US3734210A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Carrier mounted drilling unit
Assignee: KENTING DRILLING Ltd
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Filing: 1971-04-20
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Granted: 1973-05-22
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Expires: 1991-04-20
Abstract
Abstract Improvements in apparatus for drilling wells. The apparatus is particularly suitable for drilling exploration holes or shallow production holes up to about 2,500 or 3,000 feet in depth. The drilling unit is readily transportable from one site to another and is capable of carrying, on racks provided for the purpose, all the drill pipe required for the drilling of relatively shallow production holes or exploration holes. The drilling unit, including the drill pipe racks, is preferably arranged such that a major portion of the weight of the complete drilling unit including a full complement of drill pipe supported on the drill racks is available to produce downward thrust of the drill bit when drawdown forces are being applied to the drill string. The power source, the drive train and the propulsion wheels are located adjacent one end of the chassis thereby leaving the central region of the chassis free of drive train components and the like. It is in this central region that the drill mast and its associated equipment is located. An operators'' station is mounted on the chassis and means are provided to support the station for movement from a first position for transportation of the drilling unit wherein the operators'' station overlies a portion of the racking area to a second operating position dispolaced outwardly of the racking area whereby a ready access may be had to the latter for addition or withdrawal of drill stem as the case may be. The apparatus also includes means for adding and withdrawing sections of drill pipe to and from the drill string including a pipe handling arm adapted to grasp and wing individual pipe sections between a generally upwardly directed position at or in the mast and a lower generally horizontal position. The apparatus includes storage means for the sections of drill pipe having a bed for supporting a plurality of layers of generally horizontally disposed pipe sections, the layers being in generally vertically stacked relation. Means are provided for raising or lowering the bed of the pipe storage means thereby to raise or lower the layers of pipe sections supported thereon to enable one of of said layers to be positioned adjacent the lower generally horizontal position taken by the pipe handling arm. Means are provided for individually transferring the sections of pipe from the storage means at the level of said pipe layer to the pipe handling arm for engagement thereby and vice versa.
Inventors
- 👤 G Wilderman
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-04 14:39
CPC Classifications
E; E21; E21B; E21B19/00; E21B19/20; E21B19/08; E21B19/084
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 32
Claim 1
Independent Claim
197 words
A self-propelled drilling unit comprising an elongated chassis, sets of wheels mounted forwardly and rearwardly of said chassis, a drive engine mounted in a region disposed rearwardly of said chassis, on said chassis forwardly of said rearwardly disposed region in spaced relation therewith for storing lengths of drill pipe such that they extend longitudinally of said chassis, a drilling mast connected to said chassis generally between said rearwardly disposed region and the racking means and movable from an upright operating position to a downfolded position for transport, said drill mast including means for rotatably supporting a length of drill string therein, means for rotating a drill string supported in said mast and supplying drawdown or lifting forces thereto, means for adding and removing lengths of drill pipe from a drill string supported in said mast including means for shifting individually said lengths of drill pipe between said racking means and said mast, and a drive train positioned in said rearwardly disposed region and adapted to provide an operable connection of said drive engine either to said rearwardly disposed set of wheels to effect propulsion of the drilling unit or to the means for rotating the drill string.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
197 words
A self-propelled drilling unit comprising an elongated chassis, sets of wheels mounted forwardly and rearwardly of said chassis, a drive engine mounted in a region disposed rearwardly of said chassis, on said chassis forwardly of said rearwardly disposed region in spaced relation therewith for storing lengths of drill pipe such that they extend longitudinally of said chassis, a drilling mast connected to said chassis generally between said rearwardly disposed region and the racking means and movable from an upright operating position to a downfolded position for transport, said drill mast including means for rotatably supporting a length of drill string therein, means for rotating a drill string supported in said mast and supplying drawdown or lifting forces thereto, means for adding and removing lengths of drill pipe from a drill string supported in said mast including means for shifting individually said lengths of drill pipe between said racking means and said mast, and a drive train positioned in said rearwardly disposed region and adapted to provide an operable connection of said drive engine either to said rearwardly disposed set of wheels to effect propulsion of the drilling unit or to the means for rotating the drill string.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
25 words
The self-propelled portable drilling unit according to claim 1 wherein the forwardly disposed set of wheels is steerable to effect directional control of the vehicle.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
265 words
A mobile drilling unit comprising: an elongated mobile chassis, a drilling mast attached to said chassis and arranged for movement between a downfolded transport position and an operative drilling position, means in said mast for supporting a string of drill pipe parallel to the mast and within a drill hole during a drilling operation, means acting between the drilling unit and the means for supporting the string of drill pipe for applying drawdown forces to the drill string to enable at least a portion of the weight of the drilling unit to be applied to produce downward thrust on the drill string during the drilling operation, a drill pipe racking means supported on said chassis, drilling machinery also mounted on said chassis, said racking means being capable of carrying a sufficient weight of drill pipe and the spacing and the locations of the drilling machinery, drill mast and racking means relative to one another on said chassis being such as to permit a major portion of the combined weight of said drilling unit and the weight of the drill pipe on said racking means to be available during the initial stages of a drilling operation to produce downward thrust on the drill string when said drawdown forces are being applied to the means for supporting the drill string, said drill pipe racking means being supported on a first longitudinally extending region of said chassis, said drilling machinery being mounted on a second region of said chassis longitudinally spaced from said first region, and said drill mast being located generally intermediate said first and second regions.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
265 words
A mobile drilling unit comprising: an elongated mobile chassis, a drilling mast attached to said chassis and arranged for movement between a downfolded transport position and an operative drilling position, means in said mast for supporting a string of drill pipe parallel to the mast and within a drill hole during a drilling operation, means acting between the drilling unit and the means for supporting the string of drill pipe for applying drawdown forces to the drill string to enable at least a portion of the weight of the drilling unit to be applied to produce downward thrust on the drill string during the drilling operation, a drill pipe racking means supported on said chassis, drilling machinery also mounted on said chassis, said racking means being capable of carrying a sufficient weight of drill pipe and the spacing and the locations of the drilling machinery, drill mast and racking means relative to one another on said chassis being such as to permit a major portion of the combined weight of said drilling unit and the weight of the drill pipe on said racking means to be available during the initial stages of a drilling operation to produce downward thrust on the drill string when said drawdown forces are being applied to the means for supporting the drill string, said drill pipe racking means being supported on a first longitudinally extending region of said chassis, said drilling machinery being mounted on a second region of said chassis longitudinally spaced from said first region, and said drill mast being located generally intermediate said first and second regions.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
30 words
The drilling unit according to claim 3 wherein the drill pipe racking means is arranged to support lengths of said drill pipe such that they extend longitudinally of said chassis.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
92 words
The drilling unit according to claim 3 wherein said drill pipe racking means is constructed and positioned on said chassis such that when the rackinG means has a full complement of drill pipe thereon the center of gravity of the drilling unit together with the drill pipe on the racking means is sufficiently close to said drilling axis defined by the string of drill pipe as to make at least 70 percent of the total weight of the drilling unit-racked drill pipe combination available to produce downward thrust on the drill string.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
24 words
The drilling unit according to claim 3 further comprising means for transferring sections of drill pipe between said drilling mast and said racking means.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
143 words
A mobile drilling unit including an elongated wheeled mobile chassis, a mast mounted on the chassis and means in said mast for supporting a drill string within a drill hole during a drilling operation and effecting drilling movement thereof, a drill pipe racking area extending longitudinally of said chassis for storing lengths of drill pipe thereon, means for pivoting individual lengths of drill pipe between said racking area and said mast during addition or withdrawal of the pipe lengths to or from the drill string, an operator''s station mounted on said chassis, and means supporting said station for movement from a first position for transportation of the drilling unit overlying a portion of said racking area to a second operating position displaced outwardly of the racking area whereby ready access may be had to lengths of drill pipe lying in the racking area.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
143 words
A mobile drilling unit including an elongated wheeled mobile chassis, a mast mounted on the chassis and means in said mast for supporting a drill string within a drill hole during a drilling operation and effecting drilling movement thereof, a drill pipe racking area extending longitudinally of said chassis for storing lengths of drill pipe thereon, means for pivoting individual lengths of drill pipe between said racking area and said mast during addition or withdrawal of the pipe lengths to or from the drill string, an operator''s station mounted on said chassis, and means supporting said station for movement from a first position for transportation of the drilling unit overlying a portion of said racking area to a second operating position displaced outwardly of the racking area whereby ready access may be had to lengths of drill pipe lying in the racking area.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
30 words
The drilling unit according to claim 7 wherein the station supporting means is arranged such that the station moves in a path parallel to the longitudinal axis of said chassis.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
28 words
The drilling unit according to claim 8 wherein said supporting means is arranged such that said second position is disposed outwardly of the end of said elongated chassis.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
23 words
The drilling unit according to claim 9 further including means for positively shifting said station from said first position to said second position.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
20 words
The drilling unit according to claim 10 wherein the operator''s station is defined by an at least partially enclosed cab.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
17 words
The drilling unit according to claim 10 wherein said shifting means includes hydraulic cylinder and ram means.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
26 words
The drilling unit according to claim 10 wherein the supporting means includes means rollingly supporting the operator''s station for easy movement in its path of travel.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
164 words
Apparatus for drilling wells comprising a mast and means in the mast for supporting a drill string and effecting drilling movement thereof during a drilling operation, means for adding and withdrawing sections of drill pipe to and from the drill string including a pipe handling arm adapted to grasp and swing individual pipe sections between a generally upwardly directed position at or in said mast and a lower generally horizontal position, and storage means for said sections of drill pipe including a bed for supporting a plurality of layers of generally horizontal pipe sections in stacked relation, means for raising or lowering said bed to raise or lower the layers of pipe sections supported thereon to enable a selected one of said layers to be positioned adjacent said lower generally horizontal position taken by the pipe handling arm, and means for individually transferring the pipe sections between said bed and said pipe handling arm when the latter is in said lower generally horizontal position.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
164 words
Apparatus for drilling wells comprising a mast and means in the mast for supporting a drill string and effecting drilling movement thereof during a drilling operation, means for adding and withdrawing sections of drill pipe to and from the drill string including a pipe handling arm adapted to grasp and swing individual pipe sections between a generally upwardly directed position at or in said mast and a lower generally horizontal position, and storage means for said sections of drill pipe including a bed for supporting a plurality of layers of generally horizontal pipe sections in stacked relation, means for raising or lowering said bed to raise or lower the layers of pipe sections supported thereon to enable a selected one of said layers to be positioned adjacent said lower generally horizontal position taken by the pipe handling arm, and means for individually transferring the pipe sections between said bed and said pipe handling arm when the latter is in said lower generally horizontal position.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
62 words
Apparatus according to claim 14 wherein said storage means includes a pair of said beds for supporting said drill pipe, said beds being in spaced generally parallel relation to one another on opposing sides of said lower position taken by said pipe handling arm, the latter being adapted to receive and grip drill pipe transferred thereto from each one of said beds.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
83 words
Apparatus according to claim 14 wherein the drilling apparatus is mobile, and includes an elongated mobile chassis, the bed of the pipe storage means being mounted on said chassis and arranged to support said drill pipe in parallelism with the longitudinal axis thereof, said mast and said pipe handling arm also being mounted on said chassis with said pipe handling arm adapted to pivot each said drill pipe through a vertical plane extending between said upwardly directed position and said generally horizontal position.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
44 words
Apparatus according to claim 14 wherein said storage means are further adapted to tilt said bed such that the sections tend to roll toward or away from said pipe handling arm during transferral of said sections into or out of said storage means respectively.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
33 words
Apparatus according to claim 17 wherein the means for transferring the drill pipe sections are adapted to transfer individual pipe sections into or out of the uppermost layer of pipe in said stack.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
224 words
A mobile drilling apparatus comprising: an elongated mobile chassis, a drill mast connected to said chassis and adapted to be folded downwardly during transportation, means for rotatably supporting a string of drill pipe within the mast, said last mentioned means being movable longitudinally of said mast, means for adding and withdrawing sections of drill pipe to and from the drill string including a pipe handling arm for engaging and swinging individual sections of drill pipe between a loading and unloading position and a position in said mast for addition or withdrawal of the sections to or from the drill string, a rack for supporting said drill pipe such that said pipe extends longitudinally of the chassis, said rack being mounted on said chassis and supported thereby such that said chassis bears the full weight of said rack and the drill stem thereon, means for transferring individual pipe sections between said arm and said rack at the loading and unloading position, and wherein the drilling apparatus further includes drilling machinery including drill string drive means mounted in a first region extending longitudinally of said chassis adjacent one end thereof, said rack for supporting drill pipe being disposed in another region spaced longitudinally of the chassis from said first region with said drill mast being connected to said chassis intermediate said rack and said drilling machinery.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
224 words
A mobile drilling apparatus comprising: an elongated mobile chassis, a drill mast connected to said chassis and adapted to be folded downwardly during transportation, means for rotatably supporting a string of drill pipe within the mast, said last mentioned means being movable longitudinally of said mast, means for adding and withdrawing sections of drill pipe to and from the drill string including a pipe handling arm for engaging and swinging individual sections of drill pipe between a loading and unloading position and a position in said mast for addition or withdrawal of the sections to or from the drill string, a rack for supporting said drill pipe such that said pipe extends longitudinally of the chassis, said rack being mounted on said chassis and supported thereby such that said chassis bears the full weight of said rack and the drill stem thereon, means for transferring individual pipe sections between said arm and said rack at the loading and unloading position, and wherein the drilling apparatus further includes drilling machinery including drill string drive means mounted in a first region extending longitudinally of said chassis adjacent one end thereof, said rack for supporting drill pipe being disposed in another region spaced longitudinally of the chassis from said first region with said drill mast being connected to said chassis intermediate said rack and said drilling machinery.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
49 words
Apparatus according to claim 19 wherein said rack comprises a pair of sections spaced transversely of said chassis to define a region therebetween wherein said arm is received at said lower loading position, said arm being adapted to grip pipe transferred thereto from each one of said rack sections.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
60 words
Apparatus according to claim 20 wherein said rack is adapted to rollingly support a layer of the drill pipe thereon and wherein the rack includes a tilting bed arranged to cause the pipe sections to roll under the influence of gravity towards or away from the transferring means during addition or withdrawal respectively of drill pipe from the drill string.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
187 words
Drilling apparatus comprising a mast having means for supporting a drill string therein and effecting drilling motion thereof during a drilling operation and a pipe rack for supporting lengths of drill string generally horizontally, said rack comprising a pair of pipe support beds parallel to and spaced apart from one another and a pipe handling arm adapted to pivot from a first position between said beds to a second position at or in said mast for transferring individual lengths of the pipe between said first and second positions, said pipe handling arm having pipe clamps thereon each comprising a seat and a pair of pivoting jaws on opposing sides of the clamp for holding pipe on said seat and means for removing a pipe from said seat constructed and arranged such that upon opening of said jaw the pipe is caused to roll away from that side of said arm on which the jaws have opened, means for supporting a rolling pipe between said arm and each one of said beds and means for individually engaging each rolling pipe section to move some positively into said bed.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
187 words
Drilling apparatus comprising a mast having means for supporting a drill string therein and effecting drilling motion thereof during a drilling operation and a pipe rack for supporting lengths of drill string generally horizontally, said rack comprising a pair of pipe support beds parallel to and spaced apart from one another and a pipe handling arm adapted to pivot from a first position between said beds to a second position at or in said mast for transferring individual lengths of the pipe between said first and second positions, said pipe handling arm having pipe clamps thereon each comprising a seat and a pair of pivoting jaws on opposing sides of the clamp for holding pipe on said seat and means for removing a pipe from said seat constructed and arranged such that upon opening of said jaw the pipe is caused to roll away from that side of said arm on which the jaws have opened, means for supporting a rolling pipe between said arm and each one of said beds and means for individually engaging each rolling pipe section to move some positively into said bed.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
86 words
Apparatus according to claim 22 wherein the means for removing the pipe from the seat comprises a portion on each jaw arranged to contact and lift Said pipe from said seat upon opening of said jaw to cause the lifted pipe to roll away from that side of the arm on which said jaws have opened, the means for supporting the pipe between said arm and each of the beds comprising shelves located adjacent the first position taken by said pipe to rollingly support the pipe.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
34 words
Apparatus according to claim 23 wherein the means for individually engaging each rolling pipe section comprises pipe flipper elements disposed adjacent said shelves for engaging and shifting rolling sections of pipe into said bed.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
47 words
Apparatus according to claim 24 wherein said pipe support beds are adapted to support a plurality of layers of pipe in stacked relation and include means for raising or lowering said beds to permit the layers of pipe to be brought to the level of said shelves.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
31 words
Mobile drilling equipment comprising an elongated mobile chassis in combination with and supporting the apparatus of claim 25, said pipe support beds being parallel to the longitudinal dimension of the chassis.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1976-05-21 | 1976-11-20 | 1977-05-22 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1980-05-21 | 1980-11-20 | 1981-05-22 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1984-05-21 | 1984-11-20 | 1985-05-22 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |