公开(公告)号：US20210142515A1

公开(公告)日：2021-05-13

申请号：US17091271

申请日：2020-11-06

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc

Inventor： Timothy Luu ,  Anas Mahmoud

IPC: G06T7/73 ,  G06K9/62 ,  G01S15/89 ,  G06F16/215 ,  G06F16/587 ,  G06N3/04 ,  G06N3/08 ,  E21B47/002

Abstract: A method, apparatus and system for locating external apparatus mounted to a tubular in a wellbore. The identification of apparatus, such as cable clamps, enables other tools in the string to operate more precisely. A computer model is used to locate the apparatus from acoustic images, which images are acquired using a downhole device having an acoustic sensor or acoustic array. The model may be a classifier, which may be machine trained to classify whether an apparatus is present, its location and its orientation. Automating this locating enables very long wellbores to be processed quickly.

公开(公告)号：US20200249203A1

公开(公告)日：2020-08-06

申请号：US16783060

申请日：2020-02-05

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc.

Inventor： Graham Manders ,  Mike Halpenny

IPC: G01N29/06 ,  G01N29/07 ,  G01N29/22 ,  G01N29/265 ,  G01N29/24 ,  G01N29/44

Abstract: A system, device and method for imaging, measuring and identifying surface features in a tubular, such as a casing, wellbore, or pipe. The device comprises an ultrasound transducer for sonifying an area of the surface of the tubular, with a pulse intercepting axial locations of the sonified area at different times. Reflected signals are processed using their time of flight to interpret the reflected signals as axial locations of features on the surface of the tubular. Multiple sonified areas are partially overlapped in the axial direction to capture features redundantly. Reflections from the multiple areas are combined to remove noise and strengthen reflections from real features. A geometric model of the surface of the tubular is rendered and displayed. Capturing larger areas per frame increases the logging rate and oversampling improves the resolution and signal to noise ratio.

公开(公告)号：US12270787B1

公开(公告)日：2025-04-08

申请号：US18855169

申请日：2023-03-30

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc.

Inventor： Michael Halpenny-Mason

IPC: G01N29/06 ,  G01N29/26 ,  G01N29/36

Abstract: An ultrasonic inspection device and method of inspecting parts is disclosed that uses significantly less memory and power with little drop in image quality. The device transmits on a full aperture of ultrasonic elements in a phased array but receives on only a fraction of that aperture. The device may be used downhole, in pipeline inspection or Non-Destructive Testing of manufactured parts.

公开(公告)号：US20250110085A1

公开(公告)日：2025-04-03

申请号：US18855169

申请日：2023-03-30

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc.

Inventor： Michael Halpenny-Mason

IPC: G01N29/06 ,  G01N29/26 ,  G01N29/36

Abstract: An ultrasonic inspection device and method of inspecting parts is disclosed that uses significantly less memory and power with little drop in image quality. The device transmits on a full aperture of ultrasonic elements in a phased array but receives on only a fraction of that aperture. The device may be used downhole, in pipeline inspection or Non-Destructive Testing of manufactured parts.

公开(公告)号：US12146402B2

公开(公告)日：2024-11-19

申请号：US15737122

申请日：2016-06-17

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc.

Inventor： Graham T. Manders ,  Osman S. Malik ,  Stephen E. Robinson ,  Jay Roderick Hope

IPC: E21B47/002 ,  B06B1/06 ,  G01N29/024 ,  G01N29/24 ,  G01N29/26 ,  G01N29/34 ,  G01V1/00 ,  G01V1/46 ,  G01V1/52

Abstract: Methods and devices for imaging wells using ultrasound is described. The devices include a modular imaging device having a telemetry module and a radial imaging module and/or forward imaging module. The radial imaging module includes a ring shaped phased array ultrasonic transducer array for generating images on the length of a wellbore. Various lens and housing configurations for the radial imaging module are described. The forward imaging module includes an ultrasonic transducer comprising one or more elements and having an adjustable viewpoint for generating images of obstructions found in a wellbore. Advanced imaging modes for a radial imaging module include multiple aperture and spiral wave imaging mode.

公开(公告)号：US12129753B2

公开(公告)日：2024-10-29

申请号：US18118138

申请日：2023-03-07

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc

Inventor： Osman S. Malik ,  Graham T. Manders ,  Stephen E. Robinson

IPC: E21B47/107 ,  E21B43/26 ,  E21B47/002 ,  G01F1/663 ,  G01F1/74 ,  G01S15/88 ,  G01S15/89 ,  E21B43/11

CPC classification number: E21B47/107 ,  E21B43/26 ,  E21B47/0025 ,  G01F1/663 ,  G01F1/74 ,  G01S15/88 ,  G01S15/8922 ,  G01S15/8929 ,  G01S15/8979 ,  E21B43/11

Abstract: A device and method for imaging, measuring and identifying multiphase fluid flow in wellbores using phased array Doppler ultrasound. The device includes a radially-configured or ring-shaped ultrasound transducer that when deployed in a well in Doppler mode can measure the velocity of radially flowing fluids in the wellbore and generate a 3D image of radial flow in the wellbore, including flowback into the wellbore after fracturing operations, or flow leaving the wellbore during water injection operations. The ring-shaped ultrasound transducer can also simultaneously operate in a B-mode to generate a B-mode image of the wellbore liner upon which the Doppler image can be overlaid. The device may also include a forward facing ultrasound transducer either instead of or in place of the ring-shaped transducer for obtaining information and images on axial flow in the wellbore in Doppler mode, and the location of phase boundaries and phase locations in B-mode.

公开(公告)号：US20240310332A1

公开(公告)日：2024-09-19

申请号：US18674961

申请日：2024-05-27

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc.

Inventor： Michael Halpenny-Mason ,  Matt James ,  Graham Manders

IPC: G01N29/24 ,  E21B23/14 ,  E21B47/002 ,  G01N29/04 ,  G01N29/265

CPC classification number: G01N29/24 ,  E21B47/0025 ,  G01N29/043 ,  G01N29/265 ,  E21B23/14 ,  E21B2200/20 ,  G01N2291/106 ,  G01N2291/2636

Abstract: A downhole imaging tool and method of operating the tool in a wellbore. An imaging sensor array at an end of the tool is rotatable about a longitudinal axis of the tool to image the well by sweeping out a 2D area of the well. Actuators in the tool provide rotation and/or extension of the sensor array to change perspective. An ultrasound phased-array may be used to measure and identify features of the well or objects.

公开(公告)号：US20240264122A1

公开(公告)日：2024-08-08

申请号：US18569611

申请日：2022-06-07

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc

Inventor： Reza Zahiri Azar ,  Jay Hope ,  Graham Manders

IPC: G01N29/06 ,  G01N29/04 ,  G01N29/22 ,  G01N29/26

CPC classification number: G01N29/069 ,  G01N29/043 ,  G01N29/221 ,  G01N29/262 ,  G01N2291/044 ,  G01N2291/106 ,  G01N2291/2636

Abstract: A device and method used to log images of cylindrical fluid filled tubulars with ultrasound transducers. The transducers operate as phased arrays, insonifying the conduit at plural angles. Reflections from the conduit form images that are combined to create a compound image or correct eccentricity. The frame rate is sped up by defocusing the transmitted beam. This allows the device to log very long pipelines, wells or other tubulars with very high resolution.

公开(公告)号：US20230362499A1

公开(公告)日：2023-11-09

申请号：US18224589

申请日：2023-07-21

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc

Inventor： Stephen E Robinson ,  Kurt Kolb

IPC: H04N23/951 ,  G01S15/89 ,  G01S7/52 ,  G01N29/06 ,  G01N29/265 ,  G01N29/26 ,  G01N29/07 ,  G01N29/22 ,  G01N29/44 ,  E21B47/002 ,  G01N21/88 ,  H04N23/45

CPC classification number: H04N23/951 ,  G01S15/8915 ,  G01S7/52065 ,  G01N29/069 ,  G01N29/265 ,  G01N29/262 ,  G01N29/07 ,  G01N29/225 ,  G01N29/4427 ,  G01S15/8922 ,  E21B47/0025 ,  G01N21/8851 ,  H04N23/45 ,  G01N2291/2636 ,  G01N2291/106 ,  G01S15/8945 ,  G01N2291/0234 ,  G01N2291/0258 ,  G01S15/894 ,  H04N23/555

Abstract: A device and method used to image wells and other fluid-carrying tubulars having localized features of interest. The device scans large areas of the tubular first in a low-resolution mode using an ultrasound sensor and in a high-resolution mode using a camera, then identifies areas that contain those localized features with some probability. The device images are stored for further image processing. The two sensors are axially spaced-apart on the device. A computer remote from the imaging device renders a visualization of the tubular and localized features using the optical and ultrasound images.

公开(公告)号：US11657540B2

公开(公告)日：2023-05-23

申请号：US16911041

申请日：2020-06-24

Applicant: DarkVision Technologies Inc.

Inventor： Steven Wrinch

IPC: G06T9/00 ,  G06T7/62 ,  G06T5/00

CPC classification number: G06T9/00 ,  G06T5/00 ,  G06T7/62 ,  G06T2207/10016 ,  G06T2207/10072 ,  G06T2207/10132

Abstract: A device and method used to image cylindrical fluid conduits, such as pipes, wellbores and tubulars, with ultrasound transducers then compress that data for storage or visualization. The compressed images may be stored on the tool and/or transmitted over telemetry, enabling the device to inspect and record long pipes or wells in high resolution on a single trip. This allow the ultrasound imaging tool to record much longer wells in higher resolution than would otherwise be possible. An outward-facing radial array of ultrasound transducers captures cross-sectional slices of the conduit to create frames from scan lines. The frames are compressed by applying a demodulation process and spatial conversion process to the scan lines. Video compression is applied to the to the demodulated, spatially converted ultrasound images to return compressed images.