Oil States Industries Limited

Eric Luke

Danton Gutierrez-Lemini

James G Patrick

Walter Billiot

Chris Chiasson

Joseph Angeron

A flexible pipe joint has a body and an annular elastomeric flexible element flexibly coupling an extension pipe to the body and operable to pivot the extension pipe with respect to the body. The flexible pipe joint also has an annular flexible boot operable to thermally or chemically insulating the annular elastomeric flexible element from the fluid flowing through a lumen of the flexible pipe joint. The annular flexible boot encircles the lumen, and the annular flexible boot has a first annular end attached to the extension pipe and a second annular end mounted so that pivoting of the extension pipe with respect to the body causes a flexing of the annular flexible boot, and a majority of the annular flexible boot has a shape conforming to shape of neighboring components of the flexible pipe joint.

Flexible pipe joint having an annular flexible boot thermally or chemically insulating an annular elastomeric flexible element

A flexible pipe joint has a body and an annular elastomeric flexible element flexibly coupling an extension pipe to the body for pivoting of the extension pipe with respect to the body. The flexible pipe joint also has an annular flexible boot for thermally or chemically insulating the annular elastomeric flexible element from the fluid flowing through a lumen of the flexible pipe joint. The annular flexible boot encircles the lumen, and the annular flexible boot has a first annular end attached to the extension pipe and a second annular end mounted so that pivoting of the extension pipe with respect to the body causes a flexing of the annular flexible boot, and a majority of the annular flexible boot has a shape conforming to shape of neighboring components of the flexible pipe joint.

In view of the above, there has been described a load compensator including one or more tension spring assemblies that are contained within a tubular housing when tension from a load is applied to the tension spring assemblies. When the load compensator includes more than one tension spring assembly, the tension spring assemblies are mechanically connected to each other in series and stacked in-line with each other in the housing. In a preferred construction, each of the tension spring assemblies includes elastomeric tension elements mounted between two disks, and the tubular housing includes a tube having threaded ends and caps that screw onto the tube.

Load compensator having tension spring assemblies contained in a tubular housing

For load compensation, different kinds of elastomeric load compensators are placed at various locations on the crane for increased flexibility and for shock and vibration absorption. The elastomeric load compensators employ elastomeric tension elements, elastomeric torsion elements, or elastomeric shear elements. Elastomeric tension elements can be simply inserted in series with the main hoist rope. An elastomeric load compensator employing elastomeric torsion elements is mounted to the underside of the boom for receiving the live end of the main hoist rope. A single stack of elastomeric shear elements is suitable for mounting a hoist or winch or an idler sheave to the crane structure. For additional load compensation, the hoist, winch, and idler sheaves are mounted on rails for increased displacements under heave loads, and the increased displacements are compensated by elongated elastomeric tension elements or multiple elastomeric tension, torsion or shear elements in series.

Elastomeric load compensators for load compensation of cranes

A telescopic joint for a marine drilling riser has an outer barrel and an inner barrel defining a central lumen for passage of a drill pipe string. The inner barrel is received within the outer barrel, and there is a clearance fit between the barrels for sliding of the inner barrel with respect to the outer barrel while maintaining a coaxial relationship between the barrels. A tubular rolling elastomeric membrane is disposed within the outer barrel and has one end secured to an outer circumference of the inner barrel and another end secured to an inner circumference of the outer barrel for sealing drilling fluid within the central lumen. As the inner barrel slides with respect to the outer barrel, the elastomeric membrane rolls with respect to the inner barrel and the outer barrel so that wear of the seal due to abrasion is eliminated.

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Hurst, TX, United States of America

Eric Luke