U.S. patent application number 10/562367 was filed with the patent office on 2006-06-29 for system, method and apparatus for securing control lines to a well pipe.
Invention is credited to Carlos A. Torres.
Application Number | 20060137884 10/562367 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 33563871 |
Filed Date | 2006-06-29 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060137884 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Torres; Carlos A. |
June 29, 2006 |
System, method and apparatus for securing control lines to a well
pipe
Abstract
Control lines extend vertically through lateral spaces formed
between a rig floor and a pipe holding assembly supported on the
rig floor. A pipe string held by an elevator extends vertically
through the pipe holding assembly into the well. The pipe holding
assembly is raised vertically off of the floor, about the pipe
string, to allow the control lines to be clamped to the pipe string
below the pipe holding assembly. The invention permits the control
lines to be clamped to the pipe string without passing through the
pipe handling assembly to prevent damage to the control lines when
the pipe handling assembly is closed to secure the pipe string.
Inventors: |
Torres; Carlos A.; (Houston,
TX) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Browning Bushman
Suite 1800
5718 Westheimer
Houston
TX
77057-5771
US
|
Family ID: |
33563871 |
Appl. No.: |
10/562367 |
Filed: |
June 25, 2004 |
PCT Filed: |
June 25, 2004 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/US04/20584 |
371 Date: |
December 22, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
166/380 ;
166/77.52 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E21B 19/10 20130101;
E21B 19/22 20130101; E21B 17/026 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
166/380 ;
166/077.52 |
International
Class: |
E21B 19/16 20060101
E21B019/16 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jun 27, 2003 |
US |
60482610 |
Claims
1. A method for installing one or more control lines to the outside
of a pipe string, comprising: attaching a control line to a first
point at the outside of a length of pipe, selecting a second
attachment point on the length of pipe where the control line is to
be attached to the outside of the length of pipe, lowering the
length of pipe and attached control line through an opening in the
floor of a rig until the first and second attachment points are
below the floor, raising the length of pipe and attached control
line from the floor opening until the second attachment point is
above the floor, attaching the control line to the outside of the
length of pipe at the second attachment point, lowering the length
of pipe and attached control line until the second attachment point
is below the floor, adding pipe to the length of pipe above the
floor, selecting a third attachment point where the control line is
to be attached to the outside of the length of pipe, lowering the
length of pipe and attached control line through the floor opening
until the third attachment point is below the floor, raising the
length of pipe and attached control line from the floor opening
until the third attachment point is above the floor, and attaching
the control line to the outside of the length of pipe at the third
attachment point.
2. A system for securing a control line to the outside of a length
of pipe, comprising: a pipe elevator for selectively raising and
lowering the length of pipe through a rig floor opening, a pipe
support assembly carried on the rig floor for selectively
supporting the length of pipe in the floor opening, an access
opening extending laterally between the pipe support assembly and
the rig floor for receiving a control line, a control line
extending from above the floor, through the access opening and
through the rig floor opening to the length of pipe below the rig
floor, a linking structure for selectively raising and lowering the
pipe support assembly, and a securing structure for securing the
control line to the length of pipe at a point above the floor and
below the pipe support assembly when the linking structure has
raised the pipe support assembly above the floor.
3. A system as defined in claim 2 wherein said linking structure
comprises an elevator.
4. A system defined in claim 2 wherein said linking structure
comprises a cylinder/piston assembly.
5. A system as defined in claim 4 wherein said cylinder/piston
assembly is carried by an elevator.
6. A system as defined in claim 4 wherein said cylinder/piston
assembly is mounted on said floor.
7. An apparatus for attaching a control line to the outside of a
length of pipe, comprising: a pipe support assembly mountable on
the floor of a rig over a floor opening for supporting a vertically
extending length of pipe in the floor opening, an access opening
extending laterally alongside the pipe support assembly from a
first point above the floor to the floor opening, a control line
guide connected with the pipe support assembly for guiding a
control line from said first point above the floor through said
access opening to a second point below the floor along a path that
extends between the two points, and a linking structure for raising
the pipe support assembly and the control line guide from its
mounting on the rig floor.
8. An apparatus as defined in claim 7 wherein said linking
structure comprises an elevator.
9. An apparatus as defined in claim 7 wherein said linking
structure comprises a cylinder/piston assembly.
10. An apparatus as defined in claim 9 wherein said cylinder/piston
assembly is carried by an elevator.
11. An apparatus as defined in claim 9 wherein said cylinder/piston
assembly is mounted on said floor.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to the construction of wells
used to convey minerals to the surface of the earth from a
subsurface location. More particularly, the present invention
relates to an apparatus, system and method for securing power,
control and/or injection lines to the pipe that is installed in
wells to convey oil and gas and other minerals between the
subsurface location and the well surface.
PRIOR ART SETTING OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Oil and gas and other minerals produced by wells drilled
into the earth are conveyed through the well to the well surface by
a pipe string frequently referred to as a "production string". Some
wells, particularly those in offshore water locations, employ lines
secured along the external length of the production string to
monitor, regulate and stimulate the flow of the petroleum fluids
through the string. The control lines may be conduits that contain
a pressurized fluid that is used to regulate the opening or closing
of subsurface valves and other controls connected with the
production string. Control lines may also be electrical conductors
that are used to communicate power and information between
subsurface equipment and the well surface. Control lines may be
power lines, attached to the external surface of pipe strings, that
are used to power submersible electric pumps. The control lines may
also be injection lines that provide a conduit for injecting
treating fluids, solvents and other chemicals into the well
formation and/or into the fluids to be produced from the well.
[0003] The control lines are often covered with a protective
plastic coating and may be assembled in bundles of two or more
lines referred to as "flat packs". Such lines, whether coated or
uncoated, and whether single or bundled with other lines, as well
as other lines ancillary to the production of the well fluids, are
herein referred to, inclusively, as "control lines".
[0004] Control lines are clamped or otherwise secured to the
production tubing string as the tubing string is being assembled
and lowered into the well. The control lines can be damaged during
installation of the tubing if the control lines are caught between
the string and the pipe holding or pipe support equipment used to
suspend the tubing string from the rig floor.
[0005] The pipe support equipment is designed to engage and hold
the pipe by either frictional contact with the pipe body or by
providing a mechanical support device below a coupling or upset or
other radial projection on the string. The pipe holding equipment,
which usually rests on or in a rig floor, is "set" to contact the
external surface of the tubing string to support the string. The
mechanical support type device is often a tightly fitting collar
positioned below the radial projection provided by a coupling.
[0006] "Pipe slips" are a common pipe support mechanism used to
hold the pipe from the rig floor through fractional contact. The
pipe slips are typically constructed in several tapered,
wedge-shaped slip segments that are configured to be received
within a frustro-conical bowl positioned in, or upon, the rig
floor. The floor mounted pipe support mechanism containing the slip
segments is often referred to as a "spider".
[0007] Setting the slips about the pipe to suspend the pipe string
from the rig floor requires that the slip segments be lowered
axially into the bowl, forcing the segments radially inwardly
against the pipe string. The slip segments are provided with slip
dies having a pipe contact surface that produces a sufficiently
high coefficient of friction between the segments and the pipe to
wedge the string in the bowl. In operation, the weight of the pipe
string acts through the frictional contact surface with the dies to
pull the slip segments down into the conical bowl, increasing a
radially directed pipe holding force exerted by the slip segments
against the pipe to prevent the string from moving further
downwardly through the bowl.
[0008] A conventional procedure for clamping control lines onto a
production pipe string requires that the control lines, which
extend through the spider alongside the pipe, be manipulated away
from the contact area between the slip dies and the external
surface of the pipe when the slips are being set. Once the slips
have been set, additional pipe segments (joints) are added to the
production string. A movable overhead pipe support, which may be a
traveling block or top drive or the tool carried by such assemblies
herein referred to generally as an "elevator" then takes over the
support of the string and the spider slips are then retracted away
from the production pipe string. The control lines are then
manipulated against the production pipe string where they are
clamped to the pipe string with a clamp that typically encircles
the control lines and a coupling joining two sections of the pipe
string. Once the clamp is applied, the clamped control line and
pipe string are lowered through the rig floor until the top of the
string is at personnel working height above the floor. The control
lines are again manipulated out of the way and the slips are set.
The described procedure is repeated until the desired length of
pipe string has been installed in the well. Each time the sequence
is repeated, the control lines are exposed to crimping or other
mechanical damage caused by opening or setting the slips.
[0009] While damage may occur in many ways, it is estimated that
the most common cause of control line damage is caused by
accidentally setting the slips while the control line is
inadvertently positioned between the pipe and the slip dies. This
type accident can also occur when there is a miscommunication
between the person responsible for manipulating the control line
away from the contact area between the pipe and the unset slips and
the person controlling setting of the slips.
[0010] Another opportunity for damage results from the fact the
control lines, which may be extremely stiff and difficult to
maneuver, can be very difficult to manually hold in position. If
the control lines spring away from a protected position into a
pinch area of the setting slips, they will be cut or otherwise
damaged as the slips close.
[0011] Conventional installation of control lines requires
coordination of activity and communication between at least two
people to properly position the control line and set the slips in a
manner that precludes control line damage. Even where communication
and activity are coordinated, the control lever that regulates
closing of the slips may be inadvertently moved due to equipment
malfunction or other error before the control line has been
properly positioned within the slip assembly. The possibility for
damaging the control lines exists any time the control lines and
the movable parts of the slip assemblies are physically able to
engage each other.
[0012] Prior art techniques that manipulate the control line
through the relatively small gaps formed between segments in the
slips assembly require that the control lines be limited in cross
sectional dimensions and that they approach the slip assembly in a
direction coinciding with a gap between the slip segments. Access
to the slip assemblies imposed by the gap orientation and size can
be problematic when a large number of lines or large diameter lines
must be accommodated in the slips segment gaps.
[0013] Some prior art procedures use pipe holding devices with
built-in control line receiving recesses. One such procedure uses
one pipe opening of a dual slip bowl to hold the control lines
while the second opening holds the pipe. Any structure separating
the two bowls must be removed each time a line is clamped against
the pipe. Control line access is restricted in such systems to one
side of the pipe, similarly to those systems employing a single set
of conventional slips.
[0014] Damage to the control lines can require a time-consuming,
costly field repair or, even more undesirable, can require that the
pipe string be withdrawn from the well and rerun with replacement
control lines. These repair procedures can be extremely expensive,
particularly in the environment of deep-water offshore well
completions where rig costs can exceed $250,000 per day.
[0015] U.S. Pat. No. 6,131,664, assigned to the owner of the
present invention, describes a system, apparatus and method for
installing control lines in a well that preclude the possibility of
damage to the control lines during installation of a pipe string.
The invention of the patent provides for elevating the slips and
the personnel that assemble the pipe to a position above the rig
floor to permit the control lines to be secured to the pipe string
below the elevated slips. The control lines may thus be supplied to
the pipe string without first passing through the slips holding the
pipe. Because the control lines do not extend through the slips
used to support the pipe string, the possibility of slip-caused
damage is completely eliminated. In this prior art procedure, the
slip assembly used to support the pipe and the equipment used to
handle the control lines never simultaneously occupy the same
physical space. When the installation procedure is such that the
control lines and the pipe support slips may simultaneously occupy
the same physical space, the control lines are at risk of being
crimped or otherwise damaged each time the slips are set against
the pipe.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0016] Control lines extend vertically through lateral spaces found
between a rig floor and a pipe holding assembly supported on the
rig floor. The pipe holding assembly is raised off of the floor by
the traveling block or top drive ("elevator") to allow the control
lines to be clamped to the pipe below the pipe holding
assembly.
[0017] In one method of the invention, after a joint of pipe is
screwed into the coupling at the top of the string, the string
weight is taken by the rig elevator and the floor mounted pipe
holder (spider) is opened to permit the newly added joint to be
lowered into the well. Control lines connected to the outside of
the string, extend to supply reels on the rig floor through the
lateral openings between the pipe holder and the floor, and are fed
into the well alongside the lowering pipe string. When the elevator
has been lowered to personnel work height above the spider, the
spider is attached to the elevator. The elevator direction is then
reversed to lift the spider off the floor and to raise the attached
string and spider until the coupling that received the newly added
joint is at a convenient working height above the rig floor. Rig
floor personnel apply a clamp around the coupling to secure the
control lines to the pipe string. The spider is then lowered back
to rest on the floor where it is activated to support the string.
The elevator releases the string and the spider and is elevated
into the derrick in preparation to the addition of more pipe to the
string. Another joint of pipe is screwed into the coupling at the
top of the string and the previously described process is repeated
until the entire string with attached control lines has been
lowered into the well.
[0018] The present invention permits the control lines to be
secured to the outside of the production tubing without exposure to
crimping or damage caused by closing pipe slips.
[0019] The present invention allows rig floor access for applying a
clamp to a pipe coupling without requiring that the clamp
subsequently pass through the pipe holding equipment.
[0020] The system, method and apparatus of the present invention
allow a control line to extend directly from a supply reel to a
string of well pipe being run into a well without first passing
through the pipe holding device used to support the pipe
string.
[0021] Another advantage of the present invention is that one or
more control lines can be secured to a pipe string with a clamp
that is larger than can be passed through the central opening of
the pipe holding device.
[0022] Yet another feature of the present invention is that the
control lines may be clamped to a pipe string while the rig floor
is free of control line handling equipment in the area adjacent the
rig floor opening.
[0023] An important feature of the present invention is that the
control lines may be safely installed without the need for
elaborate and expensive control line running equipment that must be
positioned over the floor opening or above the rig floor.
[0024] The present invention permits the installation of control
lines against a pipe string without any danger of slip-caused
damage and without need to extensively modify the pipe handling
equipment used to run and support the pipe string.
[0025] The system, method and apparatus of the present invention
permit the safe and efficient clamping of control lines to a pipe
string without requiring that personnel be elevated above the rig
floor.
[0026] The foregoing features, objectives and advantages of the
present invention, as well as others, will be better understood and
more fully appreciated by reference to the following drawings,
specification and claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0027] FIG. 1 is a vertical elevation, partially in section,
illustrating an offshore well being completed with a control line
clamped to the outside of a pipe string;
[0028] FIG. 2 is a detailed vertical elevation, partially in
section illustrating a prior art process in which a control line is
clamped to a pipe string being lowered into a well from a drilling
rig floor;
[0029] FIG. 3 is a vertical elevation, partially in cross section,
illustrating a prior art slip assembly supporting a pipe string
with a control line extending through the set slip assembly;
[0030] FIG. 4 is a plan view, partially in section, taken along the
line 4-4 of FIG. 3;
[0031] FIG. 5 is a vertical elevation, partially in cross section,
illustrating the prior art slip assembly of FIG. 3 with a control
line at risk of being crimped between the pipe and the pipe contact
surface of the unset slip segments;
[0032] FIG. 6 is a plan view, partially in section, taken along
line 6-6 of FIG. 5;
[0033] FIG. 7 is an elevation, partially in cross section,
illustrating the present invention as employed to clamp two control
lines to a pipe string;
[0034] FIG. 8 is an elevation, partially in cross section,
illustrating details in a control line feed guide of the present
invention supplying a control line to a pipe string below a rig
floor;
[0035] FIG. 9 is an elevation, partially in cross section,
illustrating the present invention retaining a pipe string from the
rig floor in preparation to the addition of a new joint to the pipe
string;
[0036] FIG. 10 is a plan view of a pipe holding assembly of the
present invention;
[0037] FIG. 11 is a bottom view of the pipe holding assembly of
FIG. 10; and
[0038] FIG. 12 is a plan view, partially in cross section,
illustrating a modified form of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS
[0039] FIG. 1 of the drawings illustrates a drill ship 10
completing an offshore well 11 by installing a production tubing
string 12 into the well. A control line 13, clamped to the
production tubing string 12, extends with the production string
down to the well 11 through a drilling rig floor 14 of the ship 10.
A drilling rig mast 15 extending above the rig floor is used to
raise and lower the string 12 with a vertically movable elevator 16
supported from a traveling block or top drive.
[0040] The procedure for installing the production string 12 and
control line 13 into the well 11 requires that the string 12
initially be supported from the rig floor 14 while the string is
lengthened by the addition of pipe sections. Once the pipe sections
have been added into the string, the pipe string support is
transferred from the floor 14 to the elevator 16 and then is
lowered into the well. The manipulation of the pipe support
mechanism or structure used to support the string 12 from the rig
floor 14 is responsible for a large percentage of the damage done
to the control line 13 during installation of the production
tubing. The damage typically occurs when the control line is
pinched between the tubing string and the pipe support structure
used to support the string from the rig floor.
[0041] FIG. 2 of the drawings illustrates a conventional prior art
completion technique in which a control line 17 is secured with a
clamp 18 to a production tubing string 19 above a rig floor 20.
During the installation process, the control line 17, clamp 18 and
production tubing 19 are received within and are lowered through a
pipe support structure 21 supported by the rig floor 20. The prior
art process requires that the control line extend through the same
structure 21 used to support the pipe string 19 on the rig floor.
When the control line and the pipe support mechanism occupy the
same space at the same time, an opportunity arises for crimping the
control line with the pipe support equipment.
[0042] FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 illustrate a convention slip assembly
(spider), indicated generally at 23, used to support a pipe string
24 from a rig floor 25. The slip assembly 23 is illustrated resting
on the rig floor 25, centrally positioned about a rig floor opening
26. Slip segments 27 are illustrated received within a
frustro-conical bowl 29 in gripping engagement with the pipe string
24. The slip assembly 23 operates conventionally to exert a radial
gripping force against the pipe string 24 that holds the string
stationary and prevents it from falling through the rig floor. The
gripping force is created by the wedging action of the tapered slip
segments 27 being pulled downwardly into the frustro-conical bowl.
The downward pull on the tapered slip segments is produced by the
weight of the tubing string acting through the fictional engagement
of the slip segments with the pipe string.
[0043] With joint reference to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, the conventional
method for clamping a control line 29 to the pipe string 24
requires that the control line be positioned in a gap 30 between
the set slip segments 27. The slip segments, which are lowered into
engagement with the pipe through operation of fluid powered
cylinders 31, are operated from a control console that is typically
located a few feet away from the slip assembly 23. The person
manipulating the console controls must usually rely on a signal
from a person positioning the control line in the gap 30. Mistakes
made during this communication process can lead to setting or
closing of the slips segments when the control line is not in the
gap 30. FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate the control line 29 being
positioned between a slip segment 27 and the pipe 24. If the slips
23 are set with the control line in the contact area between the
pipe 24 and the slip segment 27, the line may be cut, crimped or
otherwise seriously damaged.
[0044] The system, method and apparatus of the present invention
are indicated generally at 50 in FIG. 7. A pipe string, indicated
generally 52, is illustrated extending through a rotary opening 54
in a rig floor 56 into a well 58. It will be understood that where
the well is an offshore well, the floor 56 will be part of a
drilling structure such as a buoyant drilling vessel or a jack up
rig or a permanent platform structure supported from the water
bottom. The well 58 will be understood to be the top of a blowout
preventer stack, a riser or conductor pipe, or other tubular
assembly that extends downwardly into a bore formed in the
earth.
[0045] Two control lines 60 and 62 extend respectively from supply
reels 64 and 66 resting on the rig floor 56. The structure and
operation of the present invention as used in the installation of
the two lines 60 and 62 is similar and the following detailed
description will be made primarily with reference to the
installation of only the line 62. The line 62 extends from the reel
66 to a control line feed guide indicated generally at 70. The
guide 70 redirects the control line 62 coming from the reel 66
through the base of a pipe holding assembly, indicated generally at
74, toward alignment with the outside of the pipe string 52.
[0046] The pipe string 52 is illustrated suspended by a set of
elevator's 76 that in turn is supported by elevator bales 78 and
80. The elevator bales are suspended from a traveling block or top
drive (not illustrated) of the rig.
[0047] A control line clamp 82 extends around the pipe string 52
over a coupling 52a to secure the lines 60 and 62 firmly against
the pipe string 52. The coupling 50 connects together the threaded
lower end of a pipe joint 52b with the threaded upper end of a pipe
joint 52c. It will be understood that the string 52 is formed by
multiple such joint connections. In a preferred application, a
clamp 82 is applied to each such connection in the pipe string to
secure the control lines 60 and 62 along the entire string
length.
[0048] FIG. 8 illustrates the apparatus of the present invention
with the pipe holding assembly 74 resting on the rig floor 56 and
having its base extending through the floor opening 54. Only a
single feed guide 70 is illustrated in FIG. 8. It will be
understood that additional feed guides such as the guide 70 may be
connected with the pipe holding assembly 74 as desired to
accommodate multiple lines approaching the pipe string 52 from two
or more directions. The pipe holding assembly 74 is illustrated
connected to the elevator 76 by links 84 and 86. The links 84 and
86 may take the form of steel cables or other suitable linking
devices that preferably permit limited relative movement between
the elevator and the pipe holding assembly 74 after the links have
connected the two components. By way of example rather than
limitation, the links may be lengths of chain, metal bars with
bending or sliding connections, piston-cylinder devices or other
suitable means. One end of each of the links 84 and 86 may be
provided with a hook or other suitable quick connect/quick release
attachment device to facilitate the engagement and release of the
connection between the elevator and the spider. Automatic systems
for remotely engaging or releasing the connection between the
elevator and spider may also be employed. The links 84 and 86
combined with the lifting motion provided by the traveling block or
top drive may be considered one form of a linking structure.
[0049] The feed guide 70 is equipped with plastic rollers 88, 90,
92 and 94 mounted on a flat, flexible spring arm 100. The arm 100
may be constructed of steel or other suitable material. The lower
portion of the spring arm 100 is welded or otherwise suitably
affixed to the pipe holding assembly 74. Each of the rollers is
mounted on a removable, central steel axel pin, such as a pin 102
in the roller 92, between standoffs secured to the spring arm
100.
[0050] The feed guide 70 forms a resilient, confined passage
defined by the rollers, standoffs and the spring arm to direct the
travel path and bending radius of the control line 60. A specially
configured guide plate 103 is formed at the base of the spring arm
100 to protect the control line from abrasion caused by contact
with the surrounding components of the pipe holding assembly 74 and
rig floor 56.
[0051] FIG. 9 illustrates the pipe holding assembly 74 in a
preliminary phase of the control line installation operation
supporting the pipe string 52 from the rig floor 56. The elevator
(not visible) has been detached from the assembly 74 and raised
into the derrick in anticipation of the addition of the joint 52b
to the joint 52c in the top of the string 52.
[0052] With joint reference to FIGS. 9, 10 and 11, the pipe holding
assembly 74 is seen to include primary lifting pad eyes 106 and 108
used for attachment to the elevator. Auxiliary pad eyes such as a
pad eye 110 may be positioned at desired circumferential points
about the assembly 74 to permit the assembly to be rotated relative
to the elevator to any orientation on the rig floor. This
flexibility enables the control line feed guides of the pipe
holding assembly to be oriented as desired to best receive lines
from the supply line reels.
[0053] The assembly 74 has a base plate 111 having lateral
dimensions that exceed those of the floor opening 54 to permit the
assembly to rest over the floor opening. Centering guide plates
112, 114, 116, 118, 120 and 122 extend from the base of the pipe
holding assembly 74. The guide plates have inclined, centrally
directed surfaces, such as 118a, to center the assembly in the
rotary opening as the assembly is being lowered back into position
on the floor. Plate surfaces 118b prevent lateral movement of the
assembly when it is resting over the floor opening.
[0054] The assembly 74 includes a spider section 123 having slip
segments 124, 126, 128 and 130 that are movable into and out of
holding engagement with the pipe to selectively hold or release the
pipe for vertical movement relative to the pipe holding assembly
74. A removable gate 132 permits the spider section to be removed
latterly from surrounding relationship with the pipe string. The
baseplate 111, which is a bolted or otherwise removably secured to
the spider section 123, is provided with a slot 134 that extends
from the outside edge of the plate to a central opening 136 in the
plate to permit the baseplate to be removed latterly from
surrounding relationship with the pipe string. The slot 134 and a
symmetrically disposed recess 136 on the opposite end of the plate
provide openings for entry of the control lines into the area below
the pipe holding assembly to provide access to the pipe string.
[0055] In operation, with initial reference to FIG. 9, adding a
pipe joint 52b to the string's uppermost joint 52c lengthens a
string of pipe 52 supported from the floor 54 of a rig. The pipe
joint 52b is screwed into a coupling 52d at the top of the joint
52c with hydraulic power tongs T, in a customary fashion. Once the
joint 52b is made up into the top of the pipe string, the elevator
76 is latched about the top end of the joint 52b and raised
slightly to raise the string 52, allowing the pipe holding assembly
74 to release the pipe string.
[0056] With the pipe holding assembly 74 open so that it is no
longer engaging the pipe, the elevator and attached string are
lowered into the position illustrated in FIG. 8. During this
lowering process, the control line 62, which is already attached to
the pipe string 52, spools off of the reel 66 as it follows the
lowering pipe string. As the control line feeds off the reel, the
feed guide 70 directs the control line position and path of
movement to prevent abrasion or over bending and to maintain the
control lines adjacent the pipe string.
[0057] With the elevator 76 near the pipe holding assembly 74, the
flexible links 84 and 86 are connected to the pipe holding assembly
74. The elevator is lowered toward the pipe holding assembly 74
until the links 84 and 86 become slack and the elevator is set to
engage the pipe. The elevator is then raised to take over the
string support from the pipe support assembly 74. The slack
connection between the elevator and pipe holding assembly permits
sufficient relative motion between the elevator and pipe holding
assembly to permit the elevator to set and lift the string 52
before the slack is removed from the links. The pipe holding
assembly slips may be opened after the pipe is supported in the
elevator 76 to permit the elevator to be raised so that the pipe
holding assembly is lifted from the floor and suspended from the
flexible links 84 and 86.
[0058] Once the pipe holding assembly 74 is suspended from the
flexible links 84 and 86, the spider slips are closed so that the
assembly 74 remains fixed relative to the pipe string 52. By thus
engaging the pipe holding assembly with the pipe, the assembly is
prevented from shifting off center in response to the sidewise
forces imposed through the guide 70.
[0059] From the position illustrated in FIG. 8, the elevator 76 and
attached pipe string 52 and pipe holding assembly 74 are raised to
the position illustrated in FIG. 7. During this raising process,
the control line 62 is spooled off of the reel as it follows the
rising string. While the line 62 is feeding off the reel to follow
the rising pipe, it does not travel through the guide 70. The
spring action of the guide 70 and the confined path formed by the
arm 100 and the guide rollers prevent the line 62 from bending too
sharply during the string raising process.
[0060] With the pipe string in the position illustrated in FIG. 7,
the clamp 82 is placed around the pipe string coupling 52a and the
control line 62 and bolted or otherwise secured in place. The
elevator 76 and attached string 52 and pipe holding assembly 74 are
then lowered back to the position illustrated in FIG. 8. When the
pipe holding assembly 74 is properly positioned within the floor
opening 54 and resting on the floor 56, the spider slip segments
124, 126, 128 and 130 are moved into position against the pipe and
the string is then lowered slightly to cause the slips to firmly
set against the pipe. Once the pipe holding assembly 74 supports
the weight of the string 52, the flexible links 84 and 86 are
released from the pipe holding assembly to permit the elevator to
release the pipe and be returned up into the derrick. Thereafter
the previously described process may be repeated to add another
joint of pipe to the string and to clamp control lines to the added
pipe.
[0061] If desired, two or more joints of pipe may be added to the
string before the string is raised back up into the derrick to
permit two or more clamps to be applied to the couplings without
intermediate raising and lowering steps.
[0062] If it becomes necessary to remove the pipe holding assembly
54 from the pipe string 52 without lifting the assembly over the
top of the pipe string, the spider section 123 is unbolted or
otherwise released from the base plate 111. The gate 132 is then
removed to allow the spider section to be pulled latterly away from
the pipe 52. The plate 111 may then be latterly removed by pulling
the plate away so that the pipe passes through the plate slot 134.
The guide 70 is released from the control line 62 by removing the
rollers 88, 90, 92 and 94. Placement of the assembly 74 about the
pipe string is accomplished by reversing the previously described
procedure.
[0063] FIG. 12 illustrates a modified form of the invention,
indicated generally at 150. The construction and operation of the
embodiment of FIG. 12 is similar to that described with reference
to FIGS. 7 through 11. Similar or corresponding components bear the
same reference characters in the drawings. The embodiment 150
includes an insert bowl 152 disposed in a conventional rotary
bushing 154. The bushing 154 is set in the floor 56 of the rig.
[0064] The insert bowl 152 has been provided with recesses 158 and
160 that increase the opening into the area between the pipe
holding assembly and the floor 56. Suitable feed guides such as the
feed guide 70 may be connected with the assembly 74 as previously
described to assist in protecting and directing movement of the
control lines into the area below the assembly 74.
[0065] The insert bowl 152 may be a conventional, American
Petroleum Institute (API) insert bowl. A preferred form of the
invention employs a conventional API split insert bowl that is
received within a conventional rotary bushing in a drilling rig
floor. In addition to providing additional space for entry of the
control lines, the API bowl can accept standard API slip assemblies
that may be used to support the pipe string, if necessary, during
the installation of the control lines.
[0066] While certain preferred embodiments of the present invention
have been described herein in detail, it will be appreciated that
various changes in the function, construction and operation of the
invention may be made without departing from the scope and spirit
of such invention. By way of example rather than limitation, while
the invention has been described for use on a rig floor, it may
equally well be used on any structure designed to selectively
support and move a pipe string that is being installed in a
location below a support surface of the structure. In such an
application, the support structure would correspond to the rig
floor referred to in the description of the invention. Thus, as
used herein, the term "floor" is intended to include any support
structure used to support the pipe holding device while the weight
of the string is being carried by such pipe holding device. Other
modifications include the use of the invention with the spider
being "flush mounted" so that the top of the spider is at about the
same level as the floor. Similarly, while the device used to impart
vertical movement to the string has been identified as a traveling
block or top drive, other suitable mechanisms such as the traveling
head of a snubber or other device may be employed without departing
from the invention. It will also be understood that the term
"drilling rig" or "rig" is not intended to be limited to a
conventional drilling or completion rig having a mast, floor,
rotary table, traveling block or top drive. Rather, the term "rig"
is intended to encompass any structure having the capability of
installing and/or retrieving a tubular body into or from a location
below the structure. Further by way of illustration, while the
present invention has at times been described with reference to a
"production pipe string" or a "production tubing string", the
invention has applicability to any string of pipe being installed
below a support structure.
[0067] A modified form of the invention may employ a liking
structure comprising an extendable/retractable fluid rod/cylinder
assembly to raise or lower the spider which the elevator remains
stationary. In such a modification, the rod/cylinder assemblies are
carried by the elevator and are attached to the spider when
actuated to retract, the assemblies raise the open spider above the
coupling of the just added pipe section to permit the control lines
to be clamped to the pipe. Extension of the rod/cylinder assembly
places the spider back on the floor where it may be released from
the two assemblies, permitting the two assemblies to retract to
permit lowering of the attached pipe string. The spider is
thereafter closed on the pipe to support the string and the next
pipe section is added. The described process is repeated as pipe is
added to the string. In similar fashion, rod/cylinder assemblies
mounted on the rig floor may act as the linking structures to raise
and lower the spider as required to provide access below the spider
for clamping control lines.
[0068] The foregoing disclosure and description of the invention is
illustrative and explanatory thereof, and it will appreciated by
those skilled in the art, that various changes in the operation,
location, and architecture as well as in the details of the
illustrated embodiments or combinations of features of the
elements/steps may be made without departing from the spirit of the
invention.
* * * * *