23672results about "Survey" patented technology

The present invention provides a system for operating a power line communications system that employs surface wave communications and conducted communications. The system is comprised of a plurality of network elements, which may take the form of repeaters, communication interface devices, backhaul devices, medium voltage transducers, distribution points, aggregation points, and others. In one embodiment, surface waves are communicated over the medium voltage power lines and the conducted communications are communicated via the low voltage power lines to and from customer premises.

A monitoring system and method for monitoring a predetermined set of physical characteristics associated with a structure using the monitoring system. The system is distributed in the structure and comprises a distributed optical sensing device (30), further comprising a fiber optic cable (20, 22); a light source (18a) operatively in communication with the fiber optic cable (20, 22); a light detection device (18b), operatively in communication with the fiber optic cable (20, 22), for measuring the light received at the light detection device (18b) from the fiber optic cable (20, 22); and a data processor (18) capable of using the light measured to calculate a predetermined set of physical parameters describing the predetermined set of physical characteristics.

Methods and systems for drilling to a target location include a control system that receives an input comprising a planned drilling path to a target location and determines a projected location of a bottom hole assembly of a drilling system. The projected location of the bottom hole assembly is compared to the planned drilling path to determine a deviation amount. A modified drilling path is created to the target location as selected based on the amount of deviation from the planned drilling path, and drilling rig control signals that steer the bottom hole assembly of the drilling system to the target location along the modified drilling path are generated.

A method of managing a fluid or gas reservoir is disclosed which assimilates diverse data having different acquisition time scales and spatial scales of coverage for iteratively producing a reservoir development plan that is used for optimizing an overall performance of a reservoir. The method includes: (a) generating an initial reservoir characterization, (b) from the initial reservoir characterization, generating an initial reservoir development plan, (c) when the reservoir development plan is generated, incrementally advancing and generating a capital spending program, (d) when the capital spending program is generated, monitoring a performance of the reservoir by acquiring high rate monitor data from a first set of data measurements taken in the reservoir and using the high rate monitor data to perform well-regional and field-reservoir evaluations, (e) further monitoring the performance of the reservoir by acquiring low rate monitor data from a second set of data measurements taken in the reservoir, (f) assimilating together the high rate monitor data and the low rate monitor data, (g) from the high rate monitor data and the low rate monitor data, determining when it is necessary to update the initial reservoir development plan to produce a newly updated reservoir development plan, (h) when necessary, updating the initial reservoir development plan to produce the newly updated reservoir development plan, and (i) when the newly updated reservoir development plan is produced, repeating steps (c) through (h). A detailed disclosure is provided herein relating to the step (a) for generating the initial reservoir characterization and the step (b) for generating the initial reservoir development plan.

In one embodiment, a method for drilling a wellbore includes an act of drilling the wellbore by injecting drilling fluid through a tubular string disposed in the wellbore, the tubular string comprising a drill bit disposed on a bottom thereof. The drilling fluid exits the drill bit and carries cuttings from the drill bit. The drilling fluid and cuttings (returns) flow to a surface of the wellbore via an annulus defined by an outer surface of the tubular string and an inner surface of the wellbore. The method further includes an act performed while drilling the wellbore of measuring a first annulus pressure (FAP) using a pressure sensor attached to a casing string hung from a wellhead of the wellbore. The method further includes an act performed while drilling the wellbore of controlling a second annulus pressure (SAP) exerted on a formation exposed to the annulus.

This invention is directed to a downhole method and apparatus for simultaneously determining the horizontal resistivity, vertical resistivity, and relative dip angle for anisotropic earth formations. The present invention accomplishes this objective by using an antenna configuration in which a transmitter antenna and a receiver antenna are oriented in non-parallel planes such that the vertical resistivity and the relative dip angle are decoupled. Preferably, either the transmitter or the receiver is mounted in a conventional orientation in a first plane that is normal to the tool axis, and the other antenna is mounted in a second plane that is not parallel to the first plane. This invention also relates to a method and apparatus for steering a downhole tool during a drilling operation in order to maintain the borehole within a desired earth formation. The steering capability is enabled by computing the difference or the ratio of the phase-based or amplitude-based responses of the receiver antennas which are mounted in planes that are not parallel to the planes of the transmitter antennas. Although this invention is primarily intended for MWD or LWD applications, this invention is also applicable to wireline and possibly other applications.

A technique for providing auxiliary conduits in multi-trip completions is disclosed. The technique has particular applicability to liner mounted screens which are to be gravel packed. In the preferred embodiment, a protective shroud is run with the gravel pack screens with the auxiliary conduits disposed in between. The auxiliary conduits terminate in a quick connection at a liner top packer. The gravel packing equipment can optionally be secured in a flow relationship to the auxiliary conduits so as to control the gravel packing operation. Subsequent to the removal of the specialized equipment, the production tubing can be run with an auxiliary conduit or conduits for connection down hole to the auxiliary conduits coming from the liner top packer for a sealing connection. Thereafter, during production various data on the well can be obtained in real time despite the multiple trips necessary to accomplish completion. The various completion and/or production activities can also be accomplished using the auxiliary conduits such as actuation of down hole flow control devices, chemical injection, pressure measurement, distributed temperature sensing through fiber optics, as well as other down hole parameters.

A hydrocarbon containing formation may be treated using an in situ thermal process. A mixture of hydrocarbons, H.sub.2, and/or other formation fluids may be produced from the formation. Heat may be applied to the formation to raise a temperature of a portion of the formation to a pyrolysis temperature. A heating rate to a selected volume of the formation may be controlled by altering an amount of heating energy per day that is provided to the selected volume.

A measurement and communication system for use with a tubular string, comprises a tubular string having a plurality of self-powered, autonomous telemetry stations disposed at predetermined locations along the tubular string. Each autonomous telemetry station is adapted to receive at least one first signal and transmit at least one second signal related to the at least one first signal. Power is extracted from potential energy sources proximate each autonomous telemetry station. A method of communicating information along a tubular string comprises, disposing an autonomous telemetry station at predetermined locations along the tubular string. A preferred transmission path is autonomously determined at each of the autonomous telemetry stations. Information is transmitted along the tubular string according to the autonomously determined preferred path.

A system for monitoring a gas/oil well is provided with a monitoring unit, a relay unit and a host interface. A monitoring unit collects data regarding the status of the gas/oil well and wirelessly transmits that data to a relay unit. The relay unit, in turn, connects to a host interface using cellular communications and transmits the data. The monitoring unit can transmit information on demand or after an alarm condition is sensed. In either case, the monitoring unit is normally in a sleep mode. The relay unit can request information from the monitoring unit or respond to a wake up transmission sent to it from either the host interface or monitoring unit. The host interface receives data from the relay unit and then informs an end user of that data.

The invention provides apparatus and methods for monitoring and controlling hydrocarbon production wells and/or injection wells from a remote location. The apparatus for monitoring and controlling one or more hydrocarbon production wells or injection wells from a remote location comprises one or more surface control and data acquisition systems; one or more sensors disposed in communication with the one or more control and data acquisition systems; one or more downhole flow control devices disposed in communication with the one or more control and data acquisition systems; and one or more remote controllers disposed in communication with the one or more control and data acquisition systems. Preferably, the remote controller comprises a computer having an internet access disposed in communication with the one or more control and data acquisition systems through a communication device comprising an internet web site server. The method for monitoring and controlling a downhole hydrocarbon production well or an injection well comprises: transmitting data collected by a downhole sensor module to a control and data acquisition system; evaluating downhole operating conditions and optimizing downhole operating parameters utilizing an optimization software program disposed in communication with the control and data acquisition system; and transmitting signals between the control and data acquisition system system and a remote controller utilizing a satellite communication system, the remote controller comprising a computer and an internet browser control access adapted to display operating conditions and parameters and to accept instructions to change operating parameters.

The present invention provides an apparatus and method for high resolution spectroscopy (approximately 10 picometer wavelength resolution) using a tunable optical filter (TOF) for analyzing a formation fluid sample downhole and at the surface to determine formation fluid parameters. The analysis comprises determination of gas oil ratio, API gravity and various other fluid parameters which can be estimated after developing correlations to a training set of samples using a neural network or a chemometric equation.

The present invention, in one embodiment, is directed to a method and system for accelerating and improving the history matching of a well bore and/or reservoir simulation model using a neural network. The neural network provides a correlation between the calculated history match error and a selected set of parameters that characterize the well bore and/or the reservoir. The neural network iteratively varies a selection and/or the value of the parameters to provide at least one set of history match parameters having a value that provides a minimum for the calculated history matching error.

An automated method and system for determining the state of a drilling or other suitable well operations includes storing a plurality of states for the well operation. Mechanical and hydraulic data is received for the well operation. Based on the mechanical and hydraulic data, one of the states is automatically selected as the state of the well operation. Process evaluation may be performed based on the state of the well operation.

The present invention contemplates a choke control system that provides for local and off-site monitoring and control of the annulus flow pressure of a well. The choke control system includes a choke manifold connected to at least one choke and its associated actuator; a variety of instrumental drilling sensors, pump stroke counter switches, and choke position indicators; a local choke and hydraulic pressure control console; and a programmable controller in communication with the local choke and hydraulic pressure control console. The programmable controller handles the logical operations of the choke control system, including processing instrument measurements and operator input data to produce control signals for operating the choke, the choke actuator and the various valves associated with the choke manifold. The programmable controller is typically either an electronic digital computer and/or a programmable logic controller (PLC). The present invention further contemplates the two-way communication between the choke control system and the Internet via a satellite linkage.

A system (100) for mapping an underground object (145) includes a conduit location recording device 105 and a server (115). The conduit location recording device (105) senses an underground object (145), a unique identifier being associated with the sensed underground object (145), and determines a location of the underground object (145). The conduit location recording device (105) transmits, via a communications network (125), the unique identifier and determined location to the server (115) for storage in a database.

A method is disclosed for compressing a frame of data representing parameter values, a time at which each parameter value was recorded, and an orientation of a sensor at the time each parameter value was recorded. Generally the method includes performing a two-dimensional transform on the data in the orientation domain and in a domain related to the recording time. In one embodiment, the method includes calculating a logarithm of each parameter value. In one embodiment, the 2-D transform includes generating a Fourier transform of the logarithm of the parameter values in the azimuthal domain, generating a discrete cosine transform of the transform coefficients in the time domain. This embodiment includes quantizing the coefficients of the Fourier transform and the discrete cosine transform. One embodiment of the method is adapted to transmit resistivity measurements made by an LWD instrument in pressure modulation telemetry so that while-drilling images of a wellbore can be generated. The one embodiment includes encoding the quantized coefficients, error encoding the encoded coefficients, and applying the error encoded coefficients to the pressure modulation telemetry.

A system and method are disclosed for centralized monitoring and control of a hydraulic fracturing operation. The system includes an electric powered fracturing fleet and a centralized control unit coupled to the electric powered fracturing fleet. The electric powered fracturing fleet can include a combination of one or more of: electric powered pumps, turbine generators, blenders, sand silos, chemical storage units, conveyor belts, manifold trailers, hydration units, variable frequency drives, switchgear, transformers, and compressors. The centralized control unit can be configured to monitor and/or control one or more operating characteristics of the electric powered fracturing fleet.