Patent ID: 7171612

Claim:
A medical image processing apparatus for receiving an image file including medical image data corresponding to a medical image and for outputting the image file with an output format, said medical image processing apparatus comprising: a storing section for storing a plurality of image files, including a set of plural multi-image format files designated to be formed on a single image plane in a multi-image format in which the plural multi-image format files are arranged such that each of the multi-image format files is positioned vertically or horizontally adjacent to another one of the multi-image format files in the plane of the single image plane, wherein the plural multi-image format files of the set are randomly and respectively sent to the storing section and stored among the plurality of image files; an output queue controlling section for controlling an output queue of the plurality of image files and for controlling the storing section to output an image file in accordance with an output queue order of the image file; an image processing section for receiving an image file from the storing section and for formatting the medical image data of the image file in an output format; and a multi-image format queue controlling section for registering a file name of a multi-image format file to be formatted in the multi-image format on the single image plane; wherein when a multi-image format file of the set of plural multi-image format files comes to a forefront of the output queue, the output queue controlling section outputs a file name of the multi-image format file to the multi-image format queue controlling section without outputting from the storing section the medical image data of the multi-image format file, and the multi-image format queue controlling section registers the file name of the multi-image format file; wherein when all file names of the set of multi-image format files are registered in the multi-image format queue controlling section, the multi-image format queue controlling section controls the storing section to output to the image processing section the medical image data of the set of plural multi-image format files; and wherein the image processing section formats the received medical image data of the set of plural multi-image format files such that the set of medical images of the received medical image data are displayed in the multi-image format on the single image plane.