In CAS literature, one finds numerous examples of the usage of directly measured surfaces. Those surfaces are usually measured using so called "Surface Scanners" which employ structured light (pattern projection or laser) to measure the surface. From an integration standpoint, it would be beneficial for many applications to have all patient data in a common repository and since in many cases radiology images are involved as well, a PACS is a natural option for storage of this data. DICOM -the major standard used for storage and transmission of data within a PACS -has recently been extended by the option to store surface meshes using a newly introduced data structure. This new Surface Mesh Module can serve as a basis for storage of data generated by an optical surface scanner. Nonetheless, a new Information Object Definition for this kind of data has to be introduced to reflect the specific needs: Device specific parameters have to be stored and, in addition to the Surface Mesh Module, there must be the possibility to store textures as well. This paper gives an overview about the specific requirements and an outline of a Work Item leading to an Optical Surface Scan Information Object Definition (IOD). ABSTRACTIn CAS literature, one finds numerous examples of the usage of directly measured surfaces. Those surfaces are usually measured using so called "Surface Scanners" which employ structured light (pattern projection or laser) to measure the surface. From an integration standpoint, it would be beneficial for many applications to have all patient data in a common repository and since in many cases radiology images are involved as well, a PACS is a natural option for storage of this data. DICOM -the major standard used for storage and transmission of data within a PACS -has recently been extended by the option to store surface meshes using a newly introduced data structure. This new Surface Mesh Module can serve as a basis for storage of data generated by an optical surface scanner. Nonetheless, a new Information Object Definition for this kind of data has to be introduced to reflect the specific needs: Device specific parameters have to be stored and, in addition to the Surface Mesh Module, there must be the possibility to store textures as well. This paper gives an overview about the specific requirements and an outline of a Work Item leading to an Optical Surface Scan Information Object Definition (IOD).