How good are your models? Can they be used to improve your drilling processes? These are questions often posed in relation to real-time model applications, including models integrated with drilling control. Do the models fulfill requirements with regards to accuracy and calculation speed? Can the data be applied by the models to both interpret the state of the process and provide reliable input for calculations? Can the rig equipment be used safely and securely to control the processes? This paper seeks to answer these questions and further elaborate on current activities and near-term challenges in drilling automation. While static models are generally accepted, the use of dynamic models is emerging. In real-time model applications, it has been found that rig equipment analysis is necessary to assess applicability or upgrading requirements. Controlling machines for drilling operations using outputs from models has been successfully achieved. This paper provides examples of recent developments within drilling automation, drawing from applications of closed-loop control systems in the North Sea. Challenges regarding interpreting state-of-the-process are discussed, with respect to existing rig instrumentation, while examining the need for enhanced surface and downhole sensors. Mathematical models used with the drilling control system must communicate regularly with the drilling process to extract information from sensors and provide updated control commands for automation. How sensor data is applied through models to enable automation functionality is also illustrated.
Drilling Automation is a rapidly developing area of technology that is seeing growing interest within the drilling community. The SPE set up a new Technical Section devoted to the subject as it relates to downhole performance, and the IADC has created a committee with a focus on surface processes. As with any emerging technology, the associated jargon is evolving rapidly, and different terms are used by different groups to refer to similar concepts with the potential for confusion and misunderstanding. Automation efforts are being undertaken by numerous and diverse organizations and implementation of such interrelated offerings at the rig site need consistent interface criteria at each boundary to ensure efficient and safe operations. The purpose of the proposed paper is to describe some of the concepts already in operation and under development and to classify them into a number of key categories. The more significant interface requirements will be identified and key safety concerns will be highlighted. Parallels will be drawn with other industries to demonstrate analogues and suggest directions where and how further developments might be expected to lead. Introduction Recent developments in drilling machinery, sensor technology, control systems, computer and communications technology are leading to an explosion of development across the whole spectrum of control activities, from machine level to integrated operations. A number of companies have added specialized controls to drilling machines and integrated them on rigs or placed them in drillstrings. Some have developed models to better understand the drilling process or advise set points to optimise drilling performance; others have specialized use of advanced visualization techniques to improve the situational awareness of drilling teams and decision makers. The latest call is to integrate these enablers to automate the drilling process. This work will likely be incremental and iterative. In parallel with a major initiative spearheaded by the IADC, the SPE has formed a new technical section to help the industry understand the current state-of-the-art of controls and automation and to facilitate the development of safe, reliable and efficient automated processes. The aim of the section is to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and fostering communication. Terminology With so many different players involved in the drilling community and the rapid development of technologies, the authors believe that the importance of defining and agreeing on the basic terms and concepts of drilling automation cannot be underestimated. Having a commonly understood language is critical not only for the development of the interoperable technologies that will be required, but also to develop the trust and organizational structure that is required amongst the various players (contractors, service and operating companies) during the execution of a drilling project.
Current top-side and downhole instrumentation at the well site has been developed for the purpose of manually conducted drilling operations. The emergence of automatic drilling analysis software shows the limitations of today's measurements capabilities. It is therefore time to analyze the requirements for onsite instrumentation in order to implement new, efficient drilling automation technologies. On one hand, drilling is facing more and more difficult conditions with narrow geo-pressure windows, deep water or high-pressure and high-temperature (HPHT) conditions. On the other hand, unconventional hydrocarbon reserves may require a considerable amount of wells to be profitable. Drilling automation, by means of smart safeguards, automatic safety triggers, managed pressure drilling (MPD) and ultimately complete or semi-autonomous drilling rigs can provide the solution to safely construct wells in these challenging settings. The common denominator for the vast majority of drilling automation solutions is the use of physical models of the drilling process in the form of heat transfer, mechanical and hydraulic models. By analyzing the requirements of those models for necessary boundary conditions, it is possible to derive which measurements should be made both at surface and downhole in order to obtain stable and accurate calculations. This analysis also provides a way to estimate the necessary accuracy of the boundary conditions to ensure reaching the target control tolerance. Using the boundary condition analysis, it is possible to derive precisely which measurements should be done and where they should be performed. As a result, a typical organization of sensors that is compatible with the implementation of drilling automation solutions is derived.
Drilling automation is the control of the drilling process by automatic means, ultimately reducing human intervention to a minimum. The concept of automating the drilling process has generated considerable interest, yet there is a lack of agreement on exactly what it is, what it entails, and how to implement it. As with industrial automation in the 1990s, the adoption of open standards enabling automation will have a significant impact on the underlying business model. In the oilfield drilling industry, the business model describes the relationship between operator, drilling contractor, service company, and equipment supplier.The goal of drilling systems automation is to increase productivity and quality, improve personnel safety, and effectively manage risk. Principal drivers of drilling automation include well complexity, data overload, efficiency, repetitive well manufacturing, access to limited expert resources, knowledge transfer due to the exodus of skilled employees, and health, safety and environmental concerns. With so many drivers, and their potential economic benefits, it is understandable that there are many automation related initiatives within the industry.Drilling through geopressured, possibly erratic lithologies, to a remote and possibly poorly defined target in a safe manner is not a simple task to automate. It is challenging. Drilling automation focuses on the drilling system and drilling operations, which entail combining various sub-systems, including the downhole BHA and its measurement and active components, the drillstring, fluid, and drilling rig and its sub-assemblies. Operations include conventional overbalanced, managed pressure, and underbalanced drilling operations, and their various procedures, such as tripping and making connections. This paper examines and defines drilling systems automation, its drivers, enablers and barriers, and its current state and goals. In particular, the paper looks at the vision of drilling systems automation, and the role played by open collaborative initiatives among all segments of the drilling industry. Although commitment to automation by the drilling industry appears by many to lag other major industries, there are segments of the drilling industry that have reached a high level of automation on a commercial basis. There is also significant collaboration among interested parties in creating a standardized, open environment for data flow to foster the development of systems automation.
Summary Drilling automation is a rapidly developing area of technology that is seeing growing interest within the drilling community. SPE set up a new technical section devoted to the subject as it relates to downhole performance, and the IADC has created a committee with a focus on surface processes. As with any emerging technology, the associated jargon is evolving rapidly, and different terms are used by different groups to refer to similar concepts with the potential for confusion and misunderstanding. Automation efforts are being undertaken by numerous and diverse organizations, and implementation of such interrelated offerings at the rigsite needs consistent interface criteria at each boundary to ensure efficient and safe operations. The purpose of the proposed paper is to describe some of the concepts already in operation and under development and to classify them into a number of key categories. The more significant interface requirements will be identified, and key safety concerns will be highlighted. Parallels will be drawn with other industries to demonstrate analogs and suggest where and how further developments might be expected to lead.
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