Vetco Gray Inc.

Other

Baker Hughes Energy Technology UK Limited

Daniel Caleb Benson

David Lawrence Ford

Thomas Lowell Steen

Stephen David Peters

Joseph W Pallini

Chad Yates

Aniruddha Gadre

Jeffrey Allen Raynal

Mayur Mansukh

Daniel Ralph Barnhart

John Edward Nelson

Nicholas Peter Gette

Thomas A Fraser

Kevin Edward O'Dell

William Rey Patterson, Jr

Philip John Potter

Chau Hoang

Christopher Loftin

Carlos Eduardo Martins Gaban

Hugo Ferreira Lopes

Leonard Landriault

Maurian Paula Pessanha

Guaraci Vendrame Bornia

Philip J Potter

Aaron J Andersen Shaw

Joseph William Pallini

William Rey Patterson Jr

A wellbore system includes a running tool and a cartridge. The running tool includes a slot extending radially into the running tool and a load shoulder. The cartridge is configured to couple to the running tool and circumferentially surrounds the running tool about a tool axis. The cartridge includes an opening extending radially into the cartridge, a coupling slot arranged along an outer profile of the cartridge, and a contact face. The cartridge is positioned on the load shoulder such that the load shoulder blocks axial downward movement of the cartridge along the tool axis and the cartridge is coupled to the running tool via one or more keys extending into both the opening and the slot.

Running tool cartridge system and method

An annular seal for sealing an interface between a wellhead housing and a casing hanger. The annular seal includes a central body portion and a first pair of seal legs extending in a first direction from the central body portion. Each of the first pair of seal legs sealingly engages one of the wellhead housing or the casing hanger, and are further energized by bore pressure. The annular seal also includes a second pair of seal legs extending in a second direction from the central body portion. Each of the second pair of seal legs sealingly engages one of the wellhead housing or the casing hanger, and is further energized by annulus pressure.

Wellhead seal with pressure energizing from below

A wellhead assembly includes a tubular wellhead housing having a bore and an annular gallery slot. The annular gallery slot is defined by an enlarged inner diameter of the bore. A tubular hanger is selectively landed in the bore of the wellhead housing, defining an annular cavity between the bore and an outer diameter of the tubular hanger. The tubular hanger is supported by the wellhead housing with a hanger support located in the annular cavity. A flow-by passage is in fluid communication with the annular cavity at locations above and below the hanger support. The flow-by passage intersects with the gallery slot and intersects an outer radial surface of the tubular hanger.

Flow-by holes with gallery and channel arrangement on wellhead and tubular hanger

A wellhead assembly having an insert that is disposed between a wellhead housing and casing hanger. Axial slots through the insert define a flow path between the wellhead housing and casing hanger. The insert is made from a higher strength material and supports a load exerted between the casing hanger and wellhead housing. The insert is a ring like member, and the slots can more easily be machined in the insert than in the wellhead housing.

Insert for use with wellhead housing having flow-by path

A key assembly is press fit into an annular space between a box and pin member to resist relative rotation of the box and pin members. The key assembly includes wedge like members that contact one another along complementary tapered surfaces, and when in contact generate radial forces into the box and pin member to secure the connection between the box and pin. The outer wedge is inserted first into the annular space between the box and pin members, and has rows of elongate teeth that project radially outward into contact with an inner surface of the box member. Because the outer wedge is pushed radially outward against the box member rather than axially sliding therebetween, the teeth protrude into the surface of the box member thereby increasing the anti-rotation force created by the outer wedge.

Anti-rotation wedge

A wellhead assembly includes an outer tubular wellhead member and an inner tubular wellhead member with a seal pocket between them. A seal ring is located in the seal pocket. An annular energizing ring urges the seal ring into sealing engagement with the outer tubular wellhead member and the inner tubular wellhead member. A recess is located on an outer diameter of the annular energizing ring or a radially inner diameter of the seal ring, and a ratcheted retainer is on the other. A ratchet clip with a clip profile is located within the recess. The recess and the ratchet clip extend less than a full circumferential distance around the outer diameter of the annular energizing ring or the radially inner diameter of the seal ring. A retainer profile on the ratcheted retainer selectively engages with the clip profile of the ratchet clip.

Ratcheted E-ring retention device

A pipe connection includes a pin having external threads and a box having internal threads. A circumferentially extending row of pin teeth are located on an exterior portion of the pin. A slot extends through a side wall of the box. A key is carried in the slot, the key having a row of key teeth that mate with the pin teeth. The key is mounted to the box such that a movable portion of the key is radially movable relative to the box between radially outward and radially inward positions. The key is biased toward the inward position, so that the key teeth ratchet on the pin teeth during make-up of the pin and the box. The key and pin teeth have a saw-tooth configuration to resist unscrewing rotation of the pin and the box. The key may be an integral part of the side wall of the box or a separate component.

Ratcheting anti-rotation lock for threaded connectors

A wear bushing assembly protects and locks down a hanger in a wellhead housing; and which includes a wear bushing body that inserts into a wear bushing sleeve. A lock ring extends into registered recesses on the body and sleeve to couple together the body and sleeve. The wellhead housing has a profiled recess circumscribing its inner surface. A lockdown ring selectively mates with the profiled recess; and when mated is in interfering contact with an upper surface of the wear bushing sleeve, thereby coupling the sleeve to the wellhead housing. The sleeve outer surface is profiled to interfere with upward movement of the hanger, so that force is transferred from the hanger to the housing through the sleeve which locks down the housing.

Wear bushing with hanger lockdown

An anti-rotation system for use in retaining a threaded connection between a pin and a box. The anti-rotation system includes a key that sets in a recess formed in one of the box or pin. The key is selectively in contact with one of the other of the box or pin, and is activated when the threaded connection begins to decouple. The key is profiled and operates in a cam like fashion to wedge itself between the box and pin when these members begin to decouple and prevents further relative rotation.

Anti-rotation system for box and pin connection

A seal for sealing an annulus between an outer tubular wellhead member and an inner tubular wellhead member is described. The seal is an annular sealing ring that has a plurality of circumferentially spaced apart sealing ring grooves extending at least from a first end to a second end of the sealing surface of at least one of the wellhead members. When the seal is energized, fouling on the sealing surface is urged toward and then through the slot, axially away from the sealing surface.

Slotted metal seal

A seal seals an annulus in a subsea assembly between a wellhead and a casing hanger landed on a shoulder within a bore of the wellhead. The seal includes a casing hanger seal ring disposed within the annulus. The seal ring engaged with an inner diameter surface of the wellhead, and engaged with an outer diameter surface of the casing hanger so that the seal ring prevents flow through the annulus. A nose ring is secured to a lower end of the seal ring so that, when the seal ring is energized, a conical surface of the nose ring engages a mating conical profile formed in the inner diameter surface portion of the wellhead and the nose ring engages a surface opposite the conical surface with a substantially smooth outer diameter surface portion of the casing hanger to limit upwards axial movement of the casing hanger.

Casing hanger lockdown with conical lockdown ring

A wellbore assembly includes a housing member, an outer wellbore member, and a second wellbore member, with an outer sensor located in the annulus between the outer wellbore member and the second wellbore member. The outer sensor can sense a condition of the annulus, such as pressure or temperature, and transmit data through a solid portion of the sidewall of the outer wellbore member to a signal receiver located on the housing member. In one embodiment, the signal receiver can transmit an electromagnetic field to inductively charge a power supply on the outer sensor.

Subsea multiple annulus sensor

A seal assembly between a wellhead housing having a bore and a casing hanger, has an inner seal leg for sealing against a hanger and an outer seal leg for sealing against the housing. A bellows style portion is formed on a nose ring carried by the seal assembly to increase lockdown capacity. The bellows style portion has an inner surface that faces an outer profile of the hanger, and an outer surface that faces the bore of the housing. Inner and outer lock rings are disposed on the bellows style portion. When the bellows style portion is axially collapsed, it radially expands into the bore of the housing and the outer profile of the hanger, and urges the inner and outer lock rings into engagement with the outer profile of the hanger and the bore of the housing.

Seal with bellows style nose ring and radially drivable lock rings

A seal seals an annulus in a subsea assembly between a wellhead and a casing hanger landed on a shoulder within a bore of the wellhead. The seal includes a casing hanger seal ring disposed within the annulus. The seal ring engaged with an inner diameter surface of the wellhead, and engaged with an outer diameter surface of the casing hanger so that the seal ring prevents flow through the annulus. A lockdown slip ring is secured to a lower end of the seal ring so that, when the seal ring is energized, the lockdown slip ring engages a substantially smooth inner diameter surface portion of the wellhead and a substantially smooth outer diameter surface portion of the casing hanger to limit upwards axial movement of the casing hanger.

Casing hanger lockdown slip ring

A seal assembly between a wellhead housing having a bore and a casing hanger, has an inner seal leg for sealing against hanger and an outer seal leg for sealing against housing. An extension extends downward from outer seal leg and has a downward facing shoulder that rests on an upward facing shoulder formed on a nose ring. Connection connects seal ring to the nose ring with a lower portion of the nose ring resting on the upward facing shoulder of the casing hanger. Bellows are formed on the nose ring to increase lockdown capacity. Bellows have an inner surface that faces an outer profile of the hanger, and an outer surface on the bellow that faces the bore of the housing. When the bellows are axially collapsed, they expand radially outward and contract radially inward into the bore of the housing and the outer profile of the hanger.

Growing community of inventors

Houston, TX, United States of America

Daniel Caleb Benson