Royal Philips Electronics NV, which gets more than a third of its revenue from medical systems, filed a lawsuit claiming that Zoll Medical Corp. is infringing patents related to devices used to restart hearts. Philips contends that external defibrillators made by Chelmsford, Massachusetts-based Zoll are infringing six patents. It is seeking cash compensation and an order that would block further use of its inventions, according to the complaint filed yesterday in federal court in Seattle. Philips, Zoll and Medtronic Inc. are the top makers of the devices that police, firefighters and flight attendants use to help people experiencing cardiac arrest. An external defibrillator used in the first minutes after cardiac arrest can triple the chances of survival, according to a study by the University of Pennsylvania.
