Abstract: A stereoscopic imaging system for generating stereoscopic images includes a pair of cameras juxtaposed with each other in a horizontal plane each capturing a stream of video images. A controller is provided for controlling motion of each camera, determining presence of a vertical parallax between the images from each camera and converting such first and second video signal into said stereoscopic image of such object. A drive apparatus is provided for linearly moving one camera and for rotating the other camera in response to at least one control signal received from the controller thereby correcting for determined vertical parallax presence. The novel drive apparatus includes an electrically powered linear drive mechanism for moving the first camera and an electrically powered motor and gear arrangement for rotating the second camera. The images are analyzed in a generally real-time manner and image capture and generation is not blocked during analysis.