Patent ID: 11898413
Assignee: SCHLUMBERGER TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
Field: Civil engineering (Other fields)
Classification: CPC E | IPC E

Claim 8:
9. An expanding and collapsing apparatus, comprising:
a plurality of elements assembled together to form a ring structure around a longitudinal axis, wherein the ring structure is configured to be moved between an expanded condition and a collapsed condition by movement of the plurality of elements, wherein the plurality of elements comprises:
a plurality of support elements, each support element having an upper end a lower end, and a contact surface extending from the upper end to the lower end, wherein the contact surface comprises a first interlock configured to interlock with a second interlock of an adjacent support element, and wherein the plurality of support elements are configured to move between the expanded condition and the collapsed condition by movement of the lower end in an axial direction, and by movement of the upper end in at least a radial dimension;
a plurality of ring elements configured to be moved between the expanded and collapsed conditions by sliding with respect to one another in a direction tangential to a circle concentric with the ring structure, wherein each ring element of the plurality of ring elements is supported by a respective upper end of the adjacent support element of the plurality of support elements in the expanded condition; and
a retaining ring configured to couple to the plurality of support elements, wherein each support element of the plurality support elements is configured to couple to the retaining ring via a respective lower hinge connection.