| Patent Number |
Title Of Patent |
Date Issued |
| RE38458 |
Vertical stab tendon bottom connector and method for securing and releasing the same |
March 9, 2004 |
| A bottom connector for the tendon of a tension leg platform uses a latch ring with an outer profile to engage a mating profile in a receptacle on the sea floor. The latch ring moves radially within a housing, relative to the receptacle, between an engaged position and a retracted positio |
| RE35533 |
Double lobe tubular connector clamp |
June 17, 1997 |
| A hub clamp will be used to connect two conduits together in end-to-end relationship. Each conduit has a pair of generally parallel load shoulders that extend around the conduit and are axially spaced from each other. The clamp has two sets of load shoulders, one for engaging each set of |
| 6896076 |
Rotating drilling head gripper |
May 24, 2005 |
| A rotating drilling head seals around drill pipe while drilling. The drilling head has an outer housing that mounts to the rig floor. An inner housing is rotatably mounted in the outer housing. An annular bladder is mounted in the inner housing. An annular elastomeric gripping member is |
| 6871708 |
Cuttings injection and annulus remediation systems for wellheads |
March 29, 2005 |
| A wellhead assembly has an inner wellhead that lands in an outer wellhead, the inner wellhead having first and second internal passages. Each passage has an upper opening at the outer surface of the inner housing and a lower opening at the inner surface. An external shoulder of a casing |
| 6868387 |
Automated notification of part revisions for outside suppliers |
March 15, 2005 |
| Revision of a part specification document, such as a drawing, a part specification, or a bill of materials, prompts execution of an automated notification process. A unique part number associated with the revised part specification document is employed in searching open purchasing do |
| 6840323 |
Tubing annulus valve |
January 11, 2005 |
| A subsea wellhead assembly has a tubing hanger with a tubing annulus passage and a production passage. A metal-sealing shuttle valve is mounted in the tubing hanger for blocking upward flow through the tubing annulus passage. The shuttle valve has a retention mechanism that prevents the |
| 6823938 |
Locator and holddown tool for casing hanger running tool |
November 30, 2004 |
| A tool is used for installing a string of casing in a well. The casing is supported by a casing hanger that lands on a landing shoulder of the wellhead assembly. A running mechanism is releasably secured to the casing hanger for landing the casing hanger and setting a casing hanger seal. |
| 6805382 |
One stroke soft-land flowline connector |
October 19, 2004 |
| A frame is used to land on a base and soft land a connector receptacle on the end of a flowline to a mandrel protruding from the base. After the frame lands on the base, the frame and the receptacle are pushed toward the base, which causes frame latching members to latch the frame to the |
| 6766861 |
Stackable guide funnel system and method |
July 27, 2004 |
| A subsea production system and method includes a wellhead field having multiple wellheads and utilizes a stackable guide funnel system for sequential tying back of those wellheads. A storage frame retains several guide funnels that are nestably stacked one upon the other. The frame is |
| 6763891 |
Production tree with multiple safety barriers |
July 20, 2004 |
| The wellhead assembly has a production tree with multiple safety barriers. A tubing hanger lands and seals in the bore of the tree. The tubing hanger has a lateral production flow passage that registers with a lateral passage in the tree. A tubing annulus passage extends upward from the |
| 6749018 |
Bit run and retrieval wear bushing and tool |
June 15, 2004 |
| A wear bushing has a lower portion that is landed on a casing hanger in a wellhead housing. An upper portion of the wear bushing has a shear ring in a locking profile that locks the wear bushing to the casing hanger. A locking ring resides in a bore of the wear bushing and has passages f |
| 6746182 |
Keel joint arrangements for floating platforms |
June 8, 2004 |
| Keel joint assemblies are described that permit a degree of rotational movement of a riser within the keel of a floating vessel and greatly reduce the amount of stress and strain that is placed upon the riser, as well. Keel joint assemblies described provide a limiting joint between the |
| 6742594 |
Flowline jumper for subsea well |
June 1, 2004 |
| A subsea well system has a flowline jumper that extends between components on the sea floor. The jumper has connectors on each end for connecting to the two components. At least a portion of the jumper is buoyant and sufficiently flexible to cause it to assume a vertical arcuate conf |
| 6734805 |
Composite pipe telemetry conduit |
May 11, 2004 |
| A section of pipe for well operations has a cylindrical fiber composite pipe body and a pair of metallic end fittings. The end fittings differ from each other in that they are provided with mating key features to ensure proper angular or rotational alignment between two abutting sect |
| 6722426 |
Gasket with multiple sealing surfaces |
April 20, 2004 |
| A metal seal for a wellhead assembly has upper and lower legs extending in opposite directions from each other and a rib extending radially outward from a junction of the legs. A first conical band on the upper leg extends uninterrupted from the rib a selected distance toward a tip of th |
| 6719059 |
Plug installation system for deep water subsea wells |
April 13, 2004 |
| A plug retrieval and installation tool is used with a subsea well having a production tree, a tubing hanger, a passage that extends vertically through the tubing hanger and the tree, and a plug located within a plug profile in the passage within the tubing hanger. The plug retrieval devi |
| 6719044 |
Wear bushing running and retrieval tools |
April 13, 2004 |
| Devices and methods for selectively emplacing a wear bushing in a wellhead housing and removing it therefrom. A drill string-mounted running tool is used to selectively engage the wear bushing during emplacement and removal. The wear bushing need not be removed each time the drill string |
| 6708766 |
Wellhead assembly for communicating with the casing hanger annulus |
March 23, 2004 |
| A subsea wellhead assembly has the capabilities of communicating from the outer surface of an outer wellhead housing to a casing annulus. Seals between the outer and inner wellhead housings define an annular chamber when the inner wellhead housing lands. The outer wellhead housing has a |
| 6705401 |
Ported subsea wellhead |
March 16, 2004 |
| A susbsea well has communication passages to enable annulus pressure surrounding inner and intermediate strings of casings to be monitored at the surface. The passages both have outlets that allow communication to the tree assembly for monitoring. In one embodiment, the passage outlets |
| 6698520 |
Light-intervention subsea tree system |
March 2, 2004 |
| A subsea well apparatus has features for controlling and monitoring production fluid flow from a well. A christmas tree lands on a subsea wellhead, the tree having a tubular, open upper end. A first flow passage extends from a lower end of the tree to the upper end for communicating |
| 6695059 |
Mechanical anti-rotational feature for subsea wellhead housing |
February 24, 2004 |
| An anti-rotation device prevents an inner wellhead housing from rotating within an outer wellhead housing. The anti-rotation device provides spring loaded anti-rotational keys within the outer wellhead housing and mating slots formed within the inner wellhead housing. The keys face inwar |
| 6682107 |
Preloaded squnch connector |
January 27, 2004 |
| A connector for connecting two tubular members has a pin and a box, the box having a bore that receives the pin in stabbing engagement. The bore having a grooved profile, and a split lock ring mounted to the pin, the lock ring snapping into engagement with the grooved profile in the box |
| 6668933 |
Ball valve seat and support |
December 30, 2003 |
| A ball valve assembly has a lower support, an upper seat, a spherical ball, and linkages for rotating the ball. The lower support has a spherical support surface for the ball. The lower support also has a pair of guides for maintaining alignment of the ball and seat to prevent contact wi |
| 6668919 |
Casing hanger system with capture feature |
December 30, 2003 |
| A stacking arrangement for wellhead tubular members wherein the adjoining ends of the tubular members are specially shaped to prevent or limit outward radial deflection and the damage associated therewith. A casing hanger is provided with an upper longitudinal end having an inwardly |
| 6659690 |
Tapered stress joint configuration |
December 9, 2003 |
| A stress joint for a subsea riser has a reduced diameter intermediate section to reduce bending stresses on the connection between the stress joint and the riser as well as the subsea equipment. The stress joint having a riser joint with a threaded upper end for connection to a riser |
| 6659183 |
Cuttings injection target plate |
December 9, 2003 |
| A drill cuttings injection system injects cuttings from drilling a well into a wellhead assembly. The wellhead assembly has a tubular housing mounted to an upper end of a well and a casing hanger concentrically located in the housing, defining an annular clearance. A port extends thr |
| 6615921 |
Apparatus and method for remote adjustment of drill string centering to prevent damage to wellhe |
September 9, 2003 |
| A drill bit guide is mounted in a wellhead in place of a wear bushing. The bit guide is capable of guiding strings and tools through the wellhead without damage to the wellhead or string while drilling. In one version of the bit guide, a pair of linear actuators radially extend and retra |
| 6598673 |
Wellhead load ring |
July 29, 2003 |
| A wellhead load ring constructed in the shape of a C-ring is pre-installed in a wellhead in a storage position that maintains full bore of the wellhead. The load ring is secured in this position by shear pins. The shear pins are sheared by a tool that pushes the load ring into an ope |
| 6581691 |
Landing adapter for soft landing a tubing hanger in the bore of a production tree or wellhead ho |
June 24, 2003 |
| A landing adapter is used to softly land a tubing hanger in the bore of a production tree. The landing adapter makes initial contact so that the tubing hanger does not have to absorb the harsh impact. The landing adapter has a hydraulic sleeve that strokes axially relative to the tubing |
| 6540024 |
Small diameter external production riser tieback connector |
April 1, 2003 |
| A tieback connector includes a passive lower locking system and an active upper locking system to exert a positive locking force on the connection between a production riser and a high pressure wellhead. The tieback connector is composed of an outer housing which carries lower locking |
| 6536527 |
Connection system for catenary riser |
March 25, 2003 |
| A connection between a riser and a receptacle of a floating platform may be preloaded to reduce fatigue. The platform has a receptacle with upper and lower grooved profiles. A hanger is connected to the upper end of the riser. The hanger has a latch that engages the lower grooved profile |
| 6533032 |
Subsea pig launcher and method of using the same |
March 18, 2003 |
| A device and method are provided for storing pipeline pigs and launching the pigs into a subsea production pipeline. The device is installed in line with a pipeline and includes a frame, a magazine containing several rotatable trays for storing and sequentially launching the pigs, and a |
| 6520253 |
Rotating drilling head system with static seals |
February 18, 2003 |
| A rotatable head assembly wherein there is an outer housing that carries a cartridge assembly that permits rotational movement. The cartridge assembly made up of a cartridge housing and cartridge body that is rotatable within the cartridge housing. Static seals are used to provide fl |
| 6516876 |
Running tool for soft landing a tubing hanger in a wellhead housing |
February 11, 2003 |
| A running tool for a wellhead has an outer sleeve, a piston, an inner sleeve, each with respective hydraulic chambers, and a pair of collets for engaging a tubing hanger in a wellhead. Pressure is applied to the various chambers to actuate the collets and engage and/or release the tubing |
| 6488084 |
Casing hanger seal positive stop |
December 3, 2002 |
| A casing hanger lands on a load shoulder in a wellhead to seal and support a string of casing. The casing hanger has a lower ring for landing on the load shoulder, the lower ring having an upward facing surface. A plurality of circumferentially spaced recesses are in the upward facing su |
| 6478344 |
Threaded connector |
November 12, 2002 |
| An offshore riser includes a plurality of tubular elements, each having a pin member on one end and a box member on the other end for connection with adjacent tubular elements. The pin member has an external thread which engages an internal thread on the box member of the adjacent tubula |
| 6470971 |
Tubing head control and pressure monitor device |
October 29, 2002 |
| A tubing hanger and wellhead have features for controlling and monitoring fluid pressure to downhole equipment. The tubing hanger has an internal vertical passage. A hydraulic line connects to the lower end of the vertical passage and runs downhole. The vertical passage communicates with |
| 6460621 |
Light-intervention subsea tree system |
October 8, 2002 |
| A subsea well apparatus has features for controlling and monitoring production fluid flow from a well. A Christmas tree lands on a subsea wellhead, the tree having a tubular, open upper end. A first flow passage extends from a lower end of the tree to the upper end for communicating |
| 6457529 |
Apparatus and method for returning drilling fluid from a subsea wellbore |
October 1, 2002 |
| An apparatus and method are provided for controlling hydrostatic pressure in drilling fluid in a subsea well. A main pump forces drilling fluid down the drill pipe, out of the end of the drill pipe, and upward in an annulus surrounding the pipe. A rotating drilling head is attached to a |
| 6454015 |
Shearing gate valve |
September 24, 2002 |
| A gate valve has downstream shear and seal capabilities in which the gate will stroke far enough to cover the downstream seat interface, and has a single shearing surface for shearing of a wireline. The gate has an inlay of a hard ductile material such as Stellite.RTM. along the shearing |
| 6450507 |
Water ingress seal for tapered seals |
September 17, 2002 |
| A wellhead housing includes a metal seal with a ring portion and a rib portion. The ring portion includes two frustoconical surfaces for mating with tapered surfaces of a wellhead connector and the wellhead housing. Two conical, metal-to-metal seals are created where the ring portions of |
| 6422791 |
Riser to sleeve attachment for flexible keel joint |
July 23, 2002 |
| An attachment extends between an outer sleeve and an inner riser pipe where the pipe penetrates the keel of a platform. In one version, the attachment is a conically-shaped with a small diameter ring that engages the riser pipe and a large diameter ring that engages the outer sleeve. Thi |
| 6401827 |
Tubing hanger running tool |
June 11, 2002 |
| A running tool is used to install a tubing hanger without entangling the continuous control lines. The tubing hanger running tool is made up of a central mandrel, an outer housing, a setting member, and an actuator. The mandrel has a lower end for securing to a tubing hanger. The outer h |
| 6394194 |
Method and apparatus for a drill cutting injection system |
May 28, 2002 |
| A drill cuttings injection system for a well with a wellhead housing and a casing hanger supported in the wellhead housing. The wellhead has an axial flow port with an upper end in communication with an outer surface of the housing and a lower end in communication with an inner surface o |
| 6394186 |
Apparatus for remote adjustment of drill string centering to prevent damage to wellhead |
May 28, 2002 |
| A drill bit guide is mounted in a wellhead in place of a wear bushing. The bit guide is capable of guiding strings and tools through the wellhead without damage to the wellhead or string while drilling. In one version of the bit guide, a pair of linear actuators radially extend and retra |
| 6367558 |
Metal-to-metal casing packoff |
April 9, 2002 |
| An all-metal seal assembly is located between the exterior of a string of casing and the bore of a lower wellhead housing. The seal assembly has abase seal member with inner and outer legs that define a U-shaped cross-section extending upward into the bore. Each leg is provided with a |
| 6360822 |
Casing annulus monitoring apparatus and method |
March 26, 2002 |
| A subsea wellhead and completion system which provides for monitoring pressure in the annulus of the production casing through communication passages that are pressure-isolated from tubing annulus passages and production fluid passages. The communication passages route production cas |
| 6343654 |
Electric power pack for subsea wellhead hydraulic tools |
February 5, 2002 |
| A device for supplying hydraulic pressure to one or more hydraulically actuable components in a well production system and positioned within the well bore including a reservoir, and electrically powered pump, and a controller each positioned within the well bore and carried on the co |
| 6330918 |
Automated dog-type riser make-up device and method of use |
December 18, 2001 |
| A device automatically makes up a riser string from riser spools, each having an ancillary line and dog-type connectors. A support member supports a second riser spool for connection. A torque arm above the support member hinges open to accept a first riser spool and hinges close to |
| 6328343 |
Riser dog screw with fail safe mechanism |
December 11, 2001 |
| A dog-style connector with a fail-safe mechanism for a marine riser system that connects a box portion and a pin portion of a riser. An actuator housing is affixed to an external surface of the box portion. The actuator housing has an outer bore and a threaded inner bore. An actuator bod |
