Cableless seismic sensors and methods for recharging

• US 10,120,088 B2
• Filed: 02/04/2015
• Issued: 11/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Cgg Services Sa (CGG)
• Original Assignee: Cgg Services Sas (CGG)
• Inventors: Jurok, Jason, Maxwell, Peter, Grimsdale, Jonathan
• Primary Examiner(s): Breier, Krystine E
• Application Number:
  US15/117,510
• Publication Number:
  US 20160363679A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,371 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 1/162 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 1/168 Deployment of receiver elements G01V1/3843 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 1/184 Multi-component geophones
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 1/22 Transmitting seismic signals to recording or processing apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 1/247 Digital recording of seismic data, e.g. in acquisition units or nodes
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 2210/1425 Land surface

Abstract

A seismic data acquisition system includes a recording unit to record acquired seismic data and ground equipment containing surface units and wireless field digitizer units. Each surface unit is in communication with the recording unit and contains a first wireless communication module and a power supply mechanism transmitter coil. Each wireless field digitizing unit includes a seismic sensor unit, a second wireless communication module in communication with the seismic sensor unit and one of the first wireless communication modules to exchange digital data between the first and second wireless communication modules and a power supply mechanism receiver coil. The power supply mechanism receiver coil is magnetically coupled to the power supply mechanism transmitter coil in one of the surface units to transmit electrical energy wirelessly from the surface unit to the wireless field digitizer.

Claims

1. A wireless field digitizer unit configured to be buried underground, the wireless field digitizer unit comprising:

a seismic sensor unit configured to output a digital channel of seismic data;

a wireless communication module in communication with the seismic sensor unit; and

a power supply mechanism in communication with the seismic sensor unit and wireless communication module, the power supply mechanism sufficient to supply all required power of the wireless field digitizer;

wherein the wireless communication module communicates the digital channel of seismic data wirelessly to a wired surface unit in a seismic data acquisition system, and the power supply mechanism receives power from the wired surface unit, which is placed on a ground surface at less than 1 m above the wireless field digitizer unit.

2. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 1, wherein the seismic sensor unit comprises:

three digital accelerometers arranged along three orthogonal axes, the seismic sensor unit performing alignment correction for the wireless field digitizer about the three orthogonal axes and outputting the single digital channel of seismic data.

3. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication module comprises a self-connecting and self-pairing wireless communication module.

4. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication module comprises a radio wave communication module, an ultrasonic communication module, an inductive coupling communication module, an optical communication module, a cellular network communication module or an acoustic communication module.

5. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 1, wherein the power supply mechanism comprises a wireless non-resonant inductive coupling mechanism.

6. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 1, wherein the power supply mechanism comprises a wireless resonant inductive coupling mechanism.

7. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 6, wherein the wireless resonant inductive coupling mechanism comprises a plurality of coils arranged with divergent magnetic axes.

8. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 1, wherein the power supply mechanism comprises:

a battery; and

a wireless power transfer mechanism in communication with the battery to charge the battery continuously.

9. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 1, further comprising a housing, at least one of the seismic sensor unit, wireless communication module and the power supply mechanism disposed within the housing.

10. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 9, wherein the housing comprises a cylinder and at least one helical ridge extending along a length of the cylinder.

11. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 9, wherein the housing comprises a cylinder having two hemispherical ends.

12. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 11, wherein the power supply mechanism comprises at least three coils arranged with divergent magnetic axes.

13. The wireless field digitizer unit of claim 9, wherein the housing comprises a sphere and the power supply mechanism comprises six coils, each coil disposed on a printed circuit board, and the printed circuit boards arranged as a rectangular box within the sphere.

14. Ground equipment for use in a seismic data acquisition system, the ground equipment comprising:

a surface unit that is placed on a ground surface, the surface unit comprising;

a first wireless communication module; and

a power supply mechanism transmitter coil; and

a wireless field digitizer unit that is placed underground less than 1 m under the surface unit, the wireless field digitizer unit comprising;

a second wireless communication module in communication with the first wireless communication module to exchange digital data between the first and second wireless communication modules; and

a power supply mechanism receiver coil, the power supply mechanism receiver coil magnetically coupled to the power supply mechanism transmitter coil to transmit electrical energy wirelessly from the surface unit to the wireless field digitizer;

wherein the wireless field digitizer unit is separate from and physically disconnected from the surface unit.

15. The ground equipment of claim 14, wherein the surface unit further comprises:

a battery in communication with the power supply mechanism transmitter coil to supply continuous power to the power supply mechanism transmitter coil; and

at least one photovoltaic cell in communication with the battery to charge the battery continuously.

16. The ground equipment of claim 14, wherein the surface unit further comprises a plurality of power supply mechanism transmitter coils arranged with divergent magnetic axes and the power supply mechanism transmitter coils and the power supply mechanism receiver coil comprise magnetically coupled coils tuned to resonate at a common frequency.

17. A seismic data acquisition system comprising:

a recording unit to record acquired seismic data;

ground equipment comprising;

a plurality of surface units, each surface unit being placed on ground surface, in communication with the recording unit and comprising;

a first wireless communication module; and

a power supply mechanism transmitter coil; and

a plurality of wireless field digitizer units, each wireless field digitizing unit being placed underground at less than 1 m from one of the surface units, each of the wireless field digitizer units comprising;

a seismic sensor unit;

a second wireless communication module in communication with the seismic sensor unit and one of the first wireless communication modules to exchange digital data between the first and second wireless communication modules; and

a power supply mechanism receiver coil, the power supply mechanism receiver coil magnetically coupled to the power supply mechanism transmitter coil in at least one of the surface units to transmit electrical energy wirelessly from the surface unit to the wireless field digitizer.

18. The seismic data acquisition system of claim 17, further comprising:

at least one telemetry cable in communication with the recording unit and each one of the plurality of surface units to communicate data from the surface units to the recording unit; and

at least one power cable in communication with the recording unit and each one of the plurality of surface units to supply power to the plurality of surface units.

19. The seismic data acquisition system of claim 17, wherein a ratio of surface units to wireless field digitizer units is less than 1:

1.

20. The seismic data acquisition system of claim 17, further comprising mechanized deployment and recovery equipment to insert each one of the plurality of wireless field digitizer units at a desired depth under the ground surface and to remove the plurality of wireless field digitizer units from the desired distance.