Patent Application
20230359674
This disclosure relates generally to equipment utilized and operations performed in conjunction with a subterranean well and, in an example described below, more particularly provides a well audit system and method.
A well audit can include inspections of components of a wellhead installation at a well location, as well as information (such as, maintenance history, status, photographs, etc.) useful for evaluating a condition or value of the wellhead installation. The components of a wellhead installation can include valves, actuators, chokes, pressure gauges, flowmeters, a tubing hanger, etc.
It will be appreciated that improvements are continually needed in the art of performing well audits and conveying well audit data to customers. The present specification provides such improvements, which can be used with a variety of different types of wellhead installations at multiple different well locations.
Representatively illustrated in
In the
The Christmas tree 12 depicted in
To maintain safe, efficient and effective operation of the wellhead installation 10, or to aid in a valuation of the wellhead installation (for example, for financing purposes), it can be useful to perform a well audit. The well audit can include inspection and testing of the components of the wellhead installation 10, as well as accumulation of pertinent data for the wellhead installation (such as, maintenance history, deferred maintenance, well type, wellhead and Christmas tree type, etc.).
It would also be useful to be able to provide this and other information to a customer in a manner that enables the customer to conveniently access the data and to quickly understand the results of the well audit. In addition to the well audit data, it would be helpful if the customer could access other relevant data pertaining to the wellhead installation 10, such as publicly available information or customer supplied information, so that all of the information is readily accessible at the same source.
In one example, the customer can access the wellhead installation information, including well audit data, customer supplied data and publicly available data, using a software application capable of receiving the information from an online database. The software application may be installed on a desktop computer, a notebook computer, a mobile device (such as a tablet or a cellular phone) or any other suitable computing device. The database may be stored on a server at the provider of the well audit service, or at a third party facility (e.g., “in the cloud”) or at any one or more locations.
Referring additionally now to
In the
If a well audit has been performed for a particular well location 30a-c, then the display 26 can indicate a result of the well audit for that well location. For example, an icon for the well location (a circle in the
Necessary or recommended remedial work for the displayed geographical area 28 can be shown in the display 26. For example, a list of remedial work can be displayed, and the list can be arranged in order of priority, with the most urgently needed remedial work appearing first in the list and routine remedial work (such as regularly scheduled maintenance) listed after the more urgently needed remedial work. In this manner, a customer can devote its resources most effectively and efficiently to the most urgently needed remedial work identified in the list.
If a user selects a particular one of the well locations 30a-c, the data stored in the database for that well location can be displayed in any of a variety of different formats (such as, in table form, as a graphic representation, in narrative form, etc.). As mentioned above, the data can include well audit data (e.g., specifying the functionality and condition of particular components of the wellhead installation), customer supplied data (e.g., the customer's identification of the well location, production data, etc.) and/or publicly available data (e.g., well data maintained by the American Petroleum Institute or a particular state). A prioritized list of remedial work for the selected well location 30a-c can also be displayed.
Referring additionally now to
The surface features can include natural features 32 (such as a river or lake) and surface structures 34 (such as a road or building). The subsurface features can include subsurface structures 36 (such as a pipeline, water line or sewer line). More, fewer or different features may be displayed in other examples.
The display 26 including the surface and subsurface features 32, 34, 36 in addition to the well locations 30a-c can aid in identifying the well locations 30a-c and in planning remedial work for each of the well locations.
Referring additionally now to
For example, after a well audit has been performed, and the well audit data has been input to the online database, a customer (or another authorized person) can view the
After the wellhead installation 10 at the selected well location 30a-c is depicted in the display 26, the customer can select one of the components of the wellhead installation. Upon selecting one of the wellhead installation 10 components (such as, one of the valves 16 or the wellhead 14 shown in the display 26), data stored in the database pertaining to that component can be displayed. The data may include results of a test or inspection performed during the well audit, the well component type and manufacturer's part number, a serial number, maintenance history, original installation date, any needed remedial work, etc. The data accessed from the database and displayed in response to selection of the well component can include pertinent well audit data, customer supplied data or publicly available data, or any combination thereof.
Referring additionally now to
In this example, the well information stored in the database 42 includes data 44 input by the customer, well audit data 46 (which can be input by the well auditor), and publicly available well data 48 (such as, the American Petroleum Institute well data). However, it should be clearly understood that the scope of this disclosure is not limited to storage of any particular type or combination of well data, or from any particular source, in the online database 42.
Upon input of the well audit data 46 to the database 42, the customer can be notified (e.g., via email or text message, etc.) that the well audit data is available. This notification could be automatically generated in response to the input of the well audit data 46 to the database 42, or the notification could be separately initiated.
It may now be fully appreciated that the present disclosure provides significant advances to the art of performing well audits and conveying well audit data and other well information to customers. In examples described above, customer supplied data 44, well audit data 46 and publicly available well data 48 is conveniently available to a customer (or another authorized person) in a graphical display 26. The information is stored in and accessed from the online database 42 and is, thus, available at any location with online access (such as, via the Internet).
The above disclosure provides to the art a method of providing well data 44, 46, 48 to a customer. In one example, the method includes performing at least one well audit, well audit data 46 resulting from the well audit; inputting the well audit data 46 to a database 42; and displaying a map view of a geographic area 28. Multiple well locations 30a-c are indicated in the map view, and the well audit data 46 is displayed in response to selection of a respective one of the well locations 30a-c.
The method may include receiving customer well data 44 to the database 42. The displaying step can include the customer well data 44 being displayed in response to the selection of the respective one of the well locations 30a-c.
The method may include receiving public well data 48 to the database 42. The displaying step can include the public well data 48 being displayed in response to the selection of the respective one of the well locations 30a-c.
The displaying step may include displaying in the map view at least one of a natural feature 32, a surface structure 34, a subsurface structure 36 and a building. The displaying step may include displaying in the map view an indication of a result of the well audit for the selected well location 30a-c. The indication may comprise a displayed color of the selected well location 30a-c.
The displaying step may include displaying a graphic representation of a wellhead installation 10 in response to the selection of the respective well location 30a-c. The displaying step may further include displaying the well audit data 46 in response to selection of a component of the wellhead installation 10.
The method may include notifying the customer of availability of the well audit data 46 in response to the inputting of the well audit data 46 to the database 42. The method may include prioritizing remedial work needed at the well locations 30a-c, based on the well audit data 46.
Another example method of providing well data 44, 46, 48 to a customer is provided by the above disclosure. In this example, the method includes displaying a graphic representation of a wellhead installation 10, the graphic representation comprising multiple components of the wellhead installation 10; and displaying the well data 44, 46, 48 pertaining to one of the components in response to selection of the component.
The well data pertaining to the selected component may comprises well audit data 46 that resulted from an audit of the wellhead installation 10, data 44 input by the customer, or data 48 obtained from a public database.
The method may include performing at least one well audit, and the well data may comprise well audit data 46 resulting from the well audit.
The method can include displaying a map view of a geographic area 28, with multiple well locations 30a-c being indicated in the map view. The graphic representation of the wellhead installation 10 may be displayed in response to selection of a respective one of the well locations 30a-c.
The map view displaying step can include displaying in the map view at least one of a natural feature 32, a surface structure 34, a subsurface structure 36 and a building. The map view displaying step can include displaying in the map view an indication of a result of a well audit for the selected well location 30a-c. The indication may comprise a displayed color of the selected well location 30a-c.
The method may include prioritizing remedial work needed at the wellhead installation 10, based on the well audit data 46.
A well information system 40 is also described above. In one example, the system 40 can include an online database 42 having stored therein well audit data 46 from audits of multiple well locations 30a-c and customer well data 44 for the well locations 30a-c; and a display 26 that shows a map view of a geographic area 28. The well locations 30a-c are indicated in the map view, and the well audit data 46 and the customer well data 44 are displayed in response to selection of a respective one of the well locations 30a-c.
The online database 42 may have stored therein public well data 48 for each of the well locations 30a-c. The public well data 48 may be displayed in response to the selection of the respective one of the well locations 30a-c.
The map view may include a representation of at least one of a natural feature 32, a surface structure 34, a subsurface structure 36 and a building. The map view may include an indication of a result of the respective well audit for the selected well location 30a-c. The indication may comprise a displayed color of the selected well location 30a-c.
The display 26 may include a graphic representation of a wellhead installation 10 in response to the selection of the respective well location 30a-c. The display 26 may include the well audit data 46 for a component of the wellhead installation 10.
The well audit data 46 for the component of the wellhead installation 10 may be displayed in response to selection of the component in the display 26. The display 26 may include a prioritized list of remedial work needed at the well locations 30a-c, based on the well audit data 46.
Although various examples have been described above, with each example having certain features, it should be understood that it is not necessary for a particular feature of one example to be used exclusively with that example. Instead, any of the features described above and/or depicted in the drawings can be combined with any of the examples, in addition to or in substitution for any of the other features of those examples. One example's features are not mutually exclusive to another example's features. Instead, the scope of this disclosure encompasses any combination of any of the features.
Although each example described above includes a certain combination of features, it should be understood that it is not necessary for all features of an example to be used. Instead, any of the features described above can be used, without any other particular feature or features also being used. The embodiments are described merely as examples of useful applications of the principles of the disclosure, which is not limited to any specific details of these embodiments.
The terms “including,” “includes,” “comprising,” “comprises,” and similar terms are used in a non-limiting sense in this specification. For example, if a system, method, apparatus, device, etc., is described as “including” a certain feature or element, the system, method, apparatus, device, etc., can include that feature or element, and can also include other features or elements. Similarly, the term “comprises” is considered to mean “comprises, but is not limited to.”
Of course, a person skilled in the art would, upon a careful consideration of the above description of representative embodiments of the disclosure, readily appreciate that many modifications, additions, substitutions, deletions, and other changes may be made to the specific embodiments, and such changes are contemplated by the principles of this disclosure. For example, structures disclosed as being separately formed can, in other examples, be integrally formed and vice versa. Accordingly, the foregoing detailed description is to be clearly understood as being given by way of illustration and example only, the spirit and scope of the invention being limited solely by the appended claims and their equivalents.
