WO2015148838A1 - Appareil d'actionnement électromécanique et procédé associé pour outils de fond - Google Patents

Appareil d'actionnement électromécanique et procédé associé pour outils de fond Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2015148838A1
WO2015148838A1 PCT/US2015/022808 US2015022808W WO2015148838A1 WO 2015148838 A1 WO2015148838 A1 WO 2015148838A1 US 2015022808 W US2015022808 W US 2015022808W WO 2015148838 A1 WO2015148838 A1 WO 2015148838A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
actuator
sensor
failed
circuitry
sensorless
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US2015/022808
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Pedro R. Segura
Daniel Q. Flores
William F. Trainor
Original Assignee
Bench Tree Group LLC
Priority date (The priority date 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 date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from US14/229,700 external-priority patent/US9038735B2/en
Application filed by Bench Tree Group LLC filed Critical Bench Tree Group LLC
Publication of WO2015148838A1 publication Critical patent/WO2015148838A1/fr

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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
    • E21B23/00—Apparatus for displacing, setting, locking, releasing or removing tools, packers or the like in boreholes or wells
    • 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
    • E21B7/00—Special methods or apparatus for drilling
    • E21B7/04—Directional drilling
    • E21B7/06—Deflecting the direction of boreholes
    • E21B7/067—Deflecting the direction of boreholes with means for locking sections of a pipe or of a guide for a shaft in angular relation, e.g. adjustable bent sub
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H03—ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY
    • H03K—PULSE TECHNIQUE
    • H03K17/00—Electronic switching or gating, i.e. not by contact-making and –breaking
    • H03K17/22—Modifications for ensuring a predetermined initial state when the supply voltage has been applied

Definitions

  • the apparatus is generally directed to an electromechanical actuator and in particular to an electromechanical actuator for tools used for bore hole drilling, work- over and/or production of a drilling or production site which are used primarily in the gas and/or oil industry.
  • Electromechanical actuator systems generally are well known and have existed for a number of years.
  • an electromechanical actuator may be used as part of tools or systems that include but are not limited to, reamers, adjustable gauge stabilizers, vertical steerable tools, rotary steerable tools, by-pass valves, packers, down hole valves, whipstocks, latch or release mechanisms, anchor mechanisms, or measurement while drilling (MWD) pulsers.
  • the actuator may be used for actuating a pilot/servo valve mechanism for operating a larger mud hydraulically actuated valve.
  • a valve may be used as part of a system that is used to
  • mud pulsers because the systems create programmatic pressure pulses in mud or fluid column that can be used to communicate digital data from the down hole to the surface.
  • Mud pulsers generally are well known and there are many different implementations of mud pulsers as well as the mechanism that may be used to generate the mud pulses.
  • the existing systems have one or more of the following problems/limitations that it are desirable to overcome:
  • Figure 1 is an illustration of a preferred embodiment of an electromechanical actuator
  • Figure 2 illustrates an embodiment of the electromechanical actuator of Figure l;
  • Figure 3 is an assembly cross-section diagram of the embodiment of the electromechanical actuator of Figure 2;
  • Figure 4 illustrates a block diagram of an implementation of the set of electronic circuits of the actuator;
  • the apparatus and method are particularly applicable to the actuation of down- hole tools, such as in borehole drilling, workover, and production, and it is in this context that the apparatus and method will be described.
  • the down-hole tools that may utilize, be actuated and controlled using the apparatus and method may include but are not limited to a reamer, an adjustable gauge stabilizer, vertical steerable tool, rotary steerable tool, by-pass valve, packer, control valve, latch or release mechanism, and/or anchor mechanism.
  • the actuator may be used for actuating a pilot/servo valve mechanism for operating a larger mud hydraulically actuated valve such as in an MWD pulser.
  • examples of the electromechanical actuator are described in more detail below.
  • FIG 1 is an illustration of an electromechanical actuator 20 that may be used, for example, in a down-hole MWD pulser tool.
  • the actuator may comprise a first and second housing 22], 22 2 that house a number of components of the actuator and a valve housing 22 3 that connects to the housing 22] and has a replaceable screen 23 that houses the components of the actuator that are not within the dielectric fluid, such as for example oil, filled housing 22 ⁇ .
  • a dielectric fluid such as for example oil, filled housing 22 ⁇ .
  • an oil filled housing is described hereinafter, but it should be understood that the housing may also be filled with another dielectric fluid.
  • the actuator may further comprise a rotary actuator 25, a lead or ball screw 26 and a reciprocating member(s) 27 that actuate the servo shaft of down hole tool.
  • the actuator may also have a shock absorbing and self aligning member 27 that absorbs the shocks from the actuator and compensates for misalignments between the members.
  • the shock absorbing member 27 may also absorbs shocks applied to the shaft or piston by external forces.
  • the actuator 20 may also have a fluid slurry exclusion and pressure compensating system 29 that balances pressure within the actuator with borehole pressure.
  • the actuator may also have a pressure sealing electrical feed thru 24 that allows the actuator to be electrically connected to electronic control components, but isolates the electronic control components from fluid and pressure.
  • the pressure within the oil filled, pressure compensated system is essentially equal to the pressure in the borehole and this pressure is primarily the result of the fluid column in the borehole.
  • the details of the fluid slurry exclusion and pressure compensating system 29 are described below in more detail.
  • the actuator may also have a set of electronic control components 31 that control the overall operation of the actuator as described below in more detail.
  • the set of electronic control components 31 are powered by an energy source (not shown) that may be, for example, be one or more batteries or another source of electrical power.
  • Figure 2 illustrates an illustration of an embodiment of the electromechanical actuator of Figure 1.
  • Typical actuator systems may utilize an elastomeric
  • the housings adjacent to the buffer disc may also be vented to allow this communication.
  • the buffer disc 32 is captured between two of the housings that thread together (as shown in Figure 1) so that no other method of fastening or centering it is required.
  • the buffer disc 32 may also be split or slotted to allow assembly/disassembly if a component or feature of diameter larger than the shaft is obstructing the end of the shaft and/or positioned in such a way that the disc cannot be installed by inserting over the shaft end.
  • the buffer disc 32 may be axially compliant and laterally stiff which is accomplished, in one embodiment, by including multiple radial slits from the inner diameter to a distance less than the outer diameter.
  • the axial compliance of the buffer disc 32 is a release mechanism in the event that debris becomes trapped or wedged between the reciprocating shaft and the buffer disc inner diameter and is also a pressure relief mechanism in the event that pressure fluid vents become clogged.
  • the buffer disc 32 may be a flexible, compliant member that would not require venting.
  • the buffer disc 32 could be a rubber membrane that would stretch with volume changes without significantly adding a load to the actuator in the instances described above and would also flex in reciprocation or rotation if attached to the shaft, piston, or housings.
  • the buffer disc 32 could also be a combination of rigid and elastomeric materials to achieve lateral support and axial compliance.
  • the shaft 28 that extends from the oil filled section, through the compensation piston 29 ID seal, through the grease pack 41, buffer disc 32 and into the wellbore fluid, may be of uniform diameter to prevent any interference of reciprocating motion by components or debris that may find its way to the area.
  • the piston compensation and exclusion system may be converted to an elastomeric membrane compensation system easily by removing the piston 40 and mounting the elastomeric membrane assembly into the same seal area.
  • This embodiment of the actuator may be used for systems requiring the elimination of seal friction, as required for pressure measurement, precise control, or lower force actuators.
  • the rotary actuator 24 such as, but not limited to, an electric motor, rotary solenoid, hydraulic motor, piezo motor and the like , for example, is installed with a ball or lead screw 25 integral to or attached to the rotary actuator' s 24 output shaft.
  • the screw 25 rotates, the nut 1000 moves linearly, reciprocates, and the nut is then coupled to the actuated/reciprocating member(s)/component(s) 40,50, 1001, 28,.
  • the motor shaft can incorporate features of the ball or lead screw nut or be attached to the ball or lead screw nut so that the nut rotates, the screw moves axially and the screw 25 is integral to or coupled to the actuated/reciprocating member(s)/component(s) 40,50, 1001.
  • the nut and attached or integral reciprocating members reciprocate with shaft-screw rotation, but the rotation of the reciprocating, axially moving, member(s) is prevented by an anti- rotation feature or member, 1001.
  • This feature or component may be, for example, a pin, key, screw-head, ball, or integrally machined feature that slides along an elongated stop or slot 1002 in the surrounding actuator guide or a surrounding housing.
  • the thrust bearing can alternately or additionally be attached to or integrated within the rotary actuator shaft or ball/lead screw non reciprocating components as is typically done also.
  • Typical downhole actuator systems require an oversized lead or ball screw, thrust bearings, and reciprocating components to tolerate larger loads that may be caused by impacting at the reciprocating member. This can be the case when seating a rigid valve, for example.
  • the system components are significantly smaller due to the addition of an integral or attached shock absorbing member or members 27 in figure 1 (and 40 in figure 2) such as mechanical springs.
  • the shock absorbing member or members reduces the peak shock loads and accommodates misalignments, thereby reducing other loads and the strength requirements of the other actuator components.
  • the shock absorbing member or members 27/40 may be placed inline or within the rotary actuator shaft, reciprocating members, or between nut and seat, or on thrust bearing (s), or in the actuated devices (external to the actuator). In one embodiment, it is integrated to a coupling which is attached to the reciprocating member of the ball or lead screw 26 as shown in Figure 2.
  • the integration of the shock absorbing member reduces loads, which enables a reduction in component strength requirements, which enables a reduction in component size, and hence reduces overall component mass, which in turn enables a reduction in the system size and power requirements. This is important, for example, in battery operated systems such as downhole devices that may use the actuator.
  • the shock absorbing member(s) 27/40 in another embodiment includes a mechanical spring(s), which upon loading, compresses or extends. This reduces or increases the size of gaps in the mechanical spring structure, which act as fluid vents or ports. As the vents close or open, the change in hydraulic flow area(s) cause additional changes in load, which can be detected by the electronics for control purposes.
  • This porting can also be integrated to non shock-absorbing components, in which overlapping openings between reciprocating and non-reciprocating components act as the variable area vents or ports for a fluid.
  • the non-restricted fluid passages/openings then vary in flow area as a function of position of the reciprocating components.
  • the change in flow areas alters the loads which can be detected by the control electronics.
  • the clearances between the between the reciprocating member and the static members in the actuator change the hydraulic flow/loads that may also be detected by the control electronics.
  • Figure 3 is an assembly cross-section diagram of the embodiment of the electromechanical actuator of Figure 2.
  • the actuator may also have an easily replaceable shaft 28.
  • the actuator 20 may have a shaft T- slotted coupling 50 that allows lateral motion for installation and removal of the shaft until a piston or other member that prevents lateral travel is installed. After the piston 29 is installed, the shaft is captured, and lateral motion is prevented by the piston.
  • the shaft 28 is dimensioned to minimize diameter and to minimize volume changes with reciprocation, while maintaining load capacity.
  • the shaft is also dimensioned to allow the piston seal to slide over end attachment features without damaging said piston seal.
  • the shaft is also sized as to minimize the mass, and hence inertia, of the actuated system to reduce power requirements of the motor.
  • the shaft 28 may be attached to the coupling 50 in other ways as well.
  • the shaft can be integral to the coupling or screw, threaded to the coupling or screw, or be attached with clip or threaded f asters.
  • the coupling allows easy removal and reinstallation while providing a more secure attachment. While threaded fasteners may loosen in high vibration environments, the coupling 50 will not loosen.
  • the screen assembly 23 may be around the entire OD of the housing. Cavities 1004 between the screen ID and housing slots act as a debris trap(s) on the downhole side of a pilot valve orifice.
  • the housing may trap the buffer disc as discussed above.
  • the screen may be slotted or perforated and relieved for fluid passage.
  • the screen assembly 23 provides a more uniform OD than previously used systems and the changeable screen is designed for easy replacement in case of erosion of a component.
  • the screen assembly 23 also uses a minimal number of retainers/screws to reduce the chance of losing components down-hole.
  • the actuator assembly may be easily reconfigured to a rotary actuator system by replacing the ball or lead screw with a gear box and shaft extending through the compensation piston seal.
  • the gearbox is not required if the motor torque alone is sufficient.
  • other systems are either non-compensated or include complicated magnetic couplings.
  • the subject actuator assembly allows use of piston or interchangeable membrane compensation system while minimizing the system's overall length and retaining the other features and benefits described above.
  • the transducer feedback signal from the sensors 66 provide the best power efficiency during all mechanical loading scenarios and thus increases battery life and reduces operating costs due to battery replacement.
  • Hall effect transducers are prone to malfunction due to the abusive down hole environment.
  • Hall effect transducers are presently considered the preferred motion control device because they are relatively reliable verses other motion sensors in an abusive environment.
  • a firmware mechanism is in place to switch over to the less power efficient back electromotive force position feedback using the sensorless circuitry 64 if any one or more of the Hall motion control devices. (Hall A sensor, Hall B sensor and Hall C sensor, for example) fail to return diagnostic counts.
  • the method may operate as follows: if Hall B fails to generate diagnostic counts, then Hall A will be utilized, back electromotive force signal B will be utilized, and Hall C will be utilized. Power efficiency will not suffer in this case and reliability will be maintained. If more than one Hall effect transducers fails, the firmware will rely altogether on the back electromotive force position feedback (back electromotive force signal A, back electromotive force signal B and back electromotive force signal C) and power efficiency will now be reduced somewhat, but proper operation will still be maintained.
  • Figure 5 illustrates an implementation of a circuit that converts back EMF signals into Hall signal equivalents.
  • the back EMF signals Phase A, Phase B and Phase C
  • resistors, capacitors and operational amplifiers [comparators] as shown to generate the Hall A, Hall B and Hall C signals as shown if this were a multi-phase system.
  • diagnostic/logging data functions that may be recorded using mission critical tactics.
  • Typical methods of storing nonvolatile data are usually writing data to flash memory in large, quantized, page segments so that, if a power anomaly or reset occurs during a page write a large amount of data can be easily lost.
  • a typical 1 kilobyte page may store hours of diagnostic or log data.
  • a new type of nonvolatile memory, other than flash may be utilized that allows for fast single byte writes instead of large, susceptible 1 kilobyte page writes to flash memory.
  • the nonvolatile memory may be a ferroelectric random access memory (F-RAM) which is a non- volatile memory which uses a ferroelectric layer instead of the typical dielectric layer found in other non- volatile memories.
  • F-RAM ferroelectric random access memory
  • the ferroelectric layer enables the F-RAM to consume less power, endure 100 trillion write cycles, operate at 500 times the write speed of conventional flash memory, and endure the abusive down hole environment.
  • the use of the new type of nonvolatile memory minimizes data loss via a single byte transfer instead of a 1 kilobyte data transfer.
  • the set of electronic control components 31 may also have special MOSFET gate driver circuitry 70 (See Figure 6 that illustrates an implementation of the MOSFET drivers 70) that are utilized in order to regulate the gate drive voltage applied to one or more MOSFETs 72 over changing input voltage wherein the input voltage is typically supplied by batteries.
  • MOSFET is the preferred switch; however, any other switch can be utilized.
  • each MOSFET has a gate driver circuit 74 that generates the gate voltage for each MOSFET and a low voltage detection circuit and gate voltage regulator 76 that controls the gate driver circuit 74 in that it can provide a shutdown signal when the voltage is too low.
  • the regulation of the gate voltage to an optimal voltage allows the MOSFET to dissipate minimal power over large input voltage swings so that MOSFET temperature rise is minimized which increases reliability.
  • the set of electronic control components 31 may also have the circuit 76 that can disable the MOSFETs if the input voltage drops to a level wherein the optimal gate voltage cannot be maintained, thus eliminating MOSFET overheating and self destruction.
  • the actuator described above has the following overall characteristics that overcome the limitations of the typical systems: Reduced the number of components to achieve the same functions in a more effective manner

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  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Geology (AREA)
  • Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
  • Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
  • General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Geochemistry & Mineralogy (AREA)
  • Actuator (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un appareil et un procédé pour l'actionnement d'outils de fond. Les outils de fond pouvant être actionnés et commandés à l'aide de cet appareil et de ce procédé peuvent comprendre un aléseur, un stabilisateur à écartement réglable, des outils orientables verticaux, des outils orientables rotatifs, des soupapes de dérivation, des packers, des sifflets déviateurs, des soupapes de fond, des mécanismes de verrouillage ou de libération et/ou des mécanismes d'ancrage.
PCT/US2015/022808 2014-03-28 2015-03-26 Appareil d'actionnement électromécanique et procédé associé pour outils de fond WO2015148838A1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US14/229,700 2014-03-28
US14/229,700 US9038735B2 (en) 2010-04-23 2014-03-28 Electromechanical actuator apparatus and method for down-hole tools

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2015148838A1 true WO2015148838A1 (fr) 2015-10-01

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Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20040131342A1 (en) * 2002-06-13 2004-07-08 Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. Digital adaptive sensorless commutational drive controller for a brushless DC motor
US20050264254A1 (en) * 2004-05-26 2005-12-01 Lequesne Bruno P B Switched reluctance motor control with partially disabled operation capability
US20110259600A1 (en) * 2010-04-23 2011-10-27 Bench Tree Group LLC Electromechanical actuator apparatus and method for down-hole tools
US20110297391A1 (en) * 2010-06-07 2011-12-08 Fielder Lance I Compact cable suspended pumping system for dewatering gas wells
US20130207379A1 (en) * 2011-08-24 2013-08-15 Viega Gmbh & Co. Kg Device for Fixing a Fitting

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20040131342A1 (en) * 2002-06-13 2004-07-08 Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. Digital adaptive sensorless commutational drive controller for a brushless DC motor
US20050264254A1 (en) * 2004-05-26 2005-12-01 Lequesne Bruno P B Switched reluctance motor control with partially disabled operation capability
US20110259600A1 (en) * 2010-04-23 2011-10-27 Bench Tree Group LLC Electromechanical actuator apparatus and method for down-hole tools
US20110297391A1 (en) * 2010-06-07 2011-12-08 Fielder Lance I Compact cable suspended pumping system for dewatering gas wells
US20130207379A1 (en) * 2011-08-24 2013-08-15 Viega Gmbh & Co. Kg Device for Fixing a Fitting

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