Local area network data transfer system

• US 4,751,648 A
• Filed: 03/31/1986
• Issued: 06/14/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Halliburton Company
• Original Assignee: Halliburton Company
• Inventors: Green, Michael L., Daunis, Eugene J., Clark, Mark A., Crain, Stephen F., Pitts, Alan J., Woodall, Edward L., Roberts, Don M., Sears, Leslie R. III
• Primary Examiner(s): Fleming, Michael R.
• Application Number:
  US06/847,397
• Time in Patent Office: 806 Days
• Field of Search: 364/556, 364/557, 364/558, 364/505, 364/131, 364/132, 364/133, 364/421, 364/422, 364/200, 364/900, 367/71, 367/69, 367/25
• US Class Current: 702/6
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 47/12 Means for transmitting measuring-signals or control signals from the well to the surface, or from the surface to the well, e.g. for logging while drilling
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 11/002 Details, e.g. power supply systems for logging instruments, transmitting or recording data, specially adapted for well logging, also if the prospecting method is irrelevant means for transmitting well survey signals E21B47/12; signal transmission systems in general G08C; transmission in general H04B
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 370/908 Local area network
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A data monitoring system includes a display unit for communicating with an operation that has characteristics which are to be monitored, a recording unit located remotely from the environment of the monitored operation, and a local area network interconnect circuit for connecting the display and recording units. The local area network circuit allows multiple display units to be connected to a single pair of electrical conductors. Each display unit has at least one dual microcomputer configuration interconnected by a shared dual port random access memory. A third microcomputer is located in the recording unit for communicating over the local area network circuit with one of the microcomputers in the display unit.

Claims

1. A data transfer system for transferring, across an area of a well site, data related to the control of an oil or gas well operation with which a plurality of different detectable characteristics are associated, comprising:

interface means, located near the detectable characteristics, for communicating with the operation, said interface means including;

means for converting signals representing the plurality of different detectable characteristics into digitally encoded data; and

means, connected to said means for converting, for transmitting the digitally encoded data;

central processing means, located across an area of the well site remotely from the detectable characteristics and said interface means, for receiving the digitally encoded data; and

local area network means for connecting said interface means and said central processing means so that the digitally encoded data is received by said central processing means from said interface means only through a single information transfer conduit extending across an area of the well site, said local area network means including one and only one data transmission cable which defines said single information transfer conduit and which is connected between said interface means and said central processing means, said data transmission cable including a single pair of electrically conductive wires, connected between said means for transmitting and said central processing means, over which all transmitted digitally encoded data derived from the plurality of detectable characteristics is transferred.

2. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein said one and only one data transmission cable further includes one and only one other single pair of electrically conductive wires, connected between said means for transmitting and said central processing means, over which timing signals are transferred.

3. A data transfer system for transferring data related to the control of an oil or gas well operation with which a first plurality of different detectable characteristics and a second plurality of different detectable characteristics are associated, comprising:

first interface means for communicating with the operation, including for communicating with the first plurality of different detectable characteristics;

second interface means for communicating with the operation including for communicating with the second plurality of different detectable characteristics;

central processing means for receiving information from, and for sending information to, said first interface means and said second interface means;

local area network means, connected between said first interface means and said central processing means, for connecting said first interface means and said central processing means so that the information received from, and the information sent to, said first interface means and said second interface means is transferred between said first interface means and said central processing means only through a single information transfer conduit, said single information transfer conduit having a predetermined length sufficient to allow said central processing means to be located beyond the immediate environment of the oil or gas well operation when said first interface means is located within such immediate environment so that the ability of said central processing means to operate is not adversely affected by the oil or gas well operation; and

a branch information transfer conduit connected between said first interface means and said second interface means in communication with said single information transfer conduit, said branch information transfer conudit having a length substantially shorter than the length of said single information transfer conduit so that said second interface means remains within substantially the same environment as said first interface means.

4. A data transfer system for transferring data related to an operation, comprising:

a display unit, adapted for being located near the operation where a plurality of detectable characteristics of the operation are to be monitored, said display unit including;

a portable housing;

first data acquisition means, mounted in said portable housing, for encoding a first one of the detectable characteristics into a first encoded signal and for transmitting said first encoded signal;

second data acquisition means, mounted in said portable housing, for encoding a second one of the detectable characteristics into a second encoded signal and for transmitting said second encoded signal; and

third data acquistion means, mounted in said portable housing, for encoding a third one of the detectable characteristics into a third encoded signal and for transmitting said third encoded signal;

recording means, adapted for being located at a distance from said display unit, for receiving and recording said first, second and third encoded signals; and

a single pair of electrical conductor having one end of the pair connected through said portable housing to said first, second and third data acquistion means and having the other end of the pair connected to said recording means, over which said single pair of conductors all said first, second and third encoded signals are transferred from said display unit to said recording means.

5. A system as defined in claim 4, wherein said recording means includes:

a second portable housing;

a floppy disk drive mounted in said second portable housing;

a printer mounted in said second portable housing;

a keyboard mounted in said second portable housing; and

a single board computer means, mounted in said second portable housing and connected to said single pair of electrical conductors and responsive to entries made through said keyboard, for receiving said first, second and third encoded signals over said single pair of electrical conductors and for recording said first, second and third encoded signals on floppy disks mounted in said floppy disk drive and for generating a visual output through said printer in response to said first, second and third encoded signals.

6. A system as defined in claim 4, wherein each of said first data acquisition means, said second data acquisition means and said third data acquisition means includes:

a dual port random access memory;

first microcomputer means for processing the respective encoded signal and for storing the respective encoded signal in said random access memory through one port thereof; and

second microcomputer means for obtaining the respective encoded signal from said random access memory through the other port thereof and for transferring the obtained encoded signal to said recording means over said single pair of electrical conductors.

7. A method of acquiring data from a flow process at a well site, comprising:

detecting at the flow process a plurality of characteristics occurring within the flow process;

converting at the flow process the detected characteristics into encoded signals representing the detected characteristics; and

transmitting the encoded signals to an end of a single pair of transmission conductors located at the flow process and transferring the encoded signals through the single pair of transmission conductors to the other end of the transmission conductors located at a location remote from the flow process.

8. A method as defined in claim 7, further comprising recording the transferred encoded signals on a digital storage diskette connected at said other end of the transmission conductors.

9. A method as defined in claim 7, wherein transmitting and transferring the encoded signals includes:

moving, with a first microprocessor, the encoded signals into a digital memory;

moving, with a second microporcessor, the encoded signals from the digital memory onto the single pair of transmission conductors; and

receiving with a microprocessor at the location remote from the flow process, all the encoded signals moved onto the single pair of transmission conductors.

10. A method as defined in claim 9, further comprising:

entering, through the first microprocessor and into the digital memory, control signal;

moving, with the second microprocessor, the control signal from the digital memory onto the single pair of transmission conductors; and

actuating the microporcessor at the location remote from the flow process with the control signal.

11. A method as defined in claim 7, wherein:

the step of detecting includes;

locating a first data acquistion unit at the process, said first data acquisition unit including a first microcomputer, a second microcomputer, a first memory having a first port connected to said first microcomputer and having a second port connected to said second microcomputer, and a first serial output means connected to said second microcomputer and to said end of said single pair of transmission conductors for outputting encoded signals onto said single pair of transmission conductors;

locating a second data acquisition unit at the process, said second dta acquisition unit including a third microcomputer, a fourth microcomputer, a second memory having a first port connected to said third microcomputer and having a second port connected to said fourth microcomputer, and a second serial output means connected to said fourth microcomputer and to said end of said single pair of transmission conductors for outputting encoded signals onto said single pair of transmission conductors;

connecting a first transducer to said first microcomputer;

connecting a second transducer to said third microcomputer;

receiving at said first microcomputer first transducer signals from said first transducer; and

receiving at said third microcomputer second transducer signals from said second transducer;

the step of converting includes;

processing said first trnasducer signals through said first microcomputer to provide encoded first transducer signals as a part of said encoded sigals; and

processing said second transducer signals through said second microcomputer to provide encoded second transducer signals as a part of said encoded signals; and

the step of transmitting includes;

processing said encoded first transducer signals through said first memory, said second microcomputer and said first serial output means so that said encoded first transducer sigals are communicated to said other end of said single pair of transmission conductors; and

processing said encoded second transducer signals through said second memory, said fourth microcomputer and said second serial output means so that said encoded second transducer signals are communicated to said other end of said single pair of transmission conductors.