Abstract:
Methods of drilling a wellbore within a subsurface region and drilling control systems that perform the methods. The methods include accessing an objective map and calculating a plurality of critical points of the objective map. The methods also include scoring each critical point and selecting a selected critical point of the plurality of critical points. The selected critical point describes an estimated value of at least one drilling performance indicator for a selected value of at least one independent operational parameter. The methods further include operating the drilling rig at the selected value of the at least one independent operational parameter and, during the operating, determining an actual value of the at least one drilling performance indicator. The methods also include updating the objective map to generate an updated objective map and repeating at least a portion of the methods.
Abstract:
Selectively actuated plungers and systems and methods including the same are disclosed herein. The methods include flowing a wellbore fluid stream in fluid contact with a plunger and in an uphole direction within a wellbore conduit while the plunger is located within a target region of the wellbore conduit. The methods further include maintaining the plunger in a low fluid drag state while a variable associated with the wellbore fluid stream is outside a threshold range and transitioning the plunger to a high fluid drag state responsive to the variable associated with the wellbore conduit being within the threshold range. The methods further include conveying the plunger in the uphole direction within the wellbore conduit. The systems include the plungers and/or hydrocarbon wells that include the plungers.
Abstract:
Systems and methods for multi-channel detection of an instability in a furnace comprising a plurality of detectors are disclosed. Each of a plurality of detectors provides a first measurement related to the plurality of burners when the furnace is operating in a stable condition. A stable signal component representation is determined based on the first measurement from each of the plurality of detectors. Each of a plurality of detectors provides a second measurement related to the plurality of burners when the furnace is operating in an unknown state. An unstable signal component representation is determined based on the stable signal component representation and a second measurement from each of the plurality of detectors. An instability is detected based on the unstable signal component representation and an instability threshold.
Abstract:
Method for analysis of hydrocarbon potential of subterranean regions by generating surfaces or geobodies and analyzing them for hydrocarbon indications. Reflection-based surfaces may be automatically created in a topologically consistent manner where individual surfaces do not overlap themselves and sets of multiple surfaces are consistent with stratigraphic superposition principles. Initial surfaces are picked from the seismic data (41), then broken into smaller parts (“patches”) that are predominantly topologically consistent (42), whereupon neighboring patches are merged in a topologically consistent way (43) to form a set of surfaces that are extensive and consistent (“skeleton”). Surfaces or geobodies thus extracted may be automatically analyzed and rated (214) based on a selected measure (213) such as AVO classification or one or more other direct hydrocarbon indicators (“DHI”). Topological consistency for one or more surfaces may be defined as no self overlap plus local and global consistency among multiple surfaces (52).
Abstract:
Method for identifying geologic features from geophysical or attribute data using windowed principal component (22), or independent component, or diffusion mapping (61) analysis. Subtle features are made identifiable in partial or residual data volumes. The residual data volumes (24) are created by (36) eliminating data not captured by the most prominent principal components (14). The partial data volumes are created by (35) projecting the data (21) on to selected principal components (22, 61). Geologic features may also be identified from pattern analysis (77) or anomaly volumes (62, 79) generated with a variable-scale data similarity matrix (73). The method is suitable for identifying physical features indicative of hydrocarbon potential.
Abstract:
An automated method for texture segmentation (11) of geophysical data volumes, where texture is defined by double-window statistics of data values, the statistics being generated by a smaller pattern window moving around within a larger sampling window (12). A measure of “distance” between two locations is selected based on similarity between the double-window statistics from sampling windows centered at the two locations (13). Clustering of locations is then based on distance proximity (14).
Abstract:
The present invention is a method for clustering data points. The method represents data-points as vertices of a graph (a well-known mathematical construct) with distance-weighted arcs (lines joining each paid of points). The method then involves sorting the arcs in increasing order of their weights and adding them in ascending order, at each stage determining the number of connected components in the graph and the length of the longest added edge. The longest edge is a measure of the quality of the clustering (low values are good), and the connected components are the clusters.
Abstract:
Method for identifying geologic features from geophysical or attribute data using windowed principal component (22), or independent component, or diffusion mapping (61) analysis. Subtle features are made identifiable in partial or residual data volumes. The residual data volumes (24) are created by (36) eliminating data not captured by the most prominent principal components (14). The partial data volumes are created by (35) projecting the data (21) on to selected principal components (22, 61). Geologic features may also be identified from pattern analysis (77) or anomaly volumes (62, 79) generated with a variable-scale data similarity matrix (73). The method is suitable for identifying physical features indicative of hydrocarbon potential.
Abstract:
A fuel management system mounted on a vehicle is operative to feed an individual grade or a mixture of grades of relatively low, intermediate, and high RON fuels, from respective tanks to an associated internal combustion engine. The system includes an on board separation unit (OBS unit) for receiving and separating intermediate RON fuel, from an IRON tank into low and high RON fuels, LRON and HRON, respectively, for delivery to LRON and HRON tanks, respectively. The production rate of the LRON and HRON fuels by the OBS unit is controlled to substantially match the consumption requirements of the engine at any given time for the LRON and HRON fuels.
Abstract:
Techniques and systems for control of optical switching arrays are described. A switch array controller according to an aspect of the present invention operates so as to achieve reduced power consumption and maintain crosstalk within acceptable limits. Various rules are applied in order to insure that the desired criteria are met. In order to reduce transient effects, switching from one output to another is accomplished in a sequence chosen to maximize the number of transitions occurring in those portions of the array not carrying a signal, and to minimize the number of transitions that occur in portions of the array carrying the signal. Transitions are made in the portion of the array to which the signal will be directed, then a switch is transitioned between the old and new signal paths, and finally further transitions are made in the portion of the array within which the signal was previously directed.