Automatic tracking/image sensing device

An automatic tracking/image sensing device comprising:

• a lens barrel for supporting an image sensing lens;
• a support mechanism for supporting said lens barrel in such a way that said lens barrel can be moved about a vertical axis and a horizontal axis;
• driving means for driving said lens barrel in yawing and pitching directions about said vertical and horizontal axes, respectively, to change a posture of said lens barrel;
• image sensing means installed at a location in close proximity to an image created by said image sensing lens for sensing the image and producing picture element data therefrom;
• video signal processing means for generating a video signal constituting a screen and based on the picture element data output by said image sensing means;
• object position detecting means for detecting the current position of an object and computing a positional deviation from the current position of said object to the center of said screen in accordance with said video signal generated by said video signal processing means;
• a plurality of angular position sensors for detecting an angular position of said lens barrel in said yawing and pitching directions about said respective vertical and horizontal axes;
• lens barrel posture controlling means for adjusting an angle of said lens barrel about at least one of said vertical and horizontal axes of said lens barrel;
• and
• a deflection detecting sensor attached to a stationary portion of said automatic tracking/image sensing device for detecting a deflection of said lens barrel resulting from the angle adjustment by said posture controlling means,
• wherein said angle about said at least one of said vertical and horizontal axes of said lens barrel is adjusted by activating said driving means in accordance with said positional deviation output by said object position detecting means, said deflection of said lens barrel detected by said deflection detecting sensor, and said angular positions detected by said angular position sensors, without correcting in a direction opposite to a direction of panning or tilting specified by a user.