Subsea Electronics Module

• US 20090303687A1
• Filed: 06/05/2009
• Published: 12/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Baker Hughes Energy Technology UK Limited (Baker Hughes Company)
• Original Assignee: Vetco Gray Controls Limited (General Electric Company)
• Inventors: Davis, Julian R.
• Granted Patent: US 8,493,741 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 361/752
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 33/0355 Control systems, e.g. hydraulic, pneumatic, electric, acoustic, for submerged well heads
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/14337 specially adapted for underwater operation
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/1434 for electronics exposed to high gravitational force; Cylindrical housings
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/1439 Back panel mother boards

Abstract

A Subsea Electronics Module for a well installation, comprising:

a housing;

at least two printed circuit boards having control circuitry provided thereon; and

a communications component for enabling communication between the control printed circuit boards;

wherein the module further comprises a communications handling board operatively connected to the printed circuit boards, the communications component being mounted on the communications handling board.

Claims

1. A subsea electronics module (SEM) for a well installation, comprising:

a housing;

at least two printed circuit boards having control circuitry provided thereon; and

a communications component for enabling communication between the control printed circuit boards;

wherein the module further comprises a communications handling board operatively connected to the printed circuit boards, the communications component being mounted on the communications handling board.

2. A subsea electronics module according to claim 1, wherein the at least two printed circuit boards form a stack of substantially parallel arranged printed circuit boards located in a bay of the SEM.

3. A subsea electronics module according to claim 2, comprising at least one additional stack of substantially parallel arranged printed circuit boards located in a respective additional bay, offset along the major axis of the SEM from the first bay.

4. A subsea electronics module according to claim 3, comprising an additional communications handling board operatively connected to each respective additional stack.

5. A subsea electronics module according to claim 3 and 4, wherein the communications component comprises means for communicating both between printed circuits within a stack, and between stacks in respective bays.

6. A subsea electronics module according to claim 1, wherein the housing has a substantially circular cross-section, and the communications handling board is positioned within the housing such that the communications component is located proximate the housing.

7. A subsea electronics module according to claim 1, wherein the or each such communications handling board is arranged to lie in a plane substantially orthogonal to the printed circuit boards.

8. A subsea electronics module according to claim 1, wherein the communications component comprises an Ethernet switch blade.

9. A subsea electronics module according to claim 1, further comprising a high-power device mounted on the communications handling board.