Directional drilling framework

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025059834-A1
Application number	US-202318451288-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Aug 17, 2023
Priority date	Aug 17, 2023
Publication date	Feb 20, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

A system and method that may include receiving real-time downhole data from one or more sensors of a drillstring disposed in a borehole in a subsurface geologic region during a directional drilling operation. The system and method also include selecting a drillstring drilling mode from a plurality of drillstring drilling modes. The system and method may additionally include predicting, in real-time, characteristics of a hole bottom of the borehole using the drilling mode model and at least a portion of the real-time downhole data. The system and method may further include controlling the directional drilling operation using one or more of the characteristics.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method comprising:
receiving real-time downhole data from one or more sensors of a drillstring disposed in a borehole in a subsurface geologic region during a directional drilling operation, wherein a drill bit of the drillstring breaks rock of the subsurface geologic region to lengthen the borehole; selecting a drillstring drilling mode from a plurality of drillstring drilling modes, wherein the drillstring drilling mode comprises an associated drilling mode model for the directional drilling operation; predicting, in real-time, characteristics of a hole bottom of the borehole using the drilling mode model and at least a portion of the real-time downhole data; and controlling the directional drilling operation using one or more of the characteristics.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the characteristics of the hole bottom comprise depth and orientation, wherein the depth comprises measured depth and the orientation comprises inclination and azimuth.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the drilling mode model for the directional drilling operation comprises a machine learning model.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the controlling comprises adjusting an orientation of the drill bit of the drillstring to drill to a target position in the subsurface geologic region.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more sensors of the drillstring comprise one or more measurement while drilling (MWD) sensors and one or more rotary-steerable system (RSS) sensors.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more sensors of the drillstring comprise one or more micro-electromechanical system gyroscope sensors that generate gyroscope sensor data that increase accuracy of orientation predictions of hole bottoms of the borehole.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the drillstring comprises a mud motor and does not include a rotary-steerable system (RSS).

8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the plurality of drillstring drilling modes comprises a sliding mode and a rotating mode.

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the controlling controls geosteering.

10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the geosteering maintains the drill bit of the drillstring within a reservoir layer defined in part by an upper depth and a lower depth.

11 . The method of claim 1 , comprising estimating true vertical depth based at least in part on one or more of the characteristics of the hole bottom.

12 . The method of claim 1 , comprising estimating one or more of northing and easting based at least in part on one or more of the characteristics of the hole bottom.

13 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of drillstring drilling modes comprises one or more hold inclination modes.

14 . The method of claim 1 , comprising receiving real-time static survey data acquired during a time period wherein the directional drilling operation is halted.

15 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the predicting further comprises predicting at least one characteristic for a future hole bottom of the borehole.

16 . The method of claim 15 , comprising, at an actual time of creation of the future hole bottom, receiving additional real-time downhole data and updating the predicting of the at least one characteristic based at least in part on the additional real-time downhole data.

17 . The method of claim 1 , comprising pulling the drillstring out of the borehole after performing the directional drilling operation and acquiring data during the pulling of the drillstring out of the borehole, wherein one or more of the characteristics is adjusted to generate a set of the characteristics of the borehole, wherein the adjusting utilizes at least a portion of the acquired data.

18 . The method of claim 17 , comprising running the drillstring into the borehole after pulling the drillstring out of the borehole, acquiring data during the running of the drillstring into the borehole, and adjusting one or more of the characteristics to generate a revised set of the characteristics for the borehole.

19 . A system comprising:
one or more processors; memory accessible to at least one of the one or more processors; processor-executable instructions stored in the memory and executable to instruct the system to:
receive real-time downhole data from one or more sensors of a drillstring disposed in a borehole in a subsurface geologic region during a directional drilling operation, wherein a drill bit of the drillstring breaks rock of the subsurface geologic region to lengthen the borehole;
select a drillstring drilling mode from a plurality of drillstring drilling modes, wherein the drillstring drilling mode comprises an associated drilling mode model for the directional drilling operation;
predict, in real-time, characteristics of a hole bottom of the borehole using the drilling mode model and at least a portion of the real-time downhole data; and
control the directional drilling operation using one or more of the characteristics.

20 . One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media comprising processor-executable instructions to instruct a computing system to:
receive real-time downhole data from one or more sensors of a drillstring disposed in a borehole in a subsurface geologic region during a directional drilling operation, wherein a drill bit of the drillstring breaks rock of the subsurface geologic region to lengthen the borehole; select a drillstring drilling mode from a plurality of drillstring drilling modes, wherein the drillstring drilling mode comprises an associated drilling mode model for the directional drilling operation; predict, in real-time, characteristics of a hole bottom of the borehole using the drilling mode model and at least a portion of the real-time downhole data; and control the directional drilling operation using one or more of the characteristics.

Assignees

• Schlumberger Technology Corp

Inventors

• Sahli Hussein
• Ba Samba

Classifications

• E21B2200/22

  Fuzzy logic, artificial intelligence, neural networks or the like · CPC title

• E21B7/04 Primary

  Directional drilling · CPC title

• E21B44/00

  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 title

• E21B2200/20

  Computer models or simulations, e.g. for reservoirs under production, drill bits · CPC title

• E21B47/005 Primary

  Monitoring or checking of cementation quality or level · CPC title