Expandable Lining Device With Checking Member For Conduit Repair
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing devices for laying an expansible lining in wells or conduits face challenges in ensuring proper expansion and supporting the patch during descent, leading to incomplete or irregular expansion, and require costly structures to manage axial forces, with the risk of mechanical elements falling or becoming stuck, hindering operations.
Innovation Solution
A device with an axially displaceable expander tool and a checking member that ensures proper expansion by calibrating the diameter to pass through the patch only when fully expanded, accompanied by a supporting member with retractable fingers and frangible pins to manage axial forces and facilitate withdrawal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the packer is pre-inflated to retain the patch by friction during descent, then the patch can be supported during positioning, but the membrane must support high axial forces requiring costly structures
Solution Approach 1:
A dedicated supporting member with retractable fingers is introduced as an intermediary element between the patch and the packer. This supporting member assumes the function of supporting axial forces during descent, while the packer is restricted to its original function of radial expansion only, eliminating the need for costly structural modifications to the packer membrane.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is segmented into distinct functional components: the supporting member with retractable fingers for axial support during descent, and the packer for radial expansion. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function, with the supporting member bearing the axial load and the packer focusing on radial forcing capabilities.
2Force
If the packer is designed to support axial forces, then the patch can be retained during descent, but the packer is essentially designed for radial forces not axial forces
Solution Approach 1:
The supporting member acts as an intermediary that provides the necessary axial force support capability without requiring the packer itself to be redesigned for axial loading. The retractable fingers of the supporting member engage with the patch to provide friction-based retention during descent, while the packer maintains its original design optimized for radial expansion.
3Reliability
If mechanical elements are placed below the patch for support, then axial forces can be managed, but elements may fall down or become blocked under or inside the patch
Solution Approach 1:
The supporting member incorporates retractable fingers that can dynamically adjust their position. During descent, the fingers are extended to support the patch and manage axial forces. During withdrawal, the fingers are retracted to clear the way and prevent blocking. This dynamic adjustment eliminates the risk of mechanical elements falling or becoming stuck under or inside the patch.
Solution Approach 2:
The retractable fingers are positioned and configured in advance to provide support during the critical descent phase. Before withdrawal operations begin, the fingers are retracted to a safe position, preventing any potential blocking or falling issues during the removal phase.
4Measurement precision
If the checking member diameter is calibrated to pass through expanded patch, then proper expansion can be verified, but the tool cannot advance if expansion is incomplete
Solution Approach 1:
The checking member serves as a feedback mechanism that provides immediate information about the quality of patch expansion. If the patch is properly expanded, the checking member passes through freely, confirming successful operation. If expansion is incomplete or irregular, the checking member is blocked, providing negative feedback that prevents tool advancement and alerts the operator to correct the issue before proceeding.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables reliable and efficient placement of the patch with independent axial support, preventing mechanical elements from falling and allowing for easy withdrawal in case of issues, ensuring quality work and reducing operational complications.
Implementation Method 1
said supporting member is connected to the packer through a connecting system capable of causing retraction of the fingers when it is subject to a tensile force which exceeds a given threshold; said connection system includes frangible pins with calibrated mechanical strength
Implementation Method 2
These fingers are housed in ad hoc receiving holes, formed in the body 6. These are rods with a convex head 71 (located towards the inside of the body 6) and with a frusto-conical end, which normally protrudes outside the body 6, in order to retain the lower edge of the patch, as illustrated in FIG. 3. It is the cylindrical wall of the rod 4, the diameter of which is adapted for this, which normally and positively maintains the whole fingers 7 in this protruding position, this against small return springs 70 which, acting against the head 71, on the contrary, tend to push them back inside the body 6 in order to retract them.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a device for laying an expansible lining in a conduit. The device may include a patch having an initial diameter less than that of the conduit, and the patch may be configured to deform by radial expansion beyond an elastic limit to an expanded diameter such that it may contact a wall of the conduit. The device may also include an expander tool axially displaceable inside the patch, and the expander tool may be configured to cause the radial expansion of the patch to an expanded diameter. The device may also include a checking member mounted in proximity to the expander tool. A section of the checking member may be calibrated so that the checking member and the expander tool are capable of passing freely inside the patch when the patch is properly expanded, and the checking member and the expander tool are unable to pass inside the patch when the patch is improperly expanded.