Patents by Inventor Nicholas Cole Ashford

Nicholas Cole Ashford has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Gravel pack sand out detection/stationary gravel pack monitoring
    Patent number: 11946362
    Abstract: The disclosure provides a packing monitor, method, and gravel pack system for real-time monitoring of a particulate for improved gravel packing. Via the real-time monitoring, the quality of the gravel pack can be detected in real-time. Accordingly, a top-off procedure can be performed without additional tripping of the inner service tool string. Detecting when the gravel pack is approaching screen-out can also be determined in real-time. Detecting when screen-out is approaching allows the operator to prepare to stop pumping in case of miscalculations or early screen-out. In one example, the packing monitor includes: (1) a packing detector configured to, when stationary within the wellbore, obtain measurements indicating presence of a particulate in an annulus of the wellbore at different positions along a length of a screen; and (2) a packing controller configured to determine, based on the measurements, a status of the particulate in the annulus at the different positions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Nicholas Cole Ashford, Donald G. Kyle, Michael Linley Fripp, Kevin D. Fink
  • GRAVEL PACK SAND OUT DETECTION/STATIONARY GRAVEL PACK MONITORING
    Publication number: 20220235648
    Abstract: The disclosure provides a packing monitor, method, and gravel pack system for real-time monitoring of a particulate for improved gravel packing. Via the real-time monitoring, the quality of the gravel pack can be detected in real-time. Accordingly, a top-off procedure can be performed without additional tripping of the inner service tool string. Detecting when the gravel pack is approaching screen-out can also be determined in real-time. Detecting when screen-out is approaching allows the operator to prepare to stop pumping in case of miscalculations or early screen-out. In one example, the packing monitor includes: (1) a packing detector configured to, when stationary within the wellbore, obtain measurements indicating presence of a particulate in an annulus of the wellbore at different positions along a length of a screen; and (2) a packing controller configured to determine, based on the measurements, a status of the particulate in the annulus at the different positions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 22, 2021
    Publication date: July 28, 2022
    Inventors: Nicholas Cole Ashford, Donald G. Kyle, Michael Linley Fripp, Kevin D. Fink
  • Downhole interventionless depth correlation
    Patent number: 11346209
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes depth correlation tools and associated methods which do not require wireline depth correlation runs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Donald G. Kyle, Paul David Ringgenberg, Kenneth L. Schwendemann, Vincent Paul Zeller, Adam Harold Martin, Kevin Michael Renkes, Nicholas Cole Ashford
  • Downhole Interventionless Depth Correlation
    Publication number: 20200284139
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes depth correlation tools and associated methods which do not require wireline depth correlation runs.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 28, 2017
    Publication date: September 10, 2020
    Inventors: Donald G. Kyle, Paul David Ringgenberg, Kenneth L. Schwendemann, Vincent Paul Zeller, Adam Harold Martin, Kevin Michael Renkes, Nicholas Cole Ashford