System and method for controlling a drilling path based on drift estimates

• US 9,297,205 B2
• Filed: 04/02/2015
• Issued: 03/29/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Motive Drilling Technologies Inc. (Helmerich & Payne Incorporated), Board of Regents of the University of Texas System (University of Texas System)
• Original Assignee: Hunt Advanced Drilling Technologies, L.L.C., Board of Regents of the University of Texas System (University of Texas System)
• Inventors: Benson, Todd W., Chen, Teddy, Bhaduri, Sashmit
• Primary Examiner(s): MICHENER, BLAKE E
• Application Number:
  US14/677,648
• Publication Number:
  US 20150233229A1
• Time in Patent Office: 362 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 44/00 Automatic control systems specially adapted for drilling operations, i.e. self-operating systems which function to carry out or modify a drilling operation without intervention of a human operator, e.g. computer-controlled drilling systems; Systems specially adapted for monitoring a plurality of drilling variables or conditions
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 45/00 Measuring the drilling time or rate of penetration
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 47/022 of the borehole, e.g. using geomagnetism
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 47/024 of devices in the borehole determining slope or direction of the borehole E21B47/022
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 47/026 of penetrated ground layers
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 47/06 Measuring temperature or pressure
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 47/09 Locating or determining the position of objects in boreholes or wells , e.g. the position of an extending arm; Identifying the free or blocked portions of pipes
• 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: E21B 47/18 through the well fluid , e.g. mud pressure pulse telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 7/04 Directional drilling
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 7/06 Deflecting the direction of boreholes
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 7/10 Correction of deflected boreholes
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 13/042 in which a parameter or coefficient is automatically adjusted to optimise the performance
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric

Abstract

A method includes receiving toolface information corresponding to a location of the bottom hole assembly (BHA) with respect to a target drilling path and drift information. The surface steerable system calculates a first toolface vector from a first location of the BHA to the target drilling path to create a convergence path to the target drilling path and calculates an adjustment of the first toolface vector to a second toolface vector to account for system drift defined by the drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling in accordance with the second toolface vector. The surface steerable system modifies at least one drilling parameter to alter a drilling direction of the BHA based on the calculated second toolface vector and transmits the at least one drilling parameter to the drilling rig to target the BHA in accordance with the second toolface vector.

Claims

1. A method for drilling, comprising:

receiving, by a surface steerable system coupled to a drilling rig, BHA information from a bottom hole assembly (BHA) located in a borehole, wherein the BHA information corresponds to a first location of the BHA with respect to a target drilling path and geological formation drift information;

calculating, by the surface steerable system, a first toolface vector to create a convergence path from the first location of the BHA to the target drilling path that does not account for geological formation drift;

calculating, by the surface steerable system, an adjustment of the first toolface vector to a second toolface vector to account for the geological formation drift defined by the geological formation drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling in accordance with the second toolface vector;

causing, by the surface steerable system, at least one drilling parameter to be modified in order to alter a drilling direction of the BHA based on the calculated second toolface vector;

transmitting the at least one drilling parameter to the drilling rig to target the BHA in accordance with the second toolface vector; and

drilling the borehole using the BHA in response to the at least one drilling parameter.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of calculating the adjustment further comprises the step of calculating the adjustment of the first toolface vector to create the convergence path toward any point in a two-dimensional relationship from the location of the BHA.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of calculating the adjustment is further responsive to any forces forcing the BHA to miss convergence with the target drilling path.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of calculating the adjustment further comprises calculating a plurality of adjustments of the first toolface vector to a plurality of second toolface vectors, each of the plurality of second toolface vectors having a different cost associated therewith, to account for the geological formation drift defined by the geological formation drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling along each of the second toolface vectors.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising calculating the location of theBHA with respect to the target drilling path responsive to the received toolface information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of calculating the adjustment is further responsive to any forces forcing the BHA to miss the target drilling path.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of calculating the adjustment further comprises calculating a plurality of adjustments of the first toolface vector to a plurality of second toolface vectors, each of the plurality of second toolface vectors having a different cost associated therewith, to account for the geological formation drift defined by the geological formation drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling in accordance with each of the second toolface vectors.

8. A surface steerable system for use with a drilling rig comprising:

a network interface;

a processor coupled to the network interface; and

a non-transitory memory coupled to the processor, the memory storing a plurality of instructions for execution by the processor, the plurality of instructions including;

instructions for receiving, by the surface steerable system coupled to the drilling rig, BHA information from a bottom hole assembly (BHA) located in a borehole, wherein the BHA information corresponds to a first location of the BHA with respect to a target drilling path and geological formation drift information;

instructions for calculating, by the surface steerable system, a first toolface vector from the first location of the BHA to the target drilling path for creating a convergence path from the location of the BHA to the target drilling path that does not account for geological formation drift;

instructions for calculating, by the surface steerable system, an adjustment of the first toolface vector to a second toolface vector to account for the geological formation drift defined by the geological formation drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling in accordance with the second toolface vector;

instructions for causing, by the surface steerable system, at least one drilling parameter to be modified in order to alter a drilling direction of the BHA based on the calculated second toolface vector; and

instructions for transmitting the at least one drilling parameter to the drilling rig to align the BHA in accordance with the second toolface vector.

9. The surface steerable system of claim 8 further comprising instructions for drilling the borehole using the BHA in response to the at least one drilling parameter.

10. The surface steerable system of claim 8, wherein the instructions for calculating an adjustment further comprises instructions for calculating the adjustment of the first toolface vector to any point in a two-dimensional relationship from the location of the BHA.

11. The surface steerable system of claim 8, wherein the instructions for calculating the adjustment is further responsive to any forces forcing the BHA to miss convergence with the target drilling path.

12. The surface steerable system of claim 8, wherein the instructions for calculating the adjustment further comprises instructions for calculating a plurality of adjustments of the first toolface vector to a plurality of second toolface vectors, each of the plurality of second toolface vectors having a different cost associated therewith, to account for the geological formation drift defined by the geological formation drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling along each of the second toolface vectors.

13. The surface steerable system of claim 8, further comprising instructions for calculating the location of the BHA with respect to the target drilling path responsive to the received toolface information.

14. A drilling system, comprising:

a bottom hole assembly for drilling a borehole through a geological formation responsive to steering control signals;

a drilling rig for driving the bottom hole assembly through a drill string;

a surface steerable system for generating the steering control signals to control the bottom hole assembly, wherein the surface steerable system receives BHA information from the bottom hole assembly (BHA) located in the borehole, the BHA information corresponds to a location of the BHA with respect to a target drilling path and geological formation drift information, the surface steerable system calculates a first toolface vector for creating a convergence path from the location of the BHA to the target drilling path that does not account for geological formation drift, calculates an adjustment of the first toolface vector to a second toolface vector to account for the geological formation drift defined by the geological formation drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling along the second toolface vector, modifies at least one drilling parameter in order to alter a drilling direction of the BHA based on the calculated second toolface vector and transmits the at least one drilling parameter to the drilling rig to target the BHA toward the target drilling path.

15. The drilling system of claim 14, wherein the bottom hole assembly drills the borehole using the BHA in response to the at least one drilling parameter.

16. The drilling system of claim 14, wherein the surface steerable system calculates the adjustment of the first toolface vector toward at any point in a two-dimensional relationship with the location of the BHA.

17. The drilling system of claim 14, wherein the surface steerable system calculates the adjustment responsive to any forces forcing the BHA to miss the convergence with the target path.

18. The drilling system of claim 14, wherein the surface steerable system calculates a plurality of adjustments of the first toolface vector to a plurality of second toolface vectors, each of the plurality of second toolface vectors having a different cost associated therewith, to account for the geological formation drift defined by the geological formation drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling in accordance with each of the second toolface vectors.

19. The drilling system of claim 14, wherein the surface steerable system further calculates the location of the BHA with respect to the target drilling path responsive to the received toolface information.

20. A method for drilling, comprising:

(a) receiving, by a surface steerable system coupled to a drilling rig, BHA information from a bottom hole assembly (BHA) located in a borehole, wherein the BHA information corresponds to a first location of the BHA with respect to a target drilling path and geological formation drift information;

(b) calculating the location of the BHA with respect to the target drilling path responsive to the received toolface information;

(c) calculating, by the surface steerable system, a first toolface vector from the first location of the BHA to the target drilling path for creating a convergence path from the location of the BHA to the target drilling path that does not account for geological formation drift;

(d) calculating, by the surface steerable system, an adjustment of the first toolface vector to a second toolface vector at any point in a three dimensional relationship with the location of the BHA to account for the geological formation drift defined by the geological formation drift information such that the BHA will converge with the target drilling path by drilling in accordance with the second toolface vector;

(e) causing, by the surface steerable system, at least one drilling parameter to be modified in order to alter a drilling direction of the BHA based on the calculated second toolface vector;

(f) transmitting the at least one drilling parameter to the drilling rig to target the BHA along the second toolface vector;

(g) drilling the borehole using the BHA in response to the at least one drilling parameter; and

(h) repeating steps (a)-(g) at least one time until the BHA substantially converges with the target drilling path.