Tracking of oil drilling pipes and other objects
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A trackable pipe comprising:
- a) a hollow pipe comprising a wall portion having an outer surface;
b) a low frequency radio frequency identification (RFID) tag attached to said hollow pipe at said outer surface, said RFID tag being operable at a low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz, said RFID tag comprising;
i) a tag transceiver operable to transmit and receive data signals at said low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz;
ii) a tag communication antenna operatively connected to the tag transceiver;
iii) a tag data storage device operable to store data comprising identification data for identifying said object;
iv) a tag data processor operable to process data received from said tag transceiver and said tag data storage device and to send data to cause said tag transceiver to emit an identification signal based upon said identification data stored in said tag data storage device; and
v) a tag energy source for activating said tag transceiver and said tag data processor,wherein said energy source comprises an electrical energy storage device and an electrical generator operable to energize the aforesaid electrical storage device, and said electrical generator comprises a tag power antenna operable to pick up energy induced by an applied varying external electric field, andwherein said tag communication antenna comprises a first elongated ferrite core, said tag power antenna comprising a second elongated ferrite core, oriented substantially orthogonally to said first elongated ferrite core and energy storage device is connected to said tag power antenna.
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Abstract
Identification and tracking of hollow pipes at a site where the hollow pipes are to be stored or interconnected, such as an oil drilling site where the aforesaid hollow pipes are to be connected and the drillstring of pipes is to be inserted into a drilled hole on solid ground or under a deepsea drilling platform is achieved. Each hollow pipe is provided with a low frequency radio frequency identification (RFID) tag attached to the pipe'"'"'s outer surface. The RFID tag is operable at a low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz and may be disposed within a recess in the pipe'"'"'s outer surface. A tracking system provides communication be the tags and a reader.
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Citations
15 Claims
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1. A trackable pipe comprising:
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a) a hollow pipe comprising a wall portion having an outer surface; b) a low frequency radio frequency identification (RFID) tag attached to said hollow pipe at said outer surface, said RFID tag being operable at a low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz, said RFID tag comprising; i) a tag transceiver operable to transmit and receive data signals at said low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz; ii) a tag communication antenna operatively connected to the tag transceiver; iii) a tag data storage device operable to store data comprising identification data for identifying said object; iv) a tag data processor operable to process data received from said tag transceiver and said tag data storage device and to send data to cause said tag transceiver to emit an identification signal based upon said identification data stored in said tag data storage device; and v) a tag energy source for activating said tag transceiver and said tag data processor, wherein said energy source comprises an electrical energy storage device and an electrical generator operable to energize the aforesaid electrical storage device, and said electrical generator comprises a tag power antenna operable to pick up energy induced by an applied varying external electric field, and wherein said tag communication antenna comprises a first elongated ferrite core, said tag power antenna comprising a second elongated ferrite core, oriented substantially orthogonally to said first elongated ferrite core and energy storage device is connected to said tag power antenna. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A system for tracking pipes, said system comprising:
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a) a plurality of pipes, each pipe being hollow, axially elongated and comprising a wall portion which comprises an outer surface; b) a low frequency radio frequency identification (RFID) tag attached to said hollow pipe at the aforesaid outer surface, said RFID tag being operable at a low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz, said RFID tag being disposed within the aforesaid recess of each hollow pipe, said RFID tag comprising; i) a tag transceiver operable to transmit and receive data signals at said low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz; ii) a tag communication antenna operatively connected to said tag transceiver, said tag communication antenna comprising a first elongated ferrite core with a plurality of windings thereon; iii) a tag data storage device operable to store data comprising identification data for identifying said object; iv) a tag data processor operable to process data received from said tag transceiver and said data storage device and to send data to cause said transceiver to emit an identification signal based upon said identification data stored in said data storage device; and v) a tag energy source for activating said tag transceiver and said tag data processor, said tag energy source comprising an electrical energy storage device and an electrical generator operable to energize the aforesaid electrical storage device, said electrical generator comprising a tag power antenna operable to pick up energy induced by an applied varying external electric field, said tag power antenna comprising a second elongated ferrite core oriented substantially orthogonally to said first elongated ferrite core, said energy storage device being connected to said tag power antenna; c) a reader for reading said identification data, said reader comprising; i) a reader communication antenna configured to permit effective communication with each said RFID tag at said low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz; ii) a reader transceiver in operative communication with said reader communication antenna, said reader transceiver being operable to transmit and receive data signals at said low radio frequency not exceeding 1.0 megahertz; iii) a reader data storage device operable to store data; iv) a reader data processor in operative communication with said reader transceiver and said reader data storage device; and v) a reader energy source selected from a battery and an A.C. power supply, said reader energy source being operable to activate said reader transceiver and said reader data processor. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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Specification