being configured to retrieve date information and an activity state from said database for each of said selected activities;
said processor being configured to generate a graphical representation of the business process for display on said chart screen and said graphical representation comprising a timeline and a graphical element for each of said one or more selected activities and said processor being configured to generate an activity date for each of said graphical elements based on said date information for each of said selected one or more activities and said processor being configured to display each of said graphical elements based on said state for the associated activity; and
said processor being configured to independently arrange said graphical element for each of said selected one or more activities on said timeline in a chronological order based on said activity date for said graphical element corresponding to said selected one or more activities, and wherein independently arranging comprises arranging one or more of said graphical elements without regard to any relationship between said selected one or more activities.
27. The computer system as claimed in claim 26, wherein said business process entry screen comprises a user responsive component configured to select a business process from a plurality of predefined business processes.
28. The computer system as claimed in claim 26, wherein said business process entry screen comprises a user responsive component configured to define a chart start date associated with the display of the graphical representation of said business process on said chart screen, and a user responsive component configured to define a chart end date associated with the display of the graphical representation of said business process on said chart screen.
29. The computer system as claimed in claim 26, further including a filter screen comprising a user responsive component configured to create a subset of activities wherein said subset of activities comprises one or more activities selected from said activities associated with said business process, and said processor being configured to generate a graphical representation of the business process comprising a timeline and a graphical element for each of said one or more selected activities and said processor being configured to generate a single activity date for each of said graphical elements based on said date information for each of said one or more activities comprising said subset of activities and said processor being configured to display each of said graphical elements based on said activity state for the associated activity.
30. The computer system as claimed in claim 26, wherein said business process comprises a plurality of business process instances, and said chart screen comprises a user responsive component configured to align the graphical representation of one or more of said plurality of business process instances according to a user defined parameter.
31. A computer system for displaying a business process comprising a plurality of workflow events, said system comprising:
an interface module comprising a graphical interface configured to be responsive to user actions for inputting data, wherein said data comprises data associated with each of the plurality of workflow events, and said data including a workflow event date for each the plurality of workflow events;
a processor, implemented at least in part in hardware, configured for processing said data and generating a graphical representation comprising a timeline and a graphical element for each of the plurality of workflow events and said processor being configured to generate a single activity date for each of said graphical elements based on said workflow event date; and
said processor being configured to independently arrange each of said graphical elements in chronological order on said timeline based on said associated activity date for each of the plurality of workflow events, and wherein said processor is configured to independently arrange comprises arranging one or more of said graphical elements without regard to any relationship between the one or more of the plurality of workflow events, and the arrangement of said graphical elements on said timeline providing a time-based notation characterizing the business process, wherein the business process comprises a chronological sequence of one or more of the plurality of workflow events, and said processor being configured to display said graphical elements associated with said one or more of the plurality of workflow events under a condition wherein said activity date is unknown for one or more of said other workflow events or under a condition wherein said activity dates for one or more of said workflow events are inconsistent with said chronological sequence for the business process.