Patent ID: 7982778

Claim:
An imaging apparatus comprising: a signal-producing unit that produces an image signal on an image of an imaged subject; a data-superimposing unit that superimposes ancillary data over the image signal produced in the signal-producing unit; a data-extracting unit that extracts outside ancillary data from an outside image signal received from an outside master imaging apparatus; and a control unit that enables the imaging apparatus to be set as a desired one of a master imaging apparatus and a slave imaging apparatus, in which when the imaging apparatus is set as the master imaging apparatus, the control unit supplies the data-superimposing unit with the ancillary data including information that indicates setting condition of the signal-producing unit so as to enable the data-superimposing unit to superimpose the ancillary data over the image signal, and in which when the imaging apparatus is set as the slave imaging apparatus, the control unit controls the data-extracting unit so as to extract the outside ancillary data from the outside image signal and to generate a control signal or signals therefrom and to supply the control signal(s) to the signal-producing unit so as to set the signal-producing unit with the same setting as that of the outside master imaging apparatus.