Compaq Patent Suit Targets PDE Technology

Compaq Computer Corp., the world’s second-largest computer company, filed a federal lawsuit claiming that a Cypress company, PDE Technology Corp., has infringed on its patents and trademarks for hard disk carriers.

In the suit, filed in Houston, Compaq claims that PDE’s carriers, which provide a connection between hard disk drives and storage and service products, are nearly identical to Compaq’s patented products.

Compaq claims PDE has violated anti-competition laws and is intentionally trying to confuse its customers.

Chris Merchant, PDE’s chief executive, said he had not seen the suit and declined to comment.