System for estimating fatigue damage
US9593568B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 9, 2015 |
| Grant date | Mar 14, 2017 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 9, 2035 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC E)Fixed Constructions
- CPC primaryE21B47/001
- WIPO fieldCivil engineering
- WIPO sectorOther fields
Abstract
In one aspect, a system for estimating fatigue damage in a riser string is provided. The system includes a plurality of accelerometers which can be deployed along a riser string and a communications link to transmit accelerometer data from the plurality of accelerometers to one or more data processors in real time. With data from a limited number of accelerometers located at sensor locations, the system estimates an optimized current profile along the entire length of the riser including riser locations where no accelerometer is present. The optimized current profile is then used to estimate damage rates to individual riser components and to update a total accumulated damage to individual riser components. The number of sensor locations is small relative to the length of a deepwater riser string, and a riser string several miles long can be reliably monitored along its entire length by fewer than twenty sensor locations.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.