Patent ID: 9624729
Date: 2017-04-18
CPC Classifications: E21B,Y10T

Claim:
1. A method of assembling a drill bit, such as for drilling into an earth formation, the method comprising the steps of: forming the drill bit, including a bit body, a blade disposed on the bit body, and a plurality of cutting structures disposed on an exterior surface of the blade, at least a portion of the exterior surface having a curvature, doping a portion of the drill bit with a witness material that increases the conductivity of the drill bit; embedding at least a portion of at least one electrical circuit into the blade, the electrical circuit including a conductor embedded in the blade proximate to the exterior surface, the conductor following a path in the blade that conforms to the curvature of at least the portion of the exterior surface and to the path followed by the plurality of cutting structures; and providing a module configured to monitor the at least one electrical circuit, the module further configured to generate an indication of bit wear and monitor characteristics of the earth formation, wherein the module is configured to generate the indication of the bit wear based on an amount of the witness material that is present in the drill bit.