Open Medical Inference
The Gateway to Remote AI Services in Healthcare
Redefining healthcare through open protocols and cutting-edge AI models. OMI enables the discovery and use of remote AI services through semantically interoperable exchange of multimodal healthcare data.
About OMI
Our Project and Our Vision
The OMI platform enables discovery and use of remote AI services through open protocols and data formats, focusing initially on image-based multimodal AI models.
Open Protocols
Establishing open protocols and data formats for semantically interoperable peer-to-peer exchange of multimodal healthcare data and remote AI inference.
FHIR & DICOM
Establishing a link between FHIR and DICOM via FHIR endpoint definitions and DICOMweb specifications to minimize barriers to entry for healthcare providers.
Gateway Server
Open-source gateway server providing RESTful access to legacy PACS systems, with a service registry to discover and monitor AI services.
MII Integration
Built on the Medical Informatics Initiative data sharing framework, utilizing local components for pseudonymization and consent management.
Our Network
16 Partners across 4 Consortia
Coordinated by the University Medical Center Essen, OMI brings together leading institutions from the Medical Informatics Initiative.
University Medical Center Essen
Essen
TUM School of Medicine and Health
Munich
University Hospital Erlangen
Erlangen
Charite University Hospital Berlin
Berlin
University Hospital Bonn
Bonn
University Hospital Cologne
Cologne
University Hospital Freiburg
Freiburg
University Hospital Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Hannover Medical School
Hannover
MOLIT Institute for Personalised Medicine
Heilbronn
University Hospital Wuerzburg
Wuerzburg
University Medical Center Rostock
Rostock
University Hospital Heidelberg
Heidelberg
University Hospital Ulm
Ulm
University Hospital Duesseldorf
Duesseldorf
Heilbronn University of Applied Sciences
Heilbronn
Our Work
Work Packages
The project is organized into 9 work packages spanning protocol specification, infrastructure implementation, governance, and evaluation.
Specification of the Open Medical Inference Protocol
Lead: MOLIT
WP02Specification of the Medical Imaging Extension of the MII CDS
Lead: University Hospital Erlangen
WP03DICOMweb Adapter
Lead: University Medical Center Essen
WP04Reference Gateway Server Implementation
Lead: University Medical Center Essen
WP05Reference Client Implementation
Lead: University Hospital Bonn / TU Munich
WP06Service Registry
Lead: Technical University Munich
WP07AI Governance and Ethics Framework
Lead: University Hospital Erlangen
WP08Roll-out and Evaluation
Lead: Technical University Munich
WP09Project Management
Lead: University Medical Center Essen
Research
Publications
Democratizing AI in Healthcare with Open Medical Inference (OMI): Protocols, Data Exchange, and AI Integration
O. Pelka, S. Sigle, P. Werner, S. T. Schweizer, A. Iancu, L. Scherer, N. A. Kamzol, J. H. Eil, T. Apfelbacher, D. Seletkov, T. Susetzky, M. S. May, A. M. Bucher, C. Fegeler, M. Boeker, R. Braren, H.-U. Prokosch, F. Nensa
DOI: 10.1055/a-2651-6653 →OMI Meets RACOON: Integration von IT-Infrastrukturen aus Medizinischer Informatik und Radiologie
H.-U. Prokosch, F. Nensa, T. Penzkofer
DOI: 10.3205/24gmds230 →A Governance Framework for the Implementation and Operation of AI Applications in a University Hospital
T. Apfelbacher, S. E. Kocman, H.-U. Prokosch, J. Christoph
DOI: 10.3233/shti240527 →Bridging the Gap Between (AI-) Services and Their Application in Research and Clinical Settings Through Interoperability: the OMI-Protocol
S. Sigle, P. Werner, S. Schweizer, L. Caldeira, R. Hosch, M. Dyrba, C. Fegeler
DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-28241-6-64 →Timeline
Events
11th Plenary Meeting
On-siteApr 23–24, 2026 · Erlangen
10th Plenary Meeting
OnlineJan 28, 2026 · Online
9th Plenary Meeting
On-siteOct 2, 2025 · Munich
8th Plenary Meeting
OnlineJul 10, 2025 · Online
7th Plenary Meeting
On-siteMay 8–9, 2025 · Essen
6th Plenary Meeting
OnlineFeb 3, 2025 · Online
5th Plenary Meeting
OnlineNov 5, 2024 · Online
4th Plenary Meeting
On-siteJul 1–2, 2024 · Erlangen
3rd Plenary Meeting
OnlineApr 16, 2024 · Online
2nd Plenary Meeting
On-siteJan 22–23, 2024 · Munich
1st Plenary Meeting
OnlineNov 2, 2023 · Online
Kick-Off Meeting
On-siteJul 27–28, 2023 · Essen
Pre Kick-Off Meeting
OnlineJun 19, 2023 · Online
Latest Updates
News
May 10, 2024
Project Secures Second Funding Phase!
The OMI project has successfully advanced to a second funding phase, ensuring continued development of open medical inference protocols.
Feb 29, 2024
DICOM WebAdapter
New DICOM WebAdapter component released, providing RESTful access to legacy PACS systems.
Feb 1, 2024
White Paper Published
The OMI consortium has published a white paper outlining the project vision and technical architecture.
Jul 27, 2023
Kick-Off Meeting
The OMI project officially kicked off with an on-site meeting in Essen, bringing together all 16 partner institutions.
Leadership
Steering Board
Prof. Dr. med. Felix Nensa
Project Management
Prof. Dr. biol. hom. Hans-Ulrich Prokosch
MIRACUM Consortium
Prof. Dr. med. Martin Boeker
DIFUTURE Consortium
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Fabian Prasser
HiGHmed Consortium
Prof. Dr. med. Sven Zenker
SMITH Consortium
Prof. Dr. med. Thomas Ganslandt
WG Interoperability
Dr. med. Andreas Bucher
Radiology