US2891408A - Oil well pumping assembly - Google Patents

Description

3 Sheets-Sheet 1 R. m m m ATTD RN EYS June 23, 1959 J. RBURT, JRv

o'IL WELL Pun/:PING ASSEMBLY Filed March 23, 1953 n@ Z R5. hf

3 InuInlnlnlmlmlnlnlmlnlm'm-nlmlnl z laE L L w, w L s .l L H l 1T w l/ /I M H o l V\/ June 23, 1959 J. P. BURT, JR 2,891,408

OIL WELL PUMPING ASSEMBLY Filed March 23. 1953 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 22 /l//ll l lll (Il,

INVENTOR.

.Jseph f. Eurt, c7?. 'mmf@ A'ITD RN EYS June 23, 1959 J. vp, BUR-r, JR

OIL WELL PUMPING ASSEMBLY 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 25.v 195s IN VEN TOR.

M W L@ rw Joseph 2:. urcv ATTCI RN EYB 2,891,408 Patented June 23, 1959 OIL WELL PUlVIPlNG ASSENELY `loseph P. Burt, Jr., Tulsa, kla.

Application March 23, 1953, Serial No. 344,047

4 Claims. (Cl. 74-59) This invention relates to a fluid lift, and more particularly to oil well pumping equipment.

The object of the invention is to provide a novel means for causing a vertical up and down movement of the rods whereby oil can be eiiiciently pumped up to the surface even from deep wells.

Another object of the invention is to provide a well pumping apparatus which will permit deep wells to be pumped economically, the present invention including a mechanism for giving a longitudinal movement to the pump rod or polish rod so that the oil will be pumped to tanks or reservoirs.

Another object of the invention is to provide an automatic fluid lift which will operate with very deep wells, as for example wells that have a depth of 3,000 ft. to 15,000 ft., the present invention being ruggedly constructed so that it will not readily get out of order, there being a means for automatically reversing the reciprocation of the polish rod after a predetermined stroke.

A further object of the invention is to provide an automatic iiuid lift which is extremely simple and inexpensive to manufacture.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent during the Icourse of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, and in which like numerals are used to designate like parts throughout the same:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view taken through the automatic iiuid lift of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional View taken at right angles to the View shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a sectional View taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary enlarged elevational View, with parts broken away and in section, showing one of the worm nuts.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the versing mechanism.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the numeral 10 designates a concrete base which may be formed on the surface of the ground around the well which may be an oil well. However, it is to be understood that the apparatus of the present invention can be used for pumping uids from other wells besides oil wells, although the present invention is particularly suitable for use in pumping deep wells of the type that are used for the present day production of oil. Extending upwardly from the base 10 is a plurality of vertically disposed standards 11, and supported on the standards 11 is a base 12. Supported by the base 12 and secured thereto in any suitable manner is a hollow housing 14 which includes a pair of spaced parallel vertically disposed side walls 15 and 16, Figure 1. The housing 14 further includes a top wall 17 and a bottom wall 18, the housing 14 also including a back wall 19 and a front wall 20. Suitable doors 21 may be hingedly mounted in the front wall 20, Figure 3, whereby access can be readily gained to the interior of the housing 14. The top wall 17 of the housing may be provided with eyebolts 22 so as to permit a suitable lifting mechanism to be used for moving the apparatus as desired.

The numeral 23 designates a casing which may be fabricated of any suitable material, and arranged within the casing 23 is a barrel 24. A polish rod 25 is mounted for up and down movement in the casing 23, and the barrel 24 is provided with a plurality of openings or perforations 26 in its lower end, Figure l. Valves 27 and 28 are arranged in the barrel 24, and a head 29 is mounted on the upper end of the casing 23. A slip 30 is arranged in engagement with the head 29, and a fitting 31 is connected to the upper end of the barrel 24. A suitable stuing box or packing 32 is arranged directly above the fitting 31, and conduits or lines such as the lines 33 and 34 lead from the tting 31. A valve 35 may be arranged in the line 33, and a check valve 36 may be arranged in the line 34. The line 34 can lead to the reservoir tanks, and the line 33 may serve as a blowoit line to the tanks. A clamp 37 is mounted on the upper end of the rod 25 for a purpose to be later described.

Rotatably mounted in the housing 14 is a pair of screw members 38 which are arranged in spaced parallel relation with respect to each other. Each of the screw members 38 is provided with a helical groove 39 in its outer surface, and a carrier plate 40 is arranged in engagement with the bottom of the clamp 37. Arranged in engagement with each of the screw members 38 is a worm nut 41. Each of the worm nuts 41 is provided with a passageway 42, and positioned in each of the passageways 42 is a plurality of balls 43 which also engage the helical groove 39 in the screw members 38. One of the worm nuts 41 has a pair of trip extensions 44 and 45 secured thereto for operating the reversing mechanism as described in this application. A plurality of guide rods 46 are arranged in the housing 14 for guiding the worm nuts 41 during their up and down movement within the housing 14. Thus, as the screw members 38 are rotated, the worm nuts 41 will travel up and down on the screw members 3S to thereby raise and lower the polish rod 25.

A means is provided for causing rotation of the screw members 38, and this means comprises a gear wheel 47 which is arranged on the lower end of each of the screw members 38. A transmission indicated generally by the numeral 48 is positioned contiguous to the housing 14, and the transmission 48 includes a box or casing 49. Rotatably mounted in the casing 49 is a driven shaft 50 which has a pulley 51 on one end thereof. The pulley 51 may have a suitable belt trained thereover and the belt is adapted to be driven by a suitable gasoline engine or electric motor. Arranged in spaced parallel relation with respect to the driven shaft 50 is a drive shaft 52. A gear means is adapted to interconnect the driven shaft 50 to the drive shaft 52, and this gear means comprises a plurality of gears 53, 54 and 55 which are rigidly mounted on the drive shaft 52. A similar number of gears 56, 57 and 58 are mounted on the driven shaft 50, and these gears on the driven shaft 50 are adapted to be moved into and out of engagement with the corresponding gears 53, 54 and 55 in order to control the speed of rotation of the screw members 38. Suitable manually operable levers 59, 60 and 61 are provided for adjusting the position of the gears 56, 57 and 58. As shown in Figure 1 the gear 58 is arranged in meshing engagement with the gear 55 so that the screw members 3S will be driven at a low speed.

A jack shaft 62 is arranged in end to end relation with respect to the driven shaft 50, Figure 6, and mounted t on the jack shaft 62 is a pair of worms 63 which are arranged in engagement with the gears 47 on the bottom of the screw members 33. A gear wheel 64 may be loosely mounted on the shaft 62, and the gear wheel 64 has a hub 65 extending therefrom, the hub 65 being provided with a cut-out or cam for a purpose to be later described. An idler gear 66 is arranged in meshing engagement with the gear 64, and the gear 66 may be rotatably supported by means of a shaft 67. The idler gear 66 is arranged in meshing engagement with a gear 63 which is mounted on the drive shaft 52. The drive shaft 52 also has a gear 69 thereon, and the gear 69 meshes with a gear 70 that is loosely mounted on the jack shaft 62. The gear 76B is also provided with a hub 7i that has a cutout or cam surface thereon.

A slidable clutch 72 is mounted on the jack shaft 62, the clutch 72 having cam or cut-out surfaces on each end for engagement with the hubs 65 and 7l. A yoke 73 is provided for causing sliding movement of the clutch 72, and the yoke 73 is secured to a toothed rack 74 which has teeth 75 thereon. For causing sliding movement of the rack 7d and consequent sliding movement of the clutch 72, a toothed sector plate 76 is provided. The sector plate 76 is secured to a lower rocker arm 77 which is provided with a chamber 75 therein. A Weighted ball 79 is mounted in the chamber 75, the rocker arm 77 being pivotally mounted on a vertically disposed post 80. The post 89 also has an Lipper rocker arm 31 pivotally mounted thereon. A clamp 82 serves to connect an end of the upper rocker arm 8i to a connecting link 33, the lower end of the link 83 being connected to the lower rocker arm '77 by means of a pin 84. The rocker arms 77 and Si are adapted to be engaged by the trip extensions 44 and 45. A pin 85 serves to pivotally connect the rocker arm Si to the clamp or bracket S2, and a counterweight 86 may be secured to the rocker arm Sl. A similar counterweight 87 may be secured to the lower rocker arm 77.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that an apparatus has been provided which is especially suitable for pumping oil from deep oil wells. By means of the present invention the polish rod will be reciprocated up and down so `that the fluid lwill be brought to the surface from the deep wells. The base i@ may be made of concrete and the casing 23 may extend down into the well and on top of the productive formation. The slips 3G serve to hold up the tubing or barrel which protrudes down into the well, the working barrel 2d being arranged within the casing 23. The perforations 26 are arranged on the bottom end of the working barrel 24. The polish rod 25 extends through the stuhving box 32, and the screw members 38 may be of any desired length or diameter. The diameter of the passageways 42 in the worm nuts 41 corresponds to the pitch of the helical grooves 39 and a conveyor is provided on the nuts 471 so that the balls 43 can be removed from the passageways 42 and transferred from end to end thereof. A suitable opening may be provided in the carrier plate 40 for the projection therethrough of the polish rod 25. After the working valves have been positioned properly in the well, the clamp 37 is tightened on the polish rod 25.

Thus, it will be seen that as the worm nuts 4l. rise on the screw members 3S, the rod 25 will be carried in an upward stroke to the desired height. The length of the upward stroke is controlled by means of the location of the rocker arm S1 on the post S9, and the connection of the rocker arm S1 to the rod or link 83 can be controlled by adjusting the position of the clamp or bracket 82. By setting the rocker arm Si for the number of inches of stroke desired, the automatic clutch 72 will become effective. On the lower end of the screw members 38 are gears 47 which are engaged by the worm 63 on the jack shaft 62. As the jack shaft 62 is rotated in arcounterclockwise direction, the screw members 3S will be rotated in one direction, and when the jack shaft 62 rotates in the opposite direction, the screw members 3S will be rotated in the opposite direction. Rotation of the screw members 38 causes vertical movement of the worm nuts 4l. A lever 38 extends from an end of the rocker arm 81, and a lever 89 extends from an end of the rocker arm 77 As the trip button or extension 44 engages the lever 88, the upper rocker arm 81 will be pivoted in a clockwise direction from the position shown in Figures 1 and 6 to thereby push the rod 83 downwardly and this downward movement of' the rod 33 causes rotation of the sector plate 76 which in turn slides the rack 74 in the guideway 9i?. Carried by the rack 74 is a yoke 73 which is connected to the sliding clutch 72. As shown in Figures l and 6 the clutch 72. is arranged in engagement with the gear 70 so that the jack shaft 62 will be operated by the gear 69 on the drive shaft 52. The gears 68 and 69 cause rotation of the screw members 38 in opposite directions, so that the position of the clutch 72 determines the direction of rotation of the screw members. Power may be supplied to the pulley 5l by a suitable gas engine or electric motor, and the power is transmitted through the transmission mechanism 4S which may have three or more speeds. The transmission 45 regulates the number of strokes` per minute. After the worm nuts 4l have reached their upward stroke, the rocker arm S1 will be pivoted to thereby move the clutch 72 into engagement with the hub 65 of the gear 645. This causes the worm nuts 4l to travel downwardly on the screw members 38. When the worm nuts 41 reach their lower limit, the trip extension 45 engages the lever 89 to raise the rod 83 and shift the rack 74 and clutch 72 back to the position shown in Figures l and 6.

The present invention is ruggedly constructed and can be used on oil wells which operate at depths of 3,000 ft. to 15,000 ft. The upper end of the post 50 may be connected to a plate 91, Figure 6. The yoke 73 is connected to a strap 92 which is mounted on the clutch 72. The weighted containers 86 and 87 may have a suitable material therein such as lead or Babbitt metal and these weights serve to offset the weight of the rod 83. This insures that the rocker arms will be in perfect balance. When the trip extension 45 contacts the lever S9 it will be moved in a counterclockwise direction and when the rocker arm 77 reaches a horizontal or center position, the weighted ball 79 will roll inward towards the worm nuts 41 to add its pressure to the reverse action. Also, the weighted ball 79 acts as a keeper while the reverse action is taking place.

I claim:

l. An oil well pumping assembly comprising a plurality of spaced parallel vertically disposed standards, a horizontally disposed base supported on said standards, a housing mounted on said base and including a front and back wall, spaced parallel side walls, and a top wall, a vertically disposed casing adapted to extend down into a well, a polish rod extending upwardly from said casing, a clamp connected to the upper end of said polish rod, a carrier plate engaging said clamp, a pair of spaced parallel vertically disposed screw members positioned in said housing and each provided with helical grooves, worm nuts engaging the lower surface of said carrier plate and arranged in engagement with each of said screw members, means for causing rotation of said screw members, said means comprising a transmission including a body member positioned contiguous to said housing, a driven shaft extending through said body member, a drive shaft arranged in spaced parallel relation with respect to said driven shaft, a jack shaft arranged in end to end relation with respect to said driven shaft, gear means connecting said drive shaft to said driven shaft, means connecting said drive shaft to said jack shaft, gear means connecting said jack shaft to said screw members, and means for automatically reversing the direction of rotation of said screw members.

2. The apparatus as described in claim 1, and further including means for automatically reversing the direction of rotation of said screw members, said last named means comprising a vertically disposed post mounted in said housing, an upper and lower rocker arm pivotally connected to said post, trip members on said worm nuts for engaging said rocker arms, a sector plate connected to the ylower rocker arm, a toothed rack engaged by said sector plate, and a clutch operated by said toothed rack.

3. In a pumping assembly, a carrier plate, a pair of spaced parallel vertically disposed screw members each provided with helical grooves, worm nuts engaging the lower surface of said carrier plate and arranged in engagement `with each of said screw members, means for causing rotation of said screw members, said means comprising a transmission including a body member, a driven shaft extending through said body member, a drive shaft arranged in spaced parallel relation with respect to said driven shaft, a jack shaft arranged in end to end relation with respect to said driven shaft, gear means connecting said drive shaft to said driven shaft, means connecting :said drive shaft to said jack shaft gear means connecting said jack shaft to said screw members, means for automatically reversing the direction of rotation of said screw members, said last named means comprising a vertically disposed post, an upper and lower rocker arm pivotally connected to said post, trip members on Said worm nuts for engaging said rocker arms, a sector plate connected to the lower rocker arm, a toothed rack engaged by said sector plate, and a clutch operated by said toothed rack.

4. In a reversing mechanism for rotary to reciprocating mechanical movement, a vertically disposed post, and upper and lower rocker arms pivotally connected to said post, said lower arm having a chamber therein, a weighted ball movably mounted in said chamber, a link spaced from said post, a clamp connecting an end of said upper arm to said link, the lower end of said link being pivotally connected to said lower arm, a pair of spaced apart vertically movable trip extensions for engaging said rocker arms, a counterweight connected to said upper rocker arm, a counterweight connected to said lower rocker arm, a `shaft having a clutch movably mounted thereon, a yoke extending upwardly from said clutch, a toothed rack connected to the upper end of said yoke, and a toothed sector plate secured to said lower rocker arm and said toothed sector plate engaging said rack.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 113,246 Beasley Apr. 18, 1871 179,775 Eccles July l1, 1876 289,881 Beck et al Dec. 11, 1883 747,056 Felsing Dec. 15, 1903 825,815 Farnham July 10, 1906 853,180 Lippert May 7, 1907 992,897 Nichols et al. May 23, 1911 1,502,150 Martin July 22, 1924 1,734,649 Shull Nov. 5, 1929 1,937,473 Geary et al. Nov. 28, 1933 FOREIGN PATENTS 436,646 Italy June 16, 1948

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