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US 9,605,484 B2Granted
Drilling apparatus and method
AssigneeDrilformance Technologies, LLC
InventorsSean Gillis, Matt Mangan
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A drilling apparatus including a drill bit and a nutation device. The drilling apparatus is configured to enable the drill bit to be rotated at a rotation frequency while the nutation device simultaneously nutates the drill bit at a nutation frequency. The nutation device may include a vibrating device for imposing vibrations upon the drilling apparatus at a vibration frequency, thereby causing nutation of the drill bit at the nutation frequency. The drilling apparatus may include a tuning mechanism for tuning the vibration frequency of the vibrating device. A method including rotating a drill bit at a rotation frequency and simultaneously nutating the drill bit at a nutation frequency.
Claims36
A drilling apparatus comprising:
- (a) a drill bit;
- (b) a downhole drilling motor comprising a rotor and a stator;
- (c) a drive shaft connected with the rotor;
- and
- (d) a mass oscillator for imposing transverse vibrations upon the drilling apparatus at a transverse vibration frequency, thereby causing the drill bit to nutate at a nutation frequency, wherein the mass oscillator comprises a housing, wherein the housing of the mass oscillator is connected with the drive shaft and with the drill bit so that driving the drilling motor causes the drive shaft, the housing of the mass oscillator and the drill bit to rotate at a rotation frequency of the drill bit, and wherein the drilling apparatus is configured so that the drilling motor rotates the drill bit at the rotation frequency while the mass oscillator simultaneously nutates the drill bit at the nutation frequency.
2 more elements
A drilling method comprising:
- (a) providing a drilling apparatus comprising:
- (i) a drill bit;
- (ii) a downhole drilling motor comprising a rotor and a stator;
- (iii) a drive shaft connected with the rotor;
- and
- (iv) a mass oscillator for imposing transverse vibrations upon the drilling apparatus at a transverse vibration frequency, thereby causing the drill bit to nutate at a nutation frequency, wherein the mass oscillator comprises a housing, and wherein the housing of the mass oscillator is connected with the drive shaft and with the drill bit so that driving the drilling motor causes the drive shaft, the housing of the mass oscillator and the drill bit to rotate at a rotation frequency of the drill bit;
- and
- (b) simultaneously actuating the drilling motor and actuating the mass oscillator so that the drilling motor rotates the drill bit at the rotation frequency while the mass oscillator simultaneously nutates the drill bit at the nutation frequency.
5 more elements
A system comprising:
- (a) a drilling apparatus comprising:
- (i) a drill bit;
- (ii) a downhole drilling motor comprising a rotor and a stator;
- (iii) a drive shaft connected with the rotor;
- and
- (iv) a mass oscillator for imposing transverse vibrations upon the system at a transverse vibration frequency, wherein the mass oscillator comprises a housing, wherein the housing of the mass oscillator is connected with the drive shaft and with the drill bit so that driving the drilling motor causes the drive shaft, the housing of the mass oscillator and the drill bit to rotate at a rotation frequency of the drill bit, wherein the mass oscillator comprises at least one rotatable turbine and at least one eccentric mass rotatably connected with the turbine, wherein the turbine is driven by a fluid which is passed through the turbine;
- and
- (v) a bypass valve, wherein the bypass valve is actuated cyclically to vary a fluid flow rate through the turbine so that the transverse vibration frequency of the mass oscillator cyclically sweeps through a vibration frequency range which extends between a lower frequency limit and an upper frequency limit;
- and
- (b) a pipe string connected with the drilling apparatus.
7 more elements
A method for providing a transverse vibratory force to a system comprising a drilling apparatus and a pipe string, comprising:
- (a) providing the drilling apparatus comprising:
- (i) a drill bit;
- (ii) a downhole drilling motor comprising a rotor and a stator;
- (iii) a drive shaft connected with the rotor;
- (iv) a mass oscillator for imposing transverse vibrations upon the system at a transverse vibration frequency, wherein the mass oscillator comprises a housing, wherein the housing of the mass oscillator is connected with the drive shaft and with the drill bit so that driving the drilling motor causes the drive shaft, the housing of the mass oscillator and the drill bit to rotate at a rotation frequency of the drill bit, wherein the mass oscillator comprises at least one rotatable turbine and at least one eccentric mass rotatably connected with the turbine, wherein the turbine is driven by a fluid which is passed through the turbine;
- and
- (v) a bypass valve for varying a fluid flow rate through the turbine;
- (b) providing the pipe string;
- (c) connecting the pipe string with the drilling apparatus;
- and
- (d) actuating the bypass valve cyclically to vary a fluid flow rate through the turbine so that the transverse vibration frequency of the mass oscillator cyclically sweeps through a vibration frequency range which extends between a lower frequency limit and an upper frequency limit.
8 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.