Caliper steerable tool for lateral sensing and accessing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9963954-B2
Application number	US-201314067008-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 30, 2013
Priority date	Nov 16, 2012
Publication date	May 8, 2018
Grant date	May 8, 2018

Abstract

Embodiments of a method and apparatus for locating lateral wellbores extending from a main wellbore includes a caliper sensing tool having spring actuated calipers extending radially therefrom. Each of the calipers is connected to a sensor, such as a linear variable displacement sensor, that is used to calculate the radial extension distance of the respective caliper. When the tool is inserted through a wellbore and moves past a lateral wellbore opening, the calipers extend into the lateral wellbore opening. The extension, as well as contact with the surfaces of the lateral wellbore, are used to determine the wellbore depth location and azimuthal direction of the lateral wellbore. A deflectable steering arm is operable to be selectively steered into the lateral opening to facilitate access to the lateral wellbore for logging or intervention purposes.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for detecting lateral bores from a main wellbore of a well and measuring a distance from the surface to the lateral bore, the method comprising:
(a) providing a caliper tool into the main wellbore, the caliper tool comprising a head having a first end, a steering arm, a second end, a plurality of calipers extending axially along a length of the caliper tool, the calipers each comprising a forward segment pivotingly attached to a body of the caliper tool, and a rearward segment pivotingly attached to an end of the forward segment that is distal from the body and having an end distal from the forward segment that slides axially along the body in response to radial movement of where the forward and rearward segments attach;
(b) moving the caliper tool axially through the main wellbore on a deployment member
(c) monitoring axial movement of the end of the rearward segment that is distal from the forward segment to detect an inner diameter surface of the main wellbore;
(d) detecting a lateral bore branching off of the main wellbore by sensing that a one of the calipers is at a maximum radial extension;
(e) mapping a profile of an intersection between the main wellbore and the lateral bore, the profile reflecting a shape of outer circumferences of the main wellbore and the lateral bore over an axial distance traveled by the caliper tool;
(f) withdrawing the caliper tool upward such that the one of the caliper arms compresses inward from its maximum radial extension after detecting the lateral bore, and
(g) lowering the caliper tool downward and into the lateral bore after the withdrawing.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein each one of the plurality of calipers is operatively connected to a respective one of a plurality of measurement devices, and wherein the method further comprises the step of ascertaining the radial distance by which each one of the plurality of calipers extends from the head of the caliper tool with the plurality of measurement devices.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the step of ascertaining the radial distance by which each one of the plurality of calipers extends from the head of the caliper tool comprises detecting a configuration of a radially-inner end of the pair of segments with respect to the head of the caliper tool.

4. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the plurality of measurement devices comprises a plurality of linear position sensors disposed axially along the head of the caliper tool such that each linear position sensor is operable to detect an axial position of at least one of the radially-inner ends of the pair of segments along the head of the caliper tool, and wherein the step of ascertaining the radial distance by which each one of the plurality of calipers extends from the head of the caliper tool comprises calculating the radial distance with the axial position detected by the respective linear position sensor.

5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein the linear position sensors comprise linear variable displacement transducers that are disposed axially along the body, shuttles that are slideable adjacent each of the linear variable displacement transducers, springs biasing each of the shuttles in a direction towards the head, and pinned connections on surfaces of the shuttles facing away from the linear variable displacement transducers, and wherein the ends of the rearward segments that slide axially along the body each connect to the shuttles on the pinned connections.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of calipers is biased to a radially outward position, and wherein the step of detecting the lateral opening in the main wellbore comprises detecting a movement of at least one of the plurality of calipers from a radially inward position toward the radially outward position as the at least one of the plurality of calipers extends into the lateral opening.

7. The method according to claim 6 , wherein the step of detecting the lateral opening in the main wellbore comprises detecting an initial contact of the at least one of the plurality of calipers that extends into the lateral opening with a surface of the lateral bore and subsequently detecting that the at least one of the plurality of calipers that extends into the lateral opening is free of contact with the surface of the lateral bore.

8. The method according to claim 7 , further comprising the step of determining the direction of the lateral bore, relative to the main wellbore, based on the radial position of the at least one of the plurality calipers that extends into the lateral opening.

9. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising the steps of advancing the caliper tool past the lateral opening and determining a profile of the lateral bore from movements of at least one of the plurality of calipers as the caliper tool advances past the lateral opening.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of calipers extends from the head a radial distance greater than a radius of the main wellbore when the calipers are in an unconstrained state.

11. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising the step of creating a profile log of the main wellbore and the lateral bore.

12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the caliper tool further comprises a centralizer operable to maintain the caliper tool centered in the main wellbore, and wherein the step of detecting an inner diameter surface of the main wellbore comprises employing the centralizer to maintain the caliper tool centered in the wellbore so that each of the plurality of calipers extends radially from the head substantially no more than the rest of the plurality of calipers.

13. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the caliper tool includes a steering arm connected to the second end of the head and selectively operable to be angled relative to head, and wherein the method further comprises the steps of positioning the caliper tool so that an end of the steering arm is located concentrically with the lateral opening and angling the steering arm in the direction of the lateral opening.

14. The method according to claim 13 , further comprising the step of inserting the caliper tool into the lateral opening by axially advancing the deployment member through the main wellbore.

15. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the caliper tool further comprises a magnetic sensor, and wherein the method further comprises the step of detecting, with the magnetic sensor, the presence of wellbore casing.

16. The method according to claim 15 , further comprising the steps of advancing the deployment member through the main wellbore until the magnetic sensor is disposed axially beyond an end of the wellbore casing, detecting, with the magnetic sensor, the absence the wellbore casing, and determining the distance from the surface of the earth to the end of the wellbore casing.

17. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising obtaining an angle of deviation of the lateral bore, and assigning a signature to the lateral bore based on the angle of deviation.

18. The method according to claim 17 , further comprising detecting additional lateral bores that branch from the main wellbore, obtaining an angle of deviation of each of the additional lateral bores, compiling the angle of deviation of the lateral bore and the angle of deviation of each of the additional lateral bores to form a deviation survey, identifying a specific one of the lateral bores based on the deviation survey.

Assignees

• Saudi Arabian Oil Co

Inventors

• Al-Mulhem Abdulrahman Abdulaziz

Classifications

• E21B47/08

  Measuring diameters or related dimensions at the borehole · CPC title

• E21B41/0035 Primary

  Apparatus or methods for multilateral well technology, e.g. for the completion of or workover on wells with one or more lateral branches · CPC title

• E21B17/1021

  with articulated arms or arcuate springs · CPC title

• E21B47/024

  of devices in the borehole (determining slope or direction of the borehole E21B47/022) · CPC title

• E21B23/14

  for displacing a cable or a cable-operated tool, e.g. for logging or perforating operations in deviated wells · CPC title