# US 2025/0146400 A1 · Technologies for controlling mud motor trajectory > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2025/0146400 A1 - Document ID: US20250146400A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 18/502,920 - Filed: 2023-11-06 - Published: 2025-05-08 - Earliest claimed: 2023-11-06 - Assignees: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. - Applicants: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. - Inventors: Shichao XU; Nazli DEMIRER; Vy PHO; Yang LIU; Ketan C. BHAIDASNA - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20250146400A1 ## CPC - E21B 44/00: Automatic control systems specially adapted for drilling operations, i.e. self-operating systems which function to carry out or modify a drilling operation without intervention of a human operator, e.g. computer-controlled drilling systems; Systems specially adapted for monitoring a plurality of drilling variables or conditions - E21B 7/04: Directional drilling - E21B 47/024: of devices in the borehole (determining slope or direction of the borehole E21B47/022) - E21B: EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS ## Abstract Techniques for controlling a trajectory of a mud motor directional drill are disclosed. A system receives one or more inputs pertaining to constraints for a wellbore in a mud motor drilling operation. The system constructs, as a function of the one or more inputs, a discretized well depth horizon. One or more binary slide and rotate commands for controlling a directional drill within the wellbore is generated based on an analysis of the discretized well depth horizon. The system controls the directional drill according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A system comprising: one or more processors; a memory storing a plurality of instructions, which, when executed on a processor, causes the system to: receive one or more inputs pertaining to constraints for a wellbore and tool capability in a mud motor drilling operation, construct, as a function of the one or more inputs, a discretized well depth horizon, generate, based on an analysis of the discretized well depth horizon, one or more binary slide and rotate commands for controlling a directional drill within the wellbore, and control the directional drill according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of instructions causes the system to further generate one or more toolface commands for controlling the directional drill, and wherein the directional drill is further controlled according to the one or more toolface commands. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of instructions causes the system to further update the one or more inputs after controlling the directional drill according to the one or more binary and slide rotate commands. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more inputs comprises system constraints, initial conditions of the directional drill, control objectives, and a well plan for the mud motor drilling operation. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The system of claim 4, wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the system to track, using the discretized well depth horizon, a position of a drill bit of the directional drill along a trajectory of the well plan over an incremental distance based on the received one or more inputs. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The system of claim 5, wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the system to identify one or more stand locations in the discretized well depth horizon. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein to control the directional drill according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands comprises to transmit control signals to steer a drill bit of the directional drill according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands. ### Claim 8 A method comprising: receiving one or more inputs pertaining to constraints for a wellbore and tool capability in a mud motor drilling operation, constructing, as a function of the one or more inputs, a discretized well depth horizon, generating, based on an analysis of the discretized well depth horizon, one or more binary slide and rotate commands for controlling a directional drill within the wellbore, and controlling the directional drill according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising generating one or more toolface commands for controlling the directional drill, and wherein the directional drill is further controlled according to the one or more toolface commands. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising updating the one or more inputs after controlling the directional drill according to the one or more binary and slide rotate commands. ### Claim 11 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more inputs comprises system constraints, initial conditions of the directional drill, control objectives, and a well plan for the mud motor drilling operation. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, further comprising tracking, using the discretized well depth horizon, a position of a drill bit of the directional drill along a trajectory of the well plan over an incremental distance based on the received one or more inputs. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The system of claim 12, further comprising identifying one or more stand locations in the discretized well depth horizon. ### Claim 14 (depends on 8) The system of claim 8, wherein controlling the directional drill according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands comprises transmitting control signals to steer a drill bit of the directional drill bit according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands. ### Claim 15 A computer-readable storage medium storing a plurality of instructions, which, when executed, causes a system to: receive one or more inputs pertaining to constraints for a wellbore and tool capability in a mud motor drilling operation, construct, as a function of the one or more inputs, a discretized well depth horizon, generate, based on an analysis of the discretized well depth horizon, one or more binary slide and rotate commands for controlling a directional drill within the wellbore, and control the directional drill according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the plurality of instructions causes the system to further generate one or more toolface commands for controlling the directional drill, and wherein the directional drill is further controlled according to the one or more toolface commands. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the plurality of instructions causes the system to further update the one or more constraints after controlling the directional drill according to the one or more binary and slide rotate commands. ### Claim 18 (depends on 15) The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the one or more inputs comprises system constraints, initial conditions of the directional drill, control objectives, and a well plan for the mud motor drilling operation, and wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the system to track, using the discretized well depth horizon, a position of a drill bit of the directional drill along a trajectory of the well plan over an incremental distance based on the received one or more inputs. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the plurality of instructions further causes the system to identify one or more stand locations in the discretized well depth horizon. ### Claim 20 (depends on 15) The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein to control the directional drill according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands comprises to transmit control signals to steer a drill bit of the directional drill bit according to the one or more binary slide and rotate commands.