Performance analysis of PACS: modeling and simulation

The authors describe a queuing model of a picture archiving and communication system (PACS) designed to analyze system elements individually and interactively, to facilitate the design of system configurations to establish optimal performance, and to explore alternative hypotheses for potential impact. The PACS is modeled using Q+ simulation software, which utilizes interactive graphics and generates network, node, and transaction statistics. The model incorporates nodes designed to characterize the acquisition, storage and display of medical images. Service times and distributions for the various nodes in the network, which in turn generate the output and input rates to other nodes, have been determined