Application Data Flow Diagram

Bubble Diagram (AKA: Application Data Flow Diagram) are used in DICOM Conformance statements to illustrate the interaction between DICOM processes in the device and the outside world. The interaction between the DICOM processes (called Application Entities – AEs) and the internal functions are described in the bubble diagrams. A bubble diagram depicts the functional relationships between the device and the DICOM services. The diagram consists of two devices exchanging information with each other, with a vertical dashed line in between that stands for the DICOM standard interface.

Rectangular boxes are used to represent the AEs, which are the DICOM software processes implemented on the device. The circles represent real-world activities and DICOM services related to the applications. The direction of the arrows between the AEs and the bubbles indicate the origination of the association.