position sensor and position monitoring method

专利摘要:
POSITION SENSOR AND POSITION MONITORING METHOD. The present invention relates to an ultrasonic position detection system which is disclosed. In one embodiment, the system includes an ultrasonic sensor (34) configured to monitor the position of a device (56). The system also includes processing logic (36). The sensor is controlled by logic to direct an ultrasonic pulse (122) towards the device. The logic is configured to calculate the transit time and the speed of the ultrasonic pulse. Based on these parameters, the logic calculates the length of the passage between the sensor and the device, which color responds to the location of the device with respect to the location of the sensor. In other modalities, the ultrasonic positioning system can include several sensors in communication with the oscillating logic to monitor the various devices.
公开号:BR112014026361B1
申请号:R112014026361-2
申请日:2013-04-23
公开日:2020-11-17
发明作者:Donald Scott Coonrod；Emanuel John Gottlieb；Donald Roy Genstein
申请人:Cameron Technologies Limited；
IPC主号:

专利说明:

Background of the invention
[001] This section is intended to introduce the reader to the various aspects of the technique that can be related to the various aspects of the modalities currently described. It is believed that this discussion is useful in providing the reader with historical information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present modalities. Certainly, it must be understood that these statements are to be read in this sense, and not as admissions of the prior art.
[002] In order to meet consumer and industrial demand for natural resources, companies generally invest significant amounts of time and money in seeking and extracting oil, natural gas, and other underground resources from the earth. In particular, since a desired underground resource is discovered, drilling and production systems are generally employed to access and extract the resource. These systems can be located onshore or offshore depending on the location of a desired resource. These systems usually include a wellhead assembly through which resources are extracted.
[003] In the case of an offshore system, such a wellhead assembly may include one or more subsea components that control drilling and / or extraction operations. For example, these components may include one or more production trees (generally referred to as "Christmas trees"), control modules, an explosion sealing system and various enclosures, valves, fluid channels and the like, which generally facilitate extraction of resources from a well to transport to the surface. Some of these components can include subcomponents or devices that are configured for linear motion. For example, an explosion sealing system may include several explosion seals mounted in a stack type arrangement. Each of these explosion seals can include one or more pistons that are configured to move in a linear direction when fired. For example, in the case of a pile driver explosion-proof seal, the opposing pistons can be moved horizontally to each other (for example, by hydraulic actuation) to drive a pair of corresponding opposed piles towards the center of a hole well. Other examples of linearly driven devices that may be present in subsea equipment include various types of pressure or flow control devices, such as valves, connectors, and so on.
[004] Position monitoring (also referred to as variation) with respect to linear moving components was an ongoing challenge for the industry, particularly with regard to devices that are installed in subsea environments. Without a proper position monitoring system, it is difficult for operators to assess the position of a linearly driven component or the distance the component moved in response to a triggering event. In addition, due to the harsh environments in which subsea equipment is generally operated, the ability to monitor the condition of subsea equipment is still useful. Having a reliable position monitoring system in place can provide improved condition monitoring of subsea equipment. For example, position monitoring can be useful in determining whether or not a particular component exhibits expected behavior in response to a trigger control input. In the absence of reliable position information, condition monitoring metrics can more difficultly depend on the relationship between time parameters and drive parameters, which may be insufficient to precisely delineate the status of the normalized condition.
[005] Existing solutions for position monitoring included the use of electromechanical position detection devices in conjunction with linearly driven components. An example of an electromechanical position detection device is a linear variable differential transformer (LVDT). However, the use of electromechanical devices in position monitoring is not without disadvantages. For example, electromechanical devices, such as LVDTs, can be subjected to a common failure, as they are subjected to a level of mechanical degradation similar to the component being monitored. In addition, the incorporation of electromechanical position detection devices into existing subsea equipment may require that existing equipment be redesigned and modified to accommodate electromechanical position detection devices and associated components, which may not only be expensive and time-consuming, but generally little practical. Summary of the invention
[006] Certain aspects of some modalities disclosed in this document are defined below. It should be understood that these aspects are presented merely to provide the reader with a brief summary of certain forms that the invention may take and that these aspects are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Certainly, the invention can cover a variety of aspects that may not be defined below.
[007] The modalities of the present description refer to an ultrasonic position detection system to monitor the position of a component configured for movement. In one embodiment, the position detection system includes an ultrasonic position sensor and oscillating logic that calculates the position of the component with respect to the position of the sensor. To determine the position of the component, the oscillating logic transmits an electronic signal that is converted by a transducer inside the sensor into an acoustic signal in the form of an ultrasonic pulse, which is then directed to a surface of the moving component. When the pulse is reflected, a corresponding echo is received by the sensor, converted back to an electronic signal and transmitted back to the oscillating logic. The oscillating logic determines several parameters to calculate the component's position, including the pulse speed as a function of temperature and pressure and a fluid transit time of the ultrasonic pulse. Thus, once the travel time and speed are known, the oscillating logic can determine the distance traveled by the ultrasonic pulse, which corresponds to the position of the moving component in relation to the sensor.
[008] Several improvements to the characteristics noted above may exist with respect to the various aspects of the present modalities. Other features can also be incorporated into these various aspects. These improvements and additional features can exist individually or in any combination. For example, several features discussed below with respect to one or more of the illustrated modalities can be incorporated into any of the aspects described above in the present description, alone or in combination. Again, the brief summary presented above is intended only to familiarize the reader with certain aspects and contexts of some modalities, without limiting the subject matter. Brief description of the drawings
[009] These and other characteristics, aspects and advantages of certain modalities will be better understood when the following description is read with reference to the attached drawings, in which the similar characters represent similar parts by the drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a block diagram describing an underwater resource extraction system, in accordance with the aspects of this description; Figure 2 is a block diagram describing an explosion sealing system that is part of the resource extraction system of figure 1, in which the explosion sealing system incorporates an ultrasonic position detection system and has several seals against explosions, each having at least one ultrasonic position detection device, in accordance with the aspects of the present description; Figure 3 is a more detailed partial cross-sectional perspective view of a pile driver explosion-proof seal which may form part of the explosion-proof system of Figure 2; Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a set of the explosion-proof seal driver of Fig. 3 having a piston in a retracted (open) position, according to the aspects of the present description; Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the driver assembly described in Figure 4, but with the piston in an extended (closed) position; Figure 6 is a more detailed cross-sectional view showing an ultrasonic position detection device installed in the pile driver explosion-proof actuator assembly shown in figures 3 to 5, and being configured to detect the position of the piston, from according to the aspects of this description; Figure 7 is a cross-sectional perspective view of the driver assembly described in Figures 4 and 5, showing the ultrasonic position detection device installed in the driver assembly; Figure 8 is a flow chart describing a process for determining a passage length corresponding to the position of a moving component using an ultrasonic position detection system, according to the aspects of the present description; Figure 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a part of the pile driver actuator assembly of Figures 4 and 5 that includes various ultrasonic position detection devices, in accordance with the aspects of the present description; Figures 10 to 12 collectively show a transducer assembly that can be used in an ultrasonic detection device, in accordance with a modality; Figures 13 and 14 collectively show a transducer assembly that can be used in an ultrasonic position detection device, according to another modality; Figure 15 is a flowchart that describes a process by which the position monitoring techniques defined in this document are used to monitor the operation of a device and to trigger an alarm condition if the abnormal behavior of the device is detected; Figure 16 shows an example of a graphical user interface element that can be displayed to monitor the operation of a device by which position information is acquired using an ultrasonic position sensor, in accordance with the aspects of the present description; Figure 17 describes an ultrasonic position detection device that can be installed in an underwater device, according to another modality; and Figure 18 is a cross-sectional view showing the ultrasonic position detection device of Figure 17 installed in the driver assembly of an explosion seal, in accordance with the aspects of the present description. Detailed description of the specific modalities
[0010] One or more specific modalities of the present description will be described below. In an effort to provide a concise description of these modalities, all features of an actual implementation may not be described in the specification. It should be understood that in the development of any real implementation, as in a design or engineering project, several specific decisions per implementation must be obtained to achieve the specific objectives of the developers, such as compliance with the restrictions related to the company and the system, which can vary from one implementation to another. In addition, it should be understood that this development effort can be complex and time consuming, but it would nevertheless be a routine of design, fabrication and fabrication for technicians in the field having the benefit of this description.
[0011] When introducing elements of various modalities, the articles "one", "one", "o", "a" and "said (a)" are intended to mean that there is one or more of the elements. The terms "comprising ”,“ Including ”, and“ having ”are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than those listed. In addition, any use of“ top ”,“ bottom ”,“ above ”,“ below ”, other direction terms and variations of these terms are for convenience, but do not require any special guidance from the components.
[0012] With reference initially to figure 1, an exemplary resource extraction system 10 is illustrated according to an embodiment of the present invention. System 10 is configured to facilitate the extraction of a resource, such as oil or natural gas, from a well 12. As shown, system 10 includes a variety of equipment, such as surface equipment 14, elevation equipment 16 and stacking equipment 18, to extract the resource from well 12 in the form of a wellhead 20.
[0013] System 10 can be used in a variety of drilling or extraction applications. Also, while system 10 is described as an offshore or “submarine” system, it will be noted that onshore systems are also available. In the system 10 described, the surface equipment 14 is mounted on a drilling rig located above the water surface, while the stacking equipment 18 is coupled to the wellhead 20 near the seabed. The surface equipment 14 and the stacking equipment 18 can be coupled together by the lifting equipment 16.
[0014] As can be seen, the surface equipment 14 can include various devices and systems, such as pumps, power supplies, cable and hose reels, control units, a bypass system, a cardan suspension, a tripod, and the like. Similarly, lift equipment 16 can also include various components, such as lift joints and connectors, fill valves, control units and a pressure-temperature transducer, to name just a few. The lifting equipment 16 can facilitate the transport of the extracted resources (for example, oil and / or gas) to the equipment on the surface 14 of the stacking equipment 18 and the well 12.
[0015] Stacking equipment 18 can include several components, including an explosion-proof sealing system (BOP) 22. Explosion-proofing system 22, which is sometimes referred to as an explosion-sealing stack, can include multiple seals explosion-proof arrangements arranged in a pile-type configuration along a part of a system borehole 10. The explosion seals present in this system 22 may include one or more pile-type explosion seals and / or explosion seals annular. In some embodiments, system 22 may include several explosion seals, each being configured to perform different functions. For example, an explosion sealing system 22 may include several pile-type explosion seals, including those equipped with pipe piles, shear piles and / or blind piles. The explosion sealing system 22 may also include explosion seals of the same type and which perform the same function for redundancy purposes, as well as additional components, such as a wellhead connector, blocker and destruction valves and connectors, accumulators hydraulic, bending joints, control container, a lower marine lift package connector (LMRP), and so on.
[0016] The explosion sealing system 22 generally works during operation of the resource extraction system 10 to regulate and / or monitor pressure from the well bore to help control the volume of fluid being drawn from the well 12 through the head. of well 20. For example, if well pressures are detected to exceed a safe limit level during drilling or resource extraction, which may indicate the increased likelihood of an explosion occurring, one or more system 22 explosion seals may be actuated through the hydraulic control inlets to seal the wellhead 20, thus plugging the well 12. As an example, in the case of a pile-pile explosion seal, each of the piles of a pair of opposite piles can be driven towards the center of a well hole using the respective pistons driven through the hydraulic control inputs, where each piston moves in a linear direction in response to the input control to move a respective stake. These piles can be fitted with packers that form an elastomeric seal, which can seal the wellhead 20 by breaking the casing or drill pipe and effectively plug the well 12. In the case of an annular explosion seal, a piston can be line- strongly driven to cause a packaging unit to tighten around an object arranged in the well bore, such as a drill string or casing.
[0017] Pistons used in explosion seals represent an example of a linearly driven device or component. That is, these pistons can move in a linear direction in response to a control input to drive another component, such as a pile (in the pile-type explosion-proof seals) or a conditioning unit (in the ring-explosion seals). As will be discussed in more detail below with respect to figure 2, the explosion sealing system 22 of the currently disclosed modalities includes a position detection system that uses the ultrasonic position detection devices that enable the resource extraction system 10 to determine the linear position of a linearly driven component or device being monitored. As used in this document, the terms device and component can generally be used interchangeably when referring to an object having its position being monitored by the position detection system.
[0018] One aspect of position monitoring may refer to a determination of the linear position (for example, position along a linear movement passage) of a device of interest with respect to the position of the ultrasonic position sensor. For example, in the case of an explosion seal, the position detection system can use ultrasonic variation to determine the linear position of a piston within an explosion seal. For example, in a pile-break explosion seal, the position of the piston can indicate the distance that its corresponding pile has moved in response to actuation. Additionally, it should be understood that position monitoring, as implemented by the position detection system, can also monitor the position of a stationary device or, to a certain extent, a device that moves in a non-linear way (for example, a pass circular, curved passage, etc.).
[0019] Other components of the stacking equipment 18 of figure 1 include a production tree 24, generally referred to as a "Christmas tree”, undersea control module 26 and an undersea electronic module 28. Tree 24 may include an arrangement of valves and other components that control the flow of a resource extracted out of well 12 and onto the elevation equipment 16, which in turn facilitates the transmission of the extracted resource to the surface 14 equipment, as discussed above. modalities, tree 24 can also provide additional functions, including flow control, chemical injection functionality and pressure relief. As an example only, tree 24 can be a model of an underwater production tree manufactured by Cameron International Corporation of Houston, Texas.
[0020] The subsea control module 26 can provide electronic and / or hydraulic control of the various components of the stacking equipment 18, including the explosion sealing system 22. In addition, the subsea electronic module 28 can be designed to accommodate various electronic components , such as printed circuit boards containing the logic to perform one or more functions. For example, with respect to the ultrasonic position detection system, the underwater electronic module 28 may include oscillating logic configured to calculate or otherwise determine the position of a linearly driven device based on a device's pulse-echo response. ultrasonic position detection that monitors the linearly driven device.
[0021] With these points in mind, Figure 2 is a block diagram showing an example of an explosion seal system 22 having several explosion seals 32, including an annular explosion seal 32a and at least two explosion seals pile driver 32b and 32c. Certainly, other modalities may use few or more explosion seals 32. As discussed above, pile-type explosion seals can be adapted for different functions, based on the type of pile blocks equipped. For example, a pile driver explosion seal may include pipe pile drivers that are configured to close around a pipe within a well bore to restrict fluid flow within the annular channel between the pipe and the well bore, but not within the tube itself, the shear piles configured to cut a drill column or casing or blind piles configured to seal a well bore. Piles can also include blind shear pile drivers, which are configured to seal a well hole even when occupied by a drill string or casing. Certainly, the pile driver explosion seals 32b and 32c of figure 2 can be any of the pile driver explosion seals mentioned above and can perform the same or different functions.
[0022] Figure 2 further illustrates an ultrasonic position detection system, described in this document in the form of ultrasonic position detection devices 34 and oscillating logic 36, which is shown to be contained within the underwater electronic module 28. How it will be discussed in more detail below, an ultrasonic position detection device 34 can be provided for each linearly driven device in which position monitoring is desired. For example, with respect to each of the pile driver explosion seals 32b and 32c, at least two sensors 34 can be provided, each being configured to detect the linear position of a respective pair of opposing pistons. As generally described in figure 2, sensors 34 can be located at the opposite ends of the explosion-proof seals of the pile driver 32b and 32c. The annular explosion seal 32a, which can include a piston to drive a packaging unit, further includes a corresponding sensor 34 to monitor the linear position of the piston.
[0023] Each position detection device 34 includes an ultrasound transducer configured to convert an electrical signal received from oscillating logic 36 into an acoustic signal in the form of an ultrasonic pulse. The pulse is then transmitted by the position detection device towards a surface of the linearly driven device. The reflection of the ultrasonic pulse off a surface of the linearly driven device, which can be referred to as an echo, is then directed back to the position detection device 34 and received by the transducer, converted into an electrical signal and transmitted back to logic oscillating 36. This passage of the oscillating logic 36 to the sensor 34 and the linearly driven device can be referred to as the signal passage, which includes both the electrical and acoustic passage.
[0024] The oscillating logic 36 is configured to determine various parameters, including the total transit time along the signal passage, the ultrasound pulse speed and any delay time in the signal passage between logic 36 and the device linearly triggered. As will be discussed in more detail below with respect to figure 8, based on the previous parameters, oscillating logic 36 calculates the length of the passage in which the ultrasonic pulse travels to determine the linear position of the device (for example, piston of a seal against explosions) being monitored. That is, logic 36 determines the position of the device linearly driven in relation to the position of sensor 34 with which it is associated. In addition, while certain modalities described in this document refer to the use of the position monitoring system to assess the linear position of a particular component, the position monitoring system can still be used to determine the position of a component that is immobile or moves non-linearly with respect to sensor 34.
[0025] As shown in figure 2, the communication cables 38 can include the wiring that relays the signals between the ultrasonic sensor of positions 34 and the oscillating logic 36 in the underwater electronic module 28. The module 28 can be arranged in a housing that can withstand the underwater environment. In other modalities, the oscillating logic 36 can be positioned close to the linearly driven device, as in the case of an explosion seal having a piston / pile, which is being monitored using a respective sensor 34. Additionally, the oscillating logic 36 can also be distributed in some way by the underwater electronic module 28 and in the housing of a subsea component containing the linearly driven device (s) of interest.
[0026] Together, subsea control module 26 and electronic module 28 may include the communication circuit, which provides communication with each other with various subsea components in stacking equipment 18 and with surface equipment 14 and / or equipment elevation 16. For example, an umbilical containing one or more cables to relay data can transmit data from stacking equipment 18, subsea control module 26 and / or electronic module 28 to surface equipment 14 and / or lifting equipment 16. In one mode, this data can be transmitted according to a communication protocol, such as Modbus, CAN bus or any other suitable wired or wireless communication protocol. Certainly, the position information acquired using the ultrasonic position detection system can be transmitted to the surface equipment 14, thus allowing an operator to monitor the operation of various subsea devices monitored by the sensors 34.
[0027] Referring now to figure 3, a partial cut-away perspective view of a pile driver 32 explosion seal that includes an ultrasonic position sensor 34, is illustrated according to one embodiment. The illustrated pile driver 32 explosion seal includes a body 42, covers 44, driver assemblies 46 and closing members 47 in the form of pile blocks. In the present embodiment, piles 47 are shown as pipe piles as an example only. As discussed above, other modes of explosion sealing 32 may include shear pile drivers, blind pile drivers (sometimes referred to as fence posts) or blind shear pile drivers. The body 42 includes a well hole 48, pile cavity 50 and upper and lower screw connections 52 that can be used to mount the additional components above and below the explosion seal 32, such as when the explosion seal 32 is arranged as part explosion-proof battery pack.
[0028] The covers 44 are coupled to the body 42 by protective connectors 54. These connectors 54 can allow the covers 44 to be removed from the body 42 of the explosion seal 32 to provide access to the piles 47. The respective driver 46 assemblies are mounted on the covers 44 at the opposite ends of the body 42. As shown in figure 3, one of the driver assemblies 46 is shown in a partial section view to expose and thus better illustrate the components therein. Thus, while the description of the driver assemblies 46 can focus on the exposed driver assembly of figure 3, it should be understood that the unexposed driver assembly 46 at the opposite end of the body 42 is configured in the same way. For example, driver assembly 46 includes a hydraulic piston 56 arranged in a cylinder 58. In response to hydraulic control inputs, piston 56 can travel in a linear direction within cylinder 58, which can drive a corresponding stake 47 through the pile cavity 50, inside and outside well hole 48.
[0029] As still shown in figure 3, the end of the cylinder 58 opposite the cover 44 is coupled to a head 60 through the screwed connectors 62. In one embodiment, an ultrasonic position sensor 34 can be installed on the head 60 of each set of driver 46 to provide monitoring of the linear position of pistons 56 within their respective cylinders 58. For example, if pistons 56 are driven to drive piles 47 to at least partially seal well hole 48, the use of sensors ultrasonic sensors of position 34 in conjunction with oscillating logic 36 can allow an operator to monitor the movement of pistons 56 and piles 47, and to determine whether they are responding to the triggering event (e.g., hydraulic control input) in an expected manner.
[0030] Figures 4 and 5 provide cross-sectional views showing one of the driver 46 assemblies in figure 3 in more detail. As shown, driver assembly 46 is mounted on cover 44 and coupled to a pile 47. In the illustrated embodiment, pile 47 is shown to be a pipe pile with the distal end of pile 47 (that is, closest to the hole well 48) including a packer 68 that forms a seal around a tube disposed inside the well hole 48 when both piles 47 are extended from their respective pits 50 to the well hole 48. Certainly, as discussed above, other types of piles 47 may include shear piles and blind piles.
[0031] In addition to cylinder 58 containing piston 56, driver assembly 46 also includes piston rod 70, head 60, sliding sleeve 76 and locking rod 78. Piston 56 includes main piston body 80 and a flange 82. The piston parts 56 of the body 80 and the flange 82 may include one or more seals, referred to by reference numbers 84 and 86, respectively. As shown in figures 4 and 5, the body seals 84 circumferentially surround the piston body 80 while sealingly engages the inner wall of cylinder 58. Similarly, the seals on flange 86 circumferentially surround the piston flange 82 while sealable shape engages the inner wall of cylinder 58.
[0032] The engagement of body seal 84 and flange seal 86 with cylinder 58 divides the interior of cylinder 58 into three hydraulically insulated cameras: an extension camera 88, a loose fluid camera 94, and a retraction camera 98. An extension port 90 provides hydraulic communication with the extension camera 88, which is formed between the head 60 and the flange seal 86. Similarly, a loose fluid port 96 provides hydraulic communication with the loose fluid camera 94 , which is formed in an annular region defined by cylinder 58 and piston 56, between the body seal 84 and the flange seal 86. In addition, a retract port 100 provides fluid communication with a retraction camera 98, which is formed in an annular region defined by cylinder 58 and piston 56 between the body seal 84 and the cap 44.
[0033] In operation, the extension camera 88 and the retraction camera 98 can be in fluid communication with a hydraulic fluid supply (not shown in figures 4 or 5), regulated by a control system. In some embodiments, the hydraulic fluid expelled from the extension camera 88 and the retraction camera 98 can be recycled in the supply of hydraulic fluid or can be vented in the surrounding environment. The loose fluid chamber 94 can be balanced by pressure with the surrounding environment, so that the fluid pressure inside the loose chamber 94 does not resist the movement of piston 56 when activated. In certain embodiments, the loose fluid chamber 94 can be left open in the surrounding environment (for example, sea water) or can be coupled to a pressure compensation system that keeps the pressure balanced within the loose fluid chamber 94.
[0034] With reference to figure 4, the driver assembly 46 is shown in a completely retracted position, in which the piston 56 is arranged against the head 60. This is sometimes referred to as the open position. When a drive input is provided, such as through hydraulic controls, pressurized hydraulic fluid is supplied through extension port 90. This drives assembly 46 and causes piston 56 to travel, that is, move in a linear direction, away from head 60 towards cover 44. As piston 56 moves towards cover 44, the hydraulic fluid supplied through extension port 90 enters extension chamber 88. At the same time, the fluid inside the retraction chamber 98 , which may also include pressurized hydraulic fluid, is expelled through the retract port 100, and fluid inside the loose fluid chamber 94 is expelled through the loose fluid port 96. The fluid expelled from the loose fluid chamber 94 and the camera retraction 98 during operation can be retained in a reservoir or, in some cases, ejected into the surrounding environment. As discussed above, the loose fluid chamber 94 can be opened to the environment in some embodiments. For example, the fluid entering and leaving the fluid chamber 94 in such an embodiment may be seawater, in the case of an underwater installation.
[0035] Certainly, as the hydraulic fluid is supplied to the extension chamber 88, piston 56 will continue to move in a linear direction to cover 44 until piston 56 contacts cover 44. This is shown in figure 5, which illustrates the driver assembly 46 in a fully extended position (sometimes referred to as the closed position). Although the driver assembly 46 is driven by hydraulic pressure, many applications may still include a mechanical lock in order to maintain the position of the pile 47, as in situations where there is a loss of hydraulic pressure. In order to positively lock piston 56 and thus the post 47 in position, the sliding sleeve 76 is pivotally fixed with respect to piston 56 and threadedly coupled with a locking rod 78 which is pivotally coupled to the head 60. Sliding sleeve 76 moves axially with respect to locking rod 78 when locking rod 78 is rotated, thereby locking the position of piston 56 and pile 47.
[0036] When piston 56 is operated from an initially retracted position, as shown in figure 4, and begins to move linearly away from head 60 towards cover 44, the distance 104 (figure 6) between head 60 and the piston 56 continues to increase until piston 56 reaches the end of its stroke, as shown in figure 5, that is, the body 80 of piston 56 had contact with the cap 44. The ultrasonic position sensor 34 can be supplied on the head 60 of the driver assembly 46 to allow monitoring of piston position 56. The sensor 34 can be configured to transmit an ultrasonic pulse and receives a corresponding echo due to the reflection of this pulse off the surface of the piston 56. As will be discussed in more detail below, the time that elapsed between the transmission of the pulse and the reception of the corresponding echo can be used by the oscillating logic to determine the distance the pulse has traveled and, as such, to determine the linear position of the piston 56. In most cases, the device of interest may actually be pile 47. However, since pile 47 is driven by piston 56, knowing the linear position of piston 56, one can deduce the distance that pile 47 has traveled.
[0037] With reference now to figure 6, a more detailed cross-sectional view is provided illustrating an ultrasonic position sensor 34 according to an embodiment. In particular, sensor 34 is shown to be installed on head 60 of driver assembly 46 described in figures 4 and 5 and configured to direct the ultrasound pulses towards piston 56. In the illustrated embodiment, head 60 includes a recess 108 configured to receive sensor 34. Sensor 34 includes an enclosure 110, an ultrasound transducer module 112, a temperature detection device 114 (shown in figure 6 as a resistance temperature detector (RTD)) and a transducer 116. In certain embodiments, transducer 112 may be a model of an ultrasound transducer module manufactured by Cameron International Corporation. The temperature sensing device 114 can be a discrete component within the housing 110 or can be embedded as part of the transducer module 112, as shown in figure 6. In the present embodiment, an opening 118 is still provided and can extend from the recess 108 through the opposite side of the head 60 to allow the wiring to pass between the sensor 34 and the oscillating logic 36.
[0038] The sensor 34 can be secured inside the recess using any suitable mechanism. For example, in one embodiment, both the recess 108 and the sensor housing 110 can be threaded and generally cylindrical. Of course, sensor 34 can be installed on head 60 by simply rotating the sensor housing 110 in recess 108, thus allowing the respective threads to engage with another. In other embodiments, the sensor 34 can be attached to the recess 108 using an adhesive, connectors or any other suitable technique. In general, this provides a relatively simple installation of sensor 34 without requiring significant and / or complex redesign of existing subsea equipment.
[0039] To monitor the linear position of piston 56 during operation, the ultrasonic position sensor 34 can intermittently transmit an ultrasonic pulse 122. Pulse 122 can originate from transducer 112 and propagate through window 116 and extension camera 88, which can be filled with pressurized hydraulic fluid 120 as piston 56 is activated. Window 116 may include a high compressive strength plastic material having acoustic impedance properties that are similar to the liquid. This allows the transmitted pulse 122 to leave the sensor housing 110 while having relatively small acoustic impedance. As an example only, window 116 can be formed using a polyetherimide material, such as ULTEM ™, available from SABIC in Saudi Arabia, organic polymer thermoplastic materials, such as polyether ether ketone (PEEK) or a plastic based polyamide, such as Ves- pel ™, available from El du Pont de Nemours and Company of Wilmington, Delaware. Housing 110 can be manufactured using a metallic material, such as steel or titanium, or it can be formed using one of the plastic materials previously mentioned, or using a combination of metallic and plastic materials.
[0040] After propagating through window 116, pulse 122 then travels the distance 104 between head 60 and piston 56 through hydraulic fluid 120. Upon impacting piston 56, pulse 122 is reflected in the form of a corresponding echo 124. Transducer 112 receives echo 124 as it propagates back towards sensor 34 through hydraulic fluid 120 and window 116. Transducer 112 can operate at any suitable frequency, such as between approximately 200 kHz and 5.0 mega -hertz. In one embodiment, transducer 112 is configured to operate at a frequency of approximately 1.6 mega-hertz. In addition, although not expressly shown in figure 6, sensor 34 may include wiring that can be passed through opening 118, which may have a diameter or width that is less than that of recess 108. Referring briefly to figure 2, this wiring may represent wiring 38 that provides communication between sensors 34 and oscillating logic 36.
[0041] While recess 108 is shown in figure 6 as having a width (for example, a diameter in the case of a circular recess) that is greater than that of opening 118, in one embodiment, recess 108 may be an opening that extends all the way through end cap 60. That is, opening 118 and recess 108 can be the same width. In this embodiment, the sensor housing 110 can be configured to extend through the end cap 60. Also, in this embodiment, the wiring of the transducer module 112 and / or the RTD 114 can form a connector coupled to the housing 110, in which the The connector is configured to electronically connect the wiring inside the sensor 34 to the oscillating logic 36. For example, such a connector can be accessible outside cylinder 58 of the explosion seal 32 and can be coupled to the oscillating logic using one or more suitable cables. This mode also allows the ultrasound detection device 34 to be installed from the outside of the explosion seal 32 or any other component in which it must be installed, which avoids the need for any disassembly of the end cap 60 of the explosion seal body. 32 during installation. For example, where recess 108 extends all the way from end cap 60 and includes threads that engage the corresponding threads on sensor 34, sensor 34 can be installed from the outside by rotating the joint sensor 110 to recess 108 from the outside end cap 60 until the threads engage securely with each other.
[0042] As will be discussed in more detail below with reference to figure 8, oscillating logic 36 can obtain or, otherwise, determine various parameters that are used to calculate the length of the passage through which the ultrasonic pulse 122 traveled before being reflected . This passage length can correspond to distance 104, which can allow an operator to determine the linear position of a particular device, such as piston 56 in this example. The parameters obtained and / or determined by the oscillating logic include a computed speed of sound (VOS) through a fluid as a function of temperature and pressure, a delay period and a passage of the transit time signal. For example, the temperature parameter (for example, the temperature inside the extension camera 88) can be measured using the temperature sensing device 114. The pressure parameter (for example, the pressure inside the extension camera 88) can be provided to the oscillating logic 36 as an expected pressure value or, in other embodiments, it can be the measured pressure information provided to the oscillating logic 36 by one or more pressure sensing devices.
[0043] The delay period can represent non-fluid delays present in the passage of the signal which, as discussed above, include the entire passage (both electrical and acoustic parts) between the oscillating logic 36 and the monitored device. For example, the presence of window 116 and wiring 38 can introduce non-fluid delays. By subtracting the delay period from the total transit time and dividing the result by two, the fluid transit time of pulse 122 (or its corresponding echo 124) can be determined. Certainly, since the speed of the ultrasonic / echo pulse through the hydraulic fluid 120 and the fluid transit time are known, the length of the passage between the head 60 and the piston 56 can be calculated by the oscillating logic 36, thus providing the position linear piston 56. Knowing the linear position of piston 56, system 10 can determine the distance that pile 47 has traveled. In some embodiments, fluid 120 does not necessarily have to be a liquid. For example, fluid 120 may include a gas or a mixture of gas, such as air.
[0044] In the present example, the 34 position ultrasonic sensor is used to monitor the linear position of a piston in an explosion seal of an underwater resource extraction system 10. Certainly, sensor 34 can be designed to be durable enough to withstand the harsh environmental conditions usually associated with subsea operation. In one embodiment, the sensor housing 110, in which sensor 34 is disposed, can be manufactured using titanium, stainless steel or any other suitable type of metal, alloy or superalloy and may be able to operate at pressures between approximately 96 KPa ( 14 pounds per square inch (PSI) to 14,000 PSI). For example, sensor housing window 116 can handle loads up to 96 KPa (14,000 PSI). Sensor 34 may also be able to withstand operating temperatures between 0 to 100 degrees Celsius.
[0045] As shown in figure 6, sensor 34 can be cut inside recess 38 by a distance shown by reference number 125. This distance 125 can be selected at least partially in certain properties of window 116, such as thickness characteristics and speed of sound, to compensate for the signal reverberation within the middle of window 116. This reverberation is due to the resonance properties of window 116. For example, when ultrasonic pulse 122 is transmitted from sensor 34, a part of signal 122 may reverberate inside window 116 before dissipating. The amount of time it takes for this reverberation to dissipate can constitute what is sometimes referred to as a dead signal band. If an echo (eg 124) arrives at sensor 34 within this signal deadband, sensor 34 may be unable to acquire an accurate measurement due to interference from continuous signal reverberation within window 116. This is generally more problematic when the target device, here the piston 56, is very close to the head 60 (for example, near or in the open position shown in figure 4), so that the time taken for echo 124 to return to sensor 34 is within the dead band. Certainly, lowering the sensor 34 by a distance 125 within the recess 108 can compensate for the effects of the deadband, thus allowing the sensor 34 to precisely acquire the measurements for generally any position of the piston 56 within the cylinder 58.
[0046] Distance 125 can be selected as a function of the thickness of the window and its resonance properties. For example, a plastic material, such as ULTEM ™ or PEEK may have resonance properties in which an ultrasonic signal reverberates within window 116 for approximately two turns before dissipating. So, in this example, the goal is to select distance 125, which is the closest period in which an echo 124 reflected from the piston 56 returns to the sensor is outside the deadband signal period, with the most extreme case being when the piston 56 is in the open position. In addition, it should be noted that the plastic materials discussed above generally have lower resonance properties when compared to other materials, particularly metals such as steel. By comparison, in a sensor where the ultrasonic pulse 122 is transmitted through a metallic material, such as steel, the ultrasonic signal 122 can reverberate for approximately ten or more turns inside the steel before dissipating. This can result in a larger dead band, which may require a greater distance 125 when compared to a sensor 34, which uses a similarly thick lower resonant plastic material, such as ULTEM ™.
[0047] Figure 7 is a more detailed cross-sectional view showing the driver assembly 46 of a pile driver 32 explosion seal similar to that described above in figures 3 to 5, with the driver assembly 46 having a ultrasonic position sensor 34 installed in the head 60 through the recess 108. In this illustrated embodiment, the explosion seal 32 can be a double pile explosion seal that includes two piles on each side of a well hole. Each pile on a particular side can be driven by a respective piston 56 within a cylinder 58 of a driver assembly 46 coupled to the body of the explosion seal 32. For example, in Figure 7, cylinder 58 can accommodate a piston 56 while the adjacent cylinder 58 'can accommodate another piston (not visible in figure 7). Of course, the driver assembly 46 corresponding to the adjacent cylinder 58 'may also include a similarly configured ultrasonic position sensor 34.
[0048] Figure 7 further describes a lever 128 that can be engaged to rotate the locking rod 78 to lock the extended piston 56 in the extended position. For example, lever 128 can be engaged and operated by a remotely operated vehicle (VRO) or a manned underwater vehicle, such as a submarine. In addition, figure 7 still shows a modality in which at least part of the oscillating logic 36 is located in the explosion-proof enclosure instead of being centralized within the underwater electronic module 28, as shown in figure 2. For example, oscillating logic 36 can be distributed among several components, with parts of logic 36 being housed in a submarine enclosure, referred to in this document as a variant 126 unit, and fixed or, otherwise, attached to a component housing, here the head 60 of an explosion seal 32. In this arrangement, all variant units 126 collectively perform oscillating logic 36 and each variant unit 126 is configured to receive input parameters and calculate the position information for a linearly driven device being monitored by a respective sensor 34.
[0049] Thus, in figure 7, the two variant units 126 shown can correspond to sensors 34 that monitor the movement of the piston inside the cylinders 58 and 58 '. For example, wiring extending through opening 118 can connect each sensor 34 to its respective variant unit 126. In addition, each variant unit 126 can be configured to communicate position information to submarine control module 26 and / or electronic module submarine 28, which can then depend on the surface information. In addition, while the modality described above shows sensor 34 as being installed in head 60, other modalities may include a sensor 34 installed in piston 56 itself. Thus, in these modalities, oscillating logic 36 can determine the linear position of the piston 56 with respect to the location of the head 60 or some other point or reference.
[0050] Having generally described the operation of sensor 34 above, a process 130 by which oscillating logic 36 can calculate the linear position of a monitored device is now described in more detail with reference to figure 8. Generally, the linear position of a device of interest (for example, a piston / pile from an explosion seal), can be determined using the following equation: d = VOSxtfíuid, (Eq.t)
[0051] in which VOS represents the speed of the ultrasonic pulse emitted by the sensor 34 through a given medium (such as hydraulic fluid inside the extension camera 88) and represents the unidirectional fluid transit time of the ultrasonic pulse (or its corresponding reflection) ), which can be equivalent to the total transit time in one direction along the passage of the signal with non-fluid delays removed. These parameters are then used to determine the distance d by which the ultrasonic pulse travels from the sensor 34 to the device of interest, thus allowing someone to determine the linear position of the device with respect to the position of the sensor 34.
[0052] As discussed above, VOS can be determined as a function of pressure and temperature. For example, in one modality, VOS can be calculated according to Wayne Wilson's equation for the speed of sound in distilled water as a function of temperature and pressure, as published in the Journal of the Acoustic Society of America, Vol. 31, No. 8, 1959. This equation is provided below:

[0053] where T represents the temperature in Celsius and An represents the coefficients to calculate the speed of sound, where the coefficients An are calculated as a function of pressure, as shown below:

[0054] Here, P represents the pressure in bar and an, bn, cn, dn, and en all represent the additional subcoefficients to calculate the speed of sound. Thus, by substituting Equation 2b for Equation 2a, VOS can be calculated as follows:

[0055] Equation 2c can be written in expanded form as: MS = 4J + AXT + A2T- + 47a + AJ4, (Eq. 2d) where:

[0056] When applied to determine the speed of sound through distilled water under a known pressure and temperature, the following coefficients can be used in Wilson's speed of sound equation (Equations 2a-2d above):

[0057] The values calculated for the coefficients An can then be replaced by Equation 2d above to obtain the speed of sound through distilled water at a pressure and temperature represented by Pe T, respectively.
[0058] As can be seen, the steps described above to determine VOS can correspond to steps 132 and 138 of process 130 described in figure 8. For example, in step 132, a temperature value (T) 134 and pressure value ( P) 136 are acquired. As discussed above, the temperature value can be obtained using the temperature sensing device 114 of the ultrasonic position sensor 34, while the pressure can be supplied to the oscillating logic 36 as a measured or expected value (for example, measured by a device pressure detection on the explosion seal or other subsea equipment). In some embodiments, the temperature can still be provided to the oscillating logic 36 as an expected value instead of being a value measured by the temperature sensing device 114. Once these parameters are determined in step 132, the oscillating logic 36 can calculate the speed of sound 140 according to Wilson's equation in step 138.
[0059] It should also be noted that the specific example of the numerical coefficients provided above corresponds to the properties of distilled water. However, these coefficients can provide a relatively accurate calculation sound speed through hydraulic fluids that are largely water-based (for example, 99% water-based hydraulic fluids). In addition, the numerical coefficients above can also be adjusted to account for any differences in the properties of distilled water and a water-based hydraulic fluid to further improve the accuracy of the speed of sound calculation.
[0060] The other parameters used by the oscillating logic to determine the distance d from Equation 1 include the total transit time of the ultrasonic signal, including any non-fluid parts of the signal passage (for example, window 116, wiring 38), and a non-fluid delay period corresponding to the delays that the non-fluid parts of the signal passage contribute. Once the total transit time and non-fluid delay periods are known, the fluid transit time in one direction (for example, that both the pulse and the echo) is determined as follows:

[0061] where ttotai represents the total transit time of both the electronic and the acoustic signal along the signal passage, that is, oscillating logic 36, along the wiring 38 to the transducer 112, through the window 116, through a fluid medium (e.g., hydraulic fluid 120) in a direction to a device of interest and back through each of these components following the reflection of the pulse. Certainly, non-fluid components in this signal passage, which may include window 116 and wiring 38, introduce some amount of delay, represented above in Equation 3 as T. Thus, the fluid transit time in one direction (for example, either the pulse from the sensor to the device or interest or the echo from the device back to the sensor) is determined by removing the non-fluid delay T from the total transit time, tfoia / , and dividing the result by two, where dividing by two results in a time value corresponding to the transit time flowing in one direction (instead of a round trip time).
[0062] The total transit time, ttotai, can be determined by processing the pulse-echo passage performed by oscillating logic 36. For example, oscillating logic 136 can determine the amount of time that elapses between sending a signal that causes the pulse and receive a signal resulting from the corresponding echo. This is represented by step 142 of process 130, which produces the total transit time 144. With respect to the non-fluid delay, each non-fluid component within the signal passage can introduce a respective delay that can be expressed as follows:
where L represents the length of the part of the signal passing through the non-fluid component and C represents the speed of the signal through the non-fluid component. The result is multiplied by two to explain the non-fluid delay in both the continuous passage and the return passage. As an example only, assume that wiring 38 has a length of approximately 6 meters and that the speed signal through wiring 38 is approximately 1.4 * 108 meters / second, the non-fluid delay contributed by the wiring (ífota /) is approximately 0.0857 microsecond (ps). Similarly, assuming that the window 116 of sensor 34 is approximately 15.74 mm thick and allows the ultrasonic pulse to travel at a speed of approximately 2424 meters / second, the non-fluid delay contributed by window 116 (Tjaneia) θ approximately 13 , 0724 ps.
[0063] These non-fluid delay components (Tfj0 and Tjaneia) are then added together to obtain the total non-fluid delay period T, which is represented by step 146 of process 130 in figure 8. For example, the wire length characteristics and speed 148 and characteristics of the transducer window length and speed 150 are provided to step 146. Using the expression defined above in Equation 4, the oscillating logic can calculate the total non-fluid delay period (T) 152 based on parameters 148 and 150.
[0064] Thus, step 154 of process 130 provides the calculation of the length of the passage 156 between the sensor 34 and the linearly driven device using the calculated sound speed (VOS) 140, total pulse-echo transit time 144 along the signal passing and the non-fluid delay period 152. Using Equation 3, the fluid transit time in one direction can be calculated as half of the total transit time 144 minus the non-fluid delay period 152. Certainly, seen As the fluid transit time is known, the passage length 156 can be calculated according to Equation 1. When applied to the examples described above with respect to an explosion seal, the passage length 156 can represent linear position information referring to the distance a piston and thus its corresponding stake moved in response to a drive input.
[0065] The result of the passage length 156 of figure 8 generally produces a measurement of the distance that the piston is in relation to the window 116 of the sensor 34. As will be observed, for even more precision in some modalities, the calculated passage length 156 it can be further reduced by the distance by which the sensor 34 is lowered into the head 60 (for example, distance 125 in figure 6) to provide a measurement of the piston distance from the inner wall (for example, forming part of the extension camera 88) of the head 60.
[0066] As noted above, in a modality where a hydraulic fluid used to drive a device is not distilled or substantially water-based, the coefficients used in Equations 2a-2d above can be adjusted, as through the empirical test, to provide accurate speed of sound results when ultrasonic signals are transmitted through non-liquid fluids or those that are not substantially water-based. In another mode, instead of depending on Equations 2a-2d for the calculation of the speed of sound, a combination of several sensors 34 can be used to determine the position of a device of interest, with at least one sensor being directed to the interest and another sensor being directed to a generally constant reference point. In this mode, these sensors can be referred to as a measurement sensor and a reference sensor, respectively.
[0067] An example of this modality is shown in figure 9. Specifically, Fig. 9 shows a modality of the pile driver 32 explosion seal described above, in which a piston 56 is driven using a hydraulic fluid that is not water or substantially water-based, such as a water-based hydraulic fluid. Here, to determine the position of piston 56, sensors 34a and 34b are provided on cylinder 58, with sensor 34a being a measurement sensor and sensor 34b being a reference sensor. The sensor 34a is oriented and configured as the sensor 34 shown in figure 6 to measure the distance 172 (c / 2) between the head 60 and the piston 56. The sensor 34b is identical to the sensor 34a, but it is oriented to measure the distance 170 (di) between the inner wall of cylinder 58 and shaft 80 of piston 56. As can be seen, the distance 170 is generally constant, except for periods when piston 56 is in the closed or nearly closed position (for example , when the flange part 82 of piston 56 enters the line of sight of sensor 34b). However, excluding these periods, the distance 170 measured by sensor 34 is a known distance di. Certainly, the speed of sound through the hydraulic fluid in the loose fluid chamber 94 can be determined as follows:
where VOS represents the speed of sound over the known distance d1e dij uld0 represents the fluid transit time of an ultrasonic signal from sensor 34b to axis 82 and back. As can be seen, the fluid transit time ti_fiuid0 can be calculated in a similar way to that described above, that is, determining the total transit time and removing non-fluid delays (for example, wiring delays, delays transmitted by windows) .
[0068] When VOS of the speed of sound calculated using Equation 5 above is known, the distance 172 can be calculated as follows:

[0069] Here, t2JhMo represents the transit time of the round-trip fluid of an ultrasonic pulse (and its corresponding echo) emitted by the sensor 34a, which can again be calculated by measuring the total round-trip transit time along the passing sensor signal 34a and removing non-fluid delays (for example, wiring delays, delays transmitted through the window). Dividing by a factor of two results in a unidirectional fluid transit time which, when multiplied by the known VOS value in Equation 5, gives the distance d2 corresponding to the passage length between sensor 34b and piston 56. As discussed above, any distance by which the sensor 34b is lowered can be subtracted from the passage length (c / 2) to determine the distance of piston 56 from head 60 of cylinder 58.
[0070] As can be seen, while the speed of sound through a fluid can vary as the pressure and / or temperature characteristics change, in an underwater application using the explosion-proof type of pile driver 32, temperature characteristics and pressure are not expected to vary much within a short time. In addition, oscillating logic 36 can be configured to detect when piston flange 82 is in line of sight of sensor 34b and to discard measurements for VOS acquired when piston 56 is in such a position. In this situation, the most recent VOS values before piston flange 82 prevent the line of sight of sensor 34b from being used when determining the length of passage d2 as piston 56 near the closed position. In the present embodiment, sensors 34a and 34b are oriented so that they measure in directions that are perpendicular to each other.
[0071] As still shown in figure 9, cylinder 58 may include sensor 34c positioned inside the inner wall 175 at the end of cylinder 58 opposite head 58, that is, the end that flange 82 comes into contact with when piston 56 is activated in the closed position. This sensor 34c can be used instead of or in addition to sensor 34a to assess the position of piston 56. For example, the distance 174 (d3) between sensor 34c and flange 82 of piston 56 can be determined using the known distance 170 (d ^. For example, similar to the calculation of d2 by Equation 6 above, the distance d3 can be calculated as follows:

[0072] Thus, the distance d3 generally indicates the distance that the piston 56 is from the sensor 34c on the inner wall 175. Furthermore, in this example, the distance of the piston from the head 60 can still be calculated by adding a known width 176 from the piston flange 82 at the calculated distance d3 and subtracting the result from the length of the cylinder 58, as measured from the head 60 to the inner wall 175. Also, some modalities may include both sensors 34a and 34c, in which the results obtained using each respective sensor can provide a degree of redundancy (for example, if a sensor fails) or can be compared with each other for validation purposes.
[0073] The position calculation algorithms described above can be implemented using hardware and / or software properly configured in the form of coded calculation instructions stored in one or more machine-readable tangible media. In a software implementation, the software can additionally provide a graphical user interface, which can display the information for presentation to a human operator. For example, position measurements acquired by the ultrasonic position detection system can be displayed on a workstation monitor located on the surface of the resource extraction system 10 or at a remote location. The software can also be configured to save data records to monitor device positions (for example, the position of piles) over time. In addition, in the event that an accurate measurement cannot be obtained, the software can provide a visual and / or audible alarm to alert an operator. In some embodiments, a virtual (for example, part of the software's graphical user interface) or hardware-based (for example, a workstation component) can be provided to display the ultrasonic waveform that is transmitted and received . An example of such a user interface will be described in more detail below with reference to figure 16. In another embodiment, signal stacking can be used to some extent to improve the signal to noise ratio.
[0074] As discussed above with reference to figure 6, each ultrasonic position sensor 34 includes a transducer 112. One embodiment of transducer 112 is shown in more detail in figures 10 to 12. Specifically, figures 10 and 11 show perspective views assembled and enlarged, respectively, of transducer 112 and figure 12 shows a cross-sectional view of transducer 112.
[0075] Transducer 112 includes the window described above 116, as well as a housing 180, piezoelectric material 182, positive conductor 184, negative conductor 186. Transducer 112 also includes the resistance temperature detector (RTD) described above for acquiring data temperature and can be a RTD with two or four wires. As best shown in figure 10, positive conductor 184, negative conductor 186 and RTD 114 extend outside the rear end (for example, the end opposite window 116) of transducer 112. When mounted inside a device, such as the head 60 of an explosion seal 32, the positive conductor 184, negative conductor 186 and RTD 114 parts can extend through opening 118 (figure 6). Housing 180 generally encloses components of transducer 112 and can be designed to fit within sensor housing 110, as shown in Figure 6. In one embodiment, housing 180 can be formed using the same high compressive strength plastic material as window 116, such as UL-TEM ™, PEEK, or Vespel ™. In other embodiments, the casing 180 can be formed using a metallic material, such as steel, titanium or alloys thereof. Piezoelectric material 182 can be formed using a crystal or ceramic material. For example, in one embodiment, the piezoelectric material 182 may include lead zirconate titanate (PZT).
[0076] Another modality of transducer 112 is illustrated in figures 13 and 14. Specifically, figures 13 and 14 show perspective views assembled and enlarged, respectively, of transducer 112. Here, transducer 112 includes window 112 and RTD 114 , as well as a housing 190, piezoelectric material 192, charge cylinder 194, cover 196, positive conductors 198 and negative 20 and epoxy filling 202. Housing 190, charge cylinder 194 and cover 196 can be formed using high-compression plastic material or a metallic material, such as steel. Piezoelectric material 192 may include PZT. Still, in this embodiment, the window 116 can include a high compression plastic, such as ULTEM ™, PEEK, or Vespel ™, or it can be formed as an anti-wear plate using aluminum oxide (alumina). In some embodiments, window 116 may include an anti-wear alumina plate interposed between a plastic window and piezoelectric material 192. Due to the characteristics of impedance, density and speed of alumina with respect to sound, this modality may allow that the acoustic energy is transmitted through an alumina wear plate and in a plastic window with reduced distortion, as long as the dimensions and thickness of these wear plates are selected correctly.
[0077] With reference to figure 15, a process 208 for operating a system that includes an ultrasonic variation system (for example, system 36) for monitoring the position of certain devices is illustrated according to a modality. As shown, process 208 begins at step 210 where an input from the system is received. The input can represent a command to move a device within the system to a desired position. For example, in the context of an undersea system, the entrance may represent a command to close or open a pile of an explosion fence, where the open or closed position represents the desired position. The system can drive (for example, hydraulic drive) the device according to the input received to make the device move to the desired position.
[0078] As the device (eg stake) moves towards the desired position, one or more associated ultrasonic sensors 34 can provide the position information to the system, as shown in step 212. The device is expected to be triggered will move to the desired position at the end of the triggering process. Decision 214 logic determines whether abnormal system behavior is detected. In this context, abnormal behavior can be any type of movement (or lack of movement) that deviates from expected behavior. For example, if the device being driven is a stake that fails to obtain a closed position in response to a command to close the stake, process 208 can trigger an alarm to indicate to the system that the stake cannot be closed, as indicated in step 216. Similarly, if the pile fails to open in response to a command to trigger the pile in an open position, the system can still trigger the alarm. The alarm can include audio and / or visual indicators. Returning to the logic of decision 214, if the device reaches the desired position, no alarm is triggered and the system continues normal operation, as indicated in step 218. While the cause of the alarm condition may vary, this process 208 provides a mechanism that promptly alerts the system (and thus, those charged with operating the system) in the event of any abnormal behavior.
[0079] Certainly, an operator can assess the situation based on the alarm and, if necessary, temporarily shut down the system for maintenance or repair procedures. As will be noted, the variant system modalities described in this document can operate based on closed or open loop control. In addition, the system can provide not only control of the position of a particular device, but also the speed at which the device is triggered when moved to a desired position. For example, in the case of a pile in an explosion fence, being driven from an open position to a closed position, the movement of the pile can be controlled so that it initially moves relatively quickly and reduces speed as it approaches a tube into the well hole.
[0080] Figure 16 shows an example of a graphical user interface (GUI) element 220 that can be part of the variant system 36. This element of GUI 220 can be displayed, for example, on a workstation located on the surface from the resource extraction system 10 or at a remote location in communication with the resource extraction system 10. The GUI element 220 includes a window 222 that can display the waveform 224 of a signal corresponding to a given sensor 34. Regarding the device being monitored by sensor 34, window 226 displays several parameters, including temperature (field 228), pressure (field 230), device position (field 232), as well as the speed of the moving device (field 234) .
[0081] The GUI 220 element also includes indicators 236 and 238. Indicator 236 is a status indicator, which can be configured to indicate whether the monitored device is moving. For example, a device that is moving or being triggered can cause the indicator to show a particular color (for example, green) while a device that is not moving or being triggered can cause the indicator to show another color. (e.g., red). Indicator 238 is an indicator of the alarm condition. For example, if an alarm condition is detected, the indicator can display one color or, if no alarm condition is present, the indicator can display another color. As can be seen, this visual alarm indicator can be provided together with an audible alarm indicator (for example, by a speaker or other suitable sound emitting device) connected to the workstation. In addition, it should be understood that the variant system 36 can be configured to monitor data from various sensors that monitor the various devices within the system. Thus, each sensor may have associated a respective element of GUI 220 to display this information.
[0082] The ultrasonic position detection system and techniques described in this document can provide the position information that is substantially as accurate as the position information obtained using other existing solutions, such as position monitoring using LVDTs or another electromechanical position sensor. However, as discussed above, the ultrasonic position detection system integrates much more easily with existing subsea components and does not require substantial and complex redesign of existing equipment. Furthermore, as the ultrasonic position sensors 34 described in this document are not generally subjected to failure mechanisms in the common mode, as is the case with some electromechanical position sensors, the position information obtained by the ultrasonic position detection system can maintain better its accuracy over time.
[0083] The position information obtained using the ultrasonic position detection techniques described above can still provide some degree of condition monitoring. For example, linearly driven devices may have an expected operational wear profile, which describes how the devices are expected to behave as they wear out gradually over time. Having access to accurate position information obtained using 34 position ultrasonic sensors, an operator can monitor the condition of these linear motion devices over time. For example, if the distance traveled by a pile from an explosion seal that has been in operation for a given amount of time in response to a certain amount of pressure triggering fails within an expected range, it can be concluded that the explosion seal is functioning normally, according to its wear profile. For example, a distance traveled in response to the same drive pressure, which is less than or greater than the expected range, may signal that the explosion seal may need to be repaired.
[0084] While the examples described above focused on the use of an ultrasonic position sensor to monitor the position of a pile from an explosion seal, it should be noted that the techniques described above can be applicable to generally any device or component of a system that moves as in response to the trigger. For example, in the context of the oilfield industry, other types of components having linearly driven devices that can be monitored using the ultrasonic variation techniques described in this document include explosion gate valves, wellhead connectors, a wellhead connector. lower marine elevation liner, explosion seal block and destruction valves and connectors, subsea tree valves, intake valves, process separation valves, process compression valves and pressure control valves, this to mention just a few. In addition, as discussed above, components that move nonlinearly can still be monitored using the position detection techniques described above.
[0085] Figures 17 and 18 illustrate another modality of an ultrasonic position detection device, referred to here by reference number 250, which can be used for position monitoring in an underwater device, such as the explosion-proof seal of the type stake shown in figure 18. Explosion seal components that have already been described above with reference to figures 3 to 7 are identified with equal reference numbers. Here, instead of including a recess 108 and an opening 118 for wiring, the sensor body 110 can extend the entire length of the head 60, as best shown in figure 18. Thus, in the present modality, what was previously a recess 108 in figure 7 has been extended all the way through the head 60 to form an opening therein. This opening 108 can include threads to engage the corresponding threads 252 in the body of sensor 110. Thus, sensor 250 can be installed in opening 108 by rotating body 110 into opening 108 until the threads engage. In this embodiment, the sensor housing 110 can be formed using an austenitic nickel-chromium-based superalloy, such as Inconel 718, available from Special Metals Corporation of New Hartford, New York.
[0086] As best shown in figure 17, the sensor can also include one or more O-rings 258 arranged cincunferentially on the body 250 between the window 116 and the threads 252. The end of the sensor 250 that projects from the outside the head 60 when installed can include a connector 254. In the illustrated embodiment, the connector 254 can be directed perpendicularly away from the sensor body 110 with respect to the longitudinal axis 256 of the sensor 250. As an example only, the connector 254 can be a model of a Dry-Mate Submersible Connector, available from Teledyne Technologies Inc. of Thousand Oaks, California. Certainly, the wiring to connect sensor 250 to oscillating logic 36 can be connected to sensor 250 through connector 254. This modality of sensor 250 is an example of one, in which sensor 250 can be installed from the outside of the explosion seal 32, as mentioned above with reference to figure 6.
[0087] While aspects of the present description may be subject to various modifications and alternative forms, the specific modalities have been shown as examples in the drawings and have been described in detail in this document. But it must be understood that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. In addition, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives that are within the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined by the following appended claims.

权利要求:
Claims (13)
[0001]
1. Position sensor (34) characterized by comprising: a sensor housing configured to be installed in a component that has at least one device (56) being monitored by the position sensor; and a transducer module having a piezoelectric material, a window comprising a plastic material, and a temperature sensing device, in which the transducer module is configured to be arranged within the sensor housing, to transmit an ultrasonic signal (122) through from the window and through a fluid medium to a surface of the device being monitored, to receive a reflection of the ultrasonic signal from the surface of the device, and to transmit an electrical signal corresponding to the ultrasonic signal to the processing logic configured to calculate the speed of the ultrasonic signal as a function of pressure and temperature and use the calculated speed to calculate the distance between the position sensor and the device, as a function of the speed of the ultrasonic signal.
[0002]
2. Position sensor according to claim 1, characterized by the position sensor comprising a connector coupled to the sensor housing, where the connector is configured to electronically couple the transducer module to the processing logic.
[0003]
3. Position sensor according to claim 2, characterized by the temperature detection device (114) being configured to determine the temperature of the fluid medium and supply the temperature of the processing logic via the connector.
[0004]
4. Position sensor according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the plastic material comprises at least one among polyetherimide, thermoplastic organic polymer, or a plastic based on polyimide.
[0005]
Position sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that the piezoelectric material comprises lead zirconate titanate.
[0006]
6. Position sensor according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that it comprises an alumina wear plate interposed between the piezoelectric material and the window.
[0007]
7. Position sensor according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the transducer module comprises a plastic housing in which the piezoelectric material is arranged, and in which the plastic housing is configured to be placed inside the sensor housing.
[0008]
8. Position sensor according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the sensor housing comprises a metal, alloy or superalloy, configured to allow the position sensor to operate at pressures between 96.5266 and 96526.6 kPa (14 PSI and 14000 PSI).
[0009]
9. Method for determining the position of a component configured for movement, characterized by comprising: use of a first ultrasonic position sensor (34b) to transmit a first ultrasonic signal through a fluid medium to a reference point (80), in that a first distance (170) between the first ultrasonic position sensor and the reference point is generally constant; measuring the round-trip transit time of the first ultrasonic signal between the first ultrasonic position sensor and the reference point; determination of the acoustic speed of the first ultrasonic signal through the fluid medium based on the first distance and the transit time of round trip; using a second ultrasonic position sensor (34a) to transmit a second ultrasonic signal through the fluid medium to a surface (82) of the component; measuring the round-trip transit time of the second ultrasonic signal between the second ultrasonic position sensor and the component surface; and determining a second distance (172) between the second ultrasonic position sensor and the component surface based on the measured round-trip transit time of the second ultrasonic signal and the acoustic speed of the first ultrasonic signal, the second distance being indicative the location of the component in relation to the position of the second ultrasonic position sensor.
[0010]
Method according to claim 9, characterized in that the first ultrasonic position sensor and the second ultrasonic position sensor are oriented perpendicular to each other.
[0011]
Method according to claim 9, characterized in that the reference point comprises another surface of the component, wherein the distance between the other surface of the component and the first ultrasonic sensor remains generally constant, even when the component is moving.
[0012]
Method according to claim 11, characterized in that the component comprises a piston (56), in which the piston surface, in which the second ultrasonic signal is transmitted, is a piston flange and in which the piston surface in which the first ultrasonic signal is transmitted is a piston axis.
[0013]
Method according to claim 12, characterized in that the piston is a component of a BOP (32) of a resource extraction system.

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同族专利:

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US20130283919A1|2013-10-31|

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SG11201405701PA|2014-11-27|

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US9163471B2|2015-10-20|

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BR112014026361A2|2017-06-27|

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NO20141136A1|2014-11-11|

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NO344024B1|2019-08-19|

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法律状态:
2018-10-23| B25A| Requested transfer of rights approved|Owner name: CAMERON TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED (NL) |

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2018-12-04| B06F| Objections, documents and/or translations needed after an examination request according [chapter 6.6 patent gazette]|

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2020-02-04| B06U| Preliminary requirement: requests with searches performed by other patent offices: procedure suspended [chapter 6.21 patent gazette]|

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2020-06-02| B09A| Decision: intention to grant [chapter 9.1 patent gazette]|

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2020-11-17| B16A| Patent or certificate of addition of invention granted [chapter 16.1 patent gazette]|Free format text: PRAZO DE VALIDADE: 20 (VINTE) ANOS CONTADOS A PARTIR DE 23/04/2013, OBSERVADAS AS CONDICOES LEGAIS. |

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2021-09-28| B16C| Correction of notification of the grant [chapter 16.3 patent gazette]|Free format text: REF. RPI 2602 DE 17/11/2020 QUANTO AO INVENTOR (ITEM 72). |

优先权:

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申请号 | 申请日 | 专利标题

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US13/457,810|US9163471B2|2012-04-27|2012-04-27|Position monitoring system and method|

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US13/457,810|2012-04-27|

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PCT/US2013/037828|WO2013163206A1|2012-04-27|2013-04-23|Position monitoring system and method|

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