Modeling potentially hazardous sites and predicting hazardous conditions

• US 10,068,305 B2
• Filed: 11/18/2014
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WellAware Holdings, Inc.
• Original Assignee: WellAware Holdings, Inc.
• Inventors: Sisk, David Allen, Almendarez, Roel, Lee, Cody James
• Primary Examiner(s): Holmes, Michael B
• Application Number:
  US14/546,273
• Publication Number:
  US 20150149377A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,386 Days
• Field of Search: 706 46
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/265 Personal security, identity or safety

Abstract

Implementations include methods for monitoring and reporting on actual hazardous conditions at a facility including actions of receiving data associated with a site, the site being susceptible to potentially hazardous conditions, processing the data, one or more models, and one or more prediction rules, determining that a hazardous condition is predicted to occur at the site, providing output data reflecting the hazardous condition, processing the output data to provide indicator data for providing a graphical representation of the site, the graphical representation providing a graphical depiction of the hazardous condition, and providing the indicator data to one or more user devices, the indicator data being processed by each of the one or more user devices to display the graphical representation.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for predicting hazardous conditions at a facility, the method being executed using one or more processors and comprising:

receiving data associated with a site, the site being susceptible to potentially hazardous conditions;

processing, by the one or more processors, the data, one or more models, and one or more prediction rules, wherein the one or more models include a model of physical features of above-ground appurtenances at the site;

determining, by the one or more processors, that a hazardous condition is predicted to occur at the site;

providing, by the one or more processors, output data reflecting the hazardous condition;

processing, by the one or more processors, the output data to provide indicator data for providing a graphical representation of the site, the graphical representation providing a graphical depiction of the hazardous condition; and

providing the indicator data to one or more user devices, the indicator data being processed by each of the one or more user devices to display the graphical representation.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the output data comprises one or more predicted values reflective of the hazardous condition, a predicted value comprising a value that is provided based on an actual value and the one or more models.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more models comprise at least one of a site model, a fluid-flow model, and a weather model.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the site model models topographical features of the site.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein topographical features of the site comprise topographical features that are within a threshold distance from the site.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the fluid-flow model models flow of one or more gases.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the one or more fluids comprise at least one of hydrogen sulfide (H2S), methane (CH4), carbon monoxide (CO), and carbon dioxide (CO2).

8. The method of claim 1, wherein data comprises data measured at the site.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the data comprises weather data received from one or more weather sources.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the weather data comprises at least one of local weather data, regional weather data and national weather data.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein a weather source comprises a weather station located at the site.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical representation comprises an indicator of the hazardous condition at the site.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the indicator comprises location and severity of the hazardous condition with respect to the site.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the graphical representation further comprises a time indicator, the time indicator indicating a date and/or time, at which the hazardous condition is predicted to be present.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the site comprises at least one of a production well-site, an exploration well-site, a configuration well-site, an injection well-site, an observation well-site, and a drilling well-site.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the data, the one or more models, and the one or more prediction rules are processed to provide the output data and at least a portion of the output data includes a data representing a predicted concentrations of a hazardous gas over time.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the model of physical features of above-ground appurtenances at the site is a fluid flow model representing fluid flows in relation to the physical features.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting a control signal to remotely control functionality of an asset at the site, the control signal being based on the data associated with the site.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium coupled to one or more processors and having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations for monitoring and reporting on actual hazardous conditions at a facility, the operations comprising:

receiving data associated with a site, the site being susceptible to potentially hazardous conditions;

processing the data, one or more models, and one or more prediction rules, wherein the one or more models include a model of physical features of above-ground appurtenances at the site;

determining that a hazardous condition is predicted to occur at the site;

providing output data reflecting the hazardous condition;

processing the output data to provide indicator data for providing a graphical representation of the site, the graphical representation providing a graphical depiction of the hazardous condition on gas map of the site that indicates a predicted extent of the hazardous condition; and

providing the indicator data to one or more user devices, the indicator data being processed by each of the one or more user devices to display the graphical representation.

17. A system, comprising:

at least one sensor network comprising a plurality of sensors arranged at a site to monitor operational conditions of the site;

a computing system in electronic communication with sensors of the at least one sensor network; and

a computer-readable storage device coupled to the computing system and having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the computing system, cause the computing system to perform operations for predicting hazardous conditions, the operations comprising;

receiving data from the at least one sensor network, the data being associated with the site, the site being susceptible to potentially hazardous conditions;

processing the data, one or more models, and one or more prediction rules, wherein the one or more models include a model of physical features of above-ground appurtenances at the site;

determining that a hazardous condition is predicted to occur at the site;

providing output data reflecting the hazardous condition;

processing the output data to provide indicator data for providing a graphical representation of the site, the graphical representation providing a graphical depiction of the hazardous condition; and

providing the indicator data to one or more user devices, the indicator data being processed by each of the one or more user devices to display the graphical representation.