RIG ACTIVITY MANAGEMENT

Abstract

A method for conducting an operation that can include conducting an activity at a rig site, determining an expected characteristic of an individual performing a task within a red zone, wherein the red zone comprises one or more zones at the rig site, using one or more sensors to monitor the individual within the red zone while performing the task, determining, via a rig controller, an actual characteristic of the individual performing the task within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors, and comparing the actual characteristic to the expected characteristic to determine an individual risk score.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/261,818, entitled “RIG ACTIVITY MANAGEMENT,” by Scott BOONE, filed Sep. 29, 2021, which is assigned to the current assignee hereof and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates, in general, to the field of drilling and processing of wells. More particularly, present embodiments relate to a system and method for analyzing and determining safety and risk scores of rig equipment and individuals to perform activities in a red zone according to a well plan or a rig plan.

BACKGROUND

During well construction operations, activities on a rig can be organized according to a well plan. The well plan can be converted to a rig plan (i.e., rig specific well construction plan) for implementation on a specific rig. Deviations from the well plan or rig plan can cause rig delays, increase well site operation costs, and cause other impacts to operations. Poorly performed well plan activities or rig plan tasks on the rig can cause delays or even unplanned activities or tasks if the activity or task is in a high priority path. Deviation from the plan can create safety issues for the crew and can also increase the risk of rig equipment damage. Delays in identifying the poor performance can exacerbate these impacts. Therefore, improvements in rig activity monitoring and reporting are continually needed.

SUMMARY

A system of one or more computers can be configured to perform particular operations or actions by virtue of having software, firmware, hardware, or a combination of them installed on the system that in operation causes or cause the system to perform the actions. One or more computer programs can be configured to perform particular operations or actions by virtue of including instructions that, when executed by data processing apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform the actions. One general aspect includes a method for conducting an operation. The method can include conducting an activity at a rig site; assigning an expected time within a red zone for an individual to perform a task, where the red zone may include one or more zones at the rig site; using one or more sensors to monitor a movement of the individual within the red zone while performing the task; determining, via a rig controller, an actual time for the individual to perform the task within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors; and comparing the actual time to the expected time to determine an individual risk score. Other embodiments of this aspect include corresponding computer systems, apparatus, and computer programs recorded on one or more computer storage devices, each configured to perform the actions of the methods.

One general aspect includes a method for conducting an operation. The method also includes conducting an activity at a rig site; determining an expected characteristic of an individual performing a task within a red zone, where the red zone may include one or more zones at the rig site; using one or more sensors to monitor the individual within the red zone while performing the task; determining, via a rig controller, an actual characteristic of the individual performing the task within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors; and comparing the actual characteristic to the expected characteristic to determine an individual risk score. Other embodiments of this aspect include corresponding computer systems, apparatus, and computer programs recorded on one or more computer storage devices, each configured to perform the actions of the methods.

One general aspect includes a method for conducting an operation. The method also includes conducting an activity at a rig site; assigning an expected time for each one of one or more individuals to perform an activity within a red zone, where the red zone may include one or more zones at the rig site; using one or more sensors to monitor each one of the one or more individuals while the one or more individuals are performing the activity; determining, via a rig controller, an actual time that each one of the one or more individuals takes to perform the activity within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors; comparing the actual time for each one of the one or more individuals to the expected time for each one of the one or more individuals; and determining an individual risk score for each one of the one or more individuals based on the comparing. Other embodiments of this aspect include corresponding computer systems, apparatus, and computer programs recorded on one or more computer storage devices, each configured to perform the actions of the methods.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of present embodiments will become better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1A is a representative simplified front view of a rig being utilized for a subterranean operation, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 1B is a representative simplified view of a user using possible wearable devices for user input or identification, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 2 is a representative partial cross-sectional view of a rig being utilized for a subterranean operation, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 3A is a representative front view of various users being detectable via an imaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 3B is a representative flow diagram of a method for detecting and determining an identity of an individual via the imaging system, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a representative flow diagram of a method for calculating an activity risk score for an activity of a digital well plan, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 5 is a representative block diagram of an environment with a red zone that can include multiple zones at a rig site and can vary the size and shape of the red zone during execution of the digital well plan at the rig site, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 6 is a representative functional block diagram of a method using a computer to determine risk scores for various individuals and activities, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 7A is a representative list of well activities for an example digital well plan, in accordance with certain embodiments;

FIG. 7B is a representative functional diagram that illustrates conversion of well plan activities to rig plan tasks, in accordance with certain embodiments; and

FIG. 8 is a representative functional diagram of a computing system (such as a rig controller) that illustrates rig controller functions and possible databases that can be used to convert a digital well plan to a digital rig plan and determine risk scores, in accordance with certain embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description in combination with the figures is provided to assist in understanding the teachings disclosed herein. The following discussion will focus on specific implementations and embodiments of the teachings. This focus is provided to assist in describing the teachings and should not be interpreted as a limitation on the scope or applicability of the teachings.

As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “having,” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of features is not necessarily limited only to those features but may include other features not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Further, unless expressly stated to the contrary, “or” refers to an inclusive-or and not to an exclusive-or. For example, a condition A or B is satisfied by any one of the following: A is true (or present) and B is false (or not present), A is false (or not present) and B is true (or present), and both A and B are true (or present).

The use of “a” or “an” is employed to describe elements and components described herein. This is done merely for convenience and to give a general sense of the scope of the invention. This description should be read to include one or at least one and the singular also includes the plural, or vice versa, unless it is clear that it is meant otherwise.

The use of the word “about”, “approximately”, or “substantially” is intended to mean that a value of a parameter is close to a stated value or position. However, minor differences may prevent the values or positions from being exactly as stated. Thus, differences of up to ten percent (10%) for the value are reasonable differences from the ideal goal of exactly as described. A significant difference can be when the difference is greater than ten percent (10%).

As used herein, “tubular” refers to an elongated cylindrical tube and can include any of the tubulars manipulated around a rig, such as tubular segments, tubular stands, tubulars, and tubular string, but not limited to the tubulars shown in FIG. 1A. Therefore, in this disclosure, “tubular” is synonymous with “tubular segment,” “tubular stand,” and “tubular string,” as well as “pipe,” “pipe segment,” “pipe stand,” “pipe string,” “casing,” “casing segment,” or “casing string.”

FIG. 1A is a representative simplified front view of a rig 10 at a rig site 11 being utilized for a subterranean operation (e.g., tripping in or out a tubular string to or from a wellbore), in accordance with certain embodiments. The rig site 11 can include the rig 10 with its rig equipment, along with equipment and work areas that support the rig 10 but are not necessarily on the rig 10. The rig 10 can include a platform 12 with a rig floor 16 and a derrick 14 extending up from the rig floor 16. The derrick 14 can provide support for hoisting the top drive 18 as needed to manipulate tubulars. A catwalk 20 and V-door ramp 22 can be used to transfer horizontally stored tubular segments 50 to the rig floor 16. A tubular segment 52 can be one of the horizontally stored tubular segments 50 that is being transferred to the rig floor 16 via the catwalk 20. A pipe handler 30 with articulating arms 32, 34 can be used to grab the tubular segment 52 from the catwalk 20 and transfer the tubular segment 52 to the top drive 18, the vertical storage area 36, the wellbore 15, etc. However, it is not required that a pipe handler 30 be used on the rig 10. The top drive 18 can transfer tubulars directly to and directly from the catwalk 20 (e.g., using an elevator coupled to the top drive).

The tubular string 58 can extend into the wellbore 15, with the wellbore 15 extending through the surface 6 into the subterranean formation 8. When tripping the tubular string 58 into the wellbore 15, tubulars 54 can be sequentially added to the tubular string 58 to extend the length of the tubular string 58 into the earthen formation 8. FIG. 1A shows a land-based rig. However, it should be understood that the principles of this disclosure are equally applicable to off-shore rigs where “off-shore” refers to a rig with water between the rig floor and the earth surface 6.

When tripping the tubular string 58 out of the wellbore 15, tubulars 54 can be sequentially removed from the tubular string 58 to reduce the length of the tubular string 58 in the wellbore 15. The pipe handler 30 can be used to remove the tubulars 54 from an iron roughneck 38 or a top drive 18 at a well center 24 and transfer the tubulars 54 to the catwalk 20, the vertical storage area 36, etc. The iron roughneck 38 can break a threaded connection between a tubular 54 being removed and the tubular string 58. A spinner assembly 40 (or pipe handler 30) can engage a body of the tubular 54 to spin a pin end 57 of the tubular 54 out of a threaded box end 55 of the tubular string 58, thereby unthreading the tubular 54 from the tubular string 58.

When tripping the tubular string 58 into the wellbore 15, tubulars 54 are sequentially added to the tubular string 58 to increase the length of the tubular string 58 in the wellbore 15. The pipe handler 30 can be used to deliver the tubulars 54 to a well center on the rig floor 16 in a vertical orientation and hand the tubulars 54 off to an iron roughneck 38 or a top drive 18. The iron roughneck 38 can make a threaded connection between the tubular 54 being added and the tubular string 58. A spinner assembly 40 or pipe handler 30 can engage a body of the tubular 54 to spin a pin end 57 of the tubular 54 into a threaded box end 55 of the tubular string 58, thereby threading the tubular 54 into the tubular string 58. The wrench assembly 42 can provide a desired torque to the threaded connection, thereby completing the connection.

While tripping a tubular string into or out of the wellbore 15 can be a significant part of the operations performed by the rig, many other rig tasks are also needed to perform a well construction according to a digital well plan. For example, pumping mud at desired rates, maintaining downhole pressures (as in managed pressure drilling), maintaining and controlling rig power systems, coordinating and managing personnel on the rig during operations, performing pressure tests on sections of the wellbore 15, cementing a casing string in the wellbore, performing well logging operations, as well as many other rig tasks. As used herein, “personnel”, “individual”, “user”, or “operator” can be used interchangeably in that each refer to a human that is available to support a subterranean operation.

As the tasks are being performed at the rig site 11 (e.g., on the rig 10), a red zone may be designated to indicate a zone with an elevated risk of drop hazards or other hazards that can be harmful to individuals supporting the tasks. The red zone can be a static area that includes one or more zones (or regions) at the rig site 11, or the red zone can change shape and size as the tasks are being performed. For example, as tubulars are being transported to well center for connection to the tubular string 58, the red zone can first be one or more zones (or regions) surrounding the crane 46 or forklift 48 while tubulars 50 are being moved to the horizontal storage area 56 by the crane 46 or forklift 48. When the tubulars 50 are positioned in the horizontal storage area 56, then the red zone may be moved to include portions of the horizontal storage area 56, the catwalk 20, and areas below a pipe handler 30 as the catwalk 20 and pipe handler 30 are used to transport the tubulars 50 from the horizontal storage area 56 to the well center 24 or vertical storage area 36.

When the tubular 54 is delivered to well center for connection to the tubular string 58, the red zone can be moved to include one or more zones or regions on the rig 10 about the well center to indicate that the area around the well center is at an elevated level for safety hazards for individuals. If tubulars 54 are moved from the vertical storage area 36 to well center for connection to the tubular string 58, then the red zone can be moved to include the vertical storage area 36 and the well center. The operation of the top drive 18, the iron roughneck 38, and the pipe handler 30 can cause an elevated level of safety hazards in these areas (e.g., one or more zones) below and around these pieces of equipment being operated to execute tasks of the digital well plan activities.

A rig controller 250 can be used to control the rig 10 operations including controlling various rig equipment, such as the pipe handler 30, the top drive 18, the iron roughneck 38, the vertical storage area equipment, imaging systems, various other robots on the rig 10 (e.g., a drill floor robot), rig power systems 26, or sending instructions to individuals on the rig. The rig controller 250 can control the rig equipment autonomously (e.g., without periodic operator interaction), semi-autonomously (e.g., with limited operator interaction such as initiating a subterranean operation, adjusting parameters during the operation, etc.), or manually (e.g., with the operator interactively controlling the rig equipment via remote control interfaces to perform the subterranean operation). The rig controller 250 can manage assigning red zones to areas at the rig site 11 and changing red zone assignments as needed during execution of the digital well plan on the rig 10. The rig controller 250, along with the sensors 72, 74, and wearables 70, can monitor individuals performing tasks in the red zone and compare the actual individuals being utilized to perform the tasks to expected individuals for performing the tasks according to the digital well plan 100 or digital rig plan 102. The rig controller 250 can also determine if specific individuals are being utilized for the tasks and if these specific individuals were allocated to the tasks in the digital well plan 100 or digital rig plan 102.

A safety score can be determined (e.g., by the controller 250) for an individual performing a task of a subterranean operation. The safety score can indicate how safely an individual is performing one or more tasks of an activity according to the well plan 100 or rig plan 102. Therefore, as used herein, a “safety score” indicates a level of safety for the individual performing a task of a well plan activity. As used herein, “threshold individual safety score” or “threshold activity safety score” indicates an acceptable level of safety for the individual(s) performing one or more tasks of an activity. When the safety score is above the respective safety score threshold, this indicates that there is an adequate level of safety measures being utilized to provide acceptable safety for the individual(s) performing the one or more tasks. When the safety score is below the respective safety score threshold, this indicates that there is not an adequate level of safety measures being utilized to provide acceptable safety for the individual(s) performing the one or more tasks. The rig controller 250 can detect safety compliance of one or more individuals via one or more sensors 72, 74, or wearables 70. The rig controller 250 can calculate a safety score for an individual in real-time while the individual is performing the one or more tasks. When the one or more tasks are completed, the rig controller 250 can store the final safety score for the individual in a database as a historical safety score, report the safety score to other individuals or controllers, or use the safety score to determine an individual risk score or activity risk score. The rig controller 250 can also determine an overall rig safety score for the activity by combining the safety scores for one or more individuals performing the activity as well as safety scores for the rig equipment used in the activity. The rig scores for each activity can be aggregated at a completion of the well plan 100 to determine an overall rig safety score for the well plan.

A risk score can be determined (e.g., by the rig controller 250) for individual(s) or rig equipment used in performing a task of a subterranean operation. The risk score can indicate a probability that the individual(s) or rig equipment assigned to perform a task can satisfactorily perform the task according to the well plan or rig plan or the risk score can indicate a probability that an activity of the digital well plan will be satisfactorily executed according to the digital well plan. The risk score for the individual can indicate the probability that the individual can perform the task satisfactorily (e.g., perform the task on time, in the right location, or with the correct resources). Risk scores for the rig equipment can indicate that the equipment is healthy and able to satisfactorily perform the tasks, or that the equipment may need maintenance or repair before being used to perform the tasks. The risk scores for the individual(s) and the rig equipment can be evaluated by the rig controller 250 to determine the overall risk score for the activity. Depending on the risk score, it can also indicate if modifications to the rig plan are needed to mitigate the risk of the performance of either the individual or the rig equipment. The risk scores can indicate if additional individuals or rig equipment are needed, other individuals or rig equipment are needed, training of the individual is needed, or maintenance of the rig equipment is needed to execute the tasks. As used herein, “satisfactorily” perform or performing an activity or task refers to the activity or task being performed as defined in the digital well plan 100 or digital rig plan 102. Trends in the scores over time can be used to drive the training of a crew and can also be used to modify future rig plans 102 to reverse negative trends.

Therefore, as used herein, a “risk score” refers to a probability that the individual or the rig equipment can perform an assigned task of a rig plan or activity of a well plan. The risk score can include an initial risk score component and a real-time risk score component. The initial risk score component can be determined from historical risk data associated with the individual or the rig equipment from previously executed tasks, where the historical risk data can be stored in a database readable by the rig controller 250 or otherwise provided to the rig controller 250. The historical risk data can include how many times and how well the individual or rig equipment completed a previously assigned task prior to execution of the assigned task. The historical risk data can be analyzed by simulation or machine learning to determine trends, such as if the performance of a piece of rig equipment or an individual is progressively decreasing or increasing or staying generally constant. Adaptions to the rig plan can be made to take advantage of or accommodate these trends.

The real-time risk score component can be determined by data from various data sources (e.g., sensors) on the individual, on the rig equipment, or remotely positioned from either the individual or rig equipment. The data sources can provide data associated with the performance of an assigned task, and the rig controller 250 can analyze the data to determine a performance level of the individual or rig equipment and combine it with the initial risk score component to produce a real-time risk score of the task being performed. This real-time risk score can continue to be updated as the task is performed. Once the task is completed, the final real-time risk score for the individual or rig equipment can be stored in a database or other storage means (e.g., entry in a log or report) as historical risk data, which can be used for future risk score calculations.

The rig controller 250 can include one or more processors with one or more of the processors distributed about the rig 10, such as in an operator’s control hut 13, in the pipe handler 30, in the iron roughneck 38, in the vertical storage area 36, in the imaging systems, in various other robots, in the top drive 18, at various locations on the rig floor 16 or the derrick 14 or the platform 12, at a remote location off of the rig 10, at downhole locations, etc. It should be understood that any of these processors can perform control or calculations locally or can communicate to a remotely located processor for performing the control or calculations. Each of the processors can be communicatively coupled to a non-transitory memory, which can include instructions for the respective processor to read and execute to implement the desired control functions or other methods described in this disclosure or data stored in various databases. These processors can be coupled via a wired or wireless network. All data received and sent by the rig controller 250 is in a computer-readable format and can be stored in and retrieved from the non-transitory memory.

The rig controller 250 can collect data from various data sources around the rig (e.g., sensors 72, 74, electronic devices like wearables 70, user input, local rig reports, etc.) and from remote data sources (e.g., suppliers, manufacturers, transporters, company men, remote rig reports, etc.) to monitor and facilitate the execution of a digital well plan. A digital well plan is generally designed to be independent of a specific rig, where a digital rig plan is a digital well plan that has been modified to incorporate the specific equipment available on a specific rig and best practices to execute the well plan on the specific rig, such as rig 10. Therefore, the rig controller 250 can be configured to monitor and facilitate the execution of the digital well plan by monitoring and executing rig tasks in the digital rig plan.

Examples of local data sources are shown in FIG. 1A where an imaging system (e.g., imaging system 240 in FIG. 3A) can include the rig controller 250 and imaging sensors 72 positioned at desired locations around the rig and around support equipment/material areas, such as mud pumps (see FIG. 2), horizontal storage area 56, power system 26, etc., to collect imagery of the desired locations. Also, various sensors 74 can be positioned at various locations around the rig site 11 and the support equipment/material areas to collect information from the rig equipment (e.g., pipe handler 30, roughneck 38, top drive 18, vertical storage area 36, etc.) and support equipment (e.g., crane 46, forklift 48, horizontal storage area 56, power system 26, etc.) to collect operational parameters of the equipment. Additional information can also be collected from other data sources, such as reports and logs 28 (e.g., tour reports, daily progress reports, reports from remote locations, shipment logs, delivery logs, personnel logs, etc.).

These data sources can be aggregated by the rig controller 250 and used to determine an estimated well activity of the rig and comparing it to the digital well plan to determine progress and performance of the rig 10 in executing the digital well plan.

The data sources can be received by the rig controller 250 and used to determine one or more tasks that are being performed at the rig site 11 by one or more individuals 4 or pieces of rig equipment in support of a well activity of the digital well plan. The rig controller 250 can calculate a risk score for the individual 4 or rig equipment performing the one or more tasks based on data from the data sources or based on historical data from past performances of the individual 4 or rig equipment performing the task. The risk score can indicate an ability of the individual 4 or rig equipment to perform the specific task. The rig controller 250 can also use the data sources to determine safety scores for individuals performing the digital rig plan tasks. The safety scores indicate how safely the individuals are performing the digital rig plan tasks.

The risk score can include a real-time individual risk score component that can be based at least in part upon comparing an expected characteristic of the individual to an actual characteristic of the individual. The expected or actual characteristics of the individual can include a position of the individual within the environment, movement of the individual within the environment, movement of one or more body parts of the individual within the environment, health signal(s) of the individual from sensors monitoring the individual 4 or the environment, conditions within the environment, or combinations thereof. The environment can include the rig 10 or rig site 11. The environment can also be a red zone, that can include at least a portion of one or more zones at the rig site 11. The expected characteristics can be measured in real-time based upon data received from the data sources. Health signals can include vital statistics for an individual (such as blood pressure, heart rate, etc.), fatigue level for individual, reaction times of the individual, as well as other health information that may be used to indicate an ability for the individual to perform as expected. Health signals can include vital statistics for a piece of rig equipment (such as RPMs, vibrations, acoustic signals, fuel consumption, efficiency, hours of operation, etc.) that can indicate an ability for the rig equipment to perform as expected.

For example, the imaging system (e.g., imaging system 240 in FIG. 3A) can detect one or more individuals 4 within the red zone and detect the amount of time each of the individuals are in the red zone performing an activity, where the red zone is being monitored and the rig controller 250 can compare the individual’s time in the red zone or a total time for all individuals in the red zone to an expected time for the individual or total time for all individuals to perform the activity, where the expected time can be determined from the well plan 100 and can be stored in a database for retrieval as needed by the rig controller 250.

For example, the imaging system can detect an actual time the individual 4 takes to perform a task or activity in the red zone being monitored and the rig controller 250 can compare the actual time to an expected time, where the expected time can be stored in a database for retrieval as needed by the rig controller 250.

For example, the imaging system can detect a position of the individual 4 within the red zone being monitored and the rig controller 250 can compare the position to an expected position, where the expected position can be stored in a database for retrieval as needed by the rig controller 250.

For example, the imaging system can detect movement of the individual 4 within the red zone and the rig controller 250 can compare the movement to an expected movement of the individual 4, where the expected movement can be stored in a database for retrieval as needed by the rig controller 250.

For example, the imaging system can detect movement of one or more body parts of the individual 4 within the red zone and the rig controller 250 can compare the movement of the one or more body parts to an expected movement of the one or more body parts of the individual 4, where the expected movement of the one or more body parts of the individual 4 can be stored in a database for retrieval as needed by the rig controller 250.

For example, the imaging system can receive one or more health signals from sensors monitoring the individual 4 within the red zone, and the rig controller 250 can compare the health signals to expected health signals of the individual 4, where the expected health signals can be stored in a database for retrieval as needed by the rig controller 250.

For example, the imaging system can receive one or more health signals from sensors monitoring the red zone, and the rig controller 250 can compare the health signals to expected health signals, where the expected health signals can be stored in a database for retrieval as needed by the rig controller 250.

For example, the imaging system can detect conditions within the red zone and the rig controller 250 can compare the conditions to expected conditions within the red zone, where the expected conditions can be stored in a database for retrieval as needed by the rig controller 250.

The risk score can be determined via the rig controller 250 by using artificial intelligence, such as a machine learning program, which can use historical risk data for the individual 4 or the piece of rig equipment to estimate the real-time risk score. The historical risk data can be input into an artificial intelligence engine of the rig controller 250 (e.g., a neural network for deep learning), which can learn the historical risk data for the individual 4 (or rig equipment) and use this learning to predict a risk score for an individual or rig equipment to perform an assigned task. The risk score can be sent to one or more individuals 4 via respective electronic devices (e.g., wearable electronics, portable electronics, etc.), stored in a database, or fed back into the artificial intelligence engine for further learning.

The data sources can include electronic devices such as the wearables 70 or sensors 72, 74. The wearables 70 (e.g., a smart wristwatch, a smart phone, a tablet, a laptop, an identification badge, a wearable transmitter, etc.) can be worn by an individual 4 (or user 4) to identify the individual 4, deliver instructions to the individual 4, or receive inputs from the individual 4 via the wearable 70 to the rig controller 250 (see FIG. 1B). Network connections (wired or wireless) to the electronic devices can be used for communication between the rig controller 250 and other electronic devices for information transfer. For example, the electronic device can send data associated with the individual, on which the electronic device is carried, to the rig controller 250. The rig controller 250 can use the individual’s data to determine a risk score for the individual to perform the assigned task. The electronic devices (e.g., the sensors 72, 74, and wearables 70) can also send data associated with one or more pieces of rig equipment to the rig controller 250. The rig controller 250 can use the sensor data to determine a risk score for each piece of rig equipment.

The wearables 70 (i.e., electronic devices) can include a unique identification number that is associated with a respective individual 4. The unique identification number can be detectable by one or more active or passive detection systems in the environment. For example, an active detection system can be an imaging system 240 and a passive detection system can be an RFID reader that detects RFID devices in the environment. One or more of the wearables 70 can include processors that can be included in the rig controller 250, and these processors can be configured to calculate the risk score of the individual for performing the task. Sensors or other electronic devices can detect movements and actions of one or more individuals 4 in the environment or health signals of the individuals and calculate risk scores based on this information.

An electronic device (e.g., wearables 70) can include a display configured to display, to the individual, an alert, a change to the activity, a change to the task, a status of the activity, an individual risk score, a rig equipment risk score, an activity risk score, or any combination thereof.

FIG. 2 is a representative partial cross-sectional view of a rig 10 at a rig site 11 being used to drill a wellbore 15 in an earthen formation 8. FIG. 2 shows a land-based rig, but the principles of this disclosure can equally apply to off-shore rigs, as well. The rig 10 can include a top drive 18 with a traveling block 19 used to raise or lower the top drive 18. A derrick 14 extending from the rig floor 16, can provide the structural support of the rig equipment for performing subterranean operations (e.g., drilling, treating, completing, producing, testing, etc.). The rig 10 can be used to extend a wellbore 15 through the earthen formation 8 by using a drill string 58 having a Bottom Hole Assembly (BHA) 60 at its lower end. The BHA 60 can include a drill bit 68 and multiple drill collars 62, with one or more of the drill collars including instrumentation 64 for LWD and MWD operations. During drilling operations, drilling mud can be pumped from the surface 6 into the drill string 58 (e.g., via pumps 84 supplying mud to the top drive 18) to cool and lubricate the drill bit 68 and to transport cuttings to the surface via an annulus 17 between the drill string 58 and the wellbore 15.

The returned mud can be directed to the mud pit 88 through the flow line 81 and the shaker 80. A fluid treatment 82 can inject additives as desired to the mud to condition the mud appropriately for the current well activities and possibly future well activities as the mud is being pumped to the mud pit 88. The pump 84 can pull mud from the mud pit 88 and drive it to the top drive 18 to continue circulation of the mud through the drill string 58.

Sensors 74 and imaging sensors 72 can be distributed about the rig and downhole to provide information on the environments in these areas as well as operating conditions, health of equipment or individuals 4, well activity of equipment, positions of individuals 4 at the rig site 11, movements or actions of the individuals 4 at the rig site 11, fluid properties, WOB, ROP, RPM of drill string, RPM of drill bit 68, etc.

FIG. 3A is a representative front view of various individuals 4 (e.g., individuals 4a, 4b, 4c) that can be detectable via an imaging system 240. The imaging system 240 can include the rig controller 250, one or more imaging sensors 72 and one or more other sensors 74 (e.g., acoustic sensors, radio frequency identification RFID sensors, etc.), which can be positioned away from (or remote from) the individual 4. Some of the sensors or wearables can be one or more electronic devices with wireless communication capabilities, which are worn or carried by the individual 4. When determining the current well activity or current task, it can be beneficial to detect how many individuals 4 are present on the rig 10, where they are, who they are, and what they are doing, as well as the rig equipment being used and the parameters of their use. For example, the imaging system 240 can be used to detect individuals 4 at the rig site 11, track their location as they move about the rig site 11, such as in the red zone, determine an identity of each of the individuals 4, determine the task each of the individuals is performing or is to perform, determine the time each individual should take to perform the task and compare it to the time each individual took to perform the task, score each individual 4 on a risk of satisfactorily performing the task of the digital rig plan, and score the individuals 4 on how safely they are performing or have performed the task.

By receiving imagery from the one or more imaging sensors 72, or sensor data from other sensors 74 or other electronic devices, the rig controller 250 can analyze the sensor data to detect characteristics of the individuals (such as individuals 4a, 4b, 4c) captured by the imagery from the imaging sensor(s) or detected by the sensors 74 (e.g., acoustic sensors, RFID sensors, etc.). The rig controller 250 can compare the detected characteristics of each individual 4 (such as individuals 4a, 4b, 4c) with characteristics of individuals stored in the personnel database 248. The characteristics can include a detectable unique identification number (e.g., RFID device, bar code, QR code, etc.) physical characteristics, mannerisms, walking stride (or motion), body movements, silhouette, size, posture, body movements, facial features, or audible signals (e.g., via acoustic sensors 74). If the individual 4 is not included in the characteristics of individuals stored in the personnel database 248, the rig controller 250 can store the characteristics of the new individual in the personnel database 248 for future identification purposes.

The rig controller 250 can detect (or sense) an individual at the rig site 11 by using one or more sensors 72, 74, or electronic devices that are remotely positioned relative to the individual. The one or more sensors 72, 74 can communicate directly or indirectly to the rig controller 250, which can communicate to a wearable electronic device 70 disposed on the individual 4. The rig controller 250 can analyze information from the one or more sensors 7274, the wearable electronic device 70, or other electronic devices to confirm an identity of the individual 4. The information can include the detected characteristics of the individual 4. The individual 4 can also respond, via the wearable electronic device 70, to an inquiry from the rig controller 250 to the wearable electronic device 70 requesting confirmation of the individual’s 4 identity. For example, a human machine interface provided by the wearable electronic device 70 such as a touch screen, can be used to receive input from the individual 4 to respond to the inquiry.

The rig controller 250 can detect (or sense) an individual in separate environments (e.g., red zone, drill floor, operator’s control hut 13, vertical storage area 36, etc.) at the rig site 11 by using the one or more sensors 72, 74, or other electronic devices. The rig controller 250 can also determine a risk score or safety score for each of one or more individuals 4 that is associated with one or more of the environments at the rig site 11. Some environments at the rig site can be referred to as “safe zones,” “red zones,” and “no-go zones.” As used herein, a “safe zone” is an environment or area on the rig 10 that is designated as being safe for individuals 4 to avoid physical injury during rig operations. As used herein, a “red zone” is an environment or area on the rig 10 that is designated hazardous to individuals 4 during rig operations, but the individuals 4 are allowed to enter the red zone to perform necessary tasks. As used herein, a “no-go zone” is an environment or area on the rig 10 that is designated unsafe for individuals 4 during rig operations and individuals 4 should be prevented from entering the no-go zones.

The rig controller 250 can compare an expected time (e.g., the total number of expected man minutes required) for a task or activity to be performed in the red zone by one or more individuals and compare the expected time to an actual time (e.g., the total number of actual man minutes) it takes for the one or more individuals to perform the task or activity in the red zone. If the actual time is consistently faster than expected, then future rig plans 102 can be modified to take advantage of the improved task executions. If the actual time is usually equal to the expected time, but at times way over the expected, then a detailed evaluation of the reasons for the overages may be initiated to determine the cause. By comparing the actual to the expected, a red zone risk score (e.g., for connections) can be determined to indicate the probability to perform the task or activity. The risk score can indicate that a rig 10 of this type, with the specific equipment, and with certain individuals having certain qualifications has a determined probability of performing the activities of the well plan on a similar rig 10. If the rig risk scores are unacceptable, then modifications to the rig, the individuals, the rig equipment, of the rig plan can be implemented to mitigate at least some of the risk.

Based on the comparison of the detected characteristics to the stored characteristics, the rig controller 250 can determine a risk score for each individual 4 for each task to be performed by each individual 4. One or more individual 4 risk scores and rig equipment risk scores can be used to calculate (via the rig controller 250) an overall activity risk score for performing the well activity of the digital well plan 100 (or digital rig plan 102).

The rig controller 250 can also determine a location at the rig site 11 of each individual 4 based on identification of the surroundings around the individual 4 in captured imagery or based on other sensor data. The rig controller 250 can record, report, or display the individual’s identity, location at the rig site 11, safety scores for each individual 4, overall well activity safety scores for each activity, risk scores for each individual 4, risk scores for pieces of rig equipment, and overall well activity risk scores for performing activities of the digital well plan 100 on the rig 10 with the rig equipment or one or more individuals 4.

In a non-limiting embodiment, FIG. 3B is a representative flow diagram of a method 300 for using the rig controller 250 to determine an identity of an individual 4 at the rig site 11 using sensor data (such as imagery) from the imaging system 240. At operation 302, the rig controller 250 can autonomously (or as a result of a user request) collect sensor data (e.g., imagery from sensors 72 or other sensor data from other sensors 74) of one or more individuals 4 at the rig site 11 via the imaging sensor(s) 72. At operation 304, the rig controller 250 can detect the one or more individuals via the sensor data. In operation 306, the rig controller 250 can analyze the sensor data to determine characteristics of the individual 4. In operation 308, the rig controller 250 can compare the determined characteristics to expected characteristics in a personnel database 248. In operation 310, rig controller 250 can identify the individual 4 based on the comparison of the characteristics. In operation 312, the rig controller 250 can record the individual’s identity and report the identity to other users. With the identity of each of the individuals determined, the rig controller 250 can compare the actual individuals to expected individuals in the well plan 100 and use the comparison to update an overall risk score or safety score for the current well activity.

In operation 314, the rig controller 250 can determine a task that each one of the individuals 4 is executing or if the individual is idle (such as waiting to begin a task). By monitoring each individual 4 (via imaging system 240 or other sensors 74), the rig controller 250 can determine how well each individual performed or is performing the task of the rig plan 102. In operation 316, the rig controller 250 can determine a safety score for each individual 4 by monitoring safe execution of the task by the individual. The rig controller 250 can also determine a risk score for each individual by monitoring characteristics of the individual before and while the individual is performing the task.

FIG. 4 is a representative flow diagram of a method 400 for calculating an individual risk score for an individual that will be or is performing a task at the rig site 11 in support of a digital well plan 100. Example well plan activities 170 are shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B. In a non-limiting embodiment, the method 400 can determine which of the one or more tasks 190 of the digital rig plan 102 are being performed or are to be performed on the rig 10 and determine an individual risk score for each of the task(s) 190 to indicate the probability the individual will be or is satisfactorily performing the task(s) 190 according to the digital rig plan 102.

In operation 401, the rig 10, along with rig personnel (e.g., individuals 4), is conducting an activity of a digital well plan 100 within an environment, with the environment including at least a portion of the rig site 11 called a red zone. In operation 403, the rig controller 250 can determine an expected characteristic of an individual 4 that will be or is performing the task 190 in the red zone. The expected characteristic can be at least one of an expected position of the individual within the red zone, an expected movement of the individual within the red zone, an expected movement of one or more body parts of the individual within the red zone, an expected health signal of the individual, expected conditions within the red zone, or any combination thereof.

In operation 405, one or more electronic devices (e.g., a wearable 70 or sensors 72, 74) can be used to provide sensor data to the rig controller 250 related to an individual performing the task 190 in the red zone. In operation 407, the rig controller 250 can determine an actual characteristic for the individual performing the task 190 in the red zone. The actual characteristic can include at least one of an actual position of the individual within the red zone, an actual movement of the individual within the red zone, an actual movement of one or more body parts of the individual within the red zone, an actual health signal of the individual, actual conditions within the red zone or any combination thereof.

In operation 409, the rig controller 250 can calculate an individual risk score for the individual 4 performing the task 190 in the red zone by comparing the actual characteristic to the expected characteristic. The individual risk score can indicate the probability that the individual 4 will satisfactorily execute the task 190 or a future task 190 in a desired amount of time as indicated in a digital rig plan 102. High risk scores indicate a high likelihood that the individual will not successfully complete the task as planned in the rig plan 102. Low risk scores indicate a high likelihood that the individual will successfully complete the task as planned in the rig plan 102 or even better than planned (i.e., exceeds performance expectations compared to the planned performance guidelines or budgets in the digital rig plan 102). Based on one or more safety scores and one or more individual risk scores, the rig controller 250 can determine an overall risk score for the activity which can indicate the probability that the activity will be satisfactorily performed.

If the risk scores are high, then the digital rig plan 102 can be adapted to allocate more time for execution of tasks, provide more individuals or rig equipment to perform a task, or adapt the digital rig plan 102 to perform the activity of the well plan using different tasks, different individuals, or different rig equipment. Conversely, if the risk scores are low, then the digital rig plan 102 can be adapted to allocate less time for execution of tasks or provide fewer individuals or rig equipment to perform a task. The digital rig plan 102 can be adapted to assign individuals 4 or rig equipment to each task of the digital rig plan 102 based at least in part on the risk scores of the individuals and rig equipment.

The risk scores for the rig equipment can be used to indicate that future maintenance activities may be needed, that the equipment is performing as good or better than expected, or that the equipment has failed and needs to be repaired or replaced. The risk scores of the individuals can be used to indicate if one or more of the individuals 4 need additional training, are masters of the tasks performed, are working with outdated tools, or other performance metrics. The risk scores can be monitored over time to indicate trends in the performance of an individual.

Calculating the risk score can include weighting factors, such as an individual’s safety score (which can include historical and real-time safety scores for the individual performing the task), environmental conditions, actual or perceived injuries, hours active, hours rested, risk scores of other individuals working with the individual, or combinations thereof. Therefore, a high risk score can indicate a high probability that the individual 4 may take longer to perform the task(s) than expected, may damage the equipment when performing the task(s), or even fail to perform the task(s) in the future. A low risk score can indicate a high probability that the individual 4 may perform the task(s) quicker than expected, perform the task(s) with discipline and efficiency, perform the task within the guidelines or budgets given in the rig plan 102, or be helpful to improve the efficiency of others.

The risk score can be stored in a database for later retrieval by the rig controller 250 when calculating other risk scores. The risk scores for individuals in a group can be used to determine an overall risk score for the group (e.g., group of 3rd party contractors, group of individuals working 1st, 2nd, or 3rd shifts, group of new hires fresh out of training, etc.). The group risk score can be adjusted over time as the risk scores for each of the individuals 4 that make up the group are monitored and adjusted.

FIG. 5 is a representative block diagram of an environment 500 with multiple regions 501, 502, 503, 504 at a rig site 11. These regions can be different shapes as needed to organize access of individuals 4 to the regions 501, 502, 503, 504. Each region 501, 502, 503, 504 can include one or more imaging sensors 72 and one or more sensors 74. These sensors 72, 74 can capture sensor data (e.g., image data, acoustic data, proximity sensor data, thermal sensor data, vibration sensor data, RFID data, etc.) and communicate the sensor data to the rig controller 250, which can correlate the sensor data with the particular region 501, 502, 503, 504 from which the sensor data was collected. The regions 501, 502, 503, 504 can each be different than the other regions.

For example, region 501 can include a subregion 520. The subregion 520 (which can include the entire region 501), can be a red zone where drop hazards are possible and that individuals 4 (e.g., individual 507) should minimize their time within the red zone 520. This can be seen as the individual 507 entering the red zone 505, performing the needed task, and exiting the red zone 520 after completion of the task to minimize exposure of the individual 507 to the red zone 520. The sensors 72, 74, and the rig controller 250 can detect one or more individuals 4 in the red zone 520, determine the task(s) performed by the individuals 4 in the red zone 520 and log the task(s) which were performed as well as log the ability of the individual(s) to perform the task. This can be used to determine or modify a risk score or a safety score of the individual(s) 4 that performed the task(s).

Region 502 indicates that some of the regions 501, 502, 503, 504 may at times not have an individual 4 within them. The region 502 may, at some point in executing the digital well plan 100 (or digital rig plan 102) may have only rig equipment operating in support of tasks in it. The sensors 72, 74, and the rig controller 250 can be used to detect which of the rig equipment is being operated to support tasks in the region 502 to perform a well activity.

Sensors 72, 74 in regions 503, 504 can detect individuals 4 in each of the regions as well as detecting the rig equipment operating to support tasks in the regions 503, 504 to perform one or more well activities. The sensors 72, 74 in region 503 and the rig controller 250 can identify an individual 509 performing a task in support of a well activity with sensors 72, 74 in region 504 and the rig controller 250 that can identify an individual 511 (which can be different than the individual 509) performing another task in support of another well activity, or possibly in support of the same well activity that is being supported by region 503. The sensors 72, 74, along with the rig controller 250, can detect the individuals in each of the regions 501, 502, 503, 504 and determine the identity of each of the individuals 4 (e.g., 507, 509, 511), as well as determine the task that each individual 4 is performing. The rig controller 250 can also predict the task each individual 4 is to perform in any of the regions 501, 502, 503, 504 based on the digital rig plan 102.

As stated above, the red zone 520 can be different shapes and sizes as needed to identify those areas, regions, or zones that have an elevated safety risk to individuals due to safety issues in those areas, regions, or zones. As the activities of the digital well plan 100 are executed at the rig site 11, the red zone can be adapted to encompass those areas, regions, subregions, or zones of an elevated safety risk. For example, the red zone 520 can be enlarged to the red zone 522 to encompass portions of the regions 501, 502, 503, 504. The red zone 520 can be further modified to be the red zone 524 which can encompass different portions of the regions 501, 502, 503, 504. At times, the red zone 520 can be modified to be red zone 526 that can encompass most of the regions 501, 502, 503, 504. The red zone 520 can also be modified or adapted to be the red zone 528 which indicates the red zones can be different shapes or orientations to encompass the areas, regions, subregions, or zones that have an elevated safety risk for the individuals.

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of a method 600 using a computer 601 to determine risk scores 621, 622, 623, 648, 650 for various individuals, rig equipment, and activities 613, 660. The computer 601 (or rig controller 250 or conversion engine 180), as described in more detail below regarding FIGS. 8A, 8B, 10, can receive a digital well plan 100 and convert the digital well plan 100, via processor(s) 605 and one or more databases 603, into a rig specific digital rig plan 102 for executing the digital well plan 100 on the rig 10. The computer 601 can receive sensor data from sensors 611 (e.g., sensors 72, 74). The rig 10 can begin executing one or more well activities, such as activity 613 or activity 660. These can be serial activities that are executed one after another, or they can be parallel activities where at least a portion of the activity 660 is performed simultaneously with at least a portion of the activity 613.

Before the activity 613 or 660 is executed, the computer 601 can establish a risk score that is equivalent to an initial risk score component for the individuals, rig equipment, and activities 613, 660. The initial risk score component can be determined from historical risk data, calculated from current risk factors prior to execution of the tasks or activities, or determined through simulation of the rig plan 102 based on the current rig environment and current risk factors. The initial risk score component can be used to determine if there is a good probability that the tasks and activities will be performed according to the digital well plan 100 (or digital rig plan 102), or if modifications to the digital rig plan 102 may be needed to mitigate some or all of the risks indicated by the risk scores.

During execution of at least one of the activities 613, 660, the rig controller 250 can collect sensor data from the sensors 611 and use the sensor data to determine an estimated activity based on the sensor data and then compare the sensor data to reference data stored in a database to verify that the estimated activity is the actual activity being performed. The reference data can include historical data collected from previously completed activities. The reference data can include a list of rig tasks and associated sensor data that occurs for each of the rig tasks. Comparing the sensor data to the list of rig tasks and associated sensor data can be used to identify the actual activity being performed within the environment.

During execution of at least one of the activities 613, 660, the rig controller 250 can collect sensor data from the sensors 611 and use the sensor data to determine an estimated task for each individual based on the sensor data and then compare the sensor data to reference data stored in a database to verify that the estimated task is the actual task being performed. The reference data can include historical data collected from previously completed tasks. Determining an actual task of the individual can include referencing a database with stored information related to the actual task of the individual, or sensing the actual task of the individual via one or more sensors monitoring the environment, or actively confirming the actual task of the individual with the individual via the electronic device; or combinations thereof. The identification of the actual task of the individual 4 can be confirmed by referencing a database having stored information related to the task of the individual, or sensing the task of the individual via one or more sensors in the environment, or actively confirming the task of the individual with the individual via the electronic device.

During execution of the activities 613, 660, the rig controller 250 can collect sensor data from the sensors 611 and use the sensor data to determine a real-time risk score component that can be used to modify the initial risk scores in real-time to determine a real-time risk score. The real-time risk score can indicate a real-time probability that the task or activity will be completed satisfactorily or if rig plan modifications are necessary to mitigate the risks to ensure satisfactory completion of the task or activity according to the digital well plan 100 (or digital rig plan 102).

The computer 601 can use the sensor data from various data sources to identify each of the individuals 4 (e.g., individuals 614, 615, 616) that may be assigned to perform a task or may be performing a task. The computer 601 can also determine the task to be performed or the task being performed by each individual based on either the digital rig plan 102, sensor data, or both. The computer 601 (or rig controller 250 or conversion engine 180) can determine a risk score 621, 622, 623 for the task assigned to the respective individual 614, 615, 616. The risk score 621, 622, 623 can be determined by combining an initial individual risk score component with a real-time risk score component as described above.

The computer 601 (or rig controller 250 or conversion engine 180) can determine a safety score 631, 632, 633 for the task assigned to the respective individual 614, 615, 616. The safety score 631, 632, 633 can be determined, as described above, by monitoring an individual 614, 615, 616 while performing the task in an environment at the rig site 11 (such as in a red zone) and detecting how safely the individual 614, 615, 616 is performing the task. The safety score 631, 632, or 633 can be compared to a threshold safety score to determine if the performance of the individual 614, 615, or 616 is not safe for the individual or is acceptably safe for the individual. The safety scores 631, 632, 633 for all tasks can be aggregated, by the rig controller 250, with safety scores 646 for the rig equipment to determine an overall rig safety score 640.

The computer 601 can determine a risk score 648 for the rig equipment that may be used for performing tasks of the activity 613, 660. The computer 601 can then calculate an activity risk score 650 that incorporates the individual risk scores 621, 622, 623, the safety scores 631, 632, 633, and the rig equipment risk score 648 (if used) into an overall risk score that can indicate the probability that the activity will be performed according to the digital well plan 100 (or digital rig plan 102).

The who and where information of each individual 4 supporting the rig 10 can also be used to verify that the activities (or tasks) are being performed according to the digital well plan 100 (or digital rig plan 102). As used herein “activities” are activities that are listed in a digital well plan, and the “tasks” are tasks in a digital rig plan that execute at least a portion of a well activity of the digital well plan.

FIG. 7A is a representative list of well plan activities 170 for an example digital well plan 100. This list of well plan activities 170 can represent the activities needed to execute a full digital well plan 100. However, in FIG. 7A the list of activities 170 is merely representative of a subset of a complete list of activities needed to execute a full digital well plan 100 to drill and complete a wellbore 15 to a target depth (TD). The digital well plan 100 can include well plan activities 170 with corresponding wellbore depths 172. However, these activities 170 are not required for the digital well plan 100. More or fewer activities 170 can be included in the digital well plan 100 in keeping with the principles of this disclosure. Therefore, the following discussion relating to the well plan activities 170 is merely an example to illustrate the concepts of this disclosure. The well plan 100 can also define activities to be performed for other subterranean operations other than drilling, such as completion, treatment, production, abandonment, etc.

After the rig 10 has been utilized to drill the wellbore 15 to a depth of 75, at activity 112, a Prespud meeting can be held to brief all rig personnel on the goals of the digital well plan 100.

At activity 114, the appropriate personnel and rig equipment can be used to make-up (M/U) 5 ½ʺ drill pipe (DP) stands in prep for the upcoming drilling operation. This can, for example, require a pipe handler, horizontal or vertical storage areas for tubular segments, or tubular stands. The primary activities can be seen as the make-up of the drill pipe (DP) stands, with the secondary tasks being, for example, availability of tubular segments to build the DP stands; availability of a pipe handler (e.g., pipe handler 30) to manipulate the tubulars; a torquing wrench and backup tong for torquing joints when assembling the DP stands in a mousehole, a horizontal storage area, or a vertical storage area; available space in a storage area for the DP stands; doping compound and doping device available for cleaning and doping threads of the tubulars 50, and appropriate personnel to support these operations.

At activity 118, the appropriate personnel and rig equipment can be used to pick up (P/up), makeup (M/up), and run-in hole (RIH) a BHA with a 36ʺ drill bit 68. This can, for example, require BHA components; a pipe handler to assist in the assembly of the BHA components; pipe handler to deliver BHA to a top drive; and lowering the top drive to run the BHA into the wellbore 15. The primary activities can be seen as assembling the BHA and lowering the BHA into the wellbore 15. The secondary tasks can be delivering the BHA components, including the drill bit, to the rig site; monitoring the health of the equipment to be used; and ensuring personnel are available to perform tasks when needed.

At activity 120, the appropriate personnel and rig equipment can be used to drill 36ʺ hole to a TD of the section, such as 652 ft, to +/- 30 ft inside a known formation layer (e.g., Dammam), and performing a deviation survey at depths of 150’, 500’ and TD (i.e., 652’ in this example). The primary activities can be seen as repeatedly feeding tubulars (or tubular stands 54) via a pipe handler to the well center from a tubular storage for connection to a tubular string 58 in the wellbore 15; operating the top drive 18, the iron roughneck 38, and slips to connect tubulars 50 (or tubular stands 54) to the tubular string 58; cleaning and doping threads of the tubulars 50, 54; running mud pumps to circulate mud through the tubular string 58 to the bit 68 and back up the annulus 17 to the surface; running shakers; injecting mud additives to condition the mud; rotating the tubular string 58 or a mud motor (not shown) to drive the drill bit 68, and performing deviation surveys at the desired depths.

The secondary tasks can be seen as having tubulars 50 (or tubular stands 54) available in the horizontal storage or vertical storage locations and accessible via the pipe handler. If coming from the horizontal storage area 56, then the tubulars 50 can be positioned on horizontal stands, with individuals 4 operating handling equipment, such as forklifts 48 or crane 46, to keep the horizontal storage area 56 stocked with the tubulars 50. If coming from the vertical storage area 36, then the rig personnel 4, can make sure that enough tubular stands 54 (or tubulars 50) are racked in the vertical storage area 36 and accessible to the pipe handler 30 (or another pipe handler if needed). Additional secondary tasks can be seen as ensuring that the doping compound and doping device are available for cleaning and doping threads of the tubulars 50; mud additives are available for an individual 4 (e.g., mud engineer) or an automated process to condition the mud as needed; the top drive 18 (including drawworks), iron roughneck 38, slips, and pipe handlers are operational; and ensuring the power system 26 is configured to support the drilling operation.

At activity 122, the appropriate personnel and rig equipment can be used to pump a high-viscosity pill through the wellbore 15 via the tubular string 58 and then circulate wellbore 15 clean. The primary activities can be seen as injecting mud additives into the mud to create the high-viscosity pill, mud pumps operating to circulate the pill through the wellbore 15 (down through the tubular string 58 and up through the annulus 17); slips to hold tubular string 58 in place; top drive 18 connected to tubular string 58 to circulate mud; and, after pill is circulated, circulating mud through the wellbore 15 to clean the wellbore 15. The secondary tasks can be ensuring the power system 26 is configured to support the mud circulation activities; the mud pumps 84 are configured to supply the desired pressure and flow rate of fluid to the tubular string 58; and that the mud additives are available for an individual 4 (e.g., mud engineer) or an automated process to condition the mud as needed.

At activity 124, the appropriate personnel and rig equipment can be used to perform a “wiper trip” by pulling the tubular string 58 out of the hole (Pull out of hole — POOH) to the surface 6; clean stabilizers on the tubular string 58; and run the tubular string 58 back into the hole (Run in hole - RIH) to the bottom of the wellbore 15. The primary activities can be seen as operating the top drive 18, the iron roughneck 38, and slips to disconnect tubulars 50 (or tubular stands 54) from the tubular string 58; moving the tubulars 50 (or tubular stands 54) to vertical storage area 36 or horizontal storage area 56 via a pipe handler, equipment and personnel 4 to clean the stabilizers; and operating the top drive 18, the iron roughneck 38, and slips to again connect tubulars 50 (or tubular stands 54) to the tubular string 58; and run the tubular string 58 back into the wellbore 15.

The secondary tasks can be seen as having the top drive 18 (including drawworks), iron roughneck 38, slips, and pipe handlers operational; ensuring the power system 26 is configured to support the tripping out and tripping in operations; and ensuring that the appropriate individual(s) 4 and cleaning equipment are available to perform stabilizer cleaning when needed.

At activities 126 thru 168, the appropriate personnel and rig equipment can be used to perform the indicated well plan activities. The primary activities can include the personnel, equipment, or materials needed to directly execute the well plan activities using the specific rig 10. The secondary tasks can be those activities that ensure the personnel, equipment, or materials are available and configured to support the primary activities.

FIG. 7B is a functional diagram that can illustrate conversion of well plan activities 170 to rig plan tasks 190 of a rig specific digital rig plan 102. When a well plan 100 is designed, well plan activities 170 can be included to describe primary activities needed to construct a desired wellbore 15 to a TD. However, the well plan 100 activities 170 are not specific to a particular rig, such as rig 10. It may not be appropriate to use the well plan activities 170 to direct specific operations on a specific rig, such as rig 10. Therefore, a conversion of the well plan activities 170 can be performed to create a list of rig plan tasks 190 of a digital rig plan 102 to construct the desired wellbore 15 using a specific rig, such as rig 10. This conversion engine 180 (which can run on a computing system such as the rig controller 250) can take the non-rig specific well plan activities 170 as an input and convert each of the non-rig specific well plan activities 170 to one or more rig specific tasks 190 to create a digital rig plan 102 that can be used to direct tasks on a specific rig, such as rig 10, to construct the desired wellbore 15.

As way of example, a high-level description of the conversion engine 180 will be described for a subset of well plan activities 170 to demonstrate a conversion process to create the digital rig plan 102. The well plan activity 118 states, in abbreviated form, to pick up, make up, and run-in hole a BHA 60 with a 36ʺ drill bit. The conversion engine 180 can convert this single non-rig specific activity 118 into, for example, three rig-specific tasks 118.1, 118.2, 118.3. Task 118.1 can instruct the rig operators or rig controller 250 to pick up the BHA 60 (which has been outfitted with a 36ʺ drill bit) with a pipe handler. At task 118.2, the pipe handler can carry the BHA 60 and deliver it to the top drive 18, with the top drive 18 using an elevator to grasp and lift the BHA 60 into a vertical position. At task 118.3, the top drive 18 can lower the BHA 60 into the wellbore 15 which has already been drilled to a depth of 75’ for this example as seen in FIG. 4A. The top drive 18 can lower the BHA 60 to the bottom of the wellbore 15 to have the drill bit 68 in position to begin drilling as indicated in the following well activity 120.

The well plan activity 120 states, in abbreviated form, to drill a 36ʺ hole to a target depth (TD) of the section, such as 652 ft, to +/- 30 ft inside a known formation layer (e.g., Dammam), and performing a deviation survey at depths of 150’, 500’ and TD (i.e., 652’ in this example). The conversion engine 180 can convert this single non-rig specific activity 120 into, for example, seven rig-specific tasks 120.1 to 120.7. Task 120.1 can instruct the rig operators or rig controller 250 to circulate mud through the top drive 18, through the drill string 58, through the BHA 60, and exiting the drill string 58 through the drill bit 68 into the annulus 17. For this example, the mud flow requires two mud pumps 84 to operate at “NN” strokes per minute, where “NN” is a desired value that delivers the desired mud flow and pressure. At task 120.2, the shaker tables can be turned on in preparation for cuttings that should be coming out of the annulus 17 when the drilling begins. At task 120.3, a mud engineer can verify that the mud characteristics are appropriate for the current tasks of drilling the wellbore 15. If the rheology indicates that mud characteristics should be adjusted, then additives can be added to adjust the mud characteristics as needed.

At task 120.4, rotary drilling can begin by lowering the drill bit into contact with the bottom of the wellbore 15 and rotating the drill bit by rotating the top drive 18 (e.g., rotary drilling). The drilling parameters can be set to be “XX” ft/min for rate of penetration (ROP), “YY” lbs for weight on bit (WOB), and “ZZ” revolutions per minute (RPM) of the drill bit 68.

At task 120.5, as the wellbore 15 is extended by the rotary drilling when the top end of the tubular string 58 is less than “XX” ft above the rig floor 16, then a new tubular segment (e.g., tubular, tubular stand, etc.) can be added to the tubular string 58 by retrieving a tubular segment 50, 54 from tubular storage via a pipe handler, stop mud flow and disconnect the top drive from the tubular string 58, hold the tubular string 58 in place via the slips at well center, raise the top drive 18 to provide clearance for the tubular segment to be added, transfer tubular segment 50, 54 from the pipe handler 30 to the top drive 18, connect the tubular segment 50, 54 to the top drive 18, lower the tubular segment 50, 54 to the stump of the tubular string 58 and connect it to the tubular string 58 using a roughneck to torque the connection, then start mud flow. This can be performed each time the top end of the tubular string 58 is lowered below “XX” ft above the rig floor 16.

At task 120.6, add tubular segments 50, 54 to the tubular string 58 as needed in task 120.5 to drill wellbore 15 to a depth of 150 ft. Stop rotation of the drill bit 68 and stop mud pumps 84.

At task 120.7, perform a deviation survey by reading the inclination data from the BHA 60, comparing the inclination data to expected inclination data, and report deviations from the expected. Correct drilling parameters if deviations are greater than a pre-determined limit.

The conversion from a well plan 100 to a rig-specific rig plan 102 can be performed manually or automatically with the best practices and equipment recipes known for the rig that are to be used in the wellbore construction.

FIG. 8 is a representative functional block diagram of the conversion engine 180 that can include possible databases used by a rig controller 250 to convert a digital well plan 100 to a digital rig plan 102, for identifying individuals detected in work zones on the rig 10, for storing and providing historical risk data, and storing and providing historical safety data. The conversion engine 180 can be a program (i.e., list of instructions 268) that can be stored in the non-transitory memory 252 and executed by processor(s) 254 of the rig controller 250 to convert a digital well plan 100 to a digital rig plan 102 or identify individuals 4 on the rig 10.

A digital well plan 100 can be received at an input to the rig controller 250 via a network interface 256. The digital well plan 100 can be received by the processor(s) 254 and stored in the memory 252. The processor(s) 254 can then begin reading the sequential list of well plan activities 170 of the digital well plan 100 from the memory 252. The processor(s) 254 can process each well plan activity 170 to create rig-specific tasks to implement the respective activity 170 on a specific rig (e.g., rig 10).

To convert each well plan activity 170 to rig-specific tasks for a rig 10, processor(s) 254 must determine the equipment available on the rig 10, the best practices, operations, and parameters for running each piece of equipment, and the operations to be run on the rig to implement each of the well plan activities 170.

Referring again to FIG. 8, the processor(s) 254 are communicatively coupled to the non-transitory memory 252 which can store multiple databases for converting the well plan 100 into the rig plan 102 and for identifying individuals detected in work zones on the rig 10. A rig operations database 260 includes rig operations for implementing each of the well plan activities 170. Each of the rig operations can include one or more tasks to perform the rig operation. The processor(s) 254 can retrieve those operations for implementing the first rig activity 170 from the rig operations database 260 including the task lists for each operation. The processor(s) 254 can receive a rig type RT from a user input or the network interface 256. With the rig type RT, the processor(s) 254 can retrieve a list of equipment available on the rig 10 from the rig type database 262, which can contain equipment lists for a plurality of rig types.

The processor(s) 254 can then convert the operation tasks to rig specific tasks to implement the operations on the rig 10. The rig specific tasks can include the appropriate equipment for rig 10 to perform the operation task. The processor(s) 254 can then collect the recipes for operating each of the available equipment for rig 10 from the recipes database 266, where the recipes can include best practices on operating the equipment, preferred parameters for operating the equipment, and operational tasks for the equipment (such as turn ON procedures, ramp up procedures, ramp down procedures, shutdown procedures, etc.).

Therefore, the processor(s) 254 can retrieve each of the well plan activities 170 and convert them to a list of rig specific tasks that can perform the respective well plan activity 170 on the rig 10. After converting all of the well plan activities 170 to rig specific tasks 190 and creating a sequential list of the tasks 190, the processor(s) 254 can store the resulting digital rig plan 102 in the memory 252. When the rig 10 is operational and positioned at the proper location to drill a wellbore 15, the rig controller 250, via the processor(s) 254, can begin executing the list of tasks in the digital rig plan 102 by sending control signals and messages to the equipment control 270.

The rig controller 250 can also receive user input from an input device 272 or display information to a user or individual 4 via a display 274. The input device 272 in cooperation with the display 274 can be used to input well plan activities, initiate processes (such as converting the digital well plan 100 to the digital rig plan 102), select alternative activities, or rig tasks during execution of digital well plan 100 or digital rig plan 102, or monitor operations during well plan execution. The input device 272 can also include the sensors 74 and the imaging sensors 72, which can provide sensor data (e.g., image data, temperature sensor data, pressure sensor data, operational parameter sensor data, etc.) to the rig controller 250 for determining the actual well activity of the rig.

VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS

Embodiment 1. A method for conducting an operation comprising:

• conducting an activity at a rig site;
• assigning an expected time within a red zone for an individual to perform a task, wherein the red zone comprises one or more zones at the rig site;
• using one or more sensors to monitor a movement of the individual within the red zone while performing the task;
• determining, via a rig controller, an actual time for the individual to perform the task within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors; and
• comparing the actual time to the expected time to determine an individual risk score.

Embodiment 2. The method of embodiment 1, wherein conducting the activity comprises conducting a subterranean operation.

Embodiment 3. The method of embodiment 1, wherein conducting the activity comprises conducting an activity of a digital well plan on a rig.

Embodiment 4. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the activity requires running a drill string into a wellbore.

Embodiment 5. The method of embodiment 4, wherein the activity comprises using a pipe handler for retrieving tubulars from a storage area, using a top drive for receiving the tubulars from the pipe handler, repeatedly connecting individual tubulars to an upper end of the drill string, thereby extending the drill string into the wellbore.

Embodiment 6. The method of embodiment 5, wherein the red zone changes size, shape, location, or combinations thereof during execution of a digital well plan at the rig site.

Embodiment 7. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the one or more sensors comprise one or more Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) sensors, one or more Time of flight (TOF) sensors, one or more 2D cameras, one or more 3D cameras, or combinations thereof, to track individual movements and evaluate time the individual is within the red zone.

Embodiment 8. The method of embodiment 7, wherein the individual comprises one or more individuals with each one of the one or more individuals assigned an expected time to perform an activity in the red zone, wherein the method further comprises;

• determining, via the rig controller, an actual time that each one of the one or more individuals takes to complete the activity in the red zone;
• comparing the actual time for each one of the one or more individuals to the expected time for each one of the one or more individuals; and
• determining an individual risk score for each one of the one or more individuals based on the comparing.

Embodiment 9. The method of embodiment 8, further comprising:

• aggregating, via the rig controller, the expected time for each one of the one or more individuals to determine a total expected time for the activity;
• aggregating, via the rig controller, the actual time for each one of the one or more individuals to determine a total actual time for the activity; and
• comparing the total actual time for the one or more individuals to perform the activity to the total expected time for the one or more individuals to perform the activity; and
• determining an activity risk score for the activity.

Embodiment 10. The method of embodiment 9, further comprising adapting a future execution of the activity based on the activity risk score.

Embodiment 11. The method of embodiment 1, further comprising obtaining individual data from an electronic device worn by the individual.

Embodiment 12. The method of embodiment 11, wherein the electronic device includes a unique identification number associated with the individual.

Embodiment 13. The method of embodiment 12, wherein the unique identification number is detectable by one or more active or passive detection systems at the rig site.

Embodiment 14. The method of embodiment 11, wherein the rig site includes one or more electronic devices configured to communicate with the electronic device on the individual and track movements and actions of the individual in the red zone.

Embodiment 15. The method of embodiment 11, wherein the electronic device is configured to monitor one or more health signals from the individual to calculate the individual risk score of the individual for performing the task.

Embodiment 16. The method of embodiment 11, wherein the electronic device comprises a display configured to display a communication to the individual, wherein such communication includes an alert, a change to the activity, a change to the task, a status of the activity, the individual risk score, an activity risk score, or any combination thereof.

Embodiment 17. The method of embodiment 11, wherein individual data is gathered from the electronic device on the individual and one or more remote sensors observing the individual.

Embodiment 18. The method of embodiment 17, wherein calculating the individual risk score is based on the individual data gathered from the electronic device and data from one or more remote sensors observing the individual.

Embodiment 19. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the activity is an actual activity being performed at the rig site, and wherein identifying the actual activity being performed is determined by:

• determining an estimated activity based on sensor data from the one or more sensors, which includes the movement of the individual within the red zone;
• comparing the sensor data to reference data stored in a database, the reference data being associated with an expected activity; and
• determining the estimated activity is the actual activity based on the comparing of the sensor data to the reference data.

Embodiment 20. The method of embodiment 19, further comprising assigning a risk score to the red zone based on the estimated activity or the actual activity.

Embodiment 21. The method of embodiment 20, further comprising adapting the actual activity based on the risk score of the red zone associated with the actual activity.

Embodiment 22. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the task is an actual task being performed in the red zone, and wherein identifying the actual task being performed is determined by:

• determining an estimated task based on sensor data from the one or more sensors, which includes the movement of the individual within the red zone;
• comparing the sensor data to reference data stored in a database, the reference data being associated with an expected task; and
• determining the estimated task is the actual task based on the comparing of the sensor data to the reference data.

Embodiment 23. The method of embodiment 22, further comprising assigning a risk score to the red zone based on the estimated task or the actual task.

Embodiment 24. The method of embodiment 23, further comprising adapting a digital well plan based on the risk score of the red zone associated with the actual task.

Embodiment 25. The method of embodiment 1, further comprising:

identifying an actual task of the individual by comparing an expected task of the individual to an estimated task of the individual.

Embodiment 26. The method of embodiment 25, wherein determining the estimated task is based on sensor data from the one or more sensors.

Embodiment 27. The method of embodiment 25, wherein determining the estimated task is based on the movement of the individual within the red zone.

Embodiment 28. The method of embodiment 1, further comprising:

• identifying an actual task of the individual by at least one of:
  • i) referencing a database having stored information related to the actual task of the individual;
  • ii) sensing the actual task of the individual via one or more sensors at the rig site;
  • iii) actively confirming the actual task of the individual with the individual via an electronic device on the individual; or
  • iv) combinations thereof.

Embodiment 29. The method of embodiment 28, wherein identifying the actual task of the individual includes confirming the actual task of the individual by conducting at least two or more of:

• i) referencing a database having stored information related to the task of the individual;
• ii) sensing the task of the individual via one or more sensors at the rig site; and
• iii) actively confirming the task of the individual with the individual via the electronic device.

Embodiment 30. The method of embodiment 1, wherein calculating an activity risk score includes calculating the individual risk score for the individual, wherein the activity risk score indicates a probability that a rig and one or more individuals can perform the activity per a digital well plan, and wherein the individual risk score indicates a probability that the individual can perform the task per a digital rig plan.

Embodiment 31. The method of embodiment 30, further comprising storing the individual risk score in a database and aggregating individual risk scores over time to evaluate performance of the individual.

Embodiment 32. The method of embodiment 30, wherein the activity risk score is based at least in part upon at least one individual risk score.

Embodiment 33. The method of embodiment 30, further comprising adapting one or more future activities based upon the activity risk score or the individual risk score.

Embodiment 34. The method of embodiment 30, further comprising adapting one or more future activities based upon the activity risk score being above a threshold activity risk score or the individual risk score being above a threshold individual risk score.

Embodiment 35. The method of embodiment 30, further comprising comparing the individual risk score to a threshold individual risk score; and identifying a need to replace the individual with another individual to perform a remaining portion of the task.

Embodiment 36. The method of embodiment 30, further comprising updating the activity risk score when the individual is replaced by another individual for performing a remainder of the activity.

Embodiment 37. The method of embodiment 30, further comprising updating a threshold activity risk score or threshold individual risk score based on a change in the task.

Embodiment 38. The method of embodiment 30, further comparing the activity risk score to at least one historical activity risk score and selecting at least one process from the following:

• i) training the individual to improve an individual proficiency score;
• ii) updating a digital well plan including a list of activities to be completed;
• iii) updating a digital rig plan to change tasks associated with one or more individuals;
• iv) identifying an alternative pool of individuals to be used to complete the activity or a future activity; or
• v) combinations thereof.

Embodiment 39. The method of embodiment 30, further comprising:

• i) simulating the activity with at least one different individual to produce a simulated activity;
• ii) calculating a simulated activity risk score for the simulated activity;
• iii) comparing the activity risk score to the simulated activity risk score; and
• iv) evaluating whether to update a digital well plan or digital rig plan based on the comparing.

Embodiment 40. A method for conducting an operation comprising:

• conducting an activity at a rig site;
• determining an expected characteristic of an individual performing a task within a red zone, wherein the red zone comprises one or more zones at the rig site;
• using one or more sensors to monitor the individual within the red zone while performing the task;
• determining, via a rig controller, an actual characteristic of the individual performing the task within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors; and
• comparing the actual characteristic to the expected characteristic to determine an individual risk score.

Embodiment 41. The method of embodiment 40, wherein the individual risk score includes an initial individual risk score component based at least in part upon historical risk data associated with the individual for an assigned task.

Embodiment 42. The method of embodiment 40, wherein the individual risk score includes a real-time individual risk score component based at least in part upon comparing an expected characteristic of the individual to an actual characteristic of the individual.

Embodiment 43. The method of embodiment 42, wherein the expected characteristic of the individual includes at least one of an expected position of the individual within the red zone, an expected movement of the individual within the red zone, an expected movement of one or more body parts of the individual within the red zone, an expected health signal of the individual, expected conditions within the red zone, an expected time the individual is in the red zone, or any combination thereof.

Embodiment 44. The method of embodiment 43, wherein the expected characteristic is stored in a database.

Embodiment 45. The method of embodiment 43, wherein the expected characteristic is a value stored in a database and the value is based upon historical data of the individual.

Embodiment 46. The method of embodiment 42, wherein the actual characteristic of the individual includes at least one of an actual position of the individual within the red zone, an actual movement of the individual within the red zone, an actual movement of one or more body parts of the individual within the red zone, an actual health signal of the individual, actual conditions within the red zone, an actual time the individual is in the red zone, or any combination thereof.

Embodiment 47. The method of embodiment 46, wherein the actual characteristic is measured in real-time based upon individual data from an electronic device on the individual, data associated with the individual, the data being obtained from the one or more sensors, or a combination thereof.

Embodiment 48. The method of embodiment 40, wherein calculating the individual risk score includes using historical risk data associated with the individual for the task.

Embodiment 49. The method of embodiment 40, wherein calculating the individual risk score is completed by a machine learning program using historical risk data for the individual.

Embodiment 50. The method of embodiment 40, wherein calculating the individual risk score comprises:

• assigning an initial individual risk score component to an individual for the task, wherein the initial individual risk score component is based at least in part upon historical risk data associated with the individual for the task or for a similar task; and
• calculating a real-time individual risk score by updating the initial individual risk score component with a real-time individual risk score component, wherein calculating the real-time individual risk score is based at least in part upon comparing an expected characteristic of the individual to an actual characteristic of the individual.

Embodiment 51. The method of embodiment 50, further comprising sending the real-time individual risk score to an electronic device on the individual or storing the real-time individual risk score in one or more databases.

Embodiment 52. The method of embodiment 50, further comprising adapting the task based upon the real-time individual risk score.

Embodiment 53. The method of embodiment 50, further comprising calculating an updated activity risk score for the activity based at least in part on the real-time individual risk score.

Embodiment 54. The method of embodiment 53, further comprising sending the updated activity risk score to one or more individuals or storing the updated activity risk score in one or more databases.

Embodiment 55. The method of embodiment 40, further comprising:

• aggregating, via the rig controller, individual risk scores for one or more individuals that are identified to perform the activity;
• monitoring, via the one or more sensors, each of the one or more individuals while the one or more individuals are performing the activity; and
• determining, via the rig controller, an individual safety score for each of the one or more individuals while the one or more individuals perform the activity wherein the individual safety score indicates how well a respective one of the one or more individuals is performing one or more tasks of the activity.

Embodiment 56. The method of embodiment 55, further comprising adapting a future activity of a digital well plan when the individual safety score is above a threshold individual safety score.

Embodiment 57. The method of embodiment 55, further comprising adapting a future activity of a digital well plan when the individual safety score is below a threshold individual safety score.

Embodiment 58. The method of embodiment 55, aggregating the individual safety scores to determine an activity safety score.

Embodiment 59. The method of embodiment 58, further comprising:

• comparing the activity safety score to a threshold activity safety score; and
• based on the comparing of the safety scores, determining if the activity will be completed with the activity safety score above the threshold activity safety score.

Embodiment 60. The method of embodiment 58, further comprising:

• comparing the activity safety score to a threshold activity safety score; and
• based on the comparing of the safety scores, determining if the activity will be completed with the activity safety score below the threshold activity safety score.

Embodiment 61. The method of embodiment 60, further comprising adapting the activity to increase the activity safety score above the threshold activity safety score for current and future executions of the activity.

Embodiment 62. The method of embodiment 55, wherein the one or more individuals are identified based on a digital well plan.

Embodiment 63. The method of embodiment 55, wherein the one or more individuals are identified based on a digital rig plan.

Embodiment 64. The method of embodiment 55, wherein the one or more individuals are identified based on sensor data received at the rig controller from the one or more sensors.

Embodiment 65. The method of embodiment 64, further comprising comparing the one or more individuals identified to perform the activity to an expected one or more individuals, wherein the expected one or more individuals to perform the activity is determined based on a digital well plan or a digital rig plan.

Embodiment 66. The method of embodiment 65, wherein at least one of the one or more identified individuals is different than the expected one or more individuals.

Embodiment 67. The method of embodiment 65, further comprising:

• determining, via the rig controller, an expected individual safety score for each of the expected one or more individuals prior to the expected one or more individuals performing the activity;
• aggregating the expected individual safety scores to determine an expected activity safety score for the activity prior to execution of the activity;
• determining, via the rig controller, that at least one of the one or more identified individuals is different than any of the expected one or more individuals;
• determining, via the rig controller, a different individual safety score for the at least one different individual; and
• modifying the activity safety score based on the different individual safety score.

Embodiment 68. A method for conducting an operation comprising:

• conducting an activity at a rig site;
• assigning an expected time for each one of one or more individuals to perform an activity within a red zone, wherein the red zone comprises one or more zones at the rig site;
• using one or more sensors to monitor each one of the one or more individuals while the one or more individuals are performing the activity;
• determining, via a rig controller, an actual time that each one of the one or more individuals takes to perform the activity within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors;
• comparing the actual time for each one of the one or more individuals to the expected time for each one of the one or more individuals; and
• determining an individual risk score for each one of the one or more individuals based on the comparing.

Embodiment 69. The method of embodiment 68, further comprising:

• aggregating, via the rig controller, the expected time for each one of the one or more individuals to determine a total expected time for the activity;
• aggregating, via the rig controller, the actual time for each one of the one or more individuals to determine a total actual time for the activity; and
• comparing the total actual time for the one or more individuals to perform the activity to the total expected time for the one or more individuals to perform the activity; and
• determining an activity risk score for the activity.

Embodiment 70. The method of embodiment 69, further comprising adapting a future execution of the activity based on the activity risk score.

Embodiment 71. A system configured to carry out any of the methods claimed herein.

While the present disclosure may be susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and tables and have been described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that the embodiments are not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the disclosure as defined by the following appended claims. Further, although individual embodiments are discussed herein, the disclosure is intended to cover all combinations of these embodiments.

Claims

1. A method for conducting an operation comprising:

conducting an activity at a rig site;

assigning an expected time within a red zone for an individual to perform a task, wherein the red zone comprises one or more zones at the rig site;

using one or more sensors to monitor a movement of the individual within the red zone while performing the task;

determining, via a rig controller, an actual time for the individual to perform the task within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors; and

comparing the actual time to the expected time to determine an individual risk score.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the activity requires running a drill string into a wellbore, wherein the activity comprises using a pipe handler for retrieving tubulars from a storage area, using a top drive for receiving the tubulars from the pipe handler, repeatedly connecting individual tubulars to an upper end of the drill string, thereby extending the drill string into the wellbore, and wherein the red zone changes size, shape, location, or combinations thereof during execution of a digital well plan at the rig site.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors comprise one or more Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) sensors, one or more Time of flight (TOF) sensors, one or more 2D cameras, one or more 3D cameras, or combinations thereof, to track individual movements and evaluate time the individual is within the red zone.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the individual comprises one or more individuals with each one of the one or more individuals assigned an expected time to perform an activity in the red zone, wherein the method further comprises;

determining, via the rig controller, an actual time that each one of the one or more individuals takes to complete the activity in the red zone;

comparing the actual time for each one of the one or more individuals to the expected time for each one of the one or more individuals; and

determining an individual risk score for each one of the one or more individuals based on the comparing.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

aggregating, via the rig controller, the expected time for each one of the one or more individuals to determine a total expected time for the activity;

aggregating, via the rig controller, the actual time for each one of the one or more individuals to determine a total actual time for the activity; and

comparing the total actual time for the one or more individuals to perform the activity to the total expected time for the one or more individuals to perform the activity; and

determining an activity risk score for the activity.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising adapting a future execution of the activity based on the activity risk score.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising obtaining individual data from an electronic device worn by the individual, wherein individual data is gathered from the electronic device on the individual and one or more remote sensors observing the individual, and wherein calculating the individual risk score is based on the individual data gathered from the electronic device and data from one or more remote sensors observing the individual.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the activity is an actual activity being performed at the rig site, and wherein identifying the actual activity being performed is determined by:

determining an estimated activity based on sensor data from the one or more sensors, which includes the movement of the individual within the red zone;

comparing the sensor data to reference data stored in a database, the reference data being associated with an expected activity; and

determining the estimated activity is the actual activity based on the comparing of the sensor data to the reference data;

assigning a risk score to the red zone based on the estimated activity or the actual activity; and

adapting the actual activity based on the risk score of the red zone associated with the actual activity.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the task is an actual task being performed in the red zone, and wherein identifying the actual task being performed is determined by:

determining an estimated task based on sensor data from the one or more sensors, which includes the movement of the individual within the red zone;

comparing the sensor data to reference data stored in a database, the reference data being associated with an expected task; and

determining the estimated task is the actual task based on the comparing of the sensor data to the reference data;

assigning a risk score to the red zone based on the estimated task or the actual task; and

adapting a digital well plan based on the risk score of the red zone associated with the actual task.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying an actual task of the individual by comparing an expected task of the individual to an estimated task of the individual, wherein determining the estimated task is based on sensor data from the one or more sensors, and wherein determining the estimated task is based on the movement of the individual within the red zone.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying an actual task of the individual by at least one of:

i) referencing a database having stored information related to the actual task of the individual;

ii) sensing the actual task of the individual via one or more sensors at the rig site;

iii) actively confirming the actual task of the individual with the individual via an electronic device on the individual; or

iv) combinations thereof.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein calculating an activity risk score includes calculating the individual risk score for the individual, wherein the activity risk score indicates a probability that a rig and one or more individuals can perform the activity per a digital well plan, and wherein the individual risk score indicates a probability that the individual can perform the task per a digital rig plan.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising storing the individual risk score in a database and aggregating individual risk scores over time to evaluate performance of the individual.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising adapting one or more future activities based upon the activity risk score or the individual risk score.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising updating the activity risk score when the individual is replaced by another individual for performing a remainder of the activity.

16. A method for conducting an operation comprising:

conducting an activity at a rig site;

determining an expected characteristic of an individual performing a task within a red zone, wherein the red zone comprises one or more zones at the rig site;

using one or more sensors to monitor the individual within the red zone while performing the task;

determining, via a rig controller, an actual characteristic of the individual performing the task within the red zone based on sensor data from the one or more sensors; and

comparing the actual characteristic to the expected characteristic to determine an individual risk score.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the individual risk score includes an initial individual risk score component based at least in part upon historical risk data associated with the individual for an assigned task, and wherein the individual risk score includes a real-time individual risk score component based at least in part upon comparing an expected characteristic of the individual to an actual characteristic of the individual.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein calculating the individual risk score comprises:

assigning an initial individual risk score component to an individual for the task, wherein the initial individual risk score component is based at least in part upon historical risk data associated with the individual for the task or for a similar task; and

calculating a real-time individual risk score by updating the initial individual risk score component with a real-time individual risk score component, wherein calculating the real-time individual risk score is based at least in part upon comparing an expected characteristic of the individual to an actual characteristic of the individual.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

aggregating, via the rig controller, individual risk scores for one or more individuals that are identified to perform the activity;

monitoring, via the one or more sensors, each of the one or more individuals while the one or more individuals are performing the activity; and

determining, via the rig controller, an individual safety score for each of the one or more individuals while the one or more individuals perform the activity wherein the individual safety score indicates how well a respective one of the one or more individuals is performing one or more tasks of the activity.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the one or more individuals are identified based on sensor data received at the rig controller from the one or more sensors;

the method further comprising:

comparing the one or more individuals identified to perform the activity to an expected one or more individuals, wherein the expected one or more individuals to perform the activity is determined based on a digital well plan or a digital rig plan;

determining, via the rig controller, an expected individual safety score for each of the expected one or more individuals prior to the expected one or more individuals performing the activity;

aggregating the expected individual safety scores to determine an expected activity safety score for the activity prior to execution of the activity;

determining, via the rig controller, that at least one of the one or more identified individuals is different than any of the expected one or more individuals;

determining, via the rig controller, a different individual safety score for the at least one different individual; and

modifying the activity safety score based on the different individual safety score.