VARIABLE STIFFNESS FIXED BEND HOUSING FOR DIRECTIONAL DRILLING
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An apparatus for controlling the direction of drilling a borehole, comprising:
- an outer housing having non-uniform stiffness;
an inner housing at least partially within and rotationally independent from the outer housing and having non-uniform stiffness; and
a drive shaft at least partially within the inner housing.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An example apparatus for controlling the direction of drilling a borehole includes an outer housing having non-uniform stiffness and an inner housing at least partially within and rotationally independent from the outer housing and having non-uniform stiffness, A drive shaft may be at least partially within the inner housing. At least one of the outer housing and the inner housing may include a tubular structure with at least one of multiple materials with different stiffness, and a portion with less structural material than another portion.
6 Citations
22 Claims
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1. An apparatus for controlling the direction of drilling a borehole, comprising:
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an outer housing having non-uniform stiffness; an inner housing at least partially within and rotationally independent from the outer housing and having non-uniform stiffness; and a drive shaft at least partially within the inner housing. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. An method for controlling the direction of drilling a borehole, comprising:
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drilling a borehole in a first direction in a subterranean formation; altering a stiffness characteristic of a housing within the borehole; drilling the borehole in a second direction in the subterranean formation, the second direction based, at least in part, on the altered stiffness characteristic of the housing. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. An system for controlling the direction of drilling a borehole, comprising:
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a variable stiffness housing; a drive shaft at least partially within the variable stiffness housing; a downhole motor coupled to the drive shaft and the variable stiffness housing; and a drill bit coupled to the drive shaft. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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Specification