**caBIG Imaging VCDE SIG**

Minutes from Bi-Weekly Teleconference

3/12/2007

**Present:** Bob Greenes, Curt Langlotz, Janice Chilli, Michael
McNitt-Gray, Daniel Rubin, David Channin, Brenda Young, David
Kupferschmid, Paul Mulhern, David Clunie, Mike McNitt Gray, Tony Pan,
Scott

#### Next phase project planning and project timing

> Per Paul Mulhern and David Kupferschmid, we have flexibility to create
> requirements for a project that may need more than one year to
> complete, by breaking a single project into smaller phases. BAH and
> NCI have expressed a desire to line up developer project periods of
> performance with the Federal Government's fiscal calendar Oct 1 to
> Sept 30, and thus would prefer to structure these candidate projects
> with a shorter initial phase this fiscal year, then followed with a
> longer phase (contingent on funding) next year. Given this
> consideration, we can identify components that are smaller and can be
> done in a short period of time, such as 6 months or less.

#### Phase II VCDE SIG projects

> Up until now we hade two separate projects, a query formulation
> project and a query execution project. We decided on our call that it
> would make more sense to recast our projects in terms of individual
> components needed to deliver the various parts of functionality for
> both projects, and then divide them or combine them as appropriate for
> RFP. This was also a good approach since we could prioritize the
> components as steps in the process of achieving the desired
> functionality.
>
> Here are the components, listed in the order needed to carry out the
> project:
>
> **1.** **Information content to be queried**
>
> The first step in developing the requirements for querying image
> resources is to find out the information users actually seek in this
> regard. Thus, we should collect use cases of how people query images
> and image resources. Look at questions to ACRIN (contact person is
> Brenda Young) and NCIA (LIDC/RIDER; contact person is John Freyman).
> Look at what people are asking for (image data and clinical data).
> Compile a list of the questions people ask and kinds of data elements
> in various databases that are relevant.
>
> **2.** **Mechanisms for performing query**
>
> Query is generic functionality to the caBIG effort, and not limited to
> our workspace. In this component, we would survey query processing in
> caBIG and related projects to come up with a list of current
> approaches already in use within caBIG so that whatever we develop in
> this project will interoperate with other caBIG query efforts.
>
> **3. Application ontology**
>
> In this component, an application ontology will be created that
> represents the kinds of information that users seek (obtained from
> Step 1 above), and the granular data fields actually contained in
> various image-related databases. The ontology will provide a mapping
> from the conceptual types of information a user seeks to the low-level
> data fields needed to be queried. Thus, this task includes a step
> where there will be a survey of existing CDEs related to imaging so
> mappings from the ontology to existing databases can be established.
>
> Another component of this task is to evaluate existing tools that have
> search functionality to reconcile the ontology to information models
> they use. For example, the Freestyle tool is being developed to find
> CDEs.
>
> The ontology will also provide the information needed to feed the user
> interface (Step 4 below). For example, the user picks attributes for
> things and values for attributes, all obtained from the ontology. The
> application ontology organizes and specifies all the elements that can
> be queried. The ontology will organize the elements and specify the
> meaning of the elements so you can see related elements.
>
> **4. User interface**
>
> The UI will allow users to select data elements and data element
> values and combine them with Boolean operators. The user will see a
> form with various types of fields with drop-down boxes, perhaps a tool
> palette. Goal should be to reduce complexity for user.
>
> The UI approach will be reconciled with NCIA and other search
> approaches. Should support a library of queries and be able to save
> queries.
>
> **5. Security: user authentication needs to be take**
>
> **6. Query engine**
>
> This component will implement the query that is formulated by the UI
> and application ontology. It will query all caBIG data services (NCIA)
> which support this query interface. All queries that are possible will
> be provided through the application ontology; we will not attempt to
> discover new object queryable types in caGrid services. However, any
> data resource that is compliant with caBIG data services will be able
> to be queried through the same query mechanism. In order for ACRIN to
> be included as a queryable resource, it would need to have a grid
> interface (see separate project for ACRIN below).
>
> This project will also evaluate extending query mechanisms that are
> already in place for query of the existing grid services in caBIG to
> maximize reuse of work in the caBIG workspaces.
>
> If new data types become available subsequent to implementation of
> this project, the application ontology would need to be updated.
> However, this would be a maintenance operation, not in scope for this
> project, though it would need to be addressed and taken up by those
> maintaining the project once it is deployed.

#### ACRIN Grid Interface Project

> Because ACRIN is an important source of image- and non-image data for
> caBIG, it is important that our query formulation and execution
> project be able to query this resource. We thus defined a small
> focused project whose aim will be to create a grid services interface
> for ACRIN and its data warehouse.
>
> We recommend that the testbed/middleware SIG take this project up. The
> plan is to get key people from testbed SIG to participate in our next
> tcon and to compile list of requirements for this project in advance
> of the call.

Next teleconference will be held March 26 at 11:30 am eastern time.