System for directional control of drilling
First Claim
1. A bottom-hole assembly for controlling the direction of a path of a borehole during formation thereof, comprising:
- a port in said assembly for receiving a pressurized fluid;
a rotating fluid carrying mechanism operable for changing the direction of the drilling path,an electrically operated fluid switch for selectively controlling coupling of said pressurized fluid to said fluid carrying mechanism to change the path of the borehole;
one or more sensors for sensing a rotational position as said bottom-hole assembly rotates; and
a programmed processor responsive to said rotational sensor for controlling activation of said electrical fluid switch at different times during each rotation of said bottom-hole assembly so that the pressurized fluid can be switched to said mechanism to control the direction of the drilling path.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A drill bit (6) is equipped with one or more fluid jets (7) that are activated during a portion of the rotational movement of the drill bit (6). A processor (41) located with other down-hole sensors (33-38), is programmed with parameters defining the desired path of the borehole (8). The sensors (33-38) determine the actual spatial location of the drill bit (6) and provide the processor (41) with corresponding information. The processor (41) compares the actual drilling path to the desired path, and if a correction is required, a switching module (3) allows a pressurized drill fluid to be sequentially switched to selected jets (7) during rotation of the drill bit (6) to thereby erode the formation in a direction toward the desired path. With this arrangement, the problems of directional control by surface-located equipment are overcome.
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Citations
21 Claims
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1. A bottom-hole assembly for controlling the direction of a path of a borehole during formation thereof, comprising:
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a port in said assembly for receiving a pressurized fluid; a rotating fluid carrying mechanism operable for changing the direction of the drilling path, an electrically operated fluid switch for selectively controlling coupling of said pressurized fluid to said fluid carrying mechanism to change the path of the borehole; one or more sensors for sensing a rotational position as said bottom-hole assembly rotates; and a programmed processor responsive to said rotational sensor for controlling activation of said electrical fluid switch at different times during each rotation of said bottom-hole assembly so that the pressurized fluid can be switched to said mechanism to control the direction of the drilling path. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 21)
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13. A method of controlling the path of an underground borehole during formation thereof, comprising the steps of:
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advancing in the earth a pressurized fluid conveyor with a bottom-hole assembly incorporating at least one fluid jet nozzle, an electrical fluid switch and a programmed processor for controlling said electrical fluid switch, and a positional sensor for sensing an arcuate position during rotation of said bottom-hole assembly; providing arcuate position data to said programmed processor; causing electrical signals to be generated by said processor in response to said arcuate position data, so that said electrical fluid switch is both electrically activated and deactivated at least once for each revolution of said bottom-hole assembly; and controlling said electrical fluid switch for switchably coupling the pressurized fluid from said fluid conveyor to said fluid jet nozzle by said processor to control the direction of the path of the borehole. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification