File handling

The simplest image handler is the Raw Input Tool which provides direct acces to the data stack within Tina. It allows the user to specify all of the parameters necessary to locate and read a raw binary (or ascii) data block within a file. The parameters of this tool should be quite self explanatory. Typical use involves a trial and error process to select the best parameters while viewing the resulting data in the Imcalc Tool's Tv. This should be the method of last resort for loading proprietary data sets. The other data input tools support formats which contain useful supplemental header information. The Sequence Tool in particular supports common medical volume data sets. Once an data set has been loaded it is possible to write out to any of the supported formats, thus achieving image conversion. This process can be batched using macro replays (see below) if many files are involved.

The Mono Tool handles the following file types;

        Option  Extension      Description

        AIFF    .aiff          Image (new Aivru image file format)
        PGM     .pgm           portable greylevel map
        RAD     .rad           RADIAL image format (Manchester Univ.)
        EDGE    .edges         Edge data (binary)
        POLY    .poly2D        Geometry
        CAM     .cam           Camera geometry
        WISP    .wisp          Edge String data
        RAS     .ras           SUN rasterfile
        DICOM                  GIF image file format

An image may have associated files with some or all of these extensions. PGM file reading is supported only for compatability with standard data formats. Generally, image processing requiring co-ordinate mapping or pixel casting will produce images which cannot be supported within an integer format. The AIFF format exists specifically to overcome these kind of deficiencies and its use is recommended for processed image storage. In order to support sequence processing the filename can be specified including numeric wildcards "#". These are substitued for the numeric Frame Number which can be manipulated via the forward and backward iterators $>$ and $<$. This facility is of primary value when constructing sequence replays within the Sequence Tool.

A scan facility is provided to provide a listing of files which are compatable with the current specification of the file name. To list a directory contents the directory path should be terminated with a "/". If the file path is unique it will be completed for you in the interface thus avoiding typing errors in locating data.

Stereo tool handles the following file types.

        Option   Extension             Description

        AIFF    .l.aiff & .r.aiff      Image (new Aivru image file format)
        ROI     .roi                   stored Tv regions.
        EDGE    .l.edges & .r.edges    Edge data (binary)
        POLY    .l.poly & .r.poly      2D geometry  
        LH_G    .poly                  3D geometry (old right hand coords)
        RH_G    .poly                  3D geometry (new right hand coords)
        CAM     .l.cam & .r.cam        Camera geometry

An image may have associated files with some or all of these extensions (.l means left images and .r means right image).

The default image pathname is given by the environment variable TINA_IMAGE_DEFAULT, if set otherwise it takes a #defined value.

Again (as in the Mono Tool) the filename can be specified including numeric wildcards "#". These are substitued for the numeric Frame Number which can be manipulated via the forward and backward iterators $>$ and $<$. This facility is of primary value when constructing sequence replays within the Sequence Tool.

• Input input selected file(s) eg house.l.aiff and house.r.aiff (in stereo_tool)

  A camera file is input whenever a .aiff (or .iff) or raw image is input. When inputting a camera file, a heirarchy of default filenames is used. eg. for the image HOME/images/house/house.aiff, Tina looks for a camera file in the order:

        $HOME/images/house/house.cam     (<basename>.cam)
        $HOME/images/house/default.cam   (deafult.cam in same directory)
        $HOME/images/default.cam         (TINA\_CAMERA\_DEFAULT variable)
        $HOME/images/default.cam         (pathname #define'd)
  

• Output output selected file(s)

  On output a camera file is only written when CAM is selected. (ie. NOT when an image is output) and it is written only to the named file (basename.cam) is possible.