Abstract: A storage, retrieval, and transmission system is configured to provide fast, efficient telecommunication access to digitized images (e.g., medical diagnostic X-ray images) to multiple requesting subscribers. Image data are downloaded, via the telephone lines, to a remote display terminal as a plurality of portions of a compressed digital image representation. Data from a first transmitted portion is used to construct a displayable image at the terminal. Data from subsequently transmitted portions are combined with the displayable image data to provide an image with an improved resolution.

Abstract: A storage, retrieval, and transmission system is configured to provide fast, efficient telecommunication access to digitized images (e.g., medical diagnostic X-ray images) to multiple requesting subscribers. Image data are downloaded, via the telephone lines, to a remote display terminal in an optimal fashion that employs a two-dimensional patterned data compression scheme. The data compression methods include a "Hex-Pac" compression in which one first generates regions comprising a plurality of two dimensional, non-overlapping, symmetrically disposed super pixels that are collectively representative of an image. Each of these regions is subsequently compared with a plurality of fictitious patterns, each of which has a dark region, a light region and a predetermined point of origin, in order to determine which of the patterns most closely correlates with the selected region.

Abstract: An automated high definition/resolution image storage, retrieval and transmission system for use with medical X-ray film or other documents to provide simultaneous automated access to a common data base by a plurality of remote subscribers upon request, the automated high definition/resolution image storage, retrieval and transmission system comprising an image scanning and digitizing subsystem to scan and digitize visual image information from an image film or the like; an image data storage and retrieval subsystem to receive and store the digitized information and to selectively provide the digitized information upon request from a remote site, a telecommunication subsystem to selectively transmit the requested digitized information from the image data storage and retrieval subsystem to the requesting remote visual display terminal for conversion to a visual image at the remote site to visually display the requested information from the image data storage and retrieval subsystem.