Downhole Perforating Gun Tube And Components
Patent No. US11078762 (titled "Downhole Perforating Gun Tube And Components") was filed by Swm International Inc on Mar 5, 2019.
What is this patent about?
’762 is related to the field of perforating wellbores in the oil and gas industry. After a wellbore is drilled and lined with casing, perforations are made to allow fluid flow from the formation into the wellbore. This is typically achieved using a perforating gun assembly containing shaped charges. The challenge is to ensure these charges are optimally positioned to maximize fluid flow, especially in horizontal wellbores where gravity dictates the gun's orientation.
The underlying idea behind ’762 is to use gravity-induced rotation to orient the perforating gun within the wellbore. By incorporating weights within the gun tube, the tube will naturally rotate until the weights are at the bottom. This allows for predictable positioning of the shaped charges, ensuring they fire in the desired direction (e.g., upwards and downwards) to create effective perforations.
The claims of ’762 focus on a downhole perforating gun system comprising an outer casing, a gun body concentrically disposed within the casing, one or more explosive charges coupled to the gun body, a collar, a bearing assembly that allows the gun body to rotate relative to the outer casing, and one or more weights that cause the gun body to rotate via the bearing assembly based on gravity.
In practice, the gun tube is constructed with an internal cavity housing one or more weights. These weights are strategically placed to achieve the desired orientation of the shaped charges. The bearing assembly, located at the ends of the gun tube, facilitates smooth rotation. Once the gun assembly is lowered into the wellbore, gravity acts on the weights, causing the gun tube to rotate until the weights settle at the bottom. This rotation aligns the shaped charges for optimal perforation.
This design differs from prior approaches that rely on fixed gun orientations or complex mechanical systems for positioning. By leveraging gravity, ’762 offers a simpler and more reliable method for orienting perforating guns. The use of rotatable end fittings and strategically placed weights ensures that the shaped charges are consistently positioned for effective perforation, regardless of the wellbore's orientation. The patent also describes alternative embodiments using plates to index the weights and electrical connectors that can be assembled by hand.
How does this patent fit in bigger picture?
Technical landscape at the time
In the late 2010s when ’762 was filed, wellbore perforation was a mature technology at a time when shaped charges were typically deployed within a carrier lowered into the wellbore using wireline or similar conveyance methods. At that time, systems commonly relied on detonating cords or electrical signals to initiate the charges, and hardware or software constraints made precise control over the directionality of perforations non-trivial.
Novelty and Inventive Step
The claims were rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by a prior patent. Further claims were rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over the same prior patent. Arguments were filed, but the examiner considered them unpersuasive. A final rejection was issued.
Claims
There are 38 claims in total. Independent claims are numbered 1, 24, 29, and 33. These independent claims are directed to a downhole perforating gun system that includes an outer casing, a gun body with explosive charges, a collar, a bearing assembly, and weights to rotate the gun body. The dependent claims generally specify further details, features, or variations of the downhole perforating gun system described in the independent claims.
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Date
Description
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US11078762
- Application Number
- US16293508
- Filing Date
- Mar 5, 2019
- Status
- Granted
- Expiry Date
- Jul 9, 2039
- External Links
- Slate, USPTO, Google Patents