Patent Publication Number: US-9850725-B2

Title: One trip interventionless liner hanger and packer setting apparatus and method

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The field of the invention is actuators and actuation methods for operating a subterranean tool and more particularly actuation of a too disposed about a tubular without a wall opening in the tubular using potential energy in the actuator. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Many operations in a subterranean borehole involve the setting of took that are mounted outside of a tubular string. A common example is a packer or slips that can be used to seal an annular space or/and support a tubular string from another. Prior mechanical actuation techniques for such devices, which used applied or hydrostatic pressure to actuate a piston to drive slips up cones and compress sealing elements into a sealing position, involved openings in the tubular wall. These openings are considered potential leak paths that reduce reliability and are not desirable. 
     Alternative techniques were developed that accomplished the task of tool actuation without wall openings. These devices used annular fluid that was selectively admitted into the actuator tool housing and as a result of such fluid entry a reaction ensued that created pressure in the actuator housing to operate the tool. In one version the admission of water into a portion of the actuator allowed a material to be reacted to create hydrogen gas which was then used to drive a piston to set a tool such as a packer. Some examples of such tools that operate with the gas generation principle are U.S. Pat. No. 7,591,319 and US Publications 2007/0089911 and 2009/0038802. 
     These devices that had to generate pressure downhole were complicated and expensive. In some instances the available space was restricted for such devices limiting their feasibility. U.S. Pat. No. 8,813,857 shows an actuator that goes in the hole, with stored potential energy that employs a variety of signaling techniques from the surface to actuate the tool and release the setting pressure/force. The preferred potential energy source is compressed gas. This design incorporated a magnet dropped or pumped into the borehole that communicated with a valve to initialize the pressure generation step to actuate the tool due to valve operation. This design required multiple deliveries of wiper plugs with magnets for actuation of more than a single tool. In the case of a liner hanger and liner top packer that is to be set after a cement job with the liner hanger already set, the design in this reference would require multiple darts which creates some uncertainty that the darts would reach their destination and actuate the respective tools. The present invention delivers multiple tools that need to be set at different times with a running tool that contains the trigger for actuation so that in a single trip multiple tools can be set in one trip into the hole at different times without wall openings in the tubular. Those skilled in the art will further understand the invention from a review of the description of the preferred embodiment and the associated drawings while further appreciating that the full scope of the invention is to be determined by the appended claims. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A liner hanger and packer are set at different times in a single trip without intervention. The running tool has a ball seat that accepts a ball for pressuring up which results in movement of a mandrel with a magnet mounted to it past a valve triggered by the magnetic field. Potential energy is released to set the liner hanger. Further mandrel movement then releases the running tool once the liner is supported by the hanger. After a cement job that starts with confirmation of release of the running tool, the same magnet is moved past another valve adjacent the liner top packer. Another valve is triggered open to release potential energy and move parts that set the packer. The running tool is removed from the liner and brought to the surface. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIGS. 1 a -1 g    show the liner supported by a running tool in the run in position; 
         FIGS. 2 a -2 g    show the liner hanger set; 
         FIGS. 3 a -3 g    show the running tool released; 
         FIGS. 4 a -4 g    show the wiper plugs released depicting the condition at the end of cementing; 
         FIGS. 5 a -5 g    show the setting of the liner packer with further movement of the running tool. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 a -1 g    a liner  10  has no wall penetrations and is supported by a running tool  12  at dogs  14  that extend into grooves  16  in the liner  10 . The running tool  12  is in turn supported from a remote location by a running string  15  to position liner  10  at a predetermined borehole location. The running tool  12  has a mandrel  18  and telescoping components  20  and  22  near a lower end thereof. Component  22  has a seat  24  that accepts a ball  26  as shown in  FIG. 2 f   . Pressure on seat ball  26  extends component  22  out from component  20  with the result that a magnet  28  moves past a sensor package  30  that is activated by the field moving past it as a result of axial movement of magnet  28 . The result of getting a signal allows the package  30  to open a valve (not shown) to the annulus pressure. A piston assembly  36  defines low pressure chambers  32  and  34  such that on opening of the valve that is not shown a net uphole force is created on the piston assembly  36  to drive slips  38  up a ramp  40  and into the wall of the surrounding tubular  42 . 
     At this point a larger ball  44  is dropped onto a seat  46  in the running tool  12  as shown in  FIG. 3 b   . Pressure is applied to shift a sleeve to release the dogs  14  out of the grooves  16  so that the running tool  12  is released from the surrounding tubular  42 . The actuation of the slips  38  into the surrounding tubular  42  now supports the liner  10 . The running tool  12  can now be picked up to ensure that it has fully released from the liner  10  before cement is delivered in a known manner and the leading and trailing wiper plugs  48  are released to push the cement into an annular space that is not shown that surrounds the liner  10  in the borehole also in a known manner as shown in  FIG. 4 g   . It should be noted that balls  26  and  44  get blown out through their respective seats into a ball catcher  50 . 
     After the cementing is completed and it is time to set the packer  54  the magnet  28  is picked up with the running tool  12  as shown in  FIG. 5 d - e    so that a sensor package  52  identical to the sensor package  30  is triggered to open a second valve that is not shown. Here again a net force results on a piston assembly  56  that defines chambers  58  and  60  initially at low pressure. As before with setting the hanger slips  38  the opening of the second valve puts an unbalanced force on the piston assembly  56  that breaks shear pins and releases dogs that allow movement of the piston assembly  56  in an uphole direction to compress the packer  54  into a sealing position against the surrounding tubular  42 . At this point the running tool can be pulled out of the hole. 
     Those skilled in the art will now appreciate that the present invention associates a signal device with the running tool and allows an initial movement to set a first tool, which in the preferred embodiment is a liner hanger. Subsequent movements of the running tool in the same trip then sets another tool, which in the preferred embodiment is a liner top packer. While the source of potential energy is described as using hydrostatic pressure or applied pressure on top of hydrostatic in the surrounding annulus, other pressure sources can be deployed for piston movement. For example, a reaction that generates gas as a result of valve opening can be the source of potential energy to set one or more pistons to operate tools in sequence. It should be noted that the liner has no wall openings that can present potential leak paths. While a magnetic field is preferred in the described embodiment, other triggering signals are contemplated such as vibratory, acoustic or mud pulses to name a few. The invention allows in a single trip the setting of multiple tools with a single triggering source that is sequentially brought into proximity with signal receivers to trigger a movement that applies force to a piston to set multiple tools sequentially without well bore intervention. In the preferred embodiment the triggering source is on a running tool for the tools ultimately set with the movement of the running tool that eventually comes out of the hole. 
     The above description is illustrative of the preferred embodiment and many modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the invention whose scope is to be determined from the literal and equivalent scope of the claims below: