Brent Liu, PhD

Assistant Professor

Dept of Radiology and Biomedical Engineering;
University of Southern California, USA

Dr. Brent Liu earned a Ph.D. degree from the UCLA Biomedical Physics Graduate Program and performed research as a Post Doctorate. During his graduate student research at UCLA from 1991 to 1996, Dr. Brent Liu had been involved in various medical image processing and informatics research projects. These include the analyses, design, implementation, and evaluation of an automatic image segmentation system based on object-oriented, knowledge base, and database-engineering principles applied to the image segmentation of bones in pediatric hand radiographs. Dr. Liu also researched and developed several image-processing applications such as image noise smoothing based on merging cluster of pixels with the aid of statistical information, removal of grid line artifacts in digitized X-ray images using Fourier Analysis filtering.
Upon graduation, Dr. Liu continued his post-doctorate research at UCLA from 1996 to 1999. During this time, Dr. Liu researched and designed a software module to capture Medical Imaging and Information data for the purposes of teaching, reviewing, and conferencing on a PACS workstation. Along with this software module, Dr. Liu contributed to the development of a suite of object-oriented class libraries to support methodological development of diagnostic PACS workstation functions and applications. These included the development of a software toolkit to convert current UCLA-proprietary PACS data into DICOM-compliant data files and the research of the use of adaptive and intelligent user interfaces and reading protocols in diagnostic PACS workstations.
From 1999 to 2002, he lead the implementation of a fully filmless PACS in a clinical setting within the Imaging Department of a high-profile community hospital (Saint John's Health Care, Santa Monica, CA). This included not only LAN PACS within the hospital but also WAN PACS to the physician's desktops. He was also involved with the planning and integration of other new information and imaging systems related to PACS, which include Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Oncology along with Radiology. He has served as a PACS consultant for another hospital to assist them in their integration of a fully filmless PACS. In 2002 to 2003, he also managed the implementation of a fully filmless PACS within a high-profile academic hospital (University of California Los Angeles Healthcare, Westwood, CA) that has multiple campus sites. His experience in PACS implementation is unique since he has had multiple contacts and interactions with various healthcare centers as well as the imaging industry. In addition, he brings hands-on practical knowledge of implementing different vendor PACS in both a high-profile community hospital and a large-scale academic hospital and the different experiences associated with both.
In 2003 he held an Honorary Lectureship at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University where he taught workshop courses in PACS Implementation, and Acceptance Testing Design/Development.

Research Interests:

His research areas of interest include Medical Imaging Informatics, Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (PACS) clinical uptime and usability, new PACS technology, Disaster Recovery for PACS, design and implementation of high-resolution image display workstations, next generation Internet and its clinical applications, and advances in the area of image processing and information management for healthcare.

Bone Age Assessment - Investigator
Data Grid - Project Advisor
Image Security - Project Advisor, Ph.D. Committee Member for Zheng Zhou
DICOM-RT Based ePR system for Managing Brain Tumor Patients - Principal Investigator
PDA - Project Advisor
HCC2 Total Solution HIS/RIS/PACS/VR - Clinical IT Advisor
ASP backup archive - Principal Investigator
RFID - Biometric - Project Advisor
PACS Simulator - Project Advisor
Internet 2-Investigator

Peer Reviewed

Liu BJ, Chuang KS, A Cluster Merging Filter for Noise Smoothing, IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Magazine, 13(2):249-262, April/May 1994.

Huang HK, Cao F, Zhang J, Liu BJ, Tsai ML, Fault tolerant picture archiving and communication system and teleradiology design, Chapter 8, in Security Issues in the Digital Medical Enterprise, Editor: Bruce I. Reiner et al., Society for Computer Applications in Radiology, SCAR University Primer, Vol. I: 57-64, November 2000.

Liu BJ, Cao F, Zhou MZ, Mogel G, Documet L, Trends in PACS Image Storage and Archive, Computerized Medical Imaging and Graphics, 27:165-174, 2003.

Liu BJ, Huang HK, Cao F, Zhou MZ, Zhang J, Mogel GT, A Complete Continuous-Availability PACS Archive Server Solution, Radiographics,1203-1209. 2004.

Liu BJ, Zhou MZ, Documet J, Zhang A, Mogel G, Utilizing Data Grid Architecture for the Backup and Recovery of Clinical Image Data, Computerized Medical Imaging and Graphics. (in press) 2004

Liu BJ, Cao F, Zhou MZ, Huang HK, Design and Implementation of a Continuous Available (CA) Server for Medical Imaging Applications, Journal of Academic Radiology V.11, No.7 767-778, 2004.

Conference Proceedings

Liu BJ, Huang HK, Acceptance Testing for PACS: From Methodology to Design to Implementation, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5371:223-229, 2004.

Liu BJ, Documet L, Documet J, Huang HK, Muldoon J, Wireless Remote Control Clinical Image Workflow, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5371:178-184, 2004.

Ratib OM, Liu BJ, Kho HT, Tao W, Wang C, McCoy JM, Multigeneration Data Migration from Legacy Systems, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5033:285-288, 2003

Liu BJ, Documet L, Documet J, Huang HK, Muldoon J, Clinical Experiences Utilizing Wireless Remote Control and an ASP Model Backup Archive for a Disaster Recovery Event, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5371:288-296, 2004.

Zhang A, Cao F, Pietka E, Liu BJ, Huang HK, Data Mining for Average Images in a Digital Hand Atlas, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5371:251-258, 2004

Zhou Z, Huang HK, Cao F, Liu BJ, Zhang J, Mogel G, A RIS/PACS Simulator with Web-based Image Distribution and Display System for Education, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5371:372-381, 2004.

Liu BJ, Huang HK, ASP Backup Plan for PACS, Advance Imaging and Oncology Administrators, 13: 55-61, November 2003.

Ratib OM, Liu BJ, Terwilliger P, McCoy JM, Enzmann DR, Application Service Provider (ASP) Financial Models for Off-Site PACS Archiving, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5033:57-62, 2003.

Huang HK, Zhou X, Cao F, Liu BJ, Mogel GT, Zhou MZ, Digital Image Envelope: Method and Evaluation, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5033:204-211, 2003.

Erberich SG, Documet J, Zhou MZ, Cao F, Liu BJ, Mogel GT, Huang HK, Wireless PDA Controlled Image Workflow from PACS: The Next Trend in the Health Care Enterprise?, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5033:181-186, 2003.

Zhou Z, Huang HK, Cao F, Liu BJ, Zhang J, Mogel GT, Educational RIS/PACS Simulator, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5033:139-147, 2003.

Liu BJ, Cao F, Documet L, Huang HK, Muldoon J, Clinical Experiences with an ASP Model Backup Archive for PACS Images, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 5033:63-69, 2003.

Cao F, Liu BJ, Zhou MZ, Huang HK, Zhang J, Mogel GT, Fault-Tolerant PACS Server, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 4685:316-325, 2002.

Liu BJ, Documet L, Sarti DA, Huang HK, Donnelly J, PACS Archive Upgrade and Data Migration: Clinical Experiences, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 4685:83-88 2002.

Liu BJ, Huang HK, Cao F, Documet L, Sarti DA, A Fault-Tolerant Backup Archive Using an ASP Model for Disaster Recovery, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 4685:89-95, 2002.

Mogel G, Huang HK, Cao F, Zhou Z, Dev P, Gill M, Liu BJ, NGI Performance in Teleradiology Applications, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 4685: 25-30, 2002.

Huang HK, Cao F, Liu BJ, Zhang J, Zhou Z, Tsai A, Mogel G, Fault-Tolerant PACS Server Design, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 4323:83-92, 2001.

Liu BJ, Sarti DA, Westmacott J, Implementation of PACS and Informatics in a Community-Sized Hospital: Making Real-Time Radiology a Reality, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 4323:59-66, 2001.

Valentino DJ, Harreld MR, Liu BJ, Brown M, Huang LJ, An application development environment for advanced digital workstations, Proceedings of SPIE Medical Imaging, 3335:600-607, 1998.

Harreld MR, Valentino DJ, Liu BJ, El-Saden S, Duckwiler G, NeuroNavigator: An Adaptive Interface for Integrated Browsing of Diagnostic Images and Reports, Proceedings of the SPIE Medical Imaging, 3335: 316-326, 1998.

Shim H, Liu BJ, Taira RK, Hall TR, Object-Oriented Approach Toward the Automatic Segmentation of Pediatric Hand Radiographs, Proceedings of the SPIE Medical Imaging, 3034: 95-105, 1997.

Liu BJ, Taira RK, Shim H, Keaton P, Automatic Segmentation of Bones from Digital Hand Radiographs, Proceedings of the SPIE Medical Imaging, 2434: 659-669 1995.

Liu BJ, Chuang KS, New Method of Noise Smoothing Based on Gray Level and Spatial Separation, Proceedings of the SPIE Medical Imaging, 2167: 535-542, 1994.