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1 Technical Design – Beeldbeschikbaarheid 1.0.0-alpha

1 Technical Design – Beeldbeschikbaarheid 1.0.0-alpha

1.1 1. Scope and Purpose

1.1.1 Purpose

This Technical Design (TD) describes the architectural approach for cross-community exchange of medical imaging information.

The design focuses explicitly on:

Cross-community imaging exchange
Gateway-to-gateway interoperability
Federated exchange between healthcare communities

1.1.2 Out of Scope

The following aspects are explicitly out of scope:

Internal systems and workflows within healthcare organizations
Internal storage mechanisms
Local technical implementations
Vendor-specific architectural choices

This TD defines how communities interoperate — not how they implement internally.

1.2 2. Architectural Principles

This section describes the guiding architectural principles.

1.2.1 Community Boundaries

Each community is autonomous
Internal implementation freedom is preserved
Communities are responsible for their own data governance

1.2.2 Gateways

Gateways function as trust anchors
Gateways act as the interoperability boundary
All cross-community interaction occurs via gateways

1.2.3 Separation of Concerns

Internal architecture is separated from external interoperability
The TD does not prescribe internal registry or storage mechanisms
Only externally exposed capabilities are specified

1.3 3. Cross-Community Federation

This section describes the federated architecture model.

1.3.1 Cross-Community Query

Queries are performed via community gateways
Cross-community querying is based on XCA principles
Gateways are responsible for forwarding and responding to queries

1.3.2 Imaging Context

XCA-I applies in imaging-specific contexts
No SOAP transaction-level details are specified in this document
No RAD-75 transaction descriptions are included

This TD defines architectural positioning, not transaction specifications.

1.4 4. Retrieval of Imaging Objects

1.4.1 Retrieval Principle

Retrieval is a gateway-exposed capability.

A gateway SHALL:

Expose imaging objects for cross-community retrieval
Support web-based access to DICOM objects
Enforce applicable security and access control policies

1.4.2 Legacy Mechanisms

Legacy retrieval mechanisms are acknowledged
They are discouraged for new implementations

This chapter defines what a gateway exposes — not how imaging data is internally stored.

1.5 5. Publication and Metadata Management (Contextual)

This chapter ensures architectural completeness without prescribing internal solutions.

1.5.1 Metadata Requirement

Within each community:

Metadata describing imaging objects MUST exist
A publication mechanism MUST be present

The TD does not mandate how metadata is created, stored, or indexed.

1.5.2 Non-Normative Examples

Examples of commonly used approaches include:

XDS-I.b
MHD
Other equivalent mechanisms

These examples are illustrative and non-prescriptive.

1.6 6. Manifest-Based Exchange

1.6.1 Principle

The unit of exchange is a manifest.

1.6.2 Mechanism

Use of DICOM Key Object Selection (KOS)
The manifest references imaging objects
Referenced objects are retrieved via gateway interfaces

1.6.3 Benefits

Scalable
Future-proof
Content-agnostic
Decouples metadata exchange from object retrieval

1.7 7. Alignment with European Interoperability Initiatives

This section describes alignment at the semantic and conceptual level.

1.7.1 Xt-EHR Alignment

Alignment on semantics
Alignment on metadata concepts
Alignment on imaging report structures

1.7.2 Explicit Non-Scope

This TD does not prescribe:

Transport mechanisms beyond gateway interoperability
Workflow orchestration
National implementation constraints beyond architecture

1.8 8. Use Cases

Use cases are mapped to architectural patterns rather than specific technical profiles.

1.8.1 Registry-Based Community

Community maintains internal registry mechanisms
Gateway exposes cross-community query capabilities

1.8.2 Federated Cross-Community Exchange

Multiple communities connected via gateway federation
Queries are routed across community boundaries

1.8.3 Manifest-Based Retrieval

Exchange based on manifest objects
Imaging objects retrieved via gateway-exposed services

1.9 Version Information

Version: 1.0.0-alpha
Status: Draft Technical Design
Intended publication: End of Q1

Implementation Guide BBS version 1.0.0-alpha.2