US4706765A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Drill bit assembly
Assignee: FOUR E Inc A CORP OF LOUISIANA
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Filing: 1986-08-11
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Granted: 1987-11-17
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Expires: 2006-08-11
Abstract
Abstract A drill bit assembly comprised of a pilot bit and a plurality of add-on reamer sections which are sized to progressively increase the diameter of the hole in measured increments. Both the pilot bit and the reamer sections have two cutter elements which take advantage of the bi-center concept and both use knife edged cutters instead of teeth to drill the hole.
Inventors
- 👤 Ernie J. Lee
- 👤 William L. Thornton
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-31 13:17
CPC Classifications
E; E21; E21B; E21B10/00; E21B10/08; E21B10/12; E21B10/26; E21B10/265
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 31
Claim 1
Independent Claim
202 words
A drill bit assembly comprising: a pilot bit comprising: a bit body having two legs radially positioned 120° apart thereon and depending from the lower surface thereof, said lower surface of said bit body away from said legs being beveled to reduce the effective area of said lower surface; a cutter cone rotatably mounted on each of said legs and extending inward and downward whereby the inner tip of each cone lies on the centerline of said body; each of said cones having a plurality of smooth circular cutting knife edges spaced along the surface thereof whereby said cutting edges on one of said cones will track between the pathes defined by said cutting edges on the other of said cones when said bit is rotated during drilling operation to thereby cut all of the bottom area of the hole to be drilled; a first reamer section comprising: a reamer body connected to the upper end of said pilot bit; two disk cutters; and means for rotatable mounting said disk cutters on said body at points radially spaced 120° from each other and positioned to drill a hole having a diameter larger than that of the hole drilled by said pilot bit.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
202 words
A drill bit assembly comprising: a pilot bit comprising: a bit body having two legs radially positioned 120° apart thereon and depending from the lower surface thereof, said lower surface of said bit body away from said legs being beveled to reduce the effective area of said lower surface; a cutter cone rotatably mounted on each of said legs and extending inward and downward whereby the inner tip of each cone lies on the centerline of said body; each of said cones having a plurality of smooth circular cutting knife edges spaced along the surface thereof whereby said cutting edges on one of said cones will track between the pathes defined by said cutting edges on the other of said cones when said bit is rotated during drilling operation to thereby cut all of the bottom area of the hole to be drilled; a first reamer section comprising: a reamer body connected to the upper end of said pilot bit; two disk cutters; and means for rotatable mounting said disk cutters on said body at points radially spaced 120° from each other and positioned to drill a hole having a diameter larger than that of the hole drilled by said pilot bit.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
40 words
The drill bit assembly of claim 1 including: a second reamer section connected to the upper end of said first reamer section and adapted to drill a hole having a diameter greater than that drilled by said first reamer section.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
54 words
The drill bit assembly of claim 1 including: a plurality of additional reamer sections connected to the upper end of said first reamer section and to each other; each of said reamer sections adapted to drill a hole having a diameter greater than that of the hole drilled by the reamer section immediately below.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
45 words
The drill bit assembly of claim 1 wherein said means for mounting said disk cutters comprises: a pair of shafts, each shaft affixed to said reamer body at an angle with respect to the horizontal and having one of said disk cutters rotatably mounted thereon.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
13 words
The drill bit assembly of claim 4 wherein said angle is about 15°.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
30 words
The drill bit assembly of claim 5 including: jet nozzle means in said bit body adapted for supplying fluid under pressure to the leading edge of each of said cones.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
31 words
The drill bit assembly of claim 6 including: jet nozzle means in said reamer body adapted for supplying fluid under pressure to the leading edge of each of said disk cutters.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
31 words
The drill bit assembly of claim 1 wherein the lower surface of said reamer section away from said disk cutters in beveled to reduce the effective area of said lower surface.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
23 words
The drill bit assembly of claim 8 wherein each of said disk cutters is vertically aligned with a respective cone on said bit.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
156 words
A two-cone drill bit comprising: a body having two legs radially positioned 120° apart thereon and depending from the lower surface thereof; said lower surface of said bit body away from said legs being beveled to reduce the effective area of said lower surface; a journal pin on each leg extending inward and downward toward the centerline of said body; two cutter cones; means for rotatably mounting said cones on respective said journal pins whereby the inner tips of said cones lie on said centerline of said body; and wherein each of said cones having a plurality of smooth circular, cutting knife edges spaced along the surface thereof whereby said cutting edges on one of the said cones will track between the pathes defined by said cutting edges on the other of said cones when said bit is rotated during drilling operation to thereby cut all of the bottom area of the hole to be drilled.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
156 words
A two-cone drill bit comprising: a body having two legs radially positioned 120° apart thereon and depending from the lower surface thereof; said lower surface of said bit body away from said legs being beveled to reduce the effective area of said lower surface; a journal pin on each leg extending inward and downward toward the centerline of said body; two cutter cones; means for rotatably mounting said cones on respective said journal pins whereby the inner tips of said cones lie on said centerline of said body; and wherein each of said cones having a plurality of smooth circular, cutting knife edges spaced along the surface thereof whereby said cutting edges on one of the said cones will track between the pathes defined by said cutting edges on the other of said cones when said bit is rotated during drilling operation to thereby cut all of the bottom area of the hole to be drilled.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
26 words
The drill bit of claim 10 wherein each of said journal pins extend inward and downward at an angle equal to about 20° from the horizontal.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
23 words
The drill bit of claim 11 wherein said means for mounting said cones comprises: cylindrical bearings between said cone and said journal pin.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
47 words
The drill bit of claim 12 including: an O-ring seal mounted in an annular groove on the inner surface of each of said cones, said O-ring adapted to rotate with its respective cone and form a seal between said cone and its respective leg on said body.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
34 words
The drill bit of claim 13 including: an annular bearing surface mounted in each of said leg adjacent said O-ring on said respective cone and adapted to provide a bearing surface for said O-ring.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
14 words
The drill bit of claim 14 wherein said bearing surface comprises: a Teflon washer.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
26 words
The drill bit of claim 15 including: jet nozzle means in said body for providing fluid under pressure to clean said cutting edges on said cones.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
28 words
The drill bit of claim 16 wherein said jet nozzle means comprises: a jet nozzle positioned at the leading edge of each of said legs of said body.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
14 words
The drill bit of claim 17 including: means for supplying lubricant to said bearings.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
28 words
The drill bit of claim 18 wherein the lower surface of said body away from said cones is beveled to reduce the effective area of said lower surface.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
86 words
A reamer section comprising: a reamer body having an externally threaded pin member and an internally threaded box member; said reamer body having two recesses therein which are radially spaced 120° apart, said reamer body having a lower surface which is beveled away from disk cutters to reduce the effective area of said lower surface; two disk cutters, each disk cutter having a smooth, knife cutting edge having an outer side, and means for rotatably mounting one of said disk cutter in each of said recesses.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
86 words
A reamer section comprising: a reamer body having an externally threaded pin member and an internally threaded box member; said reamer body having two recesses therein which are radially spaced 120° apart, said reamer body having a lower surface which is beveled away from disk cutters to reduce the effective area of said lower surface; two disk cutters, each disk cutter having a smooth, knife cutting edge having an outer side, and means for rotatably mounting one of said disk cutter in each of said recesses.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
64 words
The reamer section of claim 20 wherein said outer side of the cutting edge of each of said disk cutter has a first portion which tapers downward from said edge at a first angle with respect to the diameter of said disk and a second portion which tapers downward from said first portion at a second angle which is less than said first angle.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
20 words
The reamer section of claim 21 wherein said first angle is about 45° and said second angle is about 15°.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
28 words
The reamer section of claim 22 including: jet nozzle means in said reamer body adapted to supply fluid to the leading edge of each of said disk cutter.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
43 words
The reamer section of claim 23 wherein said means for mounting said disk cutter comprises: a shaft extending down and through said recess at an angle to the horizontal and affixed to said body; said disk cutter being rotatably mounted on said shaft.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
15 words
The reamer section of claim 24 wherein said angle of said shaft is about 15°.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
67 words
The reamer section of claim 25 wherein said body has an upper surface and a lower surface and including: an O-ring seal mounted in an annular groove in said upper surface of said body and is adapted to seal with the lower surface of a second reamer section when a box member of the second reamer section is connected to said pin member of said reamer section.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
18 words
The reamer section of claim 26 including: a bearing sleeve positioned between said shaft and said disk cutter.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
18 words
The reamer section of claim 27 including: a set screw through said lower surface of said reamer body.
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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) | 1990-11-16 | 1991-05-18 | 1991-11-17 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1994-11-16 | 1995-05-18 | 1995-11-17 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1998-11-16 | 1999-05-18 | 1999-11-17 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |