Virtual Drill Bit Design Using Digitized Rock Cutting Data

Solution Overview

Problem

Cutting elements in down-hole drilling operations experience stress, deformation, and failure due to intense forces, torques, and temperature variations, leading to reduced drill bit wear life and inefficiency.

Innovation Solution

A digital rock lab is used to simulate cutting element interactions with digitized rock samples, generating digital rock interaction files that are input into computer simulations to optimize drill bit design, using machine learning to improve accuracy and efficiency.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If physical testing of cutting elements is conducted under intense forces and temperatures, then reliability data is obtained, but time consumption and cost increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecutting element reliabilityVSAvoidtesting time

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates digital copies (virtual models) of cutting elements and rock formations to simulate cutting operations computationally. These digital twins replicate the physical properties and behaviors of actual cutting elements, allowing researchers to obtain reliability data through virtual testing rather than extensive physical experimentation, thereby dramatically reducing time consumption while maintaining data validity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces the mechanical physical testing system with a computational simulation system. Instead of physically subjecting cutting elements to intense forces and temperatures in laboratory settings, the invention uses computer-based models to simulate these conditions and predict cutting element performance, eliminating the time-consuming nature of physical testing while preserving the essential mechanical behavior analysis.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Reliability

If physical testing of cutting elements is conducted under intense forces and temperatures, then reliability data is obtained, but cost increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecutting element reliabilityVSAvoidtesting cost

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates digital copies (virtual models) of cutting elements and rock formations to simulate cutting operations computationally. These digital twins replicate the physical properties and behaviors of actual cutting elements, allowing researchers to obtain reliability data through virtual testing rather than extensive physical experimentation, thereby dramatically reducing time consumption while maintaining data validity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces the mechanical physical testing system with a computational simulation system. Instead of physically subjecting cutting elements to intense forces and temperatures in laboratory settings, the invention uses computer-based models to simulate these conditions and predict cutting element performance, eliminating the time-consuming nature of physical testing and reducing associated costs.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Manufacturing precision

If more cutting element designs are tested, then design optimization improves, but development time and cost increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedesign optimizationVSAvoiddevelopment efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent performs preliminary virtual testing of multiple cutting element designs before committing to physical manufacturing. By using computational models to evaluate various design configurations in advance, the invention identifies optimal designs that can then be manufactured with high precision, avoiding the need to physically test every design variant and thereby improving overall development efficiency.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent creates digital copies (virtual models) of cutting elements and rock formations to simulate cutting operations computationally. These digital twins replicate the physical properties and behaviors of actual cutting elements, allowing researchers to obtain reliability data through virtual testing rather than extensive physical experimentation, thereby dramatically reducing time consumption while maintaining data validity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Data Source

PatentUS20260080118A1Cutter and Drill Bit Design by Virtual Testing with Digitized Rocks

Publication Date: 2026.03.19 SCHLUMBERGER TECH CORP

AI summary

A method for designing a drill bit includes simulating a cutting element cutting a digitized rock sample, storing outputs from the simulating in a digital rock interaction file, modeling the drill bit to have at least one of the cutting element, and using data in the digital rock interaction file to simulate the drill bit in a drilling operation