Patent ID: 7139794

Claim:
A client system for dynamic visualization of image data provided through a network communications channel, said client system comprising: a parcel request subsystem, including a parcel request queue, operative to request discrete image data parcels in a priority order and to store received image data parcels in a parcel data store, said parcel request subsystem being responsive to an image parcel request of assigned priority to place said image parcel request in said parcel request queue ordered in correspondence with said assigned priority; an parcel rendering subsystem coupled to said parcel data store to selectively retrieve and render received image data parcels to a display memory, said parcel rendering system providing said parcel request subsystem with said image parcel request of said assigned priority; wherein said parcel rendering subsystem determines said assigned priority based on a determined optimal image resolution level; wherein said display memory is coupled to an image display of predetermined resolution and wherein said determined optimal image resolution level is based on said predetermined resolution; wherein said assigned priority further reflects the proximity of the image parcel referenced by said image parcel request to a predetermined focal point; wherein said discrete image data parcels are of a first fixed size as received by said parcel request subsystem and of a second fixed size as rendered by said parcel rendering subsystem; and wherein said discrete image data parcels each includes a fixed-size array of pixel data.