Systems for monitoring sensor and actuator health and performance

• US 20080179056A1
• Filed: 01/31/2007
• Published: 07/31/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services Incorporated (Halliburton Company)
• Original Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services Incorporated (Halliburton Company)
• Inventors: Dykstra, Jason D.
• Application Number:
  US11/700,396
• Publication Number:
  US 20080179056A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 166/250.15
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/267 reinforcing fractures by propping

Abstract

Systems for assessing health and performance of actuators and sensors in process equipment system. In one example, the equipment system comprises subsystems (preferably physically coupled subsystems), at least some of which are characterizable by transmitted signals. Some of these signals are transformed into a comparable form and compared, so as to identify signals that are outside of operating bounds.

Claims

1. An oilfield equipment monitoring system, comprising:

at least three oilfield equipment subsystems that are physically coupled to one another;

a control system configured to receive signals from at least some of the oilfield equipment subsystems; and

wherein the control system is configured to;

(i) transform one or more of the oilfield equipment subsystem signals into units associated with the type of physical coupling among the three or more oilfield equipment subsystems;

(ii) compare at least some of the signals; and

(iii) indicate at least one oilfield equipment subsystem'"'"'s signal that does not agree with at least two other oilfield equipment subsystems'"'"' signals.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the type of physical coupling is selected from the group consisting of:

hydrostatic pressure, flow rate, and mass transfer.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the control system is further configured to modify a control algorithm based on an identified oilfield equipment subsystem signal.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the control system is further configured to send a signal to an operator identifying an oilfield equipment subsystem, where that subsystem'"'"'s signal does not agree with at least two other oilfield equipment subsystems'"'"' signals.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the control system is further configured to send a signal to indicate a result is outside acceptable bounds when the step of comparing indicates the result is outside acceptable bounds.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the acceptable bounds are selected from the group consisting of:

predetermined bounds, dynamical bounds, operationally dependent bounds, and bounds associated with dynamic constraints of a physical system.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the units are selected from the group consisting of:

physical units, normalized expressions without physical units, and monotonic transformations of physical units.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the control system is further configured to replace the identified signal'"'"'s input to the control algorithm with another signal, without modifying the control algorithm, when the identified signal is an input to a control algorithm.

9. An oilfield equipment monitoring system, comprising:

at least three oilfield equipment subsystems that are physically coupled to one another;

a control system configured to receive signals from at least some of the oilfield equipment subsystems; and

wherein the control system is configured to check the respective readings of said multiple subsystems against each other to determine whether any subsystems have readings which are physically inconsistent with each other; and

under at least some conditions, exclude the output of a respective subsystem which has been determined in said check of respective readings to be showing inconsistent output.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the control system is further configured to include the output of a respective subsystem which had been excluded if said check of respective readings ceases to detect inconsistencies.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the control system is further configured to send a signal to indicate a result is outside acceptable bounds when said check of respective readings shows the result is outside acceptable bounds.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the acceptable bounds are selected from the group consisting of:

predetermined bounds, dynamical bounds, operationally dependent bounds, and bounds associated with dynamic constraints of a physical system.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the control system is further configured to replace a first subsystem'"'"'s signal with a second subsystem'"'"'s signal as input to a control algorithm if said first subsystem has been determined to be showing inconsistent output.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the second subsystem'"'"'s signal is transformed into a form comparable to the first subsystem'"'"'s signal before being input into the control algorithm.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein at least one of the subsystems is selected from the group consisting of:

a sensor, an actuator, a mixer, and a pumping system.

16. An oilfield equipment monitoring system, comprising:

at least three oilfield equipment subsystems that are physically coupled to one another;

a control system configured to monitor one or more signals derived from the oilfield equipment subsystems; and

wherein said signals from different oilfield equipment subsystems are compared to identify an oilfield equipment subsystem'"'"'s signal that does not substantially agree with at least two other oilfield equipment subsystems'"'"' signals.