Phase modulation and noise minimization for simultaneous vibroseis acquisition

• US 9,348,041 B2
• Filed: 02/15/2012
• Issued: 05/24/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Reflection Marine Norge AS
• Original Assignee: WesternGeco LLC
• Inventors: Jeffryes, Benjamin P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Murphy, Daniel L
• Application Number:
  US13/397,378
• Publication Number:
  US 20130208567A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,560 Days
• Field of Search: 367/38, 367/41, 367/189
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 1/005 with exploration systems emitting special signals, e.g. frequency swept signals, pulse sequences or slip sweep arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 1/28 Processing seismic data, e.g. for interpretation or for event detection G01V1/48 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 2210/32 Noise reduction

Abstract

An embodiment of the invention includes simultaneous drive signals whose respective phase angle offset(s) varies over a portion or duration of the simultaneous sweeps. Other embodiments are discussed herein.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

simultaneously conducting a first seismic sweep with a first seismic source and a second seismic sweep with a second seismic source, different from the first seismic source, at a relative phase offset from the first seismic sweep;

wherein the phase offset varies during the simultaneous sweeping,

determining a first phase for the first sweep and second and third phases for the second sweep; and

conducting the first sweep at the first phase while simultaneously conducting the second sweep at the second phase and then, while the first sweep is still being conducted, simultaneously conducting the second sweep at the third phase.

2. The method of claim 1 including selecting the second and third phases from a preexisting matrix.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the phase offset varies during the simultaneous sweeping based on the frequency for one of the first and second sweeps.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein respective amplitudes for the first and second sweeps are held relatively constant while conducting the first and second sweeps.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the phase offset varies with a constant rate of change for at least a portion of the simultaneous sweeping.

6. The method of claim 1 including simultaneously conducting the first sweep and a third seismic sweep at an additional relative phase offset from one another, wherein the additional phase offset varies during the simultaneous sweeping of the first and third sweeps.

7. The method of claim 1 including simultaneously conducting the first sweep and a third seismic sweep in phase with one another.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the first sweep includes one of an upsweep and a downsweep and the second sweep includes one of an upsweep and a downsweep.

9. The method of claim 1 including, after conducting the first and second sweeps to generate seismic data, analyzing the seismic data corresponding to multiple phase offset values.

10. The method of claim 1, including:

determining first and second seismic source drive signals respectively for the first and second sweeps;

wherein (a) the first drive signal includes a component according to the equation FA=W(t)cos(2π

|f0t+½

φ

t2|), (b) the second drive signal includes a component according to the equation FB=W(t)cos(2π

|f0t+½

φ

t2|+Θ

[t]), (c) Θ

(t) is a phase angle that varies while the first and second sweeps are simultaneously conducted, (d) φ

is the respective rate of change of frequency each sweep, f0 is the respective start frequency for each sweep, and W is a smoothing function.

11. The method of claim 1 including:

determining a first phase for the first sweep and second and third phases for the second sweep;

conducting the first sweep at the first phase while simultaneously conducting the second sweep at the second phase and then, while the first sweep is still being conducted, simultaneously conducting the second sweep at the third phase; and

after conducting the first and second sweeps conducting third and fourth sweeps at substantially the same locations as the first and second sweeps, wherein phase variation between the third and fourth sweeps differs from the phase variation between the first and second sweeps.

12. The method of claim 1 comprising:

recording a response to the first and second sweeps; and

separating the response into a first approximation of a first response to the first sweep and a second approximation of a second response to the second sweep.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein respective ranges of the first and second seismic sweeps include at least one common frequency.

14. An article comprising a non-transitory medium storing instructions that enable a processor-based system to:

determine first and second drive signals configured to simultaneously drive a first seismic sweep of a first seismic source and a second seismic sweep of a second seismic source, different from the first seismic source, at a relative phase offset from the first seismic sweep;

wherein the phase offset varies during the simultaneous sweeping,

determine a first phase for the first sweep and second and third phases for the second sweep; and

wherein the drive signals are to drive the first sweep at the first phase while simultaneously driving the second sweep at the second phase and then, while the first sweep is still being conducted, simultaneously drive the second sweep at the third phase.

15. The article of claim 14, wherein the phase offset varies during the simultaneous sweeping based on the frequency for one of the first and second sweeps.

16. The article of claim 14, wherein the phase offset varies with a constant rate of change for at least a portion of the simultaneous sweeping.

17. The article of claim 14, wherein the drive signals are to simultaneously drive the first sweep and a third seismic sweep in phase with one another.

18. A system comprising:

a memory; and

a processor, coupled to the memory, to determine first and second drive signals configured to simultaneously drive a first seismic sweep of a first seismic source and a second seismic sweep of a second seismic source, different from the first seismic source, at a relative phase offset from the first seismic sweep;

wherein the phase offset varies during the simultaneous sweeping, and

determine a first phase for the first sweep and second and third phases for the second sweep; and

wherein the drive signals are to drive the first sweep at the first phase while simultaneously driving the second sweep at the second phase and then, while the first sweep is still being conducted, simultaneously drive the second sweep at the third phase.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the phase offset varies during the simultaneous sweeping based on the frequency for one of the first and second sweeps.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the phase offset varies with a constant rate of change for at least a portion of the simultaneous sweeping.