US1658125A

US1658125A - Rotary well drill

Info

Publication number: US1658125A
Application number: US741996A
Authority: US
Inventors: Edward S Hutton
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1924-10-06
Filing date: 1924-10-06
Publication date: 1928-02-07
Anticipated expiration: 1945-02-07

Description

Feb. 7, 1928. 1,658,125

} E. s. HUTTON ROTARY WELL DRILL Filed Oct. 6, 1924 FIE 1 INVENTOR.

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Patented Feb. 7, 1928.

UNITED STATES EDWARD S, HUTTON, 0F MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA.

ROTARY WELL DRILL.

Application filed October 6, 1924. Serial No. 741,996.

This invention is for the purpose of rapid rotary drilling of holes of relatively large diameter in the ground, chiefly for oil well purposes.

This invention is in a rotary drill having a fish tail or other bit for piloting the drilling apparatus; that is, for drilling a small hole-,rand means immediately following said fish' tail bit for enlarging the bore of the hole.

Another feature of the invention consists in theapparatus for drilling the enlarged hole, being such that it can be introduced into the well pipe and after it passes the lower end of the well pipe, it will expand for drilling the enlarged hole and thus serve as an under reamer for drilling a hole of larger diameter than the well pipe.

I have found that it is much more economical and rapid to drill a center hole and ream it, and particularly to do the same simultaneously, than to drill the-enlarged hole by one bit. In other words, it is much easier and more rapid to enlarge a small hole than to entirely dig the large hole in one operation. I

The full nature of the invention will be understood from the following description and claims and the accompanying drawings:

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a central vertical section through said well drilling apparatus thetop and bottom portions being broken away, the drill being within the well pipe. Fig. 2 is the same showing the drill- 1ng apparatus immediately below the lower end of the well pipe in drilling condition, the fish tail bit being, however, removed. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1. Fig]. 4 shows a detailed view of drilling disks. E

There is shown hereinan'oil Well pipe 10 and within it there is a tubular drilling stem 11 of usual character which is rotated during the drilling operation. The lower end of it is internally threaded and into that there is secured the reaming or hole enlarging drill. This consists of a head 12 which has a threaded upper projection for screwing into the stem and the lower portion of said head is transversely enlarged and made tubular and internally threaded to receive the threaded upper end of the body 13 of the tool. Inthe portion of the body of the tool located below the head- 12 there is a diametric opening 14 entirely through the same, as seen in Figs. 1 and 2, for receiving the shanks 15 of the cutting disks 16. The walls of the opening 14 are of peculiar shape. The central portion of the upper wall is substantially straight diametrically, but each end 17 slopes upwardly. The bottom wall 18 is doubly curved, each curve extending half way through the body of the tool and its inner ends curved upwardly, while the outer portion of each'of said end portions of the bottom.wa1l 18 is almost perpendicular .to the side wall of the tool. The sides of the opening 14 are shown in Fig. 3. They are vertically straight, but they have vertical shoulders 19 made by widening the inner portion of the opening 14, thus leaving contracted outer portions, as shown in Fig. 3.

The shanks 15 of the drilling disks 16 have a peculiar shape. They rest loosely in the ends of the opening 14 and the lower surface 115 of each shank is curved substantially the-same as the curvature of the bottom wall of the opening 14. The sides of the shanks 15 are vertical, but they have a widened portion 20 at their inner ends, forming on the opposite sides, shoulders, the side of said portions 20 being as indicated in Fig. 2, that is, a right angle triangle with the acute end cut away, somewhat in the nature of a trapezium, so that when the shanks are in their outer position, as shown in Fig. 2, they will be prevented from escape by said shoulders 20 engaging the shoulders 19 of the tool body, and in that position the engaging surfaces of said two shoulders are vertical. When the shanks are in their inner position,

as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the shoulders of thelportion 20 are oblique to the axis of the too The cutting disks 16 are mounted in. the form: herein shown, as illustrated in Fig. 3. The disk has an annular sloping or conical cutting surface and it has a central threaded opening, whereby it is screwed on the threaded end of a sleeve 25 that fits in a hole 26 in the shank 15. Said sleeve is'held in place by a headed bolt 27 that has a threaded inner end which screws into or through a central threaded opening in the inner wall of the shank. These cutting disks may be varied in shape, that shown in Figs. 1 and 3and the right-hand end of Fig. 4, having smooth beveled cutting surfaces, but, if desired, the cuttin surface may be annularly corrugated, as s own in the two left-hand forms in Fig. 4. The cutting surface of these disks varies to suit the material through which the well is being drilled. The

outer surface of the cutting disk is preferably convex. That enables the tool to be passed readily through the well tube 10 and strengthens the disk.

The disks are position 'a-ftert ey pass beyond the lower end of the well pipe by a spring 30 located in a vertical chamber 31 in the-center of the body 13 of the tool, and extending from the upper end thereof down through the transverse opening 14. There is a cap shaped plunger 32 at the lower end of the spring, having a lower convex beveled surface which engages the top surfaces of the shanks 15 of the cutting disks near their inner ends, as seen in Figs. 1 and 2.

The lower end of the body 13 of said tool has a central threaded socket for receiving the upper threaded end of a fish tail bit 35 or a bit of any desired form for drilling the narrow or pilot hole.

In operation the drill is inserted in the well'pipe, as shown in Fig. 1, with the cutter 16 in contracted position. After the dl'illl passes below the tube, thespring 80 forces them out into cutting position, as shown in Fig. 2, and in that position they are obliquely disposed with reference to the axis of the tool, sothat as the tool revolves, said disks will drill the earth below and to a greater diameter than the wall tube. By beveling the cutting surface, as shown, the disks will automatically be pulled and held in their outer positions by the earth material being cut, and they will be limited in their outer movements or positions by the shoulders of the tool shanks engaging the shoulers in the opening of the tool body in which they are mounted. Hence, the function of the spring 30 is to force the disks out into cutting position rather than to hold them in cutting position. During the operation of the tool, the fish tail pilots the same and drills a small hole while the reaming drill above associated therewith follows and enlar es said hole by reaming it.

n advantage is that one may start with this tooland go as far as possible without setting pipe and then he can put in the string of pipe and after doing so, lift the pipe a few feet off the bottom and hold it while introducing his tool through the pipe pushedoutward into cutting to a point below the same and then lower the pipe as fast as the hole is made, thus saving extra strings of pipe. This is due to the device drilling a hole of larger diameter than'the pipe and yet being introducible through the pipe. i l

The invention claimed is: p

1. Well drilling means for the introduction of a well pipe having a rotary body portion with openings. in opposite sides thereof, the lower walls of which are oppositely curved outwardly, a pair of oppositely located cutters with shanks projecting into said openings having the lower surfaces curved to conform with the bottom walls of said opening, and whereby said shanks are substantially horizontal while in-contracted position, and a-spiral spring located centrally of said body portion and acting downwardly against the inner ends of the shanks of said cutters for expanding them.

2. A well drilling means for the insertion of a well pipe having a rotary body portion with radial openings on opposite sides thereof, oppositely located cutters with their shanks in said openings "arranged so that they will, in contracted position, be substan tially radial and in expanded position the cutters will have their lower portion tilted outward, and a spring which forces the in ner ends of said cutters downward and tilting their outer ends upward and outward to their expanded position, the shanks of the cutters having widened shoulder ends and contracted outer portions of said opening forming shoulders to engage and stop the shoulders of the shanks of the cutters, whereby the tools will be held in place against outward movement when expanded, substantially as set forth.

3. Well drilling means for insertion of a well pipe having a rotary body portion, the said body portion having radial openings, a lower end of each opening having'an arcuate wall, a cutter shank in each opening, arcuate bearing surfaces on said shanks engaging and being guided by said arcuate walls, a spring which forces said shanks to move in one direction, and cutting elements at the outer ends of said shanks.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto affixed my signature.

EDWARD S. HUTTON.