17  Scanner Reliability

17.1 Why this matters

Reliability metrics (rescans, long gaps) reveal scanner-specific issues and guide maintenance or retraining.

17.2 Device-Level Stability

17.3 Rescan Proxy

Rescans are approximated by repeated filenames on the same scanner. If slide-level data are unavailable, this section will be skipped.

17.4 Interpretation Guide

  • A higher 95th percentile scan duration indicates sporadic slowdowns; investigate loader behavior, tissue size, or focus errors on that device.
  • Elevated rescan rates suggest hardware alignment issues or handling problems; pair with time-of-day to see if certain shifts drive the problem.
  • Use these metrics to prioritize preventive maintenance or operator refreshers on the scanners with the weakest stability.