Amoco Corporation

Sidewinder Joint Venture

Sidewinder Tool Joint Venture

Michael B Burton

Warren J Winters

Tommy M Warren

J Ford Brett

Apparatus and method for deflecting the drilling direction of a rotary drill string and drill bit through a borehole wall include an anchor, a housing, and a chute. The anchor anchors the apparatus in the borehole. The housing is connectable to the anchor and has an uphole end, a downhole end, a sidewall extending between the uphole end and the downhole end, and a passageway extending through the housing. The passageway has an entrance through the uphole end of the housing and an exit through the sidewall of the housing. The chute is slidably disposed in the housing passageway and has an uphole end, a downhole end, a sidewall extending between the uphole end and the downhole end, and a passageway extending through the chute from the uphole end through the downhole end. The chute passageway passes the drill bit and drill string through the chute. The chute is movable between a retracted position in which the chute is retracted into the housing passageway and an extended position in which the chute is extended through the housing passageway exit to the borehole wall. The apparatus is inserted into a borehole and anchored, the chute is released to extend into contact with the borehole wall, and the drill bit and drill string are deflectingly passed through the chute.

Apparatus for deflecting a drill string

Apparatus and method for orienting a collar on a fluid conducting conduit, such as a drill string, includes an orifice through the wall of the conduit and a latch assembly for latching the collar to the conduit. The latch assembly allows fluid communication through the orifice and rotates the collar when the conduit is rotated in a first direction about the longitudinal axis of the conduit. The latch assembly unlatches the collar from the conduit, prevents fluid communication through the orifice, and allows the conduit to rotate relative to the collar when the conduit is rotated ion a second, opposite direction. Also included are apparatus and method for rotationally orienting a fluid conducting conduit including an insert connectable inside the conduit so that the insert is rotatable with the conduit; a flow passageway extending through the insert; a pilot passageway extending through the insert; a piston bore in the insert; a piston, reciprocably mounted in the piston bore, for reciprocating between the ends of the piston bore, the piston restricting flow through the flow passageway and creating a fluid pressure increase on the upstream side of the insert when the piston is in a restricted position in the piston bore; and a barrier mass for blocking the pilot passageway in a selected rotational position of the pilot passageway and conduit in order to increase the fluid pressure at the downstream end of the piston bore and move the piston to the restricted position in the piston bore.

Apparatus and method for rotationally orienting a fluid conducting

A method and associated apparatus for lateral drilling in an oil and/or gas well involving either stopping the drilling or temporarily cementing in a plug in the existing well bore at the desired location for deviation. A tight radius of curvature is then rotary drilled by use of a flexible drilling collar made up of a series of short drill string sections interconnected by universal joints that terminate within an eccentric collar on the final drill string section. The eccentric collar is equipped with a sidewall engaging means to hold the eccentric collar from rotating during rotary drilling. A flexible collar (e.g., ball and socket) extending outwardly and downwardly from the far end of the final drill string section passing through the eccentric collar connects to a drill bit collar and rotary drill bit. A stabilizer/reamer of essentially the same size or slightly larger diameter than the drill bit surrounds the drill bit collar, thus producing a fulcrum for tilting the drill bit perpendicular to the well bore. The eccentric collar on the last drill string section that engages the well bore forces the deflection of the drill bit about the fulcrum and holds this orientation as the rotating drill proceeds forward. Such a technique can achieve a twelve foot radius of curvature in an existing oil or gas well bore for establishing lateral drain holes essentially horizontal to the otherwise vertical well bore.

Growing community of inventors

Tulsa, OK, United States of America

Michael B Burton