Nest has been basking in praises from the innovation circles around the world for its learning Thermostat since its release last year. However, the upstart smart thermostat manufacturer has been slapped with a major patent lawsuit by Honeywell, which claims that it is trespassing Honeywell's intellectual property precincts. In response, Nest has called Honeywell "worse than a patent troll."

Nest has officially responded to the lawsuit, arguing that it has not infringed any of Honeywell's patents. According the official response published by Sbnation Nest has had a few kind words for Honeywell in their official response stating that most of Honeywell's patents are "hopelessly invalid," and further cited that the plaintiff is misusing its patents to gag innovation.

Nest also said that Honeywell has always drawn the patent card to squeeze out new competitors over the past years. "Honeywell is worse than a patent troll," Nest CEO Tony Fadell said. "They're trying to strangle us, and we're not going to allow that to happen," he added.

The Nest official, who is the former head of Apple's iPod and iPhone programs, indicated that he is no stranger to a flare of lawsuits. He mentions that in his previous tenures in technology entities, he faced infringement letters almost every week. Fadell and Nest team have drafted in former Apple chief intellectual property guardian Richard "Chip" Lutton Jr. After serving Nest in the past several months as an advisor, Lutton will be coming on board as VP General Counsel.

The legal eagle has already brushed off Honeywell lawsuit as neither impressive nor relevant considering what Nest is engaged in. "We think there's an answer to why Honeywell would do this... they jump in and try to scare new entrants back out of the market." According to Fadell, Honeywell did not engage Nest on the matter before filing the lawsuit and has, in the words of the the advisor, had "rebuffed all attempts" to explore the pending litigation.

It is interesting that Nest announced the appointment of Lutton as the general counsel just about an hour after the company had submitted a vitriolic defense against the patent-infringement suit that was filed by Honeywell in February this year. Nest, which is tapping most from the talent of many of its recruits that used to work for Apple, Microsoft, Google and other well-to-do technology companies is not backing down as it is set to scale novel heights in disruptive technology. In the core of its defense, is the logic that a smart thermostat that learns and adapts to homeowners' movements can be highly cost-effective and environmentally friendly in the aspects of energy saving and cutting down on pollution.

In a response to Nest's defence, Honeywell mentioned in a statement that it stands by its claims of patent infringement, adding that its intellectual property is a treasured business asset that it will protect vigorously.

(reported by Gugulethu Nyoni, edited by Surojit Chatterjee)