Patent Grant
6969223
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to materials lifting apparatuses, and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to an improved pipe handling apparatus for transporting pipe between a pipe storage rack and a rig floor which is elevated above the pipe storage rack.
2. Brief Description of the Related Art
In the drilling of a well, tubular members such as drill pipe, casing, and production tubing must be transported between a pipe storage rack and a drilling rig floor. For instance, it is necessary periodically to pull the drill string out of the well bore (“tripping out”) to replace the drill bit and in turn run the drill string back into the well bore. This process involves a series of repetitive steps in which joints of pipe are withdrawn from the well bore, disconnected, and stored on the pipe storage rack. The process is then repeated in reverse order to replace the drill string in the well bore. Due to the fact that the drilling rig floor can be as much as 20 to 30 feet above ground level, numerous devices have been previously proposed to assist in the movement of the tubular members between the pipe storage rack and the rig floor. Such devices are generally complex in construction, designed for use with a particular drilling rig, and not easily transported from one drilling rig to another.
As with the drilling process, the servicing of a well involves a series of repetitive steps to replace production tubing or maintenance downhole equipment. Rigs used for servicing wells are often referred to as “workover” rigs. Workover rigs generally have a rig floor positionable over the surface equipment of the well and a mast which supports the elevators. The elevators are used to raise and lower the production tubing into and out of the well bore and to handle the individual joints of pipe once they are on the rig floor.
The rig floor of a workover rig can be elevated as much as 6 to 15 feet above ground level depending on the amount of surface equipment utilized with the well. However, unlike with drilling rigs, it has been the practice to manually transport the pipe between the rig floor and the pipe rack. This involves a worker rolling a joint of pipe off the pipe rack onto a platform known as a “catwalk.” The worker then drags the pipe toward the rig and raises one end of the pipe toward the rig floor to the point where the elevators of the rig can latch onto the end of the pipe. The process is reversed when removing pipe from the rig. This practice is extremely labor intensive, time consuming, and dangerous.
To this end, a need exists for an improved pipe handling apparatus which is simple in construction, easy to transport and operate, and which is adapted to be used with a variety of different rigs. It is to such an apparatus that the present invention is directed.
The present invention is directed to a pipe handling apparatus for transporting a joint of pipe between a position adjacent a pipe storage rack and a rig floor elevated above the pipe storage rack. The pipe handling apparatus includes a support frame, a horizontally disposed platform, a carriage member, and a pusher member. The platform has a pipe receiving groove formed therein for receiving the joint of pipe. The pipe receiving groove has a first end and an opposing second end.
The carriage member is positioned near the first end of the pipe receiving groove and is connected to the support frame. The carriage member is movable from a lowered position wherein the joint of pipe which is positioned in the pipe receiving groove of the platform is supported in a substantially horizontal position and a raised position wherein the carriage member supports a first end of the joint of pipe at an elevated position relative to an opposed second end of the joint of pipe. The elevated position of the first end of the joint of pipe is at a height at least the height of the rig floor while the second end of the joint of pipe remains positioned in the pipe receiving groove.
The pusher member is in alignment with the pipe receiving groove so as to be engageable with the second end of the joint of pipe when the joint of pipe is positioned in the pipe receiving groove. The pusher member is movable along the pipe receiving groove between a retracted position and an extended position. In the retracted position, the pusher member is positioned near the second end of the pipe receiving groove to laterally support the joint of pipe when the first end of the joint of pipe is elevated relative to the second end. In the extended position, the pusher member is moved a selected distance away from the second end of the pipe receiving groove toward the first end of the pipe receiving groove so as to cause the second end of the joint of pipe to move through the pipe receiving groove towards the first end of the pipe receiving groove along a substantially horizontal plane and thereby cause the first end of the joint of pipe to be moved to a position overlying the rig floor.
The features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and appended claims.
Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to
The support frame 18 is an elongated rectangular structure having a first end 30, a second end 32, a first side 34, a second side 36, an upper side 38, and a lower side 40. The support frame 18 is constructed of a plurality of rigid tubular members interconnected to one in a suitable manner, such as by welding. The support frame 18 is provided with a stairway 42 to facilitate a worker's movement between the upper side 38 and the lower side 40 of the support frame 18.
The platform 20 is secured to the upper side 38 of the support frame 18 so that the platform 20 is substantially horizontally disposed when the pipe handling apparatus 10 is in use. As best shown in
The pipe receiving groove 44 has a first end 46 (
Returning to
Referring now to
The carriage member 60 includes a V-shaped trough portion 68 which is positioned within the opening 52 of the platform 20 and configured to substantially correspond with the shape and size of the pipe receiving groove 44 such that the upper surface of the trough portion 68 functions as an extension of the pipe receiving groove 44 when the carriage member 60 is in the lowered postion. The carriage member 60 further includes a bracket portion 70 extending from the lower side of the trough portion 680.
As shown in
The cylinder 62 has a first end 86, a second end 88, and a reciprocating rod 90 extending from the second end 88 of the cylinder 62. The first end 86 of the cylinder 62 is pivotally secured to the support frame 18 below the platform 20, and the distal end of the reciprocating rod 90 is pivotally connected to the distal end 84 of the bracket portion 70 of carriage member 60, as shown in
Referring now to
The pusher member 92 includes a semi-circular shaped pipe engaging portion 96 positioned above the platform 20 and a bracket 98 extending from the pipe engaging portion 96 down through the slot 51 of the platform 20. The pusher member 92 further includes a pair of rollers 100 for rollingly supporting the pusher member 92 on the platform 20.
The cylinder 94 has a first end 102, a second end 104, and a reciprocating rod 106 extending from the second end 104 of the cylinder 94. The cylinder 94 is secured to the support frame 18 below the platform 20 in a parallel relation to the pipe receiving groove 44 and the distal end of the reciprocating rod 106 is rigidly connected to a lower end of the bracket 98 of the pusher member 92.
Referring now to
The cylinders 62, 94, and 108 can be any suitable cylinders known in the art, such as double-acting hydraulic cylinders. To this end, the hydraulic assembly 28 includes a hydraulic tank 119, an engine 120, and a control panel 122 which includes corresponding control valves for actuating each of the cylinders 62, 94. The cylinder 108 of jack assembly 26 is operated by a valve 124 mounted on the support frame 18 (
The pipe handling apparatus 10 can be transported to the work site by any suitable means, such as a low-bed trailer or truck (not shown). With the pipe handling apparatus 10 transported to the work site, the pipe handling apparatus 10 is unloaded and positioned adjacent the pipe storage rack 12 in a parallel relationship to the joints of pipe 14 on the pipe storage rack 12 and adjacent the rig floor 16 with the pipe receiving groove 44 of the platform 20 in a substantially perpendicular relationship thereto. The height of the pipe handling apparatus 10 may then be adjusted, if necessary, to position the platform 20 at a height level with or slightly below the height of the pipe storage rack 12 to permit the joints of pipe 14 on the pipe storage rack 12 to be easily transported onto the platform 26 and into the pipe receiving groove 44 merely by rolling the individual joints of pipe 14. The height of the pipe handling apparatus 10 is adjusted by an operator actuating the cylinders 108 of the jack assemblies 26 so as to cause the reciprocating rods 112 and thus the foot 110 to be extended and thus raise the support frame 18 and the platform 20. Suitably sized support or blocking members (not shown), such as timbers, may then be positioned under the lower side 40 of the support frame 18. The reciprocating rods 112 of the jack assemblies 26 are then retracted so that the support frame 18 is supported on the support members. It will be appreciated that if the pipe handling apparatus 10 is being utilized to transport joints of pipe 14 from the rig floor 16 to the pipe storage rack 12, it will be desirable to position the platform 20 at a height level with or slightly above the height of the pipe storage rack 12 to permit the joints of pipe 14 on the platform 20 to be easily transported onto the pipe storage rack 12 merely by rolling the individual joints of pipe 14.
To transport a joint of pipe 14 from the pipe storage rack 12 to the rig floor 16, the carriage member 60 is positioned in the lowered position and the pusher member 92 is positioned in the retracted position. An operator then rolls the joint of pipe 14 (as shown in
The operator then causes the cylinder 94 of the pusher assembly 24 to be actuated to retract the rod 106 and cause the pusher member 92 to be moved along the pipe receiving groove 44 from the retracted position to the extended position, as represented by arrow 128 in
When the pipe handling apparatus 10 is employed to remove a joint of pipe 14 from the rig floor 16, the first end 64 of the joint of pipe 14 is positioned on the carriage member 60 with the carriage member 60 in the raised position and the second end 66 of the joint of pipe 14 is positioned in engagement with the pusher member 92 with the pusher member 92 in the extended position. The pusher member 92 is then moved to the retracted position whereby the weight of the joint of pipe 14 causes the joint of pipe 14 to slide along the pipe receiving groove 44 and over the rollers 87 of the carriage member 60 toward the second end 48 of the pipe receiving groove 44. The carriage member 60 is the moved to the lowered position and the joint of pipe 14 transferred to the pipe storage rack 12.
From the above description it is clear that the present invention is well adapted to carry out the objects and to attain the advantages mentioned herein as well as those inherent in the invention. While presently preferred embodiments of the invention have been described for purposes of this disclosure, it will be understood that numerous changes may be made which will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and which are accomplished within the spirit of the invention disclosed and as defined in the appended claims.
This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 10/389,026, filed Mar. 14, 2003 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,719,515 which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/620,580, filed Jul. 20, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,533,519.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3254776 | Brown | Jun 1966 | A |
| 3650339 | Selfe et al. | Mar 1972 | A |
| 3706347 | Brown | Dec 1972 | A |
| 3780883 | Brown | Dec 1973 | A |
| 3916500 | Brown | Nov 1975 | A |
| 4021978 | Busse et al. | May 1977 | A |
| 4053063 | Harper, Jr. | Oct 1977 | A |
| 4067453 | Moller | Jan 1978 | A |
| 4074792 | Zaugg et al. | Feb 1978 | A |
| 4235566 | Beeman et al. | Nov 1980 | A |
| 4366591 | Zimmerman | Jan 1983 | A |
| 4372420 | White | Feb 1983 | A |
| 4373420 | Piesik | Feb 1983 | A |
| 4386883 | Hogan et al. | Jun 1983 | A |
| 4403898 | Thompson | Sep 1983 | A |
| 4426182 | Frias et al. | Jan 1984 | A |
| 4453872 | Frias et al. | Jun 1984 | A |
| 4474520 | Buckner et al. | Oct 1984 | A |
| 4486137 | Buckner | Dec 1984 | A |
| 4552498 | Dysarz | Nov 1985 | A |
| 4828050 | Hashimoto | May 1989 | A |
| 4951759 | Richardson | Aug 1990 | A |
| 5127790 | Teague | Jul 1992 | A |
| 5183282 | Smyly | Feb 1993 | A |
| 5451129 | Boyadjieff et al. | Sep 1995 | A |
| 6079925 | Morgan et al. | Jun 2000 | A |
| 6227537 | Schmid | May 2001 | B1 |
| 6533519 | Tolmon et al. | Mar 2003 | B1 |
| 6719515 | Tolmon et al. | Apr 2004 | B2 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20040197166 A1 | Oct 2004 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 10389026 | Mar 2003 | US |
| Child | 10818575 | US | |
| Parent | 09620580 | Jul 2000 | US |
| Child | 10389026 | US |
