Novatel Wireless filed a lawsuit against Franklin Wireless and ZTE over five patents used in its MiFi mobile hot spots.

In a suit filed with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, Novatel alleges that the companies are violating its patents related to the architecture and functionality of its MiFi devices.

"Novatel Wireless invented the MiFi Intelligent Mobile Hotspot and with that created a whole new product category in the wireless ecosystem," said Novatel CEO Peter Leparulo in a statement. "We're confident that we will continue to lead the market, but competitors need to rely on their own inventions rather than infringe on ours."

Neither ZTE nor Franklin Wireless could be reached for comment and Novatel did not specify which products were implicated in the suit. Franklin Wireless manufacturers CDMA and WiMAX personal hots pots, as well as USB modems and data cards. ZTE's Peel, an iPod Touch case which works as a Wi-Fi hot spot, was launched with Sprint last month.

Novatel says it holds numerous U.S. and international key patents and patent applications around elements of its MiFi mobile hot spot products. Novatel's MiFi-branded products have commercially launched with 25 operators worldwide.