Vertical pipe handling system and method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10190374-B2
Application number	US-201514600933-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 20, 2015
Priority date	Jan 20, 2015
Publication date	Jan 29, 2019
Grant date	Jan 29, 2019

Abstract

A system includes a cage having a pipe rack configured to store a tubular in a vertical orientation, such that a longitudinal axis of the tubular is substantially perpendicular to a horizontal plane. The system also includes a first robotic pipe handler configured to transition the tubular from a horizontal orientation, in which the longitudinal axis of the tubular is substantially parallel to the horizontal plane, to the vertical orientation. The first robotic pipe handler transitions between a raised position and a lowered position about a first handler axis.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A system comprising:
a cage having a pipe rack configured to store a tubular in a vertical orientation, such that a longitudinal axis of the tubular is substantially perpendicular to a horizontal plane; and
the cage having first and second robotic pipe handlers, with the first robotic pipe handler configured to transition the tubular from a horizontal orientation, in which the longitudinal axis of the tubular is substantially parallel to the horizontal plane, to the vertical orientation, wherein the first robotic pipe handler is adapted to move the tubular between the horizontal and vertical orientations by rotating about a first handler axis;
wherein the first robotic pipe handler is configured to position the tubular within the cage such that the tubular is receivable by the second robotic pipe handler after the first robotic pipe handler transitions the tubular from the horizontal orientation to the vertical orientation, and wherein the second robotic pipe handler receives the tubular into the cage through a first passage of the cage with the tubular in the vertical orientation.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first robotic pipe handler comprises a first clamp configured to rotate about a first clamp axis between an engagement position, in which the first clamp engages the tubular while the tubular is in the horizontal orientation and the first robotic pipe handler is in a lowered position, and a transfer position in which the tubular is in the vertical orientation and the first robotic pipe handler is in a raised position.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first robotic pipe handler is coupled to the cage and the cage is configured to be positioned proximate to a drilling rig without coupling to the drilling rig.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the second robotic pipe handler is coupled to tracks of the cage, wherein the second robotic pipe handler is configured to move along a body axis in an upward direction and a downward direction, opposite the upward direction via a bracket and to move along the tracks in a rig direction and a stand direction, opposite the rig direction, via a first actuator.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the second robotic pipe handler is configured to move in the stand direction to receive the tubular from the first robotic pipe handler and to position the tubular in the pipe rack.

6. The system of claim 5 , wherein the second robotic pipe handler is configured to remove the tubular from the pipe rack and to transition the tubular in the wellbore direction and to position the tubular in a substantially centered position over a wellbore.

7. The system of claim 4 , wherein the second robotic pipe handler comprises a second clamp and a third clamp positioned along a body of the second robotic pipe handler, wherein the second and third clamps are configured to rotate about a second clamp axis between a hand off direction and a well bore direction, which is opposite the hand off direction.

8. The system of claim 7 , comprising a second actuator configured to laterally displace the second and third clamps from the body of the second robotic pipe handler.

9. The system of claim 1 , comprising a controller configured to send a first signal to the first robotic pipe handler and a second signal to the first robotic pipe handler, wherein the first robotic pipe handler is configured to transition, via hydraulics, the tubular from the horizontal orientation to the vertical orientation in response to the first signal, and wherein the first robotic pipe handler is configured to transition, via hydraulics, between a raised position and a lowered position about the first handler axis in response to the second signal.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first robotic handler comprises an arm extending from the pivot to a first clamp, and wherein the arm is static between the pivot and the first clamp while the first robotic handler transitions the tubular between the horizontal and vertical orientations.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the first clamp is rotatable with respect to the arm about a clamp axis, and wherein the clamp axis is substantially perpendicular to the arm.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the first clamp comprises a jaw, and wherein the jaw is rotatable about a jaw axis substantially parallel to the first clamp.

13. A system comprising:
a controller configured to coordinate operation of a pipe handling system and a top drive system of a drilling rig to position a tubular in a centered position proximate to the top drive system and to enable the top drive system to engage the tubular;
a first robotic pipe handler of the pipe handling system communicatively coupled to the controller and configured to transfer the tubular from a horizontal orientation to a vertical orientation by rotating about a pivot, wherein the first robotic pipe handler is rotatably attached at the pivot to a cage that comprises a vertical pipe rack configured to store the tubular in the vertical orientation; and
a second robotic pipe handler of the pipe handling system communicatively coupled to the controller and configured to transfer the tubular from the first robotic pipe handler to the vertical pipe rack;
wherein the cage is positioned adjacent to the drilling rig.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the controller is configured to instruct the second robotic pipe handler to extend laterally in a rig direction from a position at least partially within a vertical pipe rack to a centered position configured to align the tubular with the top drive system and with a wellbore.

15. The system of claim 13 , where the controller is configured to instruct the second robotic pipe handler to remove the tubular from a vertical pipe rack and to position the tubular in a centered position relative to a wellbore and the top drive system.

16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the controller is configured to instruct the first robotic pipe handler to transition the tubular into a cage comprising the vertical pipe rack from a horizontal pipe rack.

17. The system of claim 13 , wherein the controller is configured to instruct the second robotic pipe handler to return the tubular to the vertical pipe rack after the tubular is disengaged from the top drive.

Assignees

• Nabors Drilling Tech Usa Inc

Inventors

• Bowley Ryan Thomas
• Coombe Brent James William

Classifications

• E21B19/20

  Combined feeding from rack and connecting, e.g. automatically · CPC title

• E21B19/155 Primary

  Handling between horizontal and vertical position · CPC title