Maverick/VisibleManTxtToMhd: Difference between revisions
| Line 10: | Line 10: | ||
* The slice's data is stored in a binary-encoded format (.fre) that isn't readable by many programs | * The slice's data is stored in a binary-encoded format (.fre) that isn't readable by many programs | ||
** e.g., | ** e.g., c_vm1013.fre, c_vm1014.fre, ... | ||
** The binary data (uncompressed) for the slice actually occurs at the end of this file | ** The binary data (uncompressed) for the slice actually occurs at the end of this file | ||
** The header size for this file (the information before the data begins) is of variable length | ** The header size for this file (the information before the data begins) is of variable length | ||
* A text file (.txt) that describes the acquisition parameters of the slice | * A text file (.txt) that describes the acquisition parameters of the slice | ||
** e.g., c_vm1013.fre.txt, c_vm1014.fre.txt, ... | |||
** Describes the origin, spacing, directions, kEv, etc for each slice | ** Describes the origin, spacing, directions, kEv, etc for each slice | ||
Revision as of 16:27, 5 October 2008
Maverick: VisibleManTxtToMhd
Introduction
Use this program to import the Visible Man's data into a format that can be read by ITK and VTK-based applications.
Background
The Visible Man's CT data consists of a pair of files per CT slice:
- The slice's data is stored in a binary-encoded format (.fre) that isn't readable by many programs
- e.g., c_vm1013.fre, c_vm1014.fre, ...
- The binary data (uncompressed) for the slice actually occurs at the end of this file
- The header size for this file (the information before the data begins) is of variable length
- A text file (.txt) that describes the acquisition parameters of the slice
- e.g., c_vm1013.fre.txt, c_vm1014.fre.txt, ...
- Describes the origin, spacing, directions, kEv, etc for each slice
Operation
This utility program will convert a list of .txt files from the visible man collection to corresponding .mhd files. Those .mhd files are part of the MetaImage standard which is supported by ITK, VTK, Slicer, Analyze, and numerous other packages. The .mhd files point to the .fre files and allow those corresponding slices to be read by MetaImage compliant libraries and applications.
Usage
At this time this utility program is only available with a command-line interface.
Maverick/bin/VisibleManTxtToMhd <input.txt> <output.mhd>
The first argument is the path to the visible man's .txt file to be converted.
The second argument is the output path to the .mhd file to be created.
Warning: The .mhd files only point to the binary data (in this case the .fre file) that they describe. The slice data is not duplicated in the .mhd file. Therefore, to use this .mhd file to read the slice data, the .mhd file must be created and/or placed in the same directory as the .fre file to which it points.
Hint: The .mhd files are text files. Any text editor can be used to create or modify these files. Additional MetaImage documentation is ONLINE.
Use cases
Linux
From within the directory containing the .fre and .txt files from the Visible Man, type:
Windows
Install cygwin and follow the directions for linux.
