Quinton Instrument Co., a Seattle subsidiary of...

Quinton Instrument Co., a Seattle subsidiary of A.H. Robins Co., said it has filed a patent infringement suit against Shiley Inc., an Irvine maker of medical products that is a subsidiary of Pfizer Inc. of New York.

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, charges Shiley with infringing on Quinton’s patent to produce a catheter for hemodialysis--the removal of waste from the blood.

Quinton said it is the exclusive licensee of rights to produce the device under the patent. Sales of the catheter total $2 million annually, the company said.