Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Spin Wrench Assembly
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device and a system for making up and
breaking out drill pipe sections in a drill pipe string. The invention also
relates to a
method of replacing rollers used in rotating drill pipe sections during make
up and break
out operations.
Background
In down-hole drilling and extraction processes drill pipe is run down the
wellbore
for the purposes of drilling and performing wellbore operations. Drill pipe is
made up by
connecting multiple threaded drill pipe sections together and feeding them
into the
wellbore. Typically, drill pipe sections have a tapered male thread at one
end, also
called the pin joint, and a female thread at the other end, also called a box
joint. The
male end of a first drill pipe section is threaded into the female end of a
second drill
pipe section to makeup the drill pipe. Rotation of one drill pipe section into
another drill
pipe section is conducted until the tapered ends engage one another at the
shoulder
point.
A number of devices may be used to make up drill pipe sections including power
tongs and mechanical roughnecks. Power tongs are more commonly used in making
up
casing strings or tubular sections, and in some cases do not posses sufficient
strength to
make up drill pipe.
Mechanical roughnecks typically comprise a gripping section for gripping the
drill pipe sections to be connected, and a second, rotating section for
centering a second
drill pipe section over the first drill pipe section and rotating the second
drill pipe section
into the first.
The rotating section, often called a spinner or spin wrench comprises one or
more rollers that engage the second drill pipe section and rotate it. The
spatial
arrangement of the rollers may be fixed or may be movable to accommodate
different
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diameters of drill pipe.
Through constant use and frictional engagement against the drill pipe surface,
the rollers often become worn and must then be replaced. On site replacement
of the
rollers at the rig floor can be time consuming and cumbersome, leading to lost
production time and extra work for the operators. Rollers are generally held
in place by
multiple bolts, which must be undone on each of multiple rollers before the
rollers can
be removed. Each roller typically weighs 15 to 20 pounds (about 7 to 9
kilograms) and
the height of the rollers on the spin wrench make removal cumbersome and
dangerous.
Some effort has been made to ease removal and replacement of rollers. For
example, in some prior art spinners, an entire assembly comprising multiple
rollers,
multiple motors and a connective assembly, can be removed as one piece. The
weigh of
such a piece is greater than that of the rollers, thus requiring a crane,
winch or similar
equipment to support it. The piece must also be replace with a full new
assembly, even
in cases where only one roller requires replacement.
A need and interest therefore exists in the art to develop improved mechanical
roughneck spinning devices and methods for roller replacement for drill pipe
makeup
and breakout operations.
Summary
A device is taught for making up or breaking out drill pipe sections. The
device
comprises one or more roller assemblies. Each roller assembly comprises a
support
movably attached to the roller assembly by an attachment means, one or more
rollers
supported on the support and one or more roller motors. The support can be
raised
and lowered relative to the roller assembly by tightening or loosening the
attachment
means to allow access to the one or more rollers supported on the support.
A mechanical roughneck system is further taught for making up or breaking out
drill pipe section. The system comprises a clamp assembly movably connected at
a lower
end of a frame, wherein the clamp assembly comprises a lower clamp for
engaging and
grasping a first drill pipe section and an upper clamp for engaging and
grasping a second
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drill pipe section. The system further comprises a spin wrench assembly
connected to
an upper end of the frame, said spin wrench assembly comprising one or more
roller
assemblies. Each roller assembly comprises a support movably attached to the
roller
assembly by an attachment means, one or more rollers supported on the support
and
one or more roller motors, wherein the support can be raised and lowered
relative to
the roller assembly by tightening or loosening the attachment means to allow
access to
the one or more rollers supported on the support. The system further comprises
a
hydraulic yalying to actuate one or more functions of the spin wrench and
clamp
assembly and a console to controls the hydraulic valving.
A method is also provided for changing rollers in a spin wrench assembly. The
method comprises supporting one or more rollers on a support, movably
attaching said
support to the spin wrench assembly by attachment means, loosening attachment
means to lower the support and the one or more rollers, removing and replacing
individual rollers from the support and tightening the attachment means to
raise the
support back into engagement with the spin wrench assembly.
Brief Description of the Drawings
The present invention will now be described in greater detail, with reference
to the
following drawings, in which:
Figure 1 is perspective view of one example of the mechanical roughneck of the
present
invention;
Figure 2 is an left side elevation view of one example of the mechanical
roughneck of
the present invention;
Figure 3 is a front elevation view of one example of the mechanical roughneck
of the
present invention;
Figure 4 is a first isometric view of one example of the spin wrench assembly
of the
present invention with the support in a raised position;
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Figure 5 is a second isometric view of on example of the spin wrench assembly
of the
present invention, with the support shown in both a raised and a lowered
position; and
Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of one method of the present invention.
Description of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device and system for making up and
breaking
out sections of drill pipe. More specifically, the present invention relates
to a spin
wrench assembly and its arrangement of rollers. The rollers of present
invention
provide ease of removal and replacement.
An example of a mechanical roughneck of the present invention is shown in
Figures 1 and 2. With reference to this figure, the mechanical roughneck 2
comprises a
spin wrench assembly 4 connected to an upper end of a vertical frame 8 and a
clamp
assembly 6 connected at a lower end of the frame 8. The clamp assembly 6
comprises a
lower clamp 10 for grasping a box joint of the first drill pipe section (not
shown), and an
upper clamp 12 for rotatably grasping a pin joint of the second drill pipe
section (not
shown). The clamp assembly 6 can be moved horizontally to position itself
around the
drill pipe sections. The lower clamp 10 and upper clamp 12 define a first
opening 30 in
which the drill pipe sections fit. Preferably jaws (not shown), attached to
ends of the
clamp cylinders 34 are movable to accommodate different drill pipe diameters.
The
upper clamp 12 and lower clamp 10 are fixed in axial alignment, to ensure
axial
alignment and centering of the second drill pipe section as it engages or is
broken out of
the first drill pipe section.
With reference to Figures 3, 4 and 5, the spin wrench assembly 4 comprises one
or more roller assemblies 14 movably connected to a spin wrench support arm 22
and
defining a second opening 32. Although two roller assemblies connected to a
single
straight spin wrench support arm 22 are illustrated in the drawing, it would
be well
understood by a person skilled in the art that multiple roller assemblies may
be
arranged along a curved or angled spin wrench support arm 22 or along multiple
spin
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wrench support arms 22 to define opening 32, without departing from the scope
of the
present invention. The roller assemblies 14 are movable relative to one
another along
the spin wrench support arm 22 to thereby enlarge or reduce the size of the
second
opening 32. This allows the spin wrench assembly 4 to accommodate second drill
pipe
sections of varying diameter, while maintaining axial alignment between the
second drill
pipe and the first drill pipe sections.
Each roller assembly 14 comprises one or more rollers 16 rotatably supported
on
a support 18. One example of the support 18 is illustrated in the drawings in
the form of
a plate, although a number of different supports are possible including but
not limited
to platforms, frames and brackets.
The one or more rollers 16 are rotated by one or more roller motors 20. In one
embodiment of the present invention, one roller motor 20 is connected to each
of the
one or more rollers 16, however it would be understood to a person of skill in
the art
that the one or more rollers 16 could be driven by one motor 20 to drive them
all. In the
latter embodiment, a pulley or chain mechanism may be used to allow the one or
more
roller assemblies 14 to move together or apart to accommodate different sizes
of drill
pipe.
In a preferred embodiment illustrated in the drawings, hydraulic valving 24 is
used to function the mechanical roughneck. Alternatively, operational power
can be
delivered electrically or pneumatically. The hydraulic valving can provide
energy for
horizontal movement of the lower clamp 10 and the upper clamp 12 and
horizontal
movement of the spin wrench assembly 4. The hydraulic valving 24 may also
preferably
operate rotation of the spin wrench roller motors 20 and rotation of the upper
clamp 12
when the second drill pipe section is rotated into or out of the first drill
pipe section.
Movement of the mechanical roughneck can be controlled from a console 26
preferably
mounted to the tool. The console 26 may be a fixed, local device, or
alternatively can be
a remote wireless or hardwired console 26. It is also possible to use a non-
fixed, local
console 26, for example mounted on a stand that can be moved along a rig
floor.
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Figures 4 and 5 show a detail of the roller assemblies 14 and their
components.
With reference to these figures, the support 18 is attached to the roller
assembly 14 by
a movable attachment means 28. The attachment means 28 are preferably
illustrated in
the figures as a screw mechanism such as a jack screw, although it would be
understood
that other means including but not limited to bolts, clips or other movable
attachment
means would also work and are encompassed in the present invention. The
attachment
means 28 more preferably comprises a screw fastened through a locking collar
46 into a
bottom surface of the support 18.
Referring to Figure 5, the attachment means 28 can be loosened to lower the
support 18, thereby allowing access to the rollers 16 for removal or
replacement, as
seen in the left hand side roller assembly 14. The attachment means 28 can
also be
tightened to raise the support 18 back into a position for operation, as seen
in the right
hand side roller assembly 14.
As seen in Figure 5, one or more mounting bolts 36 can be preferably used to
further secure the support 18 to the roller assembly 14 during drill pipe
makeup or
break out, as seen on the right hand side roller assembly 14. These bolts 36
are then
removed prior to loosening of the attachment means 28, as seen in the left
hand side
roller assembly 14.
In a further preferred embodiment, guide pins 42, seen in Figures 4 and 5, can
extend from a lower frame portion of the roller assembly 14. These guide pins
42 align
with corresponding guide pin holes 44 in the support 18 to facilitate
alignment of the
support 18 with the roller assembly 14 during raising and lowering of the
support 18.
With reference to the left hand side roller assembly 14 of Figure 5, the one
or
more rollers 16 are preferably rotatably mounted into the roller assembly 14
by means
of a rotary drive mechanism having an external rotary connection 38 formed on
the
roller assembly and a corresponding internal rotary connection 40, formed on
an inner
end of the roller 16. The rotary drive mechanism can be of any form known in
the art
including but not limited to splines, keys, hexagonal connections and square
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connections. Most preferably, the rotary drive mechanism comprises an external
spline
formed on the roller assembly and a corresponding internal spline formed on an
inner
end of the roller 16, wherein both splines have toothed surfaces. While Figure
5 shows
the external rotary connection 38 and internal rotary connection 40 at an
upper end of
the rollers 16, it is also possible that these features are instead present at
a lower end of
the rollers 16. When the external rotary connection 38 and internal rotary
connection
40 are preferably located at an upper end of the rollers 16, the lower end of
the rollers
16 may comprise a shaft (not shown) that fits into a bushing or bearing (not
shown)
formed into to the support 18.
More preferably, the toothed surfaces of the external rotary connection 38 and
the internal rotary connection 40 have a chamfered end profiles to allow the
toothed
surfaces to rotate slightly as the chamfered ends meet and facilitate
alignment of the
toothed surfaces as the rollers 16 engage into the roller assembly 14. Further
preferably, the external rotary connections 38 can extend at different lengths
from the
roller assembly 14, so that a first roller internal rotary connection 40
aligns with engages
the longer external rotary connection 38 before subsequent rollers 16, thereby
facilitating engagement of the rollers 16 without requiring simultaneous
alignment of
each internal rotary connection 40 with its corresponding external rotary
connection 38.
The rollers 16 of the spin wrench assembly 4 are operated by the roller motors
20 to rotate the second drill pipe section into the first pipe section or to
break out the
two drill pipe sections. Such rollers 16 are well known in the art and can
have metallic
or elastomeric surfaces, with or without abrasive materials added to the
surface
material. During operation, the rollers 16 are in constant frictional contact
with the drill
pipe section and will experience varying degrees of torque depending on pipe
thread
condition, size of threads, weight of pipe and other factors. In such
conditions wear of
the rollers' 16 surface or general breakage is not uncommon.
In the present invention, removal, repair and replacement of the rollers 16
are
facilitated by the movable support 18. Referring to the process diagram of
Figure 6, the
rollers are first supported on support 18, which is movably attached to the
roller
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assembly. Loosening attachment means 28 lower the support 18 and allows access
to
the one or more rollers 16 supported thereon. Once lowered, the one or more
rollers
16 can be removed individually as needed and replaced. There is no need to
replace the
entire roller assembly 14. Then, the attachment means 28 is tightened to raise
the
support 18 and one or more rollers 16 back into engagement with the spin
wrench
assembly 14.
In a preferred embodiment of the present method, mounting bolts 36 are
removed before loosening the attachment means 28 and are re-fastened to the
roller
assembly 14 after tightening of the attachment means 28. In a further
preferred
embodiment of the present method, the support 18 is aligned with the roller
assembly
14 by means of the guide pins 42 and guide pin holes 44 as it is raised.
In a further preferred embodiment of the present method, the one are more
rollers 16 rotatably engage the spin wrench assembly 14 by engaging external
rotary
connections 38 on the spin wrench assembly with internal rotary connection 40
on the
one or more rollers 16.
The lowered support 18 supports the weight of the roller assembly 14 during
removal. Such roller assemblies can weigh around 50 pounds (about 23 kg), and
typically require the use of a crane or winch line for support during
maintenance
operations. The tools required for loosening the attachment means 28 and
removing a
roller 16 in the present invention are those typically carried by an operator
during
regular rig operations.
The present invention allows for the changeover of single rollers 16, in-situ
without the need for secondary methods of supporting the weight of a roller
assembly
14 such as a winch line or crane.
In the foregoing specification, the invention has been described with a
specific
embodiment thereof; however, it will be evident that various modifications and
changes
may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the invention.
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