PATENT CLAIM ANALYSIS

Application Number: 16013408
Application Type: Utility
Filing Date: 2018-06
Publication Date: 2018-10
Patent Classification: ["417", "245000"]

Abstract:
A hydraulic oil well pumping system is provided. The system uses a pump to exert hydraulic pressure against a reciprocating piston over a wellbore. The piston is connected to a rod string and downhole pump for pumping oil from a wellbore. The system includes an electronic control system that controls movement of the piston as it moves between the upper and lower rod positions by cycling the hydraulic system between (i) an “upstroke” condition wherein the pump is pumping oil through the oil line into the hydraulic cylinder to move the piston to its upper rod position, and (ii) a “neutral” condition wherein the pump is no longer pumping oil into the hydraulic cylinder, but is allowing oil to flow back through the oil line in response to gravitational fall of the piston. The control system is programmed to cycle based upon a volumetric calculation of hydraulic oil in the cylinder without reference to position sensors along the wellhead. Wellhead conditions or placement of the hydraulic cylinder inside the wellbore may prohibit attaching physical sensors at the wellhead. A method for pumping oil from a wellbore using such a system is also provided herein.

Claim (Index 11):
A method of pumping oil from a wellbore, the wellbore having a bore extending into an earth surface, and the method comprising:\n providing an elongated hydraulic cylinder; providing a piston that is movable between upper and lower rod positions within the cylinder; mechanically connecting the piston to a rod string such that the rod string extends downwardly from the piston and into an oil well; providing a hydraulic pump that is powered by a prime mover; connecting the pump and the hydraulic cylinder with an oil line that transmits hydraulic fluid from the pump to the cylinder; providing control valve that moves between upstroke and downstroke flow positions; providing a fluid reservoir for containing hydraulic fluid to be supplied to the pump, wherein the fluid reservoir contains a sensor configured to transmit signals indicative of hydraulic fluid level in the reservoir; providing a vent line configured to return any oil that leaks past the piston back to the fluid reservoir or the oil line; providing a pressure sensor along the oil line configured to transmit pressure signals indicative of pressure within the hydraulic cylinder; using an electronic control system, controlling movement of the piston as it moves between the upper and lower rod positions by cycling the pump between (i) an \u201cupstroke\u201d condition wherein the pump is pumping hydraulic fluid through the directional control valve, through the oil line and into the hydraulic cylinder to move the piston to its upper rod position, and (ii) a \u201cneutral\u201d condition wherein the pump is no longer pumping hydraulic fluid into the hydraulic cylinder, but is allowing fluid to flow back through the oil line in response to gravitational fall of the rod string; reciprocating the piston and mechanically connected rod string in order to pump fluid from the wellbore; wherein the electronic control system is programmed to:\n determining location of the piston and to cycle movement of the piston in the hydraulic cylinder based upon a combination of the pressure signals and signals indicative of a volume of hydraulic fluid moving into or out of the cylinder, and without reference to position sensors along the wellhead; and \n change a downstroke speed of the piston in response to changes in load on the rod string or location of the piston within the hydraulic cylinder.

Metadata:
- Claim Count in Document: 4.0
- Percentile: 94.0
- Lexical Diversity: 2.11
- Patent Class: 417.0
- Transitional Phrase Type: open
- Component Type: 1
- Foreign Priority: False
- Related Applications: ['15013210', '14680740', '15258755', '14231331', '15656252']

Analysis Scores:
- 35 USC 101 Eligibility (BERT): 0.803973798912059
- 35 USC 102 Novelty (BERT): 0.6107397381146821
- Combined Prediction Score: 0.7846503928323213
- Mean Citation Score: 435.750764
- Max Citation Score: 564.7857
- Similarity Product: 486.3641768415749

Labels:
- Claim Label 101: 1
- Claim Label 102: 1
- Claim Label 103: 0
- Claim Label 112: 0
- Combined Label: 1
- Label 101 Adjusted: 1

Dataset: test