Stationary Steering Structure Mud Actuated Drilling System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drilling technologies face challenges in maintaining directional control and verticality during wellbore drilling, as steering systems often require continuous rotation and contact with the borehole wall, leading to increased wear and higher costs.
Innovation Solution
A directional drilling system with a collar and drill bit assembly that uses drilling fluid to power steering members for lateral motion, allowing the steering structure to remain rotationally stationary, thus reducing wear and enabling cost-effective directional control through a low-cost sensing package and telemetry system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If steering systems continuously rotate and contact the borehole wall to maintain directional control, then directional control and verticality are maintained, but wear increases and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of rotating the steering structure against the borehole wall, the patent inverts the approach by keeping the steering structure stationary and rotating the collar assembly with the drill bit. The steering members remain fixed relative to the borehole wall, eliminating wear while maintaining directional control through the stationary positioning of the steering structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the rotation function from the steering structure and assigns it to the collar assembly. By separating the rotation function from the directional control function, the steering members can remain stationary and non-contacting with the borehole wall, thus eliminating wear while preserving directional control capability.
2Reliability
If steering members are mounted to rotate with the drill bit to maintain directional control, then directional control is achieved, but the steering structure experiences increased wear and complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the drilling system into distinct functional components: the rotating collar assembly containing the drill bit and the stationary steering structure containing the steering members. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently, simplifying the overall steering structure while maintaining effective directional control.
3Loss of substance
If the steering structure remains rotationally stationary to reduce wear, then wear and costs are reduced, but directional control must be achieved through alternative mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces drilling fluid as an intermediary to transmit forces from the rotating collar assembly to the stationary steering members. The drilling fluid acts as a mediator that enables directional control without requiring direct mechanical contact or rotation between the steering structure and the borehole wall, thus reducing wear while achieving control.
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
The system effectively maintains drilling orientation and directionality while reducing wear and costs by using drilling fluid to power steering members, ensuring precise directional control and efficient drilling operations.
Implementation Method 1
routing drilling fluid from the internal flow passage to at least one of the steering members to cause lateral displacement of the steering member
Data Source
AI summary
A technique facilitates drilling of a variety of a wellbores. The technique comprises providing a directional drilling system with a drill bit mounted at the end of a collar having an internal flow passage for drilling fluid. The collar is rotatably positioned in a steering structure to which a plurality of steering members is mounted for lateral motion with respect to the steering structure. The design allows the steering structure to remain rotationally stationary with respect to the surrounding borehole wall as the collar and drill bit are rotated to perform a drilling operation. The drilling orientation of the collar and the drill bit may be adjusted by routing drilling fluid from the internal flow passage to at least one of the steering members to cause lateral displacement of the steering member while the steering structure remains in the rotationally stationary position.