LONDON, UK: In yet another patent litigation, EDA tools vendor Mentor Graphics Corp. announced that it has filed a patent infringement suit in an Oregon federal court against the French emulation tools vendor EVE SA.

Prior to this Mentor had been trying to ensure that the Paris-based EVE was prevented from selling its products in Japan. Reports say that EVE is planning a strong defense against Mentor’s claims.

In this latest suit, Mentor has alleged that EVE products infringe on United States Patent No. 6,876,962 issued April 5, 2005, and said it is seeking damages and looking to stop the manufacture and sale of EVE's products in the US.

Sources from the IP division of Mentor reaffirm that they owe it to their shareholders to defend their intellectual property when it is infringed.