Remotely operated pipe fitting swaging systems and methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11226618-B2
Application number	US-202117169628-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 8, 2021
Priority date	May 28, 2020
Publication date	Jan 18, 2022
Grant date	Jan 18, 2022

Abstract

Techniques for implementing and/or operating a deployment system that includes a vehicle frame of a deployment vehicle, a drive sub-system, which includes wheels secured to the vehicle frame, a swage machine, and a fluid power sub-system. The swage machine includes a grab plate, which interlocks with a grab notch on a pipe fitting to be secured to a pipe segment, which includes tubing that defines a pipe bore and a fluid conduit implemented in an annulus of the tubing, a die plate including a die, and a fluid actuator that actuates the grab plate toward the die plate to facilitate conformally deforming a fitting jacket of the pipe fitting around the tubing of the pipe segment. The fluid power sub-system selectively powers the drive sub-system or the swage machine based on a target operation to be performed by the deployment vehicle.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A pipeline deployment system comprising:
a deployment vehicle, wherein the deployment vehicle comprises a vehicle frame;
a drive sub-system, wherein the drive sub-system comprises one or more wheels secured to the vehicle frame of the deployment vehicle;
a swage machine, wherein the swage machine comprises:
a grab plate configured to interlock with a pipe fitting;
a die plate configured to enable a die to be loaded in the swage machine; and
a fluid actuator secured to the grab plate and the die plate, wherein the fluid actuator is configured to cause the die plate of the swage machine to move over a fitting jacket of the pipe fitting to facilitate securing the pipe fitting to a pipe segment;

a fluid power sub-system, wherein the pipeline deployment system is configured to selectively switch between using the fluid power sub-system to drive rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system to facilitate moving the deployment vehicle along a ground surface and using the fluid power sub-system to power operation of the fluid actuator in swage machine to facilitate securing the pipe fitting to the pipe segment based at least in part on a target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system; and
a directional control valve, wherein the directional control valve is configured to:
provide a first flow path between a fluid pump in the fluid power sub-system and a drive gear that is tied to the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system when the target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system is a vehicle drive operation; and
provide a second flow path between the fluid pump in the fluid power sub-system and the fluid actuator in the swage machine when the target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system is a fitting swage operation.

2. The pipeline deployment system of claim 1 , wherein the pipeline deployment system is configured to:
switch from using the fluid power sub-system to power operation of the fluid actuator in the swage machine to using the fluid power sub-system to drive rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system when the target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system changes from a fitting swage operation to a vehicle drive operation; and
switch from using the fluid power sub-system to drive rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system to using the fluid power sub-system to power operation of the fluid actuator in the swage machine when the target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system changes from the vehicle drive operation to the fitting swage operation.

3. The pipeline deployment system of claim 1 , comprising:
a vehicle location sensor configured to determine sensor data indicative of a current location of the deployment vehicle; and
a control sub-system communicatively coupled to the vehicle location sensor, wherein, when the target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system is a vehicle drive operation, the control sub-system is configured to:
determine the current location of the deployment vehicle based at least in part on the sensor data received from the vehicle location sensor;
determine a location of the pipe fitting to be secured to the pipe segment using the swage machine;
instruct the pipeline deployment system to continue driving rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system using the fluid power sub-system when the current location of the deployment vehicle does not match the location of the pipe fitting; and
instruct the pipeline deployment system to cease driving rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system using the fluid power sub-system when the current location of the deployment vehicle matches the location of the pipe fitting.

4. The pipeline deployment system of claim 1 , comprising:
a die position sensor configured to determine sensor data indicative of a current position of the die plate in the swage machine relative to the pipe fitting; and
a control sub-system communicatively coupled to the die position sensor, wherein, when the target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system is a fitting swage operation, the control sub-system is configured to:
determine a currently swaged distance on the pipe fitting based at least in part on the sensor data received from the die position sensor;
determine a target swaging distance on the pipe fitting based at least in part on length of the fitting jacket in the pipe fitting;
instruct the pipeline deployment system to continue powering operation of the fluid actuator in the swage machine using the fluid power sub-system when the currently swaged distance on the pipe fitting is less than the target swaging distance on the pipe fitting; and
instruct the pipeline deployment system to cease powering operation of the fluid actuator in the swage machine using the fluid power sub-system when the currently swaged distance on the pipe fitting is not less than the target swaging distance on the pipe fitting.

5. A method of operating a pipeline deployment system, comprising:
determining, using a control sub-system, a target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system, wherein the pipeline deployment system comprises a transmission, a drive sub-system having one or more wheels that are to be used to move a deployment vehicle in the pipeline deployment system along a ground surface, a swage machine that is to be used to swage a pipe fitting around a pipe segment, and a fluid power sub-system;
instructing, using the control sub-system, the pipeline deployment system to drive rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system using the fluid power sub-system to facilitate moving the deployment vehicle along the ground surface in response to determining that the target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system is a vehicle drive operation at least in part by instructing the transmission to connect a motor shaft in the fluid power sub-system to a drive gear that is tied to the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system; and
instructing, using the control sub-system, the pipeline deployment system to switch from using the fluid power sub-system to drive rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system to using the fluid power sub-system to power operation of the swage machine to facilitate swaging the pipe fitting around the pipe segment in response to determining that the target operation to be performed by the pipeline deployment system switches from the vehicle drive operation to a fitting swage operation at least in part by:
instructing the transmission to disconnect the motor shaft in the fluid power sub-system from the drive gear that is tied to the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system; and
instructing the transmission to connect the motor shaft to a pump gear that is tied to a fluid pump in the fluid power sub-system, wherein the fluid pump in the fluid power sub-system is fluidly connected to a fluid actuator in the swage machine.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein instructing the pipeline deployment system to drive rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system using the fluid power sub-system comprises:
determining a current location of the deployment vehicle based at least in part on sensor data received from a vehicle location sensor;
determining location of the pipe fitting to be swaged around the pipe segment tubing using the swage machine;
instructing the pipeline deployment system to continue driving rotation of the one or more wheels in the drive sub-system using the fluid power sub-system in response to determining that the current location of the deployment vehicle does not match the location of the pipe fit

Assignees

• Trinity Bay Equipment Holdings Llc

Inventors

• Leger John Paul

Classifications

• B21D39/031

  Joining superposed plates by locally deforming without slitting or piercing · CPC title

• B60D1/48

  characterised by the mounting · CPC title

• B62D59/02

  driven from external propulsion unit · CPC title

• B60Y2200/25

  Track vehicles · CPC title

• B60Y2200/62

  Conveyors, floor conveyors · CPC title