Subsea connections

• US 9,622,367 B2
• Filed: 05/14/2014
• Issued: 04/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aker Solutions Limited (Akastor ASA)
• Original Assignee: Aker Subsea Incorporated (Akastor ASA)
• Inventors: Carter, Richard Hope
• Primary Examiner(s): Sinclair, David M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Brown, Robert
• Application Number:
  US14/277,364
• Publication Number:
  US 20140340852A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,063 Days
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 33/0355 Control systems, e.g. hydraulic, pneumatic, electric, acoustic, for submerged well heads
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 33/0385 electrical connectors
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/00 Constructional details common to different types of electric apparatus casings, cabinets, drawers H05K5/00

Abstract

An assembly of subsea equipment and a plurality of subsea devices each of which is individually mountable on and separable from the subsea equipment wherein each device includes a respective stab connector for establishing electrical connection with the equipment and further has a respective terminal connector for a jumper lead, each device having at least dual redundancy whereby connection through the respective jumper terminal can substitute for the connection though the respective stab connector.

Claims

1. An assembly comprising:

subsea equipment and a plurality of subsea electrical actuator devices each comprising an electrical actuator,

each of which electrical actuator devices is individually mountable on and separable from the subsea equipment and includes a respective stab connector for establishing electrical connection with internal circuits of the subsea equipment and further has a respective terminal connector for a jumper lead to internal circuits of the electrical actuator device,

each said electrical actuator device having at least dual redundancy whereby connection to a control module through the respective jumper terminal can substitute for the connection to a control module through the respective stab connector and internal circuits of said subsea equipment; and

wherein the assembly includes a control module which can communicate with each of the said electrical actuator devices by way of the stab connections thereof and includes a terminal for at least one jumper lead for establishing a failsafe substitute connection to at least one of the said electrical actuator devices if a failure occurs in a connection between the electrical actuator device and said control module via said internal circuits of said subsea equipment.

2. An assembly according to claim 1 in which the control module is mountable on and separable from the subsea equipment and includes a stab connector for establishing electrical connection with the subsea equipment.

3. An assembly comprising:

a subsea structure having internal circuits connectable to externally mountable modules;

a plurality of modular subsea devices which are individually mountable on and separable from said subsea structure;

each said subsea device having a stab electrical connector configured to connect internal module circuits to circuits within the subsea structure;

each said subsea device also having an external terminal connector for a jumper lead, said terminal connector being connected to the internal module circuits of that modular subsea device;

at least one of said modular subsea devices comprising a control module having internal module circuits that include control circuits configured to communicate with and control a plurality of other of said modular subsea devices by way of either (a) the external terminal connector of another modular subsea device or (b) the stab connector of the other module via said internal circuits within the subsea structure;

wherein the stab connector and external terminal connector provide fails redundancy for connection between said control circuits and actuator circuits internal to other of said modular subsea devices if failure occurs in a connection there-between made via said internal circuits of the subsea structure.