EP0085989B1 - Downhole instrument and methods of manufacturing and using the same - Google Patents

Downhole instrument and methods of manufacturing and using the same Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0085989B1
EP0085989B1 EP83101245A EP83101245A EP0085989B1 EP 0085989 B1 EP0085989 B1 EP 0085989B1 EP 83101245 A EP83101245 A EP 83101245A EP 83101245 A EP83101245 A EP 83101245A EP 0085989 B1 EP0085989 B1 EP 0085989B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
flexible
casing
probe
package
payload
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired
Application number
EP83101245A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0085989A3 (en
EP0085989A2 (en
Inventor
Ben Wade Oakes Dickinson, Iii
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Individual
Original Assignee
Individual
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Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Individual filed Critical Individual
Publication of EP0085989A2 publication Critical patent/EP0085989A2/en
Publication of EP0085989A3 publication Critical patent/EP0085989A3/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0085989B1 publication Critical patent/EP0085989B1/en
Expired legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B47/00—Survey of boreholes or wells
    • E21B47/01—Devices for supporting measuring instruments on drill bits, pipes, rods or wirelines; Protecting measuring instruments in boreholes against heat, shock, pressure or the like
    • E21B47/017—Protecting measuring instruments
    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B23/00—Apparatus for displacing, setting, locking, releasing or removing tools, packers or the like in boreholes or wells
    • E21B23/08—Introducing or running tools by fluid pressure, e.g. through-the-flow-line tool systems
    • E21B23/10—Tools specially adapted therefor
    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B29/00—Cutting or destroying pipes, packers, plugs or wire lines, located in boreholes or wells, e.g. cutting of damaged pipes, of windows; Deforming of pipes in boreholes or wells; Reconditioning of well casings while in the ground
    • E21B29/02—Cutting or destroying pipes, packers, plugs or wire lines, located in boreholes or wells, e.g. cutting of damaged pipes, of windows; Deforming of pipes in boreholes or wells; Reconditioning of well casings while in the ground by explosives or by thermal or chemical means

Definitions

  • This invention pertains generally to bore hole drilling and surveying, and more particularly to a downhole instrument and methods of manufacturing and using the same.
  • the probe comprises an elongated, rigid body with an inflexible metal shell.
  • Probes of this type are incapable of travelling around bends of relatively short radius (e.g., a 150 to 300 mm radius in a hole having a diameter on the order of 19 to 25 mm), and therefore, they cannot be used in some holes.
  • Tools have also been provided for cutting and severing tubing, drill pipe and casing in a bore hole. Such tools generally have one or more remotely detonated explosive charges mounted in an elongated, rigid housing. Tools of this type are subject to the same limitations and disadvantages as the surveying and logging instruments heretofore provided in that they cannot travel around bends of relatively short radius and are not suitable for use in some holes.
  • Another object of the invention is to provide an instrument and method of the above character which can also be utilized in the guidance of a downhole drill.
  • Another object of the invention is to provide an instrument and method of the above character which can be utilized in the cutting or severing of tubing, drill pipe and casing.
  • Another object of the invention is to provide an instrument and method of the above character which are suitable for use in holes having bends of relatively short radius.
  • Another object of the invention is to provide an instrument of the above character which is economical to manufacture.
  • the surveying system includes an elongated, flexible probe 11 which is inserted into a hole 12 to be surveyed.
  • the hole 12 can be a bore hole in the earth, as illustrated, or any other elongated opening of limited diameter such as the opening in a pipe or tubing.
  • the probe 11 has a generally circular cross section, with an outer diameter slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the hole, e.g., for a hole diameter on the order of 19 to 25 mm, the probe would have a diameter on the order of 18 to 24 mm.
  • the length of the probe 11 is substantially greater than the diameter, and a probe 11 having a diameter of 18 mm could, for example, have a length on the other of 1,2 m.
  • a flexible logging cable 16 extends in an axial direction from one end of the probe 11 and carries electrical power and signals between the probe 11 and equipment at the surface of the earth.
  • This cable 16 is of conventional design and has a plurality of flexible electrical conductors interleaved with a plurality of reinforcing strands of suitable material such as stainless steel.
  • the cable 16 is stored on a cable reel 18 at the surface of the earth, and the amount of cable 16 fed into the hole 12 is monitored by a cable length indicator 19 connected to the reel.
  • the probe is interfaced with a microcomputer 17 by a suitable interface unit 20.
  • the computer 17 processes the signals from the probe and the cable depth indicator to determine the location and/or orientation of the hole in the region where the probe is located.
  • probe 11 includes a payload such as three orientation sensors 21-23 which provide electrical signals corresponding to the orientations of the sensors relative to orthogonal reference axes.
  • the reference axis of sensor 21 is aligned with the axis of the probe 11, and the axes of sensors 22, 23 are aligned in perpendicular radial directions.
  • Sensors 21-23 can be any suitable sensors of known design, including fluxgate compasses and other magnetometers.
  • the term magnetometer includes any instrument capable of detecting natural or artificial flux lines, two common types of magnetometers being Hall effect devices and flux gate transformer systems. Other suitable sensors include gyroscopes and other inertial devices.
  • Sensors 21-23 are connected to cable 16 through an electrical power and signal conditioning module 26 in the probe 11.
  • the probe also includes an inclinometer 27 which provides a signal corresponding to the orientation of the probe 11 about a pitch axis. If desired, additional inclinometer can be included to provide additional information such as the dip angle of the tool. Suitable inclinometers include accelerometers, electrolytic levels, and pendulous devices. Electrical connections between the cable 16, the power and signal conditioning module 26 and the elements within the probe 11 are made by a connector 28 of suitable known design.
  • Sensors 21-23, module 26, inclinometer 27 and connector 28 are spaced apart along the axis of probe 11 and are interconnected by flexible electrical conductors 31 (Fig. 3).
  • the electrical components can be fabricated on a flexible circuit board, or on a board having a plurality of relatively short, rigid sections interconnected by one or more flexible sections. These elements are encased within an elongated, flexible casing 32 of high tensile strength.
  • the casing 32 is closed and secured to a stainless steel nose piece 33 by a clamp 34 at the distal end of the probe 11, and at the proximal end the casing 32 is affixed by a clamp 35 to connector 28 and thus to logging cable 16.
  • casing 32 comprises a fabric woven or braided of fibers having a high tensile strength, i.e., a tensile strength greater that that of stainless steel, preferably 1.725.106 Pa or more.
  • a high tensile strength i.e., a tensile strength greater that that of stainless steel, preferably 1.725.106 Pa or more.
  • One presently preferred fabric is an aromatic polyamide fiber manufactured by DuPont under the trademark Kevlar. This fiber has a tensile strength on the order 2.756 - Pa.
  • Other suitable fibers of high tensile strength can also be employed, including graphite fibers, glass fibers, nylon (Registered Trademark) fibers and boron fibers.
  • the interior of casing 32 is filled with a mass of flexible, electrically insulative material 36 which surrounds the sensors 21, 22, 23 and other electrical components 26, 27, 28 and provides cushioning for them.
  • This material 36 and the outer casing 32 form a flexible body which can pass freely around bends of relatively short radius in the bore hole 12.
  • Suitable materials include silicones and other synthetic rubber materials such as Devcon (Registered Trademark) polyurethane or a silicone rubber sold under the name Silastic (Registered Trademark).
  • the flexible material 36 can be either in a solid form or in a fluid form. Suitable fluid materials include silicones and fluorocarbons of high dielectric constant and low vapor pressure.
  • the fluid can be in the form of a gel, and it preferably has a relatively high viscosity.
  • One particularly suitable fluid material is a silane polymer known as Dow Corning (Registered Trademark) 200 fluid.
  • Dow Corning Registered Trademark
  • the fabric casing 32 can be omitted, and axially extending fibers can be embedded in the mass of material 36 to provide the desired tensile strength, in which case it is desirable that the fibers be able to move axially within the mass of material 36 to avoid collapsing of the body as it is bent.
  • the outer surface of casing 32 can be coated with a lubricious material such as polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon, Registered Trademark) which facilitates the free passage of probe 11 through the bore hole 12.
  • a flexible sealing ring 41 is affixed to the outer wall of the probe 11 toward the proximal end thereof to facilitate driving the probe 11 through a bore hole 12, as discussed hereinafter.
  • the other diameter of the seal is chosen to provde sliding, sealing engagement with the inner wall of the opening in which the probe 11 is to be used, and seals of different sizes and shapes can be mounted interchangeably for casings of different diameters.
  • the seal can be bypassed with flow passagways (not shown) to prevent the formation of a vacuum behind the head of the probe as it is withdrawn from the hole.
  • the electrical components 21-23, 26, 27, 28 of the probe 11 are connected together and suspended vertically from cable 16 in the desired spaced apart relationship.
  • Casing 32 is positioned coaxially of these components, with the open end of the casing 32 facing in an upward direction.
  • the fluid silicone rubber material is then proured into the casing to form the flexible body.
  • Connector 28 is installed and connected electrically to the leads 31 in the probe 11 and to the conductors of cable 16, the open end of the casing 32 is drawn about the connector, and clamp 33 is installed.
  • the material 36 can be formed about the electrical components 21-23, 26, 27, 28 in one or more successive layers, with adjacent ones of the layers being able to move somewhat relative to each other.
  • the components 21-23, 26, 27, 28 and cushioning material 36 are then inserted into the fabric casing 32 as a unit.
  • probe 11 is inserted into the upper portion of the hole 12 to be surveyed or drilled, and pressurized fluid (e.g., water or air) is applied to the hole 12 above the probe 11 to drive the probe 11 down through the hole 12 in piston-like fashion, with seal 41 forming a seal between the body of the probe 11 and the wall of the casing 32 or other opening in which the probe 11 is inserted.
  • pressurized fluid e.g., water or air
  • seal 41 forming a seal between the body of the probe 11 and the wall of the casing 32 or other opening in which the probe 11 is inserted.
  • fluid is trapped in the hole ahead of the probe 11, it can be removed by any suitable means, e.g., by pumping it out of the hole 12, by withdrawing it from the hole 12 by the cable 16, or by driving it into the formation surrounding the hole 12.
  • the probe can travel around bends of relatively short radius, e.g., a bend having a radius of 150 mm in a hole having a diameter of 19 to 25 mm.
  • the probe 11 is withdrawn from the hole by drawing on the logging cable 16.
  • probe 11 is also suitable for use in the guidance of a downhole drilling system.
  • the probe 11 is mounted in the drill motor housing itself or in a fluid passageway near the drill head, and cable 16 extends to the surface through the fluid passageway or another suitable passageway in the well casing.
  • the signals from the probe are processed and utilized to control the direction of the drill.
  • the payload or instrumentation within the probe 11 can include other sensors for other logging functions, e.g., temperature, pressure, nuclear radiation, hydrogen ion concentration, and instruments for measuring the characteristics of the formation being drilled.
  • sensors for other logging functions e.g., temperature, pressure, nuclear radiation, hydrogen ion concentration, and instruments for measuring the characteristics of the formation being drilled.
  • the invention is also useful in tools for cutting or severing drill pipes, tubing and/or casing in a bore hole.
  • a tool of this type made in accordance with the invention is similarto the instrument of Figures 1 and 3, with electrically detonated explosive charges instead of sensors 21-23.
  • the explosives can be any suitable explosives of known composition, e.g., pellets or plastic explosives. Electrical detonating signals are applied to the explosives by cable 16 and the electrical leads within the probe.
  • the charges can be arranged to provide any type of cutting action required, e.g., a concentrated explosion for severing a drill head from the end of a tube, or a series of explosions for perforating a line as the probe passes through it.

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  • Geology (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
  • Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
  • General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Geochemistry & Mineralogy (AREA)
  • Geophysics (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
  • General Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Geophysics And Detection Of Objects (AREA)
EP83101245A 1982-02-09 1983-02-09 Downhole instrument and methods of manufacturing and using the same Expired EP0085989B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US34730482A 1982-02-09 1982-02-09
US347304 1982-02-09

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0085989A2 EP0085989A2 (en) 1983-08-17
EP0085989A3 EP0085989A3 (en) 1985-07-03
EP0085989B1 true EP0085989B1 (en) 1989-09-20

Family

ID=23363164

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP83101245A Expired EP0085989B1 (en) 1982-02-09 1983-02-09 Downhole instrument and methods of manufacturing and using the same

Country Status (9)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0085989B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
JP (2) JPS58193477A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
AU (1) AU550360B2 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
BR (1) BR8300651A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
CA (1) CA1210449A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
DE (1) DE3304462C2 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
FR (1) FR2521210B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
GB (1) GB2114629B (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
IT (1) IT1212697B (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)

Families Citing this family (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
NO844838L (no) * 1984-12-04 1986-06-05 Saga Petroleum Fremgangsmaate ved registrering av forbindelse mellom oljebroenners reservoarer.
GB2214638B (en) * 1988-01-28 1991-11-13 Coal Ind Method of locating a member in a borehole
FR2712628B1 (fr) * 1993-11-15 1996-01-12 Inst Francais Du Petrole Dispositif et méthode de mesure dans un puits de production d'hydrocarbures .
GB9606673D0 (en) * 1996-03-29 1996-06-05 Sensor Dynamics Ltd Apparatus for the remote measurement of physical parameters
DE19837546C2 (de) * 1998-08-19 2001-07-26 Bilfinger Berger Bau Meßvorrichtung zum Bestimmen der Ausrichtung und des Verlaufs eines Bohrgestänges
US20020147187A1 (en) * 2001-02-22 2002-10-10 Schmidt Jonathan Martin 1,2-diphenyl-1-naphthyl ethene derivatives, analogs and use thereof
US7351982B2 (en) * 2005-05-24 2008-04-01 Washington Savannah River Company Llp Portable nuclear material detector and process

Family Cites Families (16)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US1458925A (en) * 1921-05-18 1923-06-19 Hercules Powder Co Ltd Detonator
US1860932A (en) * 1930-01-17 1932-05-31 Lamb Charles Plumbing tool for oil-wells
US2036458A (en) * 1934-08-04 1936-04-07 Roy W Carlson Telemetric device
US2690123A (en) * 1950-09-11 1954-09-28 Standard Oil Dev Co Jet gun perforator for wells
US3052302A (en) * 1960-07-25 1962-09-04 Shell Oil Co Tool carrier with by-pass
US3496998A (en) * 1967-12-28 1970-02-24 Pan American Petroleum Corp Bearing means for reducing wireline friction in flow line loops
US3659649A (en) * 1968-05-27 1972-05-02 Atlantic Richfield Co Method of stimulating oil or gas reservoirs by a subsurface nuclear explosion
GB1306781A (en) * 1971-03-08 1973-02-14 Texaco Development Corp Method and apparatus for borehole directional logging
US3892274A (en) * 1974-05-22 1975-07-01 Halliburton Co Retrievable self-decentralized hydra-jet tool
JPS5213762A (en) * 1975-07-23 1977-02-02 Hitachi Ltd Multi-phase function generating circuit
US4031750A (en) * 1976-09-02 1977-06-28 Dresser Industries, Inc. Apparatus for logging inclined earth boreholes
US4064939A (en) * 1976-11-01 1977-12-27 Dresser Industries, Inc. Method and apparatus for running and retrieving logging instruments in highly deviated well bores
US4168747A (en) * 1977-09-02 1979-09-25 Dresser Industries, Inc. Method and apparatus using flexible hose in logging highly deviated or very hot earth boreholes
US4279299A (en) * 1979-12-07 1981-07-21 The United States Of America As Represented By The United States Department Of Energy Apparatus for installing condition-sensing means in subterranean earth formations
FR2473652A1 (fr) * 1979-12-20 1981-07-17 Inst Francais Du Petrole Dispositif assurant le deplacement d'un element dans un conduit rempli d'un liquide
FR2477285A1 (fr) * 1980-02-29 1981-09-04 Schlumberger Prospection Enveloppe de sonde de diagraphie et son procede de fabrication

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
AU550360B2 (en) 1986-03-20
GB2114629A (en) 1983-08-24
GB2114629B (en) 1985-07-31
FR2521210B1 (fr) 1986-09-12
BR8300651A (pt) 1983-11-08
IT1212697B (it) 1989-11-30
CA1210449A (en) 1986-08-26
FR2521210A1 (fr) 1983-08-12
AU1124583A (en) 1983-08-18
DE3304462C2 (de) 1985-09-19
JPH0548144Y2 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1993-12-20
EP0085989A3 (en) 1985-07-03
DE3304462A1 (de) 1983-08-18
IT8319503A0 (it) 1983-02-09
JPS58193477A (ja) 1983-11-11
EP0085989A2 (en) 1983-08-17
JPH04113087U (ja) 1992-10-01
GB8303623D0 (en) 1983-03-16

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