US1888621A - Flow control apparatus for wells - Google Patents

Description

7 Nov. 22, 1932. I Y J. P. COLLINS FLOW CONTFOL APPARATUS FOR WELLS Filed Jan. 19, 1931 2 SheMs-Sheet i- I N V EN TOR. JOSEPH Farm/v Counvs ATTORNEYS.

Nov. 22, 1932. .1. P. COLLINS FLOW CONTROL APPARATUS FOR WELLS Filed Jan. 19. 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet Patented Nov. 22

UNITED STATES JOSEPH PAY'roNooLLrNs, OFVTBAKERSFIELIVD, CALIFORNIA.

r' ow oorrriton APPARa'rUs Fora WELLS Application filed January 19, 1931. seal in 509,801.

My invention relates to and has for a pur pose the provision of an apparatus by wh ch the flow of fluid from a gusher or wild well, can be readily brought under control and the fluid held in check in such manner as to en- 0 character which embodies a carriage movable over the ground and supporting a plug-.

V arched longitudinally and-'secured'i'n i'nterable a control head or cap to be applied to the well casing with ease and dispatch;

v 1 It is a further purpose of my invention to provide an apparatus of the abovedescribed ging element capable of being readily 10W.

ered into thecasing to gradually check and finally arrest the flow of fluid, and tobe then securedin the casing-so that. upon detaching" the plugging element from the apparatus,

thecasing can be threaded if necessary and a con l head or cap applied; a

I will describe Onlyone form of flow control appara us fOI-MWBHSL, embodying my invention, and, will thenpoint out the novel fea- Figure 8 is an; enlarged Vertical sectional viewtaken on the line 3-3; of. Figure 1 and looking in the direction of-the arrows, and

Figures 4, 5, and 6 are sectionalviews taken a respectively on the lines, 4- 4, 55, and 6 6 of Figure 3 and looking in the directlons of the respective arrows,

Referring specifically to the drawings in which similar reference characters ,desin gate similar parts ineach of the several views, my invention in' ts, present embodiment coma I prises a carriage Cconstructed'oit', a pair of spaced apart and parallel longitudinal members 1'0 and 11, and a pair of spaced apart and parallel transverse members 12 and 13 secting relation to the longitudinal members by-bol'ts 14 or other-*fastenin means; The

several members are preferab y constructed of -heavy; metal such as: discardedrail-road rails so as to produce acarrlage ofsuflicient.

weight tqv prevent-its beingrlilft'edl from the ground by the force ofa (5011mmejected from. a well undememe do s m a-1 H pressure.

One end of each longitudinal member qlt)" and 11, is curved upwardlyin the manner of a sled runner and is connected toa-suita'ble PeT NM w hauling cable "15 which isa'dapted to be attached to a tractor or other hauling apparatus todrag thecarriageover the ground.- Other hauling cables 16 are connectedto the longitudinal members for pulling the carriagelaterally, and facilitate in positioning thecarriage at a predetermined location with re:

spect to the mouth of a well casing K. e e a Secured to the members 10;1'11and112,and rising from the carriage intermediate its ends are the legs1'7 of a tripod T, the upper ends a of the legs being secured to a sleeve 18 for coifiction Ofthe lgs with a brace member 19 b;

in rigidly supporting the sleeve vertically in[ a fixed and elevatedposition on the carriage.

The tripod" and sleeve broadly constitute a means for moun'ting'a closure or plugging element: P on the carriagefor movement Ver tically to occupy either the raised position I shown in full lines in Figure-2 wherein the element P isielevated from the ground, or the" lowered position shown in Figure 3' and; in broken linesi-n Figure 2, wherein the element is disposed in the casing K to plug the mouth of the latter against the escape of fluid from the casing. V

.Theplugging element P is in the form oit'an elongated andconical body 20, the upper and larger end of whichlisiprovided axially with an eXternall-ythreaded shank 21 which isd'etachably secured to a similar shank 22 on a" feed/screw '23 by means: ofa'coupling collar 24. The feedscrew 23 is freely received: in

the" bore of the sleeve11 8andis restricted to longitudinal or vertical movement in t'he sleeve by meansof: radial lugs 25011 the screw j whichrtraverse longitudinally extending slots 26 formed at diametrically'opposed pointsin 55 the sleeve.

A nut in.the'sformQofa 'bevel gearf 27 is threadedly mountedlonithefeed screw 23 andl 28 cm the lower'end' of the sleeve1'8; against displacement longitudinally of the screw "so that upon rotation of thegear in one direction or. the other, the screw and hence the plugging element P will feed upwardly or downwardly. v I 1 A bevel pinion 29 is rotatably mounted on a stub shaft 30 secured in a boss 31 on the sleeve, and meshes with the gear 27,, the'pinion being retained against.displacement aze ially of the shaft by means of a pin 32px- 1 o tending through the hub of the pinion into an annular groove 33'in'th'e-shaft. A flexible shaft 34 Wh: h mayextend any required distance from the carriage; is cone nected to .the pinion 29.by a universal joint 7 35,: and constitutes a means'by' which the ipinion-29 .can be rotated either manually or from afsuitable source of power (not shown),

to drivethe gear 27 and hence feed the plug f ging element-vertically as desired,

.Slidable vertically in longitudinally eX tending dovetail grooves 86 formed at circumferentially spacedlocationsin the conical body20 of the plugging element, are slips 37 having lugs 38 in which arejournaled the 5 reduced extensions 39 of feed, shafts 40.

threaded inthe bodyas shown in Figure3.

I In the present instance three slips are shown and are retained against axial displacement from the respective feed shafts 40 by nuts o 41 on the extensions 39 of the shafts, to the end that upon rotating the latter in one. direction or the other the slips will be. moved longitudinally of the'body to occupy either, the contracted position shown in full lines;in

313 Figure2, wherein the slips aredisposed withf in the largest diameter'ofthe body, or. the ex--;

pandedpositionshown in broken" lines inthis figure, wherein the. slips project beyond the largest] diameter of the. body into engagement 4 31' with the inner wallof the casingK, to fixedly I {secure the plugging element finthe'casing against displacement under fluid pressure within the casing.

' The, feed shafts can ,7 of the required length capable ,of being extended into the casing to reach the plugging i the feedshafts 40 which projects from the body 20 and is of an angular form corre-'* sp'onding to that-of the socket as indicated 'at l l. v

asfollows: j a

The apparatus with the plugging element 'P occupying the raised position shown'in'full 1 lines'in Figure 2 and with the slips 37 oc--- icupying the contracted positions shown in fulljlinesfin-Figure 3,. is drawniover the 7 ground by the'hauling cables to a position in which the plugging elementis directly above the well casing K from which a column of beactuated by means 45' of ,a suitable tool such as a handled rod 42 Theuse and operation of the apparatus is The column of in striliing'the clined surfaces of the conical body 20 will til theelement enters the casing and voccupies'the positionshown in brokenlinesin' f-Figure 2 land in fulllines in Figure 3. As.

the element enters the casing, it will be clear that due t o-the conical-form of the body- 20, Y

the. fiowg and'velocity of the fluid. will be? smoothly and gradually checked. As-lthe} largest diameter of thebody 20 is but slight? ly less than the internahdiamet'er'of the casing,'there .will be very little-escape of fluid around the element. 1 The slips 371 are now. expan is applied to theangular portions l l of the ed' by means of the handled rod42,the socket'of' which 1 I Y feed shafts 40 and the latter rotated until the slips become-tightly jammed against the in.

ner wall of the casing-to thus fixedly secure the-plugging element in the casing" againstd-isplacement 'by internal pressure. The

coupling collar 24 can-now 'bemunscrejwedl and thus-permit the apparatus to be moved away. from the casing and a-cap or control head to be applied to-the-casing as desir'ed.

As the plugging element is disposed wholly within the casing, threads can be readily from the shank Ql of the body 20 to detach" I the plugging element from the feed screw 23" out upon the latter should this be necessary in order to apply acontrol head or p t c casing; I

Although I I out departing from-the'spiritof the invention claims.

I claim and the spirit and scope of, the appen d;

ment vertically and'having a closure element longitudinally of the screw, and means for have herein' shown and; Ile- V scribed only one form of flow control ap .paratus for wells embodying my invention, it'is to be understood that variouschan'ges and modifications may be made therein with-f 1. A flow controliapparatus for wells cornprising a. carriage movable overthe'ground, a sleevesupported vertically on the carriage,- a feed screw mounted in the sleeve for move-I,

for the well. casing secured? thereto,n ieans* for preventing rotation of the feed screw'in rotating the nut to.- feedsaid screw in .i'thef sleeve and thereby raise or. lower the closure element.

2.1 In a control apparatus for weuga JOSEPH PAYTON COLLINS.,

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