US1807286A

US1807286A - Rotary table

Info

Publication number: US1807286A
Application number: US264690A
Authority: US
Inventors: Herbert W Goetz; Ralph C Clark; John J Ferlin
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1928-03-26
Filing date: 1928-03-26
Publication date: 1931-05-26
Anticipated expiration: 1948-05-26

Description

May 26,-1931.

H. W. GOETZ ET AL ROTARY TABLE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 26, 1928 1 N VEN TORS #555591 [1. 62272 H. w. GOETZ ET AL 1,807,286

ROTARY TABLE Filed'lllrch 26'. 19'28 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 mmvrons areas 14! m ,ezzey c apex:

y Jam 1 1 2590 ATTORNEY.

Patented May 26, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT orricE HERBERT w. GOETZ, or ALHAMBRA, RALPH c. CLARK, or Los- ANGELES, AND JOHN J.

' FERLIN, or rrUNTINGToN PARK, CALIFORNIA I 1 ROTARY TABLE Application filed March 26, 1928. Serial No. 264,690.

This invention is a spider for holding a I string of well piping as it is withdrawn or inserted in a well, the presentinvention being an improvement upon our copending appllcation Ser. No. 264,691, filed March 26, 1928, and relating particularly to a spider construction built into a usual rotary table and adapted to support a string of rotary drill pipe as it is withdrawn or lowered through the rotary table, or adapted to be shifted to inoperative position in the rotary table where it will not hinder usual Working of the rotary drilling apparatus.

The spider construction preferably provides at least a three point gripping engagement, with the gripping jaws definmg a closed annulus surrounding the drill pipe and adapted for dependent, counterbalanced shifting to either operative or inoperative position so as to provide for operation with minimum effort and insure a positive and uniform' gripping action which will accurately center the drill pipe in the gripping annulus and avoid all distortion of the pipe.

It is an object of the invention to so mount the jaw operating means in a rotary tableas to provide for rotary driving connections between the respective operating means in order that they may be dependently actuated, without obstructing the bore of the rotary table nor hindering its normal operations when the spider is not in use.

It is a further object of the invention to mount the jaw operating means in suitable recesses in the rotary table, so disposed that the operating connections are free to swing the jaws to operative and inoperative position, and are adapted for reception entirely within said recesses and out of the way when the spider is not in use.

Further objects of the invention will be readily understood from the following de- Fig. 3 is a fragmentary vertical section showing the jaws removed and their operating connections in inoperative position.

Figs- 4, 5, 6 and 7 are detail sections on the lines H, 55, 6-6, and 7-7 of Fig. 1;

The spider is adapted to be built into a usual rotary table 1 having the bore 2 countersunk at its upper end as shown at 3 to receive the usual master bushing which is em-. ployed when a string of drill pipe is gripped in the bore of the table and rotated thereby.

The gripping jaws of the spider are detached from their operating connections when the rotary table is in use for the drilling operation, and the jaw operating means are swung back out of the way in suitable recesses communicating with bore 2 so'as to allow the master bushing being placed in the bore for proceeding with the drilling. When the spider is to be used the master bushing is removed and the jaw operating means may then be swung from their re 'cesses and the jaws mounted thereon, so that dependent movement of the operating connections will swing the jaws to either operative or inoperative position.

In order to provide at least a three point gripping engagement by the jaws and still accommodate the spider mechanism in the rotary table so as not to interfere with normal drilling operations, it is preferable that four gripping jaws and their corresponding operating connections be employed, and such is the construction herein shown and described.

As an instance of this arrangement elongated recesses 5 are provided in the upper surface of table 1 and communicate with the counter-bore 3, and are four in number equi-distantly circumferentially spaced with the ends of adjacent recesses connected by elongated recesses 6 which are also perpendicular to radii of bore 2 but need not necessarily open into, the counter-bore 3. The operatingmeans for the gripping jaws are mounted in the respective recesses 5, and driving connections between adjacent operating means extend along the respective recesses6. I

The aw operating means comprise shafts 10 journaled in axially spaced bearing lugs 11 in recesses 5, and a pair of arms 12 is fixed on each shaft between its bearing lugs,

and at their free ends the pairs of arms carry jaws 18 which cooperate when swung to operative position to define a closed annular gripping means concentric with -bore 2.and adapted to engage the stringof drill pipe extending therethrough. \Vhen moved to inoperative position the gripping jaws-disengage the string of drill pipe and .are swung back to substantially horizontal position overlying the recesses so that :the string of drill pipe may be raised or lowered without obstruction by the jaws.

The jaw which is carried byeach pair of arms '12is readily detachabletherefrom, and is shown as an elongated arcute structure preferably having concave gripping surface transversely serrated, and provided at its convex surface with a lug 18 adapted for reception between the pair of arms 12 and connected thereto by a removable pin 20 so that concave bearing lugs 19 which project from the convex surface of the jaw are journaled on bearing surfaces 17 at the swinging extremities 16 of arms :12.

In order that the cooperating jaws may define a closed annulus when in operative position, they each embrace an arc of substantially 90 when four of such jaws are employed as in the embodiment illustrated, and by the mounting for the jaws as has been described it will be seen that by dependently rotating shafts 10 the jaws are adapted for dependent movement to operative or inoperative position as shown in full and dotted lines in Fig. 2.

its

The shafts 1.0 are adapted for dependent ation b' drivin connections extendin a I I I s 6, and these driving connecnaled in bearing lugs 26 in recessesG, with the adjacent ends of shafts 10' and'25 provided with meshing bevel gears 27 whereby turning any one of the shafts will dopendently swing all of the grippingjaws to operative or inoperative position. The shafts 25 may be provided with collars 28 which have bores 29 adapted for reception of a suitable operating lever (not shown), so that with such a lever engaged in any one of said bores the lever may be manually shifted to swing all of'the jaws to operative or inoperative position.

Segments of gears 27 are preferably cut away as shown'at 31, and the gears aswell as collars 15, through which the arms 12 are secured to shafts 1O, are preferably counterweighted shown at 32, 33 respectively, in order'to form. a counterbalanced construction whereby the aws may be'readily swung to either peiutive or inoperative position with the counterweights aiding such swinging movement from the moment that it is initiated; and the recesses 5 and 6 are of thesurface of the rotary table so as to form inclined abutment surfaces .40 for limiting swinging of arms 12 to their inoperative position, the said inclined abutment sur- 'faces'being so positioned as to allow the aws to swing rearwardly substantially en- .tirely beyondithe :vertical dead centers of the operatingarms as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2.

\Vhen drilling is to be resumed after 'using the spider, the jaws 13 are removed "by -withdrawingpins 20,'and arms 12 are swung downwardly into prolongations of recesses 5 which extend into the wall 'of bore 2 as shown at 35, the parts being so arranged that with the'arms thus .inoperative ly *positioned they no longer project into either bore 2 or counter-bore 3 and the master bushing A may'consequently be replaced in thebore'ofthe rotary table for'resuming the drilling operation. The entire spider structured. thusadapted for receptionwithin the rotary table where it is out of the way, but it is immediately available for use by re moving the master bushing of the rotary table I and mounting the jaws on the ends of their arms.

We have thus provided an extremely practical spider structure embodying at least a three point gripping engagement, andadapted for mounting in-a usual rotary tablesoas'to in no-way interfere with normal operation 'of the rotary table during the drilling operation, but being immediately available when it isdesired to use-the spider, with the gripping elements depend-- ently operated so that the pressure "is uni-- form throughout the gripping annulus.

We claim:

1. In combination, a base provided with a bore adapted to receive a string of well piping and also provided withsa recess com municating with said bore,.an arm having a pivotal mounting insaid recess, and a gripping, aw connected to the swinging end of the arm and. adapted to engage the well piping-or be swung back to inoperative po sition above the base by swinging movement of the arm, the said recess having a rear abutment surface so positioned as to permit rearward swinging of the arm to a position whereby substantially the entire gripping jaw is swung'rearwardly beyond the vertical dead centeriof said pivotal mounting for the arm.

2. In combination, a'base provided with a bore adapted to receive a string of well piping and also provided with a recess: cominunicating with said bore, an arm having a pivotal mounting in said recess, and a gripping jaw detachably connected to the swing ing end of the arm and adapted to engage the well piping or be swung back to inoperative position above the base by swinging movement of the arm, the swinging end of the arm being adapted for reception in the recess clear of the bore after the jaw is detached from the arm.

3. In combination, a base provided with a bore adapted to receive a string of well piping and also provided with a recess communicating with said bore, an arm having a pivotal mounting in said recess, and a gripping jaw detachably connected to the swinging end of the arm and adapted to engage the well piping or be swung back to inoperative position above the base by swinging movement of the arm, the swinging end of the arm being adapted for reception in the recess clear of the bore after the jaw is detached from the arm, with said recess extending into the base to a depth whereby substantially the entire arm is below the upper surface of the base when the arm after the jaw is detached therefrom is received in the recess clear of the bore.

4. In combination, a base provided with a bore adapted to receive a string of well piping and also provided with a recess communicating with said bore, an arm having a pivotal mounting in said recess, and a gripping jaw detachably connected to the swinging end of the arm and adapted to engage the well piping or be swung back to inoperative position above the base by swinging movement of the arm, the said recess having a rear abutment surface so positioned as to permit rearward swinging of the arm to a position whereby substantially the entire gripping jaw is swung rearwardly beyond the vertical dead center of said pivotal mounting for the arm, and the swinging end of the arm being adapted for reception in the recess clear of the bore after the jaw is detached from the arm.

5. In combination, a base provided with a bore adapted to receive a string of well piping and also provided with a recess communicating with said bore, an arm having a pivotal mounting in said recess, and a gripping jaw detachably connected to the swinging end of the arm and adapted to engage the well piping or be swung back to inoperative position above the base by swinging movement of the arm, the said recess having a rear abutment surface so positioned as to permit rearward swinging of the arm to a position whereby substantially the entire gripping jaw is swung rearwardly beyond the vertical dead center of said pivotal mounting for the arm, and the swinging end of the arm being adapted for reception in the recess clear of the bore after the jaw is