Patent ID: 7164630

Claim:
An optical disk apparatus used as one of an apparatus for reproducing information, and an apparatus for recording and reproducing information, by projecting a light beam onto an optical disk, said optical disk apparatus comprising: an optical sensor which is composed of light sensing cells and is configured to receive the light reflected from an optical disk and outputs optical sense signals corresponding to said light received; a differential phase detection (DPD) tracking error generating section which senses a phase difference between said optical sense signals outputted from said optical sensor and which generates a DPD tracking error signal from said optical sense signals; a push pull (PP) tracking error generating section which senses a level difference between said optical sense signals outputted from said optical sensor and which generates a PP tracking error signal from said optical sense signals; an adder which adds the DPD tracking error signal generated by said DPD tracking error generating section and the PP tracking error signal generated by said PP tracking error generating section and outputs the added tracking signal; a tracking control section which performs tracking control using the added tracking signal supplied from said adder; a defect sensing section which senses a defective part on said optical disk from a total add signal of said optical sensor; and an error signal mute section which is configured to mute the DPD tracking error signal supplied to said adder when said defect sensing section detects the defective part on said optical disk.