Vertical lift rotary table
AssigneeEnsco International Incorporated
InventorsChristopher Scott Stewart, Richard Robert Roper
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system, including one or more supports. The system also includes a movable platform slidingly coupled to the one or more supports and configured to be selectively moved towards a drill floor and away from the drill floor. The system further includes a roughneck disposed on the movable platform and configured to make up or break out a threaded joint between a first tubular segment and a second tubular segment, wherein the roughneck is configured to be selectively movable along the movable platform from a first position disposed adjacent to the one or more supports and a second position disposed adjacent to the first tubular segment and the second tubular segment.
Claims20
A system, comprising:
- one or more supports disposed on a drill floor;
- a movable platform slidingly coupled to the one or more supports and configured to be selectively moved towards the drill floor during a tripping-in operation as part of a continuous tripping operation and away from the drill floor during a tripping-out operation as part of the continuous tripping operation;
- and
- a roughneck disposed on the movable platform and configured to make up or break out a threaded joint between a first tubular segment and a second tubular segment, wherein the roughneck is configured to be selectively movable along the movable platform from a first position disposed adjacent to the one or more supports and a second position disposed adjacent to the first tubular segment and the second tubular segment to make up the threaded joint when the roughneck is disposed in the second position during the tripping-in operation or to break out the threaded joint when the roughneck is disposed in the second position during the tripping-out operation.
A method, comprising:
- grasping a first tubular segment via slips of a moveable platform;
- moving the movable platform along one or more supports disposed on a drill floor towards the drill floor during a tripping-in operation as part of a continuous tripping operation;
- aligning a second tubular segment with the first tubular segment while the movable platform is moving towards the drill floor during the tripping-in operation;
- moving a tripping apparatus along the movable platform on which the tripping apparatus is disposed from a first position adjacent to the one or more supports to a second position adjacent to the first tubular segment and the second tubular segment while the movable platform is moving towards the drill floor during the tripping-in operation;
- and
- making-up the first tubular segment and the second tubular segment when the tripping apparatus is disposed in the second position during the tripping-in operation to directly couple the first tubular segment and the second tubular segment while the movable platform is moving towards the drill floor.
An apparatus, comprising:
- a movable platform comprising a first portion sized to store a tripping apparatus thereon and a second portion housing slips;
- a lateral support coupled to the movable platform and configured to directly couple the movable platform to a support disposed on a drill floor, wherein the lateral support is configured to allow for movement of the movable platform towards the drill floor during a tripping-in operation as part of a continuous tripping operation and away from the drill floor during a tripping-out operation as part of the continuous tripping operation and along the support;
- a guide disposed along the moveable platform, wherein the guide spans the first portion of the movable platform and the second portion of the movable platform, wherein the guide is configured to be coupled to the tripping apparatus and to allow for movement of the tripping apparatus along the movable platform between the first portion of the movable platform and the second portion of the movable platform to facilitate a make up of a threaded joint between a first tubular segment and a second tubular segment when the tripping apparatus is disposed on the second portion of the moveable platform during the tripping-in operation or to facilitate a break out of the threaded joint when the tripping apparatus is disposed on the second portion of the moveable platform during the tripping-out operation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.