The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Feb. 10, 2004
Filed:
Jun. 15, 2001
Mark Zajac, Katy, TX (US);
WesternGeco L.L.C., Houston, TX (US);
Abstract
A method and apparatus comprising an active control system for a towed seismic streamer array that enables any relative positional control of any number of towed seismic streamers. The streamer positions are controlled horizontally and vertically using active control units positioned within the seismic array. The three component (x, y, z) position of each streamer element, relative to the vessel and relative to each other is controlled, tracked and stored during a seismic data acquisition run. The present invention enables a seismic array to be maneuvered as the towing vessel maintains course, enables maintenance of specific array position and geometry in the presence of variable environmental factors and facilitates four-dimensional seismic data acquisition by sensing and storing the position of the array and each array element with respect to time.