Driveshaft retention assembly

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9816563-B2
Application number	US-201514898668-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 11, 2015
Priority date	Mar 11, 2015
Publication date	Nov 14, 2017
Grant date	Nov 14, 2017

Abstract

A retention apparatus can be used for a driveshaft transmission assembly. The retention apparatus may include a catch mechanism and a resilient member. The retention apparatus may be mounted to a radial bearing assembly of a driveshaft transmission assembly. The catch mechanism of the retention apparatus may be sized to prevent the loss of certain driveshaft transmission assembly components downhole in the event of a failure of the driveshaft transmission due to dynamic loads produced during operation in a drilling system.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An assembly comprising:
a radial bearing assembly;
a catch mechanism having an inner diameter sized to be slidably received onto the radial bearing assembly and an outer diameter sized to extend radially beyond an outer diameter of the radial bearing assembly, the catch mechanism including ridges that are positionable proximate to corresponding protrusions on the radial bearing assembly; and
a resilient, ring-shaped band slidably received onto the radial bearing assembly to apply a compression force on the catch mechanism for coupling the catch mechanism to the radial bearing assembly, the resilient, ring-shaped band having an inner diameter defined by a continuous surface.

2. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the outer diameter of the catch mechanism is sized to prevent a loss of driveshaft transmission assembly components downhole subsequent to a separation of the driveshaft transmission assembly components.

3. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the resilient, ring-shaped band is a Belleville spring having a resiliency to apply the compression force on the catch mechanism such that the ridges are mounted to the corresponding protrusions having downhole edges shaped to mountably receive one of the ridges.

4. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the ridges are sized to be mountably received by the corresponding protrusions having downhole edges shaped to prevent the catch mechanism from rotating.

5. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the ridges are positionable to be received by corresponding channels on the radial bearing assembly.

6. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the ridges are positionable to form grooves on the catch mechanism, the grooves being sized to receive the corresponding protrusions on the radial bearing assembly.

7. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the ridges are positionable proximate to the corresponding protrusions to mount to the corresponding protrusions.

8. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the resilient, ring-shaped band is positionable to form a J-slot coupling of the ridges on the catch mechanism to the corresponding protrusions on the radial bearing assembly by applying the compression force on the catch mechanism in an uphole direction.

9. A driveshaft transmission assembly, comprising:
a radial bearing assembly having protrusions; and
a catch mechanism coupled to the radial bearing assembly and having an outer diameter sized to extend radially beyond an outer diameter of the radial bearing assembly, the catch mechanism including ridges that are coupled to the protrusions on the radial bearing assembly by a resilient band for applying a compression force on the catch mechanism; and
the resilient band positioned between the protrusions and a body of the radial bearing assembly, the resilient band being ring-shaped and having an inner diameter defined by a continuous surface.

10. The driveshaft transmission assembly of claim 9 , wherein the outer diameter of the catch mechanism is further sized to prevent a loss of driveshaft transmission assembly components downhole after a separation of the driveshaft transmission assembly components.

11. The driveshaft transmission assembly of claim 9 , further comprising the resilient band coupled to the radial bearing assembly and positioned to form a J-slot coupling of the ridges of the catch mechanism to the protrusions of the radial bearing assembly.

12. The driveshaft transmission assembly of claim 9 , wherein the resilient band is a Belleville spring for applying the compression force on the catch mechanism in an uphole direction.

13. The driveshaft transmission assembly of claim 9 , wherein the radial bearing assembly is a rotating radial bearing coupled to a driveshaft, the rotating radial bearing being positioned between the driveshaft and a stationary radial bearing, the stationary radial bearing having a contact shoulder for interfering with at least a portion of the catch mechanism after a separation of driveshaft transmission assembly components.

14. The driveshaft transmission assembly of claim 9 , wherein the catch mechanism is independent of and internal to a bearing housing and is positioned downhole of a thrust bearing assembly.

15. The driveshaft transmission assembly of claim 9 , wherein at least one protrusion of the protrusions on the radial bearing assembly includes a downhole edge shaped to receive at least one ridge of the ridges on the catch mechanism and to prevent decoupling of the catch mechanism from the radial bearing assembly during operation of the driveshaft transmission assembly in a borehole.

16. A method of assembling a retention apparatus, the method comprising:
sliding a resilient member onto a radial bearing assembly having a longitudinal axis, the resilient member being ring-shaped band and having an inner diameter defined by a continuous surface;
sliding a catch mechanism onto the radial bearing assembly to contact the resilient member;
aligning protrusions on the radial bearing assembly and ridges on the catch mechanism; and
releasing the catch mechanism to allow the resilient member to apply a compression force on the catch mechanism to couple the catch mechanism to the radial bearing assembly.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the sliding the resilient member onto the radial bearing assembly includes sliding a Belleville spring onto a first portion of the radial bearing assembly having a first outer diameter until the spring contacts a second portion of the radial bearing assembly having a second outer diameter greater than the first outer diameter.

18. The method of claim 16 , wherein the sliding the catch mechanism on to the radial bearing assembly includes:
sliding the catch mechanism onto the radial bearing assembly such that the ridges on the catch mechanism is received by channels on the radial bearing assembly formed by the protrusions and such that the protrusions on the radial bearing assembly is received by grooves on the catch mechanism formed by the ridges; and
applying a second compression force from the catch mechanism onto the resilient member in a downhole direction until the resilient member is compressed.

19. The method of claim 16 , wherein the aligning the protrusions on the radial bearing assembly and the ridges on the catch mechanism includes rotating the radial bearing assembly or the catch mechanism until the protrusions are axially adjacent to the ridges.

20. The method of claim 16 , wherein the releasing the catch mechanism includes removing a second compression force applied from the catch mechanism in a downhole direction such that the resilient member applies the compression force onto the catch mechanism in an uphole direction.

Assignees

• Halliburton Energy Services Inc

Inventors

• Gharib Hossam Mohamed

Classifications

• F16D1/112

  the interengaging parts comprising torque-transmitting surfaces, e.g. bayonet joints · CPC title

• E21B17/046

  with ribs, pins, or jaws, and complementary grooves or the like, e.g. bayonet catches · CPC title

• F16D1/0876 Primary

  with axial keys and no other radial clamping · CPC title

• E21B4/02 Primary

  Fluid rotary type drives · CPC title