WO2022200831A1

WO2022200831A1 - Drilling tool change unit and a method for making said change

Info

Publication number: WO2022200831A1
Application number: PCT/IB2021/052462
Authority: WO
Inventors: Raúl Patricio BIZAMA ALMENDRAS; Felipe IZQUIERDO GONZÁLEZ
Original assignee: Bizama Almendras Raul Patricio; Izquierdo Gonzalez Felipe
Priority date: 2021-03-24
Filing date: 2021-03-24
Publication date: 2022-09-29

Abstract

The present invention relates to a drilling tool replacement unit. The unit has an arm (1) that can rotate through a pedestal (2). Additionally, the arm (1) can be moved in a controlled manner on the pedestal (2) so that it can be extended or retracted. One of the ends of the arm has a head (3) with two overlapping jaws (4, 5), of which the lower jaw (5) only has tightening capacity and the upper jaw (4), in addition to having tightening capacity, can rotate in an anticlockwise direction. The present invention further relates to a method for changing drilling tools using the replacement unit.

Description

DRILLING TOOL CHANGE EQUIPMENT AND A METHOD

TO MAKE SUCH CHANGE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a drilling tool change equipment (bit or tricone) in a drilling string and a method associated with changing the bits or tricone.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Mobile drilling units (or drillers) deal with the drilling of blastholes in mining, quarrying and prospecting operations. Surface units have a pivoting mast mounted on a drilling platform. A drill string is mounted inside or in front of the mast and rotated to drill into the ground. The drilling string is made up of, depending on the technique used, a drilling tool (bits or tricones), a series of rods and some intermediate devices. The bit is mounted on the lower working end of the drill string. The rods connect the drilling tool to a source of rotation mounted on the mast. The drill injects a liquid or gaseous fluid to extract the drilling debris. This fluid and torque are transmitted through the rods to the drill bit or tricone tool to enable the drilling operation. As the drilling operation progresses, more rods are added to the drill string.

Before drilling can begin, it will be necessary to attach the drilling tool to the string. This process involves manual positioning of the drilling tool under a rod to allow for engagement. At the completion of a drilling operation, it will be necessary to uncouple the drilling tool from the rod and remove it from the string. While many of the operations in the drilling process can be performed autonomously, the i coupling/uncoupling of drilling tools still require manual intervention by operators. This represents a significant danger for operators and has the potential to cause serious injuries as a result of any lack of control that occurs in the devices and tools used that contain a large amount of energy and there is permanent exposure of operators to these elements.

Some equipment and devices are known in the state of the art that allow mechanical or semi-autonomous changing of the bit or tricone devices of the drilling strings. For example, the international patent application WO2019371 150A1 is known, where a drill replacement apparatus is disclosed to replace a drill bit in a drilling tool, the apparatus comprises: a drill chuck comprising one or more drill receptacles, each drill receptacle adapted to receive at least one drill; and positioning means adapted to move the bit holder between at least one storage position and one or more replacement positions, each replacement position aligning at least one bit receptacle with the drilling tool.

As the bit drives into the ground, the mechanical force that is imparted on the bit eventually wears and dulls the bit. Under certain circumstances, the drill bit can fracture and break. Worn or fractured bits need to be replaced. To complete this, the drilling operation must be stopped and the drilling tool must be retrieved to the surface to allow for bit replacement. The bit is normally threadedly connected to the lower end of the drilling tool. The threaded connection is oriented so that this rotational force does not loosen the threaded connection, but rather acts to tighten the connection. To change the bit, a starting mechanism is used to "break" the existing torque between the drill rod and the bit, loosening the tension on the threaded joint. Once the tension has been released, an operator normally removes the bit and places it away from the drilling tool. A spare bit is then physically placed under the drilling tool to secure the bit to the drilling tool. The document indicates that this problem in the art is known, ie there is a significant danger to operators and injuries can occur as a result of uncontrolled movement of drilling tools during the changeover process. The risks increase with large-diameter drilling operations, where the increased size and weight of the bits make them much more difficult to maneuver.

While many parts of drilling operations can be completed autonomously or semi-autonomously, changing bits still requires at least some manual input from an operator, usually at the machine. If a drilling rig is operated autonomously, then the drilling rig must be switched to manual operation whenever bits need to be replaced. Due to the need for manual intervention, the safety, capital, operating cost or production advantages offered by the autonomous drilling rig are reduced during bit changes. This is particularly problematic in hard rock drilling operations where multiple bit changes may be required during each drilling shift.

Here at this point it is also important to indicate that the cost of lost profits by having the equipment without drilling is very high, both due to the value of the equipment and all the assistance it requires, as well as due to what is not produced, so it is of great importance. It is of interest to find ways to replace drill bits that are automated, firstly to avoid the danger of exposure to equipment operators and, furthermore, dramatically reduce the time for replacement so that the team can return to drilling and lose the shortest time possible in the stop times of said teams.

In the above application, the bit replacement apparatus is adapted to place a bit receptacle below a drilling tool. This Similarly, a bit located in the bit receptacle can be positioned under the drilling tool to allow attachment of the bit to the drilling tool. Alternatively, an empty bit receptacle can be placed under the drilling tool to allow disengagement of the bit from the drilling tool. Each bit socket receives a single bit. Alternatively, a single bit receptacle may receive two or more bits. In such an arrangement, it is envisioned that locating means or dividers may be used to separate the bits in the bit receptacle.

Another solution to this problem is presented in the international document WO2009156575A1, in which a drill bit magazine is disclosed, in which several replaceable bits used in rock drilling can be stored, and the magazine comprising a mobile frame part, several spaces, each of which is arranged to retain a bit, and at least one change station, to which each space is moved in turn by moving the frame part, whereby a bit can be brought to an empty space in the changer and a drill can be removed from a space in the changer, characterized in that each space in the magazine is arranged to removably receive and connect a separate drill chuck, each stored drill bit being arranged to be supported by the chuck in the charger and chuck bears against at least one inner surface of the drill bit.

However, as previously shown in the State of the Art, there is a clear need to supply replacement equipment or devices and associated methods to change the drill bits in the drilling strings through automatic operations where the exposure of human operators to this dangerous operation and reduce the downtime of the equipment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Figure 1 presents the top view of the drilling tool change equipment of the present invention. Figure 2 presents a perspective view of the column, arm, head assembly as a representative unit of the tool change equipment.

Figure 3 presents a perspective view detailing the procedure for changing the drill using the head and clamping jaws of the present invention.

Figure 4 presents a view of the bar, hammer, drill, tricone assembly.

Figure 5 presents an image of the drilling equipment to be intervened by the equipment of the present invention.

Figure 6 presents an enlarged image of the detail of the operation of the equipment of the present invention on the drilling platform.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

More particularly, the present invention is related to a piece of equipment or device used in mining to change drill bits or tricone bits of drill strings that integrates a double break wrench to an extensible arm that is mounted on a rotating pedestal. The device can do all the tasks required to change drill bits without the physical intervention of people. The arm is able to drop the bit, remove the used bit and take it to another position for storage, take a new bit from another predefined position and take it to the position of the bar to thread it and make it available for drilling in a very short time. The sequence of movements can be done step by step or automatically. In person at the booth or remotely. All this device can be mounted on a platform which can be attached to the drill or to another assistance vehicle.

Going now into detail of the construction configuration of the equipment of the present invention and taking into account figures 1 to 5 presented, it must be a replacement kit for drilling tools is provided. The equipment has an arm (1) that can rotate through a pedestal (2). Additionally, the arm (1) can move in a controlled manner on the pedestal (2) so that it can be extended or retracted. At one end of the arm there is a head (3) with two superimposed jaws (4.5) of which the lower one (5) has only the ability to tighten and the upper one (4), in addition to having the ability to tighten, can turn counterclockwise.

The equipment (20) is mounted on a platform (11) which can be part of the same surface of the drill, as an extension of the same or be mounted on an assistance vehicle. The equipment also has a shelf (10) to be able to deposit those new and used bits.

The equipment (20) to change the drill bits or tricone bits of the drilling strings is made up of an arm (1) that is capable of rotating, vertically or horizontally. This arm is in turn supported by a pedestal (2) by means of a horizontal sliding system controlled by a motor unit (7) that allows it to retract and extend in a controlled manner. The pedestal (2) in turn has a second motor unit (8) that allows controlled rotation with respect to the platform (11). These motor units allow the head (3) to be moved from the rest position (Home) by rotating the pedestal (2) and extending the arm (1) to the working position on the bar (A). Then by retracting the arm (1), turning the pedestal (2) and extending the arm (1) you can take the head to the location of the shelves (B) to deposit the used bits and remove the new bits. The process continues with the new retraction of the arm (1), rotation of the pedestal (2) and extension of the arm (1) to once again return to the working position on the bar (A) to couple the bit to the end of the string. Finally, the arm (1) retracts and the pedestal (2) rotates to bring the equipment to the rest position (Home). The extension motor unit (7) and the rotation motor unit (8) are capable of moving the arm unit (1), pedestal (2) and head unit (3) from passive positions or first positions to active positions or second positions.

To transfer the bits (16) or tricone bits (17), the device occupies the lower jaw (5), which closes to be able to safely trap the component.

In the equipment (20) to change the bits (16) or tricones (17) of the drilling strings, it may or may not have a device or hydraulic support element (9) that is located at one of the ends of the arm. (1 ).

In the head (3) there are also jaw elements (4, 5) that are superimposed on each other and that are contained within said head element (3), these jaw elements (4, 5) have the following particularities, the first jaw (5) is lower and therefore it is the first one found in the lower part of the head (3), it is a clamping jaw that is used both to be able to keep the drill fixed during the breaking process of torque and unscrewing and threading of the bit to the string as well as for the transfer of the bit to and from the rack (10). The other jaw is upper (4), is on top of the jaw element (5) and is a tightening jaw that can also rotate counterclockwise and has the purpose of serving as a torque break wrench.

The design of the shelves (10) can vary according to the convenience of the user, being among others the following modalities: A) stationary single shelves with the capacity to store a drill bit (16-17). B) revolver-type shelves (10) with storage capacity for several new and used drill bits (16-17) that are remotely selected from the position of the used drill bits (16-17) and the selection of the drill bit (16-17) new to use; the selection turns of the revolver are motorized. C) Shelf (10) to support cartdrige-type devices or cartridges in which there is one for storage of new bits (16-17) and another for used bits (16-17). The cartdrige or cartridges with bits (16-17) have the possibility of being changed for new ones by lifting them with another lifting device to remove those found from used bits (16-17) and replace them with cartdrige or cartridges with new bits (16-17).

The equipment of the present invention also has a platform element (11). This platform can be part of the same surface of the drill, it can also be as an extension of it or be mounted on an assistance vehicle.

To operate the equipment (20) of the present invention, there is a PLC-type operation control device located in the operations booth (12) that automatically controls the elements described above. This device can be operated in person by the operator from the operating cabin (12) or remotely. The control device has a security protocol that restricts the operation of the equipment against risk conditions.

The equipment (20) of the present invention basically operates in 3 positions: rest (Home), activation on the bar (A) and activation on the shelf (B).

The movements of the arm, column and clamps are carried out by electric, hydraulic or pneumatic drives. In the rest position (H) the free movement of people is allowed on the platform (11) of the drilling machine.

In position on the bar (A), two sequences of operations are carried out:

The first one is the used bit removal sequence in which the lower jaw (5) tightens the used bit while the upper one (4) takes the bar (or the hammer) and after tightening it, turns it in the counterclockwise in order to loosen the tightness between the parts of the string. Subsequently, the lower jaw (5) keeps the drill fixed while the operator rotates the bar counterclockwise until the bar or hammer is completely unscrewed from the drill. The second sequence is the last part of the cycle in which the lower jaws (5) hold the used or spare bit while the string rotates clockwise to thread the bit with the bar or hammer. In position (B) on the shelf (10) with the lower clamp (5), the used bits are deposited and the new ones are collected according to the position determined on the shelf (10).

Another object of the invention is to provide a method for changing a bit of a drilling rig that uses the equipment described in detail above, this operation generally comprises the steps of removing the used bit from the drill rod, which includes the tasks of put the equipment of the present invention in contact with a part of the drilling string to receive the used bit, remove it from the string and place it in a rack of used bits to later take up a new bit that must be placed back in the drill string; The method described above basically comprises the following steps: a) Rotate the pedestal (2) from the orientation of a first rest position (H) to the orientation of a second position A or working position on the bar, an operation that can take six seconds. b) Make an extension from said arm element (1) from the first position H or rest to position (A) where there is a bar element (14) in a second position or active, an operation that can take 4 seconds c) Tighten a bit element (16-17) with said lower jaw element (5), an operation that can take 3 seconds. d) Tighten said bar or hammer element (14-15) with said upper clamp (4), an operation that can take 3 seconds. e) Rotate the upper clamp (4) until the tightening between said bit (16-17) and said bar (14) is released, an operation that may take 5 seconds. f) Release the tightening of said upper jaw element (4), an operation that can take 1 second. g) Rotate said bar element (14-15) with the rotation motor (18) located in the mast (19) of the drill until said drill element (16-17) is uncoupled from said bar element (14- fifteen). Operation that can take 8 seconds. h) Retract said arm element (1) to the first rest position H. Operation that can take 4 seconds. i) Carrying out the rotation of said pedestal element (2) until it is aligned with the position of said shelf element (10). Operation that can take 6 seconds. j) Making the extension of said arm element (1) until locating a used drill element (16-17) in a storage position of said shelf element (10). Operation that can take 4 seconds. k) Carry out the opening of said lower jaw element (5) and release of the drill (16-17), an operation that can take 3 seconds

L) Retraction of said arm element (1) to the first rest position H. m) Location of the head (3) or shelf (10) to leave a new drill element (16-17) in the holding position to be mounted. Operation that can take 3 seconds. n) Extension of said arm element (1) until locating the position of the shelf (10) to take a new drill element (16-17) to be assembled. Operation that can take 4 seconds. o) Close said lower jaw element (5) to take the new drill element (16-17) to be assembled. Operation that can take 1 second. p) Retraction of said arm element (1) to a first position H or rest. Operation that takes 4 seconds. q) Make a rotation of said pedestal element (2) from a first position H or rest position to a second position A or active position. Operation that can take about 6 seconds. r) Extension of said arm element (1) from the condition from a first position H to the position where said bar element (14) is in position A. Operation that can take 4 seconds. s) Lower said bar element (14) turning clockwise to the limit of the thread of the drill bit (16-17). Operation that can take 8 seconds. t) Opening of said lower jaw element (5). Operation that can take 1 second. u) Retract said arm element (1) to a first position H or rest. Operation that can take 4 seconds. v) Rotate the pedestal element (6) to a first position H or rest. Operation that can take 6 seconds Although the present invention has been described with the preferred embodiments shown, it is understood that modifications and variations that retain the spirit and scope of this invention are intended to be within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An equipment (20) to change the bits or tricones of the drilling strings characterized in that said equipment comprises: a) An arm element (1) that is capable of rotating, vertically or horizontally. b) A pedestal element (2) that is connected to the lower part of said arm element (1) and that is connected to said arm element (1) in such a way that it serves to move said element; Additionally, this pedestal element (2) that serves as a base for the arm element (1) includes an extension (7) motor element (7) that allows the arm (1) to retract and extend in a controlled manner; also the pedestal element (2) has a second motor unit (8) that allows controlled rotation with respect to a drilling platform). c) A hydraulic support element (8) located at one of the ends of said arm element (1). d) A head element (3) that is connected to said hydraulic support element (9) e) Two jaw elements (4, 5) that are superimposed on each other and that are contained within said head element (3 ) f) A reservoir element or bit rack (10) which is within reach of the arm element (1) g) An operation control element (12) of the PLC type that automatically controls the elements described in literals a) to f) h) A platform element (11) that supports on its surface the elements described in literals a) to f).

2. The equipment (20) to change the bits or tricones of the drill strings of claim 1, characterized in that of the jaw elements (4, 5), one is lower (5) and is a jaw of and one is upper (4) and is a clamping jaw that can also rotate counterclockwise.

3. The equipment (20) to change the drill bits or tricone bits of the drill strings of claim 1, characterized in that said drill bit reservoir or shelf element (10) is capable of storing new and used bits.

4. The equipment (20) to change the bits or tricones of the drill strings of claim 1, characterized in that the platform element (11) can be part of the same surface of the drill, as an extension of the same or be mounted on an assistance vehicle.

5. The equipment (20) to change the bits or tricones of the drill strings of claim 1, characterized in that said extension motor units (7) and the rotation motor unit (8) are capable of passing said units of arm (1), pedestal (2) and head (3) from passive positions or first positions to active positions or second positions

6. A method for changing a bit of a drilling equipment using the equipment of claim 1 comprising the steps of: a) Rotate the pedestal (2) from the orientation of a first rest position H to the orientation of a second position A or work position on the drilling rod (14). b) Make an extension from said arm element (1) from the first position H or rest to the position where a bar element (14) is located in a second position A. c) Tighten a drill element (16- 17) with said lower jaw element (5) d) Tighten said bar or hammer element (14-15) with said upper jaw (4) e) Rotate said upper jaw (4) until releasing the tightening between said bit (16 -17) and said bar (14). f) Release the tightening of said upper jaw element (4) g) Rotate said bar element (14-15) with the rotation motor (18) located on the mast (19) of the drill until said clamping element is uncoupled drill bit (16-17) of said bar element (14-15). h) Retract said arm element (1) to the first rest position H. i) Rotate said pedestal element (2) until it aligns with the position of said shelf element (10). j) Making the extension of said arm element (1) until locating a used drill element (16-17) in a storage position of said shelf element (10). k) Opening said lower jaw element (5) and releasing the drill bit (16-17).

L) Retraction of said arm element (1) to the first rest position H. m) Place the head (3) on the shelf (10) to leave a new drill element (16-17) in the holding position for be mounted. n) Extension of said arm element (1) until locating the position of the shelf (10) to take a new drill element (16-171) to be mounted. o) Close said lower jaw element (5) to take the new drill element (16-17) to be assembled. p) Retraction of said arm element (1) to a first position H or rest. q) Make a rotation of said pedestal element (2) from a first position H or rest position to a second position A or active position. r) Extension of said arm element (1) from the condition from a first position H to the position where said bar element (14) is in position A. s) Lower said bar element (14) turning in the direction clockwise the limit of the thread of the drill (16-17). t) Opening of said lower jaw element (5). u) Retract said arm element (1) to a first position H or rest. v) Rotate said pedestal element (2) to a first position H or rest.