Optical disk apparatus including a braking device for frictionally suppressing movement of an optical head carriage

An optical disk apparatus for effecting at least one of recording of information on and reproduction of information from a recording medium by using a light beam, said apparatus comprising:

• a support frame;
• an optical head carriage mounted on said support frame, said optical head carriage having at least an optical system, including an objective lens for converging the light beam onto the recording medium in a focusing direction and a tracking/focusing actuator for driving the objective lens along one of the focusing direction and a tracking direction of the light beam relative to the recording medium, mounted thereon;
• a linear motor mounted on said optical head carriage for moving said optical head carriage radially of the recording medium;
• a wiring member extending from said tracking/focusing actuator and said linear motor, and being attached at one end to said support frame and at another end to said optical head carriage;
• and
• braking means mounted to said support for frictionally engaging said wiring member, said braking means comprising means for suppressing movement of said optical head carriage when frictionally engaged with said wiring member.