SELF-ELEVATING DRILLING UNIT
First Claim
1. A self-elevating drilling unit for offshore operations, comprising:
- a jack-up platform having a central axis extending from front to aft of the platform;
a pair of cantilever assemblies supported by the platform, each of said cantilever assemblies independently movable in a first direction substantially parallel to the central axis of the platform and a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction; and
a means for securing said cantilever assemblies on the platform, said securing means extending above said cantilever assemblies, said securing means being fixedly connected to said platform.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A self-elevating drilling unit has dual cantilever assemblies that move longitudinally and transversely in relation to the jack-up platform to allow drilling operation to be performed from two drilling floors. The twin cantilever assemblies permit simultaneous drilling on an 8 feet×8 feet spacing. The cantilever assemblies are retained attached to the platform by a hold down beam that extends over and across the cantilever assemblies. The hold down beam is positioned in a stationary manner on the platform deck. A movable strut that engages the underside of the hold down beam moves along the beam to counteract upward bending forces acting on the beam when the cantilever assemblies are extended from the platform. The cantilever assemblies are made of tubular truss work and can be moved to an infinite number of horizontal positions.
7 Citations
31 Claims
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1. A self-elevating drilling unit for offshore operations, comprising:
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a jack-up platform having a central axis extending from front to aft of the platform;
a pair of cantilever assemblies supported by the platform, each of said cantilever assemblies independently movable in a first direction substantially parallel to the central axis of the platform and a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction; and
a means for securing said cantilever assemblies on the platform, said securing means extending above said cantilever assemblies, said securing means being fixedly connected to said platform. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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17. A self-elevating drilling unit for offshore operations, comprising:
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a jack-up platform having a central axis extending from front to aft of the platform;
a pair of cantilever assemblies supported by the platform, each of said cantilever assemblies independently movable in a first direction substantially parallel to the central axis of the platform and a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction; and
a means for securing said cantilever assemblies on the platform, said securing means extending above said cantilever assemblies, said securing means being fixedly connected to said platform and comprising a hold down beam having an inverted U-shape configuration, opposite legs of said hold down beam being fixedly attached to a deck of said platform.
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25. A self-elevating drilling unit for conducting offshore operations, while utilizing well heads of an existing stationary platform, comprising:
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a jack-up platform positionable adjacent the existing stationary platform;
a pair of cantilever assemblies supported by the jack-up platform, each of said cantilever assemblies independently movable in a first direction longitudinally toward and away from the jack-up platform over the well heads of the stationary platform and a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction; and
a means for securing said cantilever assemblies on the jack-up platform, said securing means extending above said cantilever assemblies, said securing means being fixedly connected to said jack-up platform.
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Specification