Bearing blocks for drill bits, drill bit assemblies including bearing blocks and related methods

a technology of bearing blocks and drill bits, which is applied in the direction of drilling machines and methods, metal-working drilling tools, constructions, etc., can solve the problems of pdc cutters still suffering from what might simply be termed “overloading, excessive bit aggressiveness, and the like, and achieve the effect of reducing the initial thickness of the bearing block

a technology of bearing blocks and drill bits, which is applied in the direction of drilling machines and methods, metal-working drilling tools, constructions, etc., can solve the problems of pdc cutters still suffering from what might simply be termed “overloading, excessive bit aggressiveness, and the like, and achieve the effect of reducing the initial thickness of the bearing block

US20100276200A1Inactive Publication Date: 2010-11-04BAKER HUGHES INC
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  • Bearing blocks for drill bits, drill bit assemblies including bearing blocks and related methods
  • Bearing blocks for drill bits, drill bit assemblies including bearing blocks and related methods
  • Bearing blocks for drill bits, drill bit assemblies including bearing blocks and related methods

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Embodiment Construction

[0035]The illustrations presented herein are not actual views of any particular drilling system, assembly, or device, but are merely idealized representations which are employed to describe embodiments of the present invention.

[0036]An embodiment of the current invention is shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 6. FIG. 1 shows an earth-boring rotary drill bit 10, depicted as a fixed cutter or drag bit employing PDC cutting elements, although of course the invention is not so limited. The bit 10 includes an attached bearing block 40 as viewed by looking upwardly at its face or leading end 12 as if the viewer was positioned at the bottom of a borehole. Bit 10 includes a plurality of PDC cutters 14 bonded by their substrates (diamond tables and substrates not shown separately for clarity), as by brazing, into pockets 16 in blades 18 extending above the face 12 of the bit 10. While the bit 10 depicted in FIG. 1 is a steel body bit, the bit 10 may be fabricated to comprise a particle-matrix compos...

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Abstract

Methods of drilling subterranean formations include coupling at least one bearing block having an initial thickness to a drill bit, engaging a formation with the drill bit within an initial depth of cut range, and reducing the initial thickness of the bearing block by contacting the formation to cause the initial depth of cut range to be at least partially increased. Methods of forming drill bits for drilling subterranean formations include forming at least one rubbing surface of at least one bearing block from at least one material exhibiting a reduced coefficient of friction and coupling the at least one bearing block to the drill bit. Drill bit assemblies include at least one bearing block having a distal portion configured to provide an initial depth of cut range and a base portion configured to provide an increased depth of cut range greater than the initial depth of cut range.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61 / 174,412, filed Apr. 30, 2009, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by this reference in its entirety.[0002]The application is also related to, but does not claim priority to, copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11 / 818,820, filed Jun. 14, 2007, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by this reference in its entirety.TECHNICAL FIELD[0003]The present invention, in several embodiments, relates generally to a rotary fixed cutter or “drag” drill bit employing superabrasive cutters for drilling subterranean formations and, more particularly, to use of bearing blocks in association with superabrasive cutters to provide improved accuracy for obtaining one or more target depths of cut for the cutters, a controlled bearing area on the face of the drill bit, or both. Methods of drilling are also encompassed by embodiments of t...

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Application Information

Patent Timeline
04 Nov 2010
Publication
US20100276200A1
IPC
E21B10/46; E21B7/00; E21B10/42; E21B10/54; E21B10/55; B21K5/04
CPC
E21B10/55; E21B10/43
Inventors
SCHWEFE, THORSTEN; BEUERSHAUSEN, CHAD J.