METHOD OF, AND A SYSTEM FOR, DRILLING TO A POSITION RELATIVE TO A GEOLOGICAL BOUNDARY

摘要

A system (30) for drilling to a position relative to a geological boundary in a geological formation includes a sensor pack (26) for sensing parameters associated with a drilling operation carried out in the geological formation by a drill (10). A data storage module (34) stores a geological model of the geological formation and data relating to the sensed parameters, the geological model including data relating to the geological boundary. A processor module (32) is configured to monitor the drilling operation using the data related to the sensed parameters and to locate the position of a drill bit of the drill (10) in the geological formation and its corresponding position within the geological model. The processor module (32) is further configured to generate an end point at a defined position relative to the geological boundary. A drill controller (24) communicates with the processor module (32), the drill controller (24) being configured to control operation of the drill 10 and to cause the drill (10) to cease drilling when the end point has been reached.

主权项

1. A method of drilling to a position relative to a geological boundary in a geological formation, the method including
sensing borehole parameters while a borehole is being drilled in the geological formation; feeding the sensed parameters to a controller which controls operation of a drill drilling the borehole; using the sensed parameters to locate the position of a drill bit of the drill in the geological formation and its corresponding position within a geological model of the geological formation being drilled; generating a geological model map, including an end point at a pre-defined position relative to the geological boundary, from the geological model and providing the geological model map to the drill controller; using the sensed parameters and the geological model map also to locate the position of the drill bit of the drill relative to the geological boundary; and using the controller to drill to the end point.