Patent ID: 7551516

Claim:
A while-drilling method of vertical-seismic-profiling comprising the steps of: (a) providing a drill string in a borehole for advancing the extent of said borehole; (b) providing a seismic source of substantially repeatable seismic signals initiated by seismic shots having an initiation time occurring exclusively within time windows selected from among a series of regularly recurring time windows for transmission of information to a subterranean location; (c) providing on said drill string, a subterranean signal receiver for receiving said seismic signals emitted by said seismic shots and transmitting said signals to a subterranean processor, said processor being programmed to; i. verify the authenticity of received seismic signals as originating from said seismic source, ii. discern the presence or absence of verified signals within recurring time windows, iii. translate a first portion of operative information from the presence or absence of said verified signals within a recurring time window; iv. determine the initiation times of said verified signals; and, v. translate a second portion of operative information from said initiation times of said verified signals, and (d) said processor modifying its operation in accordance with said operative information.