Abstract: A blur correction apparatus is provided that includes a blur correction mechanism, a locking member, a shift drive processor and an unlocking driver. The blur correction mechanism compensates for camera shake by driving a movable portion provided with one of a correction lens and an imaging device. The locking member restricts movement of the movable portion within a locked range of motion. The shift drive processor moves the movable portion a predetermined distance toward a center of the locked range of motion when locking by the locking member is released and the predetermined distance is shorter than the distance from the movable portion to the center. The unlocking driver moves the locking member to an unlocked position after moving the movable portion the predetermined distance away from the locking member.

Abstract: A blur correction apparatus is provided that includes a blur correction mechanism, a locking member, a shift drive processor and an unlocking driver. The blur correction mechanism compensates for camera shake by driving a movable portion provided with one of a correction lens and an imaging device. The locking member restricts movement of the movable portion within a locked range of motion. The shift drive processor moves the movable portion a predetermined distance toward a center of the locked range of motion when locking by the locking member is released and the predetermined distance is shorter than the distance from the movable portion to the center. The unlocking driver moves the locking member to an unlocked position after moving the movable portion the predetermined distance away from the locking member.

Abstract: A blur correction apparatus is provided that includes a blur correction mechanism and a locking member. The blur correction mechanism compensates for camera shake by driving a movable portion provided with a correction lens or an imaging device. The locking member restricts movement of the movable portion within a locked range of motion. The movable portion is suspended in a current position by the blur correction mechanism when a release operation is performed in a state in which the movable portion is locked by the locking member.

Abstract: An anti-shake apparatus comprises an angular velocity sensor and a controller. The angular velocity sensor detects an angular velocity. The controller controls the angular velocity sensor and performs an anti-shake operation based on the output signal from the angular velocity sensor. The controller calculates an angular velocity signal, based on the output signal from the angular velocity sensor before a predetermined period which is longer than a predetermined time interval and the output signal from the angular velocity sensor after the predetermined period, at the predetermined time interval, during the predetermined period.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform and a controller. The movable platform has an imager that captures an optical image through a taking lens, and is movable and rotatable on an xy plane perpendicular to an optical axis of the taking lens. The controller calculates an inclination angle of the photographic apparatus, which is formed by rotation of the photographic apparatus around the optical axis, as measured with respect to a level plane perpendicular to the direction of gravitational force, and performs a controlled movement of the movable platform for an inclination correction based on the inclination angle. The controller calculates the inclination angle but stops the controlled movement when the photographic apparatus is set to a sleep mode.

Abstract: A 3D camera has a display processor that displays a 2D object image on a display by a 2D display process and that displays a 3D object image on the display by a 3D display process; and a position sensor that detects the position of the camera on the basis of an inclination angle from a horizontal position of the camera. Then, the display processor displays an object image as a 2D object image when the inclination angle exceeds a threshold angle in a state that an object image is displayed as a 3D image.

Abstract: An image stabilization system is provided that includes a rolling angle detector for detecting a rolling angle of a camera body; a rotational blur compensator that calculates a rotational blur from the rolling angle and carries out a rotational compensation by rotating an image sensor; a translational motion detector for detecting a translational motion of the camera body; and a translational blur compensator that extracts a partial image from each of two images captured by the image sensor to counteract the translational motion.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform and a controller. The movable platform has an imager that captures an optical image through a taking lens, and is movable and rotatable on an xy plane perpendicular to an optical axis of the taking lens. The controller calculates an inclination angle of the photographic apparatus, which is formed by rotation of the photographic apparatus around the optical axis, as measured with respect to a level plane perpendicular to the direction of gravitational force, and performs a controlled movement of the movable platform for an inclination correction based on the inclination angle. The controller calculates an elevation/depression angle that represents an angle at which the optical axis intersects said level plane, and calculates the inclination angle in consideration of the elevation/depression angle.

Abstract: A drive device is provided having a movable part, a fixed part, a drive part, and a direction-detecting part. The fixed part is provided within a movement range of the movable part. The drive part drives the movable part in a first direction against the fixed part. The direction-detecting part detects the bound direction of the movable part after the movable part strikes the fixed part. The drive part drives the movable part so as to strike the fixed part according to the bound direction detected by the direction-detecting part after the movable part strikes the fixed part.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform and a controller. The movable platform has an imager that captures an optical image through a taking lens, and is movable and rotatable on an xy plane. The controller calculates an inclination angle of the photographic apparatus, and performs a controlled movement of the movable platform for an inclination correction by rotating the movable platform from an initial state on said xy plane in accordance to a rotation quantity of the movable platform. The controller performs the controlled movement to offset the inclination angle by the rotation quantity, when the photographic apparatus is in a first inclination state. The controller performs the controlled movement to maintain an inclined state where the movable platform is rotated from the initial state in accordance to either the first angle or the negative of the first angle, when the photographic apparatus is in a second inclination state.

Abstract: An anti-shake apparatus for image stabilizing comprises a movable unit and a controller. The movable unit is movable for an anti-shake operation. The controller stops the anti-shake operation after an exposure time and moves the movable unit to a first position after the anti-shake operation. The first position is a position of the movable unit before the exposure time and before the anti-shake operation. The controller moves the movable unit at a decelerated, low rate of speed before finishing its movement to the first position.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform, an operation unit, and a controller. The movable platform has an imager that captures an optical image through a taking lens, and is movable relative to the taking lens on an xy plane perpendicular to an optical axis of the taking lens. The operation unit is configured to set a movement quantity of the movable platform on the xy plane. The controller performs a controlled movement of the movable platform in accordance to the movement quantity set by using the operation unit.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform and a controller. The movable platform has an imager and is movable and rotatable on an xy plane perpendicular. The controller calculates an inclination angle of the photographic apparatus, and performs a controlled movement of the movable platform for an inclination correction based on the inclination angle. The controller calculates a first position of the movable platform before the inclination correction. The controller calculates a second position of the movable platform after the inclination correction. The controller determines whether the movable platform should be moved to a third position before moving from the first position to the second position in the inclination correction, on the basis of a positional relationship between the first position and the second position. The third position is a position of the movable platform in an imaging operation by the imager without the inclination correction.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform and a controller. The movable platform has an imager that captures an optical image through a taking lens, and is movable and rotatable on an xy plane. The controller calculates an inclination angle of the photographic apparatus, which is formed by rotation of the photographic apparatus around the optical axis, and performs a controlled movement of the movable platform for an inclination correction by rotating the movable platform from an initial state on the xy plane in accordance to a rotation quantity of the movable platform. The controller performs the controlled movement so as to compensate the rotation quantity under the condition in which the absolute value of the rotation quantity decreases in accordance to an increasing absolute value of the inclination angle, when the inclination angle is larger than a second angle but less than a third angle.

Abstract: A dust removal apparatus of a photographing apparatus comprises a movable unit and a controller. The movable unit has an imaging device and is movable. The controller moves the movable unit on a plane that is parallel to a first direction and a second direction. The first direction is perpendicular to an optical axis of a photographing optical system that captures an optical image on a photographing surface of the imaging device. The second direction is perpendicular to the first direction and the optical axis. The controller moves the movable unit to a predetermined position that does not make contact with a boundary of a range of movement of the movable unit, and strikes the movable unit against the boundary of the range of movement in the second direction under the condition where a coordinate value in the first direction of the movable unit is held constant, as a dust removal operation.

Abstract: An anti-shake apparatus for image stabilizing of a photographing apparatus comprises a movable unit and a controller. The controller controls the movement of the movable unit for anti-shake operation. The controller controls the movement of the movable unit such as to hold the movable unit at a position without performing the anti-shake operation, for a specified time period that is a part of the time period from the point when the exposure time of the photographing apparatus is finished to the point when the photographing apparatus is set to a state where the next imaging operation can be performed. The position is the initial position where the movable unit is located when the specified time period commences.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform and a controller. The movable platform has an imager that captures an optical image through a taking lens, and is movable and rotatable on an xy plane perpendicular to an optical axis of the taking lens. The controller calculates an inclination angle of the photographic apparatus, which is formed by rotation of the photographic apparatus around the optical axis, as measured with respect to a level plane perpendicular to the direction of gravitational force, and performs a controlled movement of the movable platform for an inclination correction based on the inclination angle. The controller calculates an elevation/depression angle that represents an angle at which the optical axis intersects the level plane, and determines whether the controlled movement of the movable platform for the inclination correction is performed on the basis of the elevation/depression angle.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform, an acceleration sensor, and a controller. The movable platform has an imager, and is movable and rotatable in an xy plane. The acceleration sensor detects a first gravitational component and a second gravitational component. The first gravitational component is the component of gravitational acceleration in the x direction. The second gravitational component is the component of gravitational acceleration in the y direction. The controller calculates an inclination angle of the photographic apparatus formed by rotation of the photographic apparatus around the optical axis, as measured with respect to a level plane perpendicular to the direction of gravitational force, on the basis of a magnitude relation between the absolute value of the first gravitational component and the absolute value of the second gravitational component, and performs a first movement control of the movable platform for an inclination correction based on the inclination angle.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform, an acceleration sensor, and a controller. The movable platform has an imager that captures an optical image, and is movable and rotatable in an xy plane. The acceleration sensor detects a first gravitational component and a second gravitational component. The first gravitational component is the component of gravitational acceleration in the x direction. The second gravitational component is the component of gravitational acceleration in the y direction. The controller specifies a holding state of the photographic apparatus, calculates an inclination angle formed by rotation of the photographic apparatus, as measured with respect to a level plane, on the basis of the first and second gravitational components, and performs a movement control of the movable platform for an inclination correction based on the inclination angle.

Abstract: A photographic apparatus comprises a movable platform and a controller. The movable platform has an imager, and is movable and rotatable in an xy plane. The controller performs a movement control of the movable platform for an inclination correction based on an inclination angle of the photographic apparatus formed by rotation of the photographic apparatus around the optical axis, as measured with respect to a level plane, for a first stabilization for correcting hand shake caused by yaw, and for a second stabilization for correcting hand shake caused by pitch. The controller performs a determination of whether the inclination correction is to be performed, on the basis of a first hand-shake quantity caused by yaw for the first stabilization, a second hand-shake quantity caused by pitch for the second stabilization, and the inclination angle.