Formation collapse sensor and related methods

Abstract

A sensor for detecting well conditions includes at least one transducer positioned at an end of the carrier. The carrier is positioned adjacent to and exposed to a wellbore wall and the transducer is configured to generate mechanical waves in the carrier. The carrier conveys the mechanical waves and has one or more sections initially free of a physical deformation that causes reflection of the mechanical waves. The sections physically deform to cause reflected mechanical waves when subjected to a loading from the formation. The transducer generates a signal representative of reflected mechanical waves received at the end of the carrier. The location of the loading is estimated using the received signal. It is emphasized that this abstract is provided to comply with the rules requiring an abstract, which will allow a searcher or other reader to quickly ascertain the general subject matter of the technical disclosure.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.