[LI E90]

BMW M1 revived?

BMW’s trademark on the name “M1″ was officially registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office on June 10th. While it’s unclear if BMW’s next supercar will be named M1, this certainly adds credibility to rumors about a revival of the nameplate. On the other hand, BMW was granted trademarks on the names “M9″ and “M10″ in April — so at this point it’s anyone’s guess.

sDrive

BMW filed for a trademark on ’sDrive’ on July 9th. The filing describes a number of possible uses related to “motors, transmissions, differentials, axles, brakes and coupling drive shafts, gear change and gear reduction mechanisms in the nature of gearboxes, gear shifts and gear wheels.”

Previously, BMW registered trademarks on a number of possible vehicle names, including “sDrive35″ and “sDrive18.” The names follow the same pattern as BMW’s new X6 xDrive50 and xDrive35 models. Since the implied engine displacements range from 1.8 to 3.0 liters, we suspect sDrive has something to do with a smaller Bimmer.

[561design]

It can be difficult to determine a company's intentions from what they patent. One of my jobs is to design around an existing patent. We then issue patents for those solutions as they're considered defensive patents. So for one actual patent we use. There are about 20 floating around out there that have no other purpose than to block another company's move.