Abstract:
An electric wireline setting tool includes a controller and a plurality of sensors sensing pressure, temperature, flow rate, current, etc. The controller communicates with the surface and or makes decisions downhole with regard to a motor and pump to tailor their activity to ensure that the tool being set is setting optimally.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/123,306 filed Mar. 5, 1999, which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to the setting of downhole tools in a well. More particularly, the invention relates to an intelligent electric wireline setting tool having a plurality of sensors directed to sense parameters relevant to the setting of the tool to be set. 
     2. Prior Art 
     Electric wireline setting tools (EWST) have been known to at least the oil and gas industry for some time. A conventional EWST, however, is typically employed to set inflatable downhole apparatuses by receiving power from a power source and pumping wellbore fluids into the inflatable apparatus without any confirmation or sensory information. While the system is simple and works well in the great majority of cases, the only information that can be gained at the surface regarding the condition and operation of the system is a change in the current drawn from the power source. Typically, a current increase indicates a strain on the pump which is usually related to a filled inflatable tool. This is because as the pressure in the inflatable tool increases the motor will begin to stall. More current will be drawn to drive the stalled or stalling motor. Unfortunately, the change in current could also be due to other circumstances which cannot be distinguished at the surface. 
     The prior art, based upon the increased current draw, must conclude that the inflatable element is ready for deployment, providing all portions of the system, in fact, performed as they were supposed to, the inflatable tool would indeed be inflated and properly set. 
     Returning to other causes of current draw, a short may have occurred somewhere in the system, the motor or pump may have malfunctioned, the tool may have an occluded fluid passage, etc. Any one of these, or other factors, can cause a higher current draw. Since line current is the only indicator, the operator will determine the inflatable tool is set and pull the setting tool out of the hole. If the inflatable tool had not properly set then clearly the objective was not met. Moreover, it is not clear when the operator will know that the inflatable tool did not set. It could be right away or it could be somewhat later (maybe when the inflate crew has left the area). Time is lost and expense is incurred. Moreover, if the lack of proper setting of the inflatable tool is not immediately recognized, significant damage may be done to other components of the well; even more time and money can be lost. It is also possible, due to such occurrences as a lack of prime or a leak in the system that the current never increases. While this does not provide an erroneous “set” indication it is still problematic because there is no indication as to what is happening downhole. The art therefore is in need of a setting tool which provides real time information about the condition of the inflatable tool and the condition of the setting tool to ensure a proper setting procedure is taking place and to enable corrective action if the setting procedure has gone awry. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The above-identified drawbacks of the prior art are overcome or alleviated by the intelligent electric wireline setting tool of the invention. 
     The intelligent EWST incorporates a controller and at least one, preferably several, sensor(s) to sense such parameters as voltage and current flowing to motors, direction of movement of the motors, speed of the motors, pressure (element pressure, wellbore pressure, downhole and uphole thereof), temperature, flow rate, or any other parameter associated with the downhole environment and setting of the tool. All of these parameters are communicable directly to the surface due to the inclusion of a communication function through the controller located in the immediate vicinity of the EWST. Based upon the information obtained, adjustments to the setting process may be made to optimize the same. Adjustments include changing current and/or voltage to assure appropriate power downhole, and determining and making appropriate inflation fluid pressure and inflation fluid volume changes taking into account thermal expansion of fluid in the downhole environment. Adjustments may be made by the operator, by a surface computer or a downhole computer as desired and equipped. Corrective measures can be made in real time to avoid loss of time or money. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Referring now to the drawings wherein like elements are numbered alike in the several FIGURES: 
     FIGS. 1-15 are an elongation cross section view of one embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 16 is a cross section view of the invention taken along section line  16 — 16  on FIG. 11; and 
     FIG. 17 is a second view of the invention with tight x-hatching to show the high pressure flow path through the tool. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to FIG.  1  and beginning with the uphole end of the tool, the following discussion will progress through the figures to FIG. 15 at the downhole end of the tool. It will be understood that the downhole end of the Electric Wireline Setting tool of the invention is to be connected to the downhole tool to be set. 
     FIG. 1 illustrates the uphole end of the setting tool of the invention wherein a Banana plug  10  is mounted in a collar locator adapter  12  with insulating washers  14  and a female spacer  16  to bring the connection into a spring biased contact block chamber  18 . Chamber  18  contains an insulator  20  to prevent contact between the central conductor and the outer conductor. Spring  22  biases contact block  24  in a direction against compression of spring  22  which occurs upon connection with the telemetry portion of the tool discussed hereunder. Contact block  24  makes connection with second Banana plug  26 . Collar locator adapter  12  fits within telemetry housing  28  by threaded connection  30  and is sealed with O-rings  32 . 
     Power and signal are transmitted to the telemetry sub  34  through pin/spring contact assembly  50 . Contact assembly  50  includes central Banana plug  26  for the negative connection and offset spring probe connector  52  for the positive connection. The positive and negative connection points are reversed from many conventional downhole tools to enable the use of conventional gamma tools without affecting the setting tool of the invention since the setting tool does not “run positive”. 
     A telemetry sub  34  is constructed from commercially available parts to provide communication with remote intelligence or at the surface as desired and includes a transformer  36  connected to a first filter cap  38  which is connected to a choke  40  connected to a second filter cap  42 . These components are connected operably to an analog to digital converter  44  and processor/telemetry printed circuit board (PCB)  46  which process analog signals from sensors into digital format to transmit and receive information, respectively. More particularly, the analog/digital (A/D) converter  44  is connected to sensors discussed hereunder that generate analog signals in response to specific stimuli. Elements  46  or  44  or both combined may be considered a controller. 
     When the analog signal is received by the A/D converter  44 , the signal is processed and noise removed before a digital signal is communicated to the processor/telemetry PCB  46  where the signal is piggy backed as an AC frequency signal on a DC line to the surface or other remote location. 
     Downhole of telemetry PCB  46  and operably connected thereto are motor driver PCB assembly  60  and power supply PCB assembly  62 . The motor driver PCB  60  is a commercially available controller for a brushless motor (which is preferred in this tool) and directs the winding firing sequence of the motor. The activating of a selector switch at the surface (not shown) changes the direction of the motor to obtain two speeds/torque multiplication conditions. The two speed/torque multiplication capability of the motor is a known concept, the parts for which are commercially available. 
     Power supply PCB assembly  62  receives power at preferably 160 volts DC and regulates that power to a cleaner 160 volts DC for the motor and 5-10 volts for the electrics in the tool. These are common in the industry and will be understood by one of skill in the art. 
     Telemetry housing  28 , referring now to FIG. 6, is threadedly connected to top sub  70  at thread  72  and sealed thereto with O-rings  74 . It should be noted that at either end of the telemetry and electronics components discussed is a chassis mount. The uphole side  50  was noted earlier and the downhole compliment thereto is mount  76  illustrated in FIG.  6 . Mount  76  includes preferably o-ring  78  to seal against housing  28 . The mounts  50  and  76  locate and maintain the electrics in position. 
     The telemetry and control electronics from within telemetry housing  28  are connected to the drive components beyond the compensating piston housing through top sub  70  and a high pressure connector  80 . The connectors are common in the art. 
     It should be noted that an ambient pressure sensor is preferably mounted in sensor recess  82  in top sub  70 . Sensor recess  82  is open to environmental pressure through conduit  84  and is useful in the invention to monitor the well pressure. 
     Other sensors that may be employed to provide information to the controller circuits are temperature sensors in both internal fluid and/or wellbore fluid, inflation pressure, current and voltage sensors at the tool (to enable the determination of whether anomalous readings are caused by the tool or the wireline), etc. 
     From high pressure connector  80 , conductors  86  travel through compensating piston housing  90  to terminate at the resolver assembly and motor. 
     The compensating piston housing  90  includes a spring  88  bounded at its uphole end by mandrel cap  92  which is threadedly attached to top sub  70 . In the same general location, the upper end of compensating piston mandrel  94  is visible nesting within top sub  70  and sealed there with o-rings  96 . At the downhole end of compensation piston housing  90 , compensating piston  98  rests in the lowest ambient pressure condition. 
     An important feature of the invention is torque pin  100  which is a component of an alignment system maintaining alignment of the pins of the high pressure connector  80 . Torque pin  100  locks mandrel  94  to motor cap  102  so that relative rotation between mandrel  94  and motor cap  102  does not occur. 
     Within motor cap  102  is positioned resolver  104 . This is a commercially available part and functions to provide information about the position of the shaft of the motor. The information is provided to the motor driver PCB  60  discussed hereinabove. Resolver  104  is also attached to motor  106  (FIG. 9) which is operably connected to geartrain  108 . The geartrain employed in this embodiment of the invention is of a standard makeup responsive to two directions and complementary torques. The two speeds torques are created by reversing the direction of the motor. This is accomplished at the surface using a remote switch (not shown). For clarity, the gear train includes multijaw coupling  110 ; bearing  112 ; gear body  114 ; input shaft  116 ; reduction clutch shaft  118 ; pillow block  120 ; roller clutch  122 ; needle bearing  124  and gear  126  all of which, as stated, are known to the art. Since even with the geartrain, the end drive result is too fast for the desired result in the invention, a planetary gearhead  128  is desirable. Planetary gearhead  128  is preferably operably connected to a spider coupling  130  which serves to couple planetary gearhead  128  to secondary drive shaft  132  which is supported at its downhole end by bearings  134  mounted in sensor housing  136  which is fastened to motor cap  102  and trapped in the motor housing  109  at the downhole end by coupling sub  138  (FIG. 11) attached to motor housing  109  by thread  140 . O-rings are supplied at  142  for their customary purpose. 
     Transition sub  144  is a floating sub which is annular and defines an annular fluid passage for pressurized fluid to reach the pressure transducer  146  mounted in sensor housing  136 . The transducer monitors the high pressure fluid leaving the pump to determine the pressure in the inflatable element. Shaft union  148  couples with drive shaft  150  as the parts are assembled. Drive shaft  150  is supported by a series of bearings, spacers and seals, as is known to the art, and at the end of shaft  150  a pump  152  as known from the prior art in U.S. Pat. No. 5,577,560 which is assigned to the assignee hereof and incorporated herein by reference and from a commercially available product (part #437140002) available from Baker Oil Tools, Houston, Tex. 
     Where secondary drive shaft  132  joins drive shaft  150 , the pump housing  160  joins sub  138  by threaded junction  158 . Within pump housing  160  are several bore holes, best seen in cross section FIG. 16 taken along section line  16 — 16  in FIG.  11 . The high pressure ports to the transducer  146  are identified as numeral  162  and the low pressure inlet ports providing inlet fluid to the pump are identified as numeral  164 . 
     In FIG. 17, the high pressure pathway (pump outlet fluid pathway) has been tightly x-hatched in the drawing of the portion of the tool which extends through FIGS. 10-12 and the pump inlet fluid is represented in standard cross-hatching. The drawing is intended to provide only an understanding of the path of flow relative to the drawing of the tool set forth in FIGS. 10-12. By providing the pathway illustrated, the pressure transducer  146  is exposed to the high pressure fluid from the pump while allowing for easy assembly of the device. More particularly, the pathway provided allows the transducer to be positioned more uphole to make the tool easier to assemble and avoid additional electrical or optic fiber connections. The pathway can be seen in FIGS. 10-12 by noting port  166  which communicates with port  168  which then intersects bore  162 . The bore  162  extends uphole to annulus opening  170  which then opens to pressure transducer  146 . 
     Snubber valve  172  operates to vent any trapped air to allow the pump to quickly prime and port plug  174  operates to provide a visual inspection of the pump to insure it is assembled and operates correctly. 
     From downhole of port  166 , the tool is as described in the hereinbefore incorporated patent and the commercial tool noted with the exception that the filter in those tools is specially made whereas the filters  176  of this tool are “off-the-shelf” corrugated filters and have been substituted in the same space as the single custom filter of the prior art. More filter surface area has been provided and the tool is less expensive to assemble. 
     It should be understood that the capability of the invention is for fully automated operation. Sensors may easily be incorporated for other parameters of the wellbore that are relevant to inflation or even those that are not relevant to inflation of the downhole inflatable tool. All of the information gained by such sensors is processed by the controller which may be a basic-type control unit or a highly intelligent unit capable of understanding and processing all sensory input on well parameters and executing commands based upon such sensing input. All functions are executable downhole without surface intervention of any kind if desired. 
     While preferred embodiments have been shown and described, various modifications and substitutions may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the present invention has been described by way of illustration and not limitation.