US 2016/0102508 A1 · AUTOMATED BOOTSTRAP QUAD-MAST RIG

Abstract

A method that includes vertically assembling a mast having a height greater than one hundred eighty feet; securing the mast to a rig floor of a land-based drilling rig; securing a racking board adjacent the mast at a height greater than one hundred feet above the rig floor; drilling a wellbore under the rig floor with a drill string; lifting with lifting equipment coupled to the drilling mast, a stand forming a part of the drill string and having a stand length greater than one hundred feet, from a drilling position partially within the wellbore and partially above the rig floor to an in-line position above the wellbore and proximate the racking board; removing the stand from the drill string; and moving the stand, using an automated pipe handling tool, from the in-line position to a racked position so that the stand is accommodated within the racking board.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method of operating a land-based drilling rig to drill a well having a wellbore, comprising:

vertically assembling a drilling mast that has an assembled height greater than one hundred eighty feet;
securing the drilling mast to a rig floor of the land-based drilling rig;
securing a racking board at a location adjacent the drilling mast at a height greater than one hundred feet above the rig floor;
drilling the wellbore under the rig floor with a drill string;
lifting with lifting equipment coupled to the drilling mast, a stand of pipe forming a part of the drill string and having a stand length greater than one hundred feet, from a drilling position partially within the wellbore and partially above the rig floor to an in-line position above the wellbore and proximate the racking board;
removing the stand of pipe from the drill string;
and
moving the stand of pipe, using an automated pipe handling tool, from the in-line position to a racked position so that the stand of pipe is accommodated within the racking board.

5 more elements

A land-based drilling rig apparatus comprising:

a drilling mast configured to be vertically assembled and coupled to a drilling floor of a drilling rig, the drilling mast having a height greater than one hundred eighty feet and configured to accommodate a top portion of a stand of pipe while the stand of pipe is in a drilling position;
a racking board coupled to the drilling mast and configured to accommodate the stand of pipe having a length greater than one hundred twenty feet;
and
an automated pipe handling tool coupled to the racking board and configured to move the stand of pipe from an in-line position to a racked position in the racking board;
wherein when the stand of pipe is in the drilling position, the top portion of the stand of pipe is accommodated within the mast while a bottom portion of the stand of pipe extends within a wellbore located below the drilling mast;
wherein when the stand of pipe is in the in-line position, the top portion of the stand of pipe is accommodated within the drilling mast at a location adjacent the automated pipe handling tool and the bottom portion of the stand of pipe extends above the drilling floor;
and
wherein when the stand of pipe is in the racked position, the top portion of the stand of pipe is accommodated within the racking board.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Automated bootstrap quad-mast rig

Life of this patent

Automated bootstrap quad-mast rig

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20