Drilling automation
Current classifications often do not capture the complexity of autonomy in drilling systems. By integrating concepts from aerospace, control theory, and other high-risk industries, this study presents a quantitative framework for systematically assessing and comparing levels of drilling autonomy.
Winners of Alberta's Drilling Technology Challenge cover a range of technologies from robotics to enhance drilling rig safety to AI-enabled energy management, downhole sensing, well navigation, hybrid power systems, and geothermal energy.
The company said that its AD-300, a 50-m-high automated island drilling rig that walks between wells, was delivered 3 months ahead of schedule.
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An intelligent drilling optimization application performs as an adaptive autodriller. In the Marcellus Shale, ROP improved 61% and 39% and drilling performance, measured as hours on bottom, improved 25%. -
A real-time deep-learning model is proposed to classify the volume of cuttings from a shale shaker on an offshore drilling rig by analyzing the real-time monitoring video stream.
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The best way to know how drilling affects drill bits is to visualize the bits. A device that creates high-resolution images for precise measurements is one of three technologies being featured in a JPT series on drilling measurement innovations.
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A group of people who really care how drillers code the memos added to the daily drilling report is the data scientists—who find that the coded tags do not match the activity. A program that helps drillers code is one of three technologies featured in a JPT series on drilling measurement innovation.
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ExxonMobil’s rig automation experiment is accelerating, with plans to push the number of rigs in the system from three to nine. Drilling efficiency was improved by use of an automated pipe-handling system, which reduced the median time required for connection at one location by 20%.
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Engineering career tip of the day: If you are using Microsoft Excel at work, don’t leave it open on your computer when your boss is nearby.
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Drilling rig automation is increasing as the industry realizes its benefits. What about downhole automation of the drilling process, specifically directional drilling? What problems might it solve and what opportunities might it create? The opportunity is huge, if only we look in the right place.
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This paper shows how high-frequency, real-time drilling data from wired drillpipe has helped optimization of drilling performance and achievement of additional improvements in the New Mexico Delaware Basin.
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This paper describes how new technology was implemented and deployed through a downhole acoustic network through a sequence of runs in complex North Sea wells under managed-pressure conditions.
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Hess is testing whether it can drive drilling improvement by combining drilling rigs equipped with automated functions and humans determined to find a way to beat the programmed drilling.
