Drone guidance methods and systems

Abstract

The following describes a drone guidance system and method utilizing a plurality of Bluetooth emitters that transmit indicator information to the drone, which can utilize the indicator information to determine if it is on the intended path or alternatively determine if it is near a prohibited flying zone. In alternative embodiments, the drone can communicate with the emitters, which can relay information to a pre-flight database.

1 . A drone guidance system comprising:
 at least three programmable Bluetooth transmitters positioned about an exterior or exterior facing portion of a building, monument, or structure, wherein each programmable Bluetooth emitter is configured to emit a structure type indicator and position relationship indicator;   a Bluetooth receiver disposed about a drone and configured to receive emitted information from the at least programmable Bluetooth transmitters; and   a processing unit disposed on the drone and configured to determine at least one of a prohibited zone about the building, monument, or structure or a pathway information based on received emitted information from the Bluetooth receiver, which includes structure type indicator, position relationship indicator and also signal strength of each received emission from the transmitters.   
     
     
         2 . The drone guidance system of  claim 1 , wherein each of the at least three programmable Bluetooth transmitters is also configured to emit street indicator information. 
     
     
         3 . The drone guidance system of  claim 1 , wherein each of the at least three programmable Bluetooth transmitters is also configured to emit GPS coordinate indicator information. 
     
     
         4 . The drone guidance system of  claim 2 , wherein the processing unit is configured to compare the street indicator information to a flight plan to determine where the drone is relative to the flight plan. 
     
     
         5 . The drone guidance system of  claim 1 , wherein each of the at least three programmable Bluetooth transmitters are also configured to receive drone identification information emitted from the drone. 
     
     
         6 . The drone guidance system of  claim 5 , wherein the drone identification can be transmitted by the at least one of the at least three programmable Bluetooth transmitters via a network to a pre-flight database that also includes indicator information associated with the Bluetooth transmitter. 
     
     
         7 . The drone guidance system of  claim 5 , wherein the at least three programmable Bluetooth transmitters are also configured to receive status information associated with the drone, the status information including at least battery power information. 
     
     
         8 . The drone guidance system of  claim 1 , wherein one of the at least three programmable Bluetooth transmitters is connected to a network that communicates with a pre-flight database containing pre-flight data for the drone. 
     
     
         9 . The drone guidance system of  claim 1 , wherein a pre-flight path is recorded in a database is determined for the drone. 
     
     
         10 . The drone guidance system of  claim 9 , wherein the at least three programmable Bluetooth transmitters are configured to provide perimeter boundary information to an intended pre-flight path of the drone. 
     
     
         11 . The drone guidance system of  claim 9 , wherein the pre-flight path includes structure type indicator information along the pathway of the pre-flight path. 
     
     
         12 . A method of guiding a drone comprising the steps of:
 recording in a database pre-flight path information, which includes the intended flight-path of the drone;   programming at least three Bluetooth transmitters disposed about a structure to emit structure indicator and position indicator information;   determining by a processing unit disposed on the drone one of: proximity to a prohibited zone and proximity to the intended-flight path based on received emissions from a plurality of the at least three Bluetooth transmitters.   
     
     
         13 . The method of guiding a drone of  claim 12 , further comprising the step of receiving by one of the at least three Bluetooth transmitters drone identification information emitted from the drone. 
     
     
         14 . The method of guiding a drone of  claim 13 , further comprising the step of transmitting via a network to a pre-flight database the received drone identification information and at least one structure or position indicator associated with the Bluetooth transmitter receiving the drone identification information. 
     
     
         15 . The method of guiding a drone of  claim 14 , further comprising the step of sending to a user current drone information based on the transmitted information. 
     
     
         16 . The method of guiding a drone of  claim 15 , further comprising the step of determining by a processing unit associated with the pre-flight database whether updated flight-path information should be sent to the drone based on the transmitted information.