Patent ID: 7434632

Claim:
A roller cone drill bit comprising: a bit body having at least one support arm extending therefrom; a cone assembly rotatably mounted on the at least one support arm for engagement with a subterranean formation to form a wellbore; the cone assembly having a respective axis of rotation extending from the associated support arm; the cone assembly having a backface disposed adjacent the at least one support arm; the cone assembly having a plurality of cutting elements; every cutting element on the cone assembly being either a gauge cutting element or a non-gauge cutting element, the gauge elements arranged in a gauge row located adjacent the backface of the cone assembly; each cutting element having a crest extending from the associated cone assembly for engagement with the formation; each crest having a respective crest point defined as a point located a greater distance from the axis of rotation of the associated cone assembly as compared with the distance between any other point on the crest and the axis of rotation of the associated cone assembly; each cutting element having a normal force axis extending from the cone assembly through the respective crest point; and every non-gauge cutting element on the cone assembly configured such that the normal force axis of every non-gauge cutting element intersects with each other proximate a force center selected to minimize the wobble effects on the cone assembly due to normal forces from the cutting elements impacting the formation as the cone assembly rotates.