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Currently, the need for telemedicine is increasing all over the world. At the same time, the resolution of various medical images has become higher than before, and resolution of surgical endoscopes in particular have reached 8K Ultra-High-Definition (UHD). We conducted demonstration experiments of 8K-UHD medical image remote transmission with low-latency encoding and decoding between two sites (Tokushima Prefectural Central Hospital and Tokushima Prefectural Miyoshi Hospital) 68km apart. The two sites were connected by a 10-Gbps cable TV network, and on the transmitting side (Tokushima Prefectural Miyoshi Hospital), 8K-UHD endoscope image was compressed from 48 Gbps to 300 Mbps for the local cable TV network by ELL 8K HEVC Encoder. On the receiving side, the compressed image was decoded in real time into 8K-UHD uncompressed 48-Gbps image by ELL 8K HEVC Decoder and displayed on a 70-inch 8K-UHD monitor. The latency between the two sites (from 8K-UHD camera to 8K-UHD monitor) was shortened to about 0.15 second, and we and hospital doctors were able to have a two-way conversation on the 4K video conference system (Vidyo) while watching 8K-UHD medical image without any discomfort. In the future, we will improve latency not only in 8K-UHD encoders/decoders but also in peripheral systems such as various interface conversions on the system and monitors.

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