Mobile land drilling rig and method of installation

• US 7,819,207 B2
• Filed: 09/16/2008
• Issued: 10/26/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: MD Cowan, Inc.
• Original Assignee: MD Cowan, Inc.
• Inventors: Cowan, Mike D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bagnell; David J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ro; Yong-Suk
• Application Number:
  US12/211,208
• Publication Number:
  US 20090071720A1
• Time in Patent Office: 770 Days
• Field of Search: 175 24- 27, 175/28, 175/57, 175/162, 175/52, 175/85, 166/77.1, 414/23
• US Class Current: 175/52
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 7/02 Drilling rigs characterised by means for land transport with their own drive, e.g. skid mounting or wheel mounting

Abstract

A mobile oil, gas and geothermal well drilling rig provides for the rapid placement, assembly, disassembly, and repositioning of various rig components of the drilling rig. The drilling rig includes a support base and working floor which is trailerable and which can be rapidly erected to a working height at the well site. A drawworks trailer transports both the drawworks and the rig derrick. Hydraulic cylinders on the drawworks trailer are used to move the derrick from a horizontal, transport position to a vertical, working position while the weight of the derrick is off-loaded from the drawworks trailer to the base support structure.

Claims

1. A compact mobile drilling rig, comprising:

a one-piece drilling mast having an open side between first and second front mast rails, a base end, a top end, and configured for transport in one piece on a single drawworks trailer;

a single drawworks trailer for transporting said one-piece drilling mast in a horizontal position thereon;

a mechanism fixed to said single drawworks trailer and detachably coupled to said one-piece drilling mast for erecting said mast without the use of a crane to a vertical, free-standing position entirely supported upon said base end of said mast, wherein said mechanism for erecting is detachable from said one-piece drilling mast following said erecting;

a support base for said one-piece drilling mast;

a pipe-handling boom having a yoke for pivotally attaching said boom to a lower portion of said support base, for pivoting said boom from a horizontal pipe loading position upward to a vertical pipe connecting position in line with a well bore being drilled in a single operation to insert sections of said pipe into a drill string bisecting a straight line between and passing through said first and second front mast rails on line;

a pivoting adjunct boom section attached to and parallel to said pipe-handling boom configured to pivot the pipe section in a horizontal plane and having at least first and second gripping jaws attached to said pivoting adjunct boom section and configured for grasping and supporting a section of pipe for handling by said pipe handling boom; and

a traveling crown block having first and second extended length bat wing supports and an integrated top drive, said crown block configured for vertical movement along said open side between said first and second front rails of said one-piece drilling mast while supporting said drill string bisecting a straight line disposed at right angles between said first and second rails during drilling and assembly and disassembly of said drill string.

2. The compact mobile drilling rig of claim 1, wherein said traveling crown block integrated with said top drive further comprises:

a plurality of sheaves oriented vertically; and

a frame comprising said first and second bat wing supports for supporting said plurality of sheaves and said top drive in an integrated unit configured for said vertical movement along said first and second front rails of said one-piece drilling mast.

3. The compact mobile drilling rig of claim 2, wherein:

said frame is extended in a vertical direction for stabilizing said vertical movement of said top drive along said first and second front rails of said one-piece drilling mast.

4. The compact mobile drilling rig of claim 1, further comprising:

at least first and second hydraulic cylinders coupled between said pipe-handling boom and said pivoting adjunct boom section for causing said pivoting of said pivoting adjunct boom section.