Progressive gap sand control screen and process for manufacturing the same

A sand control screen apparatus for filtering particles out of fluid produced from a wellbore that is threadably attachable to a pipe string, the apparatus comprising:

• a base pipe threadably engageable with said pipe string;
• and
• a sand control screen securably attached to said base pipe, said sand control screen comprising a screen wire wrapped around a plurality of parallel ribs disposes about said base pipe, said screen wire forming turns which extend along the length of the plurality of ribs such that adjacent turns have gaps therebetween, the screen wire forming upper and lower sections each section having a length the width of the gaps in both the upper and lower sections preventing the passage of particles therethrough, the width of the gaps in the upper section varying at a predetermined rate throughout the length of the upper section, the width of the gaps in the lower section being substantially uniform.