Method and apparatus for automatic down-hole asset monitoring

A rig reader device for reading electronic ID tags attached to down-hole assets as the down-hole assets are tripped into and out of an oil or gas well head, the rig reader device comprising:

• an exterior housing portion comprising a central opening extending through the exterior housing portion and along a housing axis, the exterior housing portion further comprising an inner surface;
• an antenna mounted to the inner surface and adapted to transmit a selected RF signal or receive a reflected RF signal from an electronic ID tag attached to a down-hole asset moving through the central opening in a direction substantially parallel to and near the housing axis;
• and
• an interrogator device electrically connected to the antenna and mounted to the inner surface, the interrogator adapted to produce the selected RF signal for the antenna to transmit and adapted to receive and decipher an ID data from the reflected RF signal;
• and
• a radome covering the antenna, the interrogator and a portion of the inner surface, the radome being sealed about its edges against the inner surface.

A method of scanning a SAW ID tag mounted on a tagged asset as the tagged asset moves along an axial path through a rig reader mounted on an oil or gas rig, the method comprising:

• providing power from a distally located controller interface module to the rig reader after sensing that the asset is moving either axially or rotationally;
• initializing a microcontroller and DSP processor of an interrogator device in the rig reader;
• receiving process commands, by the interrogator device, from the distally located controller interface module;
• providing a transmit RF signal to a plurality of antennae in a predetermined switched manner, the plurality of antennae being mounted on and spaced about an inner rig reader surface positioned circumferentially about the axial path;
• receiving a SAW ID tag signal reflected from the SAW ID tag by at least one of the plurality of antennae;
• providing the received SAW ID tag signal to the DSP processor and formatting the SAW ID tag signal into SAW ID data;
• sending the SAW ID data from the interrogator device to the distally located controller interface.