Frequently Asked Questions

Account and access

I didn't receive the activation link. How do I proceed?

First, please check your spam folder. If the email still hasn't arrived, use the "Forgot password" feature on the login page to request a new activation link.

How can I reset my password if I forgot it?

Click "Forgot Password" on the login page. You will be prompted for your registered email address, and a reset link will be sent to you. Follow the instructions in that email to set a new password.

I can't create an account.

We allow our partners, universities, and various institutions to use our web platform. If you are unable to create an account, it is likely that the domain of your email address has not been approved yet. If you believe you are eligible and still cannot register, please contact us at jaime.barrancohernandez@hevs.ch so we can review it.

Uploading data

Which file formats can I upload?

You can select .nii, .nii.gz, .zip and .7z files. Archives may contain NIfTI images or DICOM folders — the content is extracted automatically, and DICOM series are converted to NIfTI before segmentation. Only human T1-weighted images are supported.

Can I submit DICOM images directly?

Not as individual files — DICOM has to be inside a .zip or .7z archive, since a DICOM series is a folder of slices rather than a single file. The platform detects the DICOM folder and converts it for you.

If you prefer to convert beforehand, dcm2niix is the standard tool:

dcm2niix -z y -o /path/to/output /path/to/dicom_folder

The equivalent in Python, using the same library this platform uses:

import dicom2nifti
dicom2nifti.convert_directory("dicom_folder", "output_folder", compression=True)

How many cases can I submit at once?

Up to 10 cases per submission. A single archive may contain several cases, and the counter on the upload list shows how many have been detected. Files that would push you past the limit are rejected with an explanation.

Running a segmentation

Can I use the platform in several tabs at the same time?

No — please use a single tab. All of your work is kept in one working folder on the server, tied to your account rather than to a browser tab. Starting a new upload in a second tab clears that folder, so the first tab's results are no longer available: its viewers will fail to open and its download will no longer work. A results viewer that is already open keeps displaying what it has loaded, which can make the first tab look healthy when its data is in fact gone. Finish and download one run before starting the next.

How long does a segmentation take, and can I close the page?

Your job is submitted to our HPC cluster, so the total time depends on how many cases you sent and on how busy the cluster is — typically a few minutes once the job starts running. Keep the tab open until it finishes. A run is limited to one hour, after which the request times out.

What happens if I reload or leave the segmentation page while a job is running?

Returning to the segmentation page cancels any job you currently have running on the cluster, and the same is true of pressing Reset or starting a new upload. This is deliberate — it prevents abandoned jobs from occupying the cluster. If you reload by accident, simply upload your files again and restart.

The segmentation failed. What should I do?

Your working folder is cleared when a run fails, so start again with a fresh upload. Because the whole submission runs as one cluster job, a single problematic image causes the entire batch to fail — if a retry fails too, try submitting the cases one at a time to identify which one is responsible. Check as well that the images really are human T1-weighted scans.

Note the error message shown on the page, and if you have an archive from an earlier run, look at its logs/ folder — app.log and the .err file from the cluster usually say what went wrong. Please send those logs, together with the approximate time of the failed attempt, to jaime.barrancohernandez@hevs.ch. A failed run produces no archive of its own, but we keep a copy of your run log on the server and can look it up from the time you give us.

Results

What is inside the results archive?

A single .zip containing, for each case:

  • the segmentation mask of both eyes, in the space of your original image — _left_right.nii.gz;
  • the logs of your run and the details of the inference, under logs/;
  • the license agreement;
  • and, if you extracted biomarkers, the axial length visualisations (.png) plus a summary table (biomarkers.csv).

Why isn't my uploaded image in the results archive?

Your original scan is deliberately not returned, because we do not keep it — it is deleted from our servers once your results have been produced. The segmentation masks are aligned to your original image, so you can overlay them on your own copy. Please keep that copy.

Do the logs in my download contain other users' information?

No. Each run writes to its own log, and only that log is placed in your archive. The logs describe your own submission — the files processed, the cluster job, and any errors — and never another user's activity.

Data and privacy

Where is my medical data stored, and is it exposed?

Processing takes place on secured infrastructure at the HES-SO in Sion (Valais). Your uploaded images are used only to produce your results and are not retained afterwards. The resulting segmentations and biomarkers are archived on our secured server and are used to monitor and improve A-eye's performance. Nothing is shared with third parties, and no data is publicly accessible.

Does the results viewer keep my images?

No. The viewer only displays your images while the page is open — it stores nothing in your browser, and neither your uploaded scan nor the resulting segmentations are kept once you reset the session, start a new upload, or leave the page. Download the archive before you go: it is the only copy you will have.

Am I allowed to upload patient data?

Only if you are authorised to do so. By uploading, you confirm that the transfer complies with the ethics approval and Data Transfer Agreements covering your data — you remain solely responsible for that compliance. Both confirmations must be ticked before an upload can start.

Support

The pipeline finished, but there is a problem with the results. How do I report a bug?

Please write to jaime.barrancohernandez@hevs.ch. Including the logs/ folder from your results archive helps considerably, as it records exactly what happened during your run.