Patents Represented by Attorney Law Dept.
-
Patent number: 8352192Abstract: An exemplary method for filtering multi-component seismic data is provided. One or more characteristics of the seismic data corresponding to a relative manifestation of surface wave noise on the different components, such as polarization attributes, are identified. A time-frequency boundary in the seismic data is also identified in the time-frequency transform domain, the time-frequency boundary delineating portions of the seismic data estimated to contain surface wave noise (302). Finally, filtered seismic data are created (306) by removing portions of the seismic data that correspond to the identified characteristics of surface waves and that are within the time-frequency boundary (303).Type: GrantFiled: February 18, 2009Date of Patent: January 8, 2013Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research ComapnyInventors: Mamadou S. Diallo, Marvin L. Johnson, Warren S. Ross, Christine E. Krohn
-
Patent number: 8352190Abstract: An exemplary embodiment of the present invention provides a method for interpolating seismic data. The method includes collecting seismic data of two or more types over a field (401), determining an approximation to one of the types of the seismic data (402), and performing a wave-field transformation on the approximation to form a transformed approximation (405), wherein the transformed approximation corresponds to another of the collected types of seismic data. The method may also include setting the transformed approximation to match the measured seismic data of the corresponding types at matching locations (408), performing a wave-field transformation on the transformed approximation to form an output approximation (412), and using the output approximation to obtain a data representation of a geological layer (416).Type: GrantFiled: January 8, 2010Date of Patent: January 8, 2013Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Anatoly Baumstein, Ramesh Neelamani
-
Patent number: 8332154Abstract: Method for deriving a reservoir property change data volume from time shifts used to time-align 4D seismic survey data (31). The time alignment is performed on at least one angle stack of 4D data to determine a time-shift data volume (32). When multiple angle stacks are used, the time shifts are corrected to zero offset. A running time window is defined, and within each window the time shifts are best fit to a straight-line function of time (depth), one angle stack at a time (33). The slopes from the straight line fits from different angle stacks are averaged at each voxel in the data volume, which yields a reservoir properties (??/?) data volume (34). This data volume may be filtered with a low-pass filter to improve signal-to-noise (35). The resulting data volume may be merged with the 4D data volume to expand its bandwidth (36), or it may be converted into a reservoir saturation and pressure change data volume (38) using a rock-physics model (37).Type: GrantFiled: March 16, 2010Date of Patent: December 11, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventor: Dezhi Chu
-
Patent number: 8328988Abstract: A product comprising cellulosic fibers, 0.0001 to 0.03 moles of a water soluble metal salt per 100 grams of cellulosic fiber, based on the oven dry weight of the cellulosic fiber, water and a quantity quaternary ammonium salt to provide 100 to 3000 ppm of quaternary ammonium salt in solution. A process for making the product.Type: GrantFiled: March 15, 2010Date of Patent: December 11, 2012Assignee: Weyerhaeuser NR CompanyInventors: Richard D. Champion, James H. Wiley
-
Patent number: 8318318Abstract: A web comprising a layer of crosslinked cellulosic fiber overlaid on and integral with at least one layer of regenerated cellulose fiber. The crosslinked cellulosic fiber can be sandwiched between two regenerated cellulose fiber layers. The regenerated cellulose can be viscose or lyocell.Type: GrantFiled: December 31, 2008Date of Patent: November 27, 2012Assignee: Weyerhaeuser NR CompanyInventors: Mengkui Luo, David George Unrau
-
Patent number: 8321191Abstract: A method is disclosed for classifying plant embryos according to their quality using a penalized logistic regression (PLR) model. First, sets of image or spectral data are acquired from plant embryos of known quality, respectively. Second, each of the acquired sets of image or spectral data is associated with one of multiple class labels according to the corresponding embryo's known quality. Third, sets of metrics are calculated based on the acquired sets of image or spectral data, respectively. Fourth, a penalized logistic regression (PLR) analysis is applied to the sets of metrics and their corresponding class labels to develop a PLR-based classification model. Fifth, image or spectral data are acquired from a plant embryo of unknown quality, and metrics are calculated based therefrom. Sixth, the PLR-based classification model is applied to the metrics calculated for the plant embryo of unknown quality to classify the same.Type: GrantFiled: September 1, 2005Date of Patent: November 27, 2012Assignee: Weyerhaeuser NR CompanyInventor: John E. Jones, III
-
Patent number: 8312738Abstract: The present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for the operation of a distillation tower containing a controlled freezing zone and at least one distillation section. The process and tower design are utilized for the additional recovery of hydrocarbons from an acid gas. In this process, a separation process is utilized in which a multi-component feedstream is introduced into an apparatus that operates under solids forming conditions for at least one of the feedstream components. The freezable component, although typically CO2, H2S, or another acid gas, can be any component that has the potential for forming solids in the separation system. A dividing wall is added to at least a portion of the lower distillation section of the apparatus to effect the separation of at least some fraction of the hydrocarbons in that portion of the tower.Type: GrantFiled: November 20, 2007Date of Patent: November 20, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Vikram Singh, Edward J. Grave, Paul Scott Northrop, Narasimhan Sundaram
-
Patent number: 8311745Abstract: The invention is a method for suppressing noise in controlled source electromagnetic survey data based on the frequency content of the noise. The invention recognizes that some data variations across bins cannot be attributed to resistivity variations within the earth. This variation across bins constitutes a model of noise in such surveys, and the invention mitigates noises that obey this model. Noise varying rapidly in either space or time is removed by filtering temporal frequency domain data (131) with a low-pass filter (134) having a selected cutoff frequency (133).Type: GrantFiled: November 17, 2011Date of Patent: November 13, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventor: Dennis E. Willen
-
Patent number: 8294466Abstract: Method for improving frequency-domain (1505), controlled-source electromagnetic data readability and interpretability in hydrocarbon prospecting by mapping a scaled amplitude or the relative amplitude (or phase) of the electromagnetic field in a scaled offset?scaled frequency plane (1510). The preferred mapping space uses the offset times the square-root of the frequency as the X-axis and the square-root of the frequency as the Y-axis. The preferred way to scale the amplitude of the electric field is to multiply it by the frequency to the power of ?1.5. Resistive anomalies in the data may be identified by comparing negative offset data (or data relative to a reference) to positive offset data (1515). The location and size of a potentially hydrocarbon-bearing resistive body may be estimated from the position of the anomaly on the map (1520).Type: GrantFiled: April 3, 2008Date of Patent: October 23, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventor: Olivier M. Burtz
-
Patent number: 8289809Abstract: Method for migration of seismic data into datasets having common azimuth angle at the reflection point. A velocity model is selected that prescribes subsurface P and/or S wave velocities including any required anisotropy parameters. (41) For shot locations on a surface grid, rays are traced on to a 3D grid of points in a target region of the subsurface. (42) At least the travel times of the rays and their dip angles at each subsurface point are stored in computer memory as they are computed. (43) Using the stored ray maps, the seismic data are migrated into seismic image volumes, each volume being characterized by at least an azimuthal angle bin, the azimuthal angles being computed from said ray dip angle information (44).Type: GrantFiled: August 10, 2009Date of Patent: October 16, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventor: Graham A. Winbow
-
Patent number: 8280695Abstract: Method for adapting a template to a target data set. The template may be used to remove noise from, or interpret noise in, the target data set. The target data set is transformed (550) using a selected complex-valued, directional, multi-resolution transform (‘CDMT’) satisfying the Hubert transform property at least approximately. An initial template is selected, and it is transformed (551) using the same CDMT. Then the transformed template is adapted (560) to the transformed target data by adjusting the template's expansion coefficients within allowed ranges of adjustment so as to better match the expansion coefficients of the target data set. Multiple templates may be simultaneously adapted to better fit the noise or other component of the data that it may be desired to represent by template.Type: GrantFiled: August 28, 2008Date of Patent: October 2, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Ramesh Neelamani, Anatoly Baumstein, Warren S. Ross
-
Patent number: 8278929Abstract: Apparatus and method for estimating the 3D orientation angles for remotely deployed devices with flexible arms such as dipole antennas of receivers used in marine controlled-source electromagnetic surveys to explore for hydrocarbons. Acoustic transponders or transducers, or other positioning sensors such as attitude sensors or strain-sensitive fiber optic cables are placed on each electrode arm of the receiver. Acoustic sensors (101) on the receiver frame (94) work in conjunction with the positioning sensor(s) (101) on the electrode arms (92) to provide accurate 3D spatial position of the receiver electrodes (93) relative to the receiver frame. Alternatively, sonar transducers mounted on the frame are used to image the electrode arms, which image can be enhanced by fixing reflectors to the arms. An attitude sensor is mounted on the receiver frame, enabling conversion of the relative electrode positions to an earth reference frame.Type: GrantFiled: March 22, 2007Date of Patent: October 2, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Philip J. Summerfield, Tom C. Phillips
-
Patent number: 8274290Abstract: Method for real time monitoring of the waveform transmitted by an electromagnetic survey source, using a near-source monitoring receiver to measure electromagnetic field and transmitting the measured signal in real time to a control location.Type: GrantFiled: December 6, 2006Date of Patent: September 25, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Philip J. Summerfield, Ruben Quintanilla, Anne K. Rutledge, Xinyou Lu
-
Patent number: 8271247Abstract: Methods and systems for modeling a reservoir system are described. The method includes constructing a reservoir model of a reservoir system. The reservoir model includes a reservoir and a plurality of wells. Also, one or more material balance groups are constructed with each material balance group having a portion of at least one of the plurality of wells, a portion of the reservoir, and at least one well management algorithm to track material balance within the respective material balance group. Then, fluid flow through the reservoir model is simulated based on the material balance groups by a simulator and the results are reported.Type: GrantFiled: October 4, 2007Date of Patent: September 18, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventor: Jeffrey E. Davidson
-
Patent number: 8255165Abstract: A method for predicting differences in subsurface conditions useful in 4D applications. In an example embodiment of the method, at least one layer is defined in a data volume representing a first subsurface condition such as shale volume fraction (104). An exhaustive search methodology is then performed over a second subsurface condition such as pressure or saturation for some or all of the first subsurface condition data points (106) based on a data fit of synthetic geophysical data to measured geophysical data. The exemplary method may additionally comprise performing a statistical analysis to determine whether the error in data fit is significantly reduced (110) if one of the layers is divided into two or more layers (108). The layer is divided into multiple layers (114) if the error is significantly reduced (112). In this manner, the measured survey data are inverted to predict values of the second subsurface condition.Type: GrantFiled: November 25, 2009Date of Patent: August 28, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventor: Dezhi Chu
-
Patent number: 8248886Abstract: The invention discloses a way to recover separated seismograms with reduced interference noise by processing vibroseis data recorded (or computer simulated) with multiple vibrators shaking simultaneously or nearly simultaneously (200). A preliminary estimate of the separated seismograms is used to obtain improved seismograms (201). The preliminary estimate is convolved with the vibrator signature and then used to update the seismogram. Primary criteria for performing the update include fitting the field data and satisfying typical criteria of noise-free seismograms (202). Alternative ways to update are disclosed, including signal extraction, modeled noise extraction, constrained optimization based separation, and penalized least-squares based separation. The method is particularly suited for removing noise caused by separating the combined record into separate records for each vibrator, and is advantageous where the number of sweeps is fewer than the number of vibrators (200).Type: GrantFiled: March 19, 2008Date of Patent: August 21, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Ramesh Neelamani, Christine Krohn, Jerry Krebs, Max Deffenbaugh, John Anderson
-
Patent number: 8243547Abstract: A method for identifying and suppressing water column reverberations (“multiple reflections”) in two-component ocean bottom seismic data is disclosed. The method involves processing the hydrophone (P) data and the geophone (Z) data separately to produce two stacked images of the subsurface (21). Analyzing the stacked P-image and the stacked Z-image together can be used to identify multiple reflections (22). Analyzing the stacked /?-image and the stacked Z-image together with an image of the subsurface created from hydrophone and geophone data combined in the usual way (PZ-image) (20) can be used to identify residual multiples in the PZ image (23). The stacked P and Z images can be combined using an existing PZ combination technique to suppress multiples (24). The efficiency of the PZ combination technique at suppressing multiples is increased because of the higher signal-to-noise ratio of stacked data.Type: GrantFiled: November 15, 2007Date of Patent: August 14, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research Co.Inventors: Jonathan Stewart, Andrew P. Shatilo, Tommie D Rape
-
Patent number: 8239181Abstract: A method for suppressing measurement system signature, or artifacts, that arise when controlled source electromagnetic survey data are inverted to obtain a resistivity image of a subsurface region. The method involves identifying regions (47) where the image has low or rapidly varying sensitivity to data acquired by a given receiver, typically regions close to and under the given receiver. Then, in the iterative inversion process where a resistivity model is updated to minimize an objective function, the model update is modified (48) to reduce the impact of such low sensitivity regions on the update.Type: GrantFiled: May 14, 2009Date of Patent: August 7, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Xinyou Lu, Charlie Jing, Thomas A. Dickens, Dennis E. Willen
-
Patent number: 8213261Abstract: Method for transforming geologic data relating to a subsurface region between a geophysical depth domain and a geologic age domain. A set of topologically consistent surfaces (252a) is obtained that correspond to seismic data (252). The surfaces are enumerated in the depth domain. An age is assigned to each surface in the depth domain (255). The age corresponds to an estimated time of deposition of the respective surface. An age mapping volume is generated (256). An extent of the age domain is chosen. A depth mapping volume is generated (260). Both the age mapping volume and the depth mapping volume are used to transform geophysical, geologic, or engineering data or interpretations (258, 263) between the depth domain and the age domain (268) and vice versa (269). The geophysical, geologic, or engineering data or interpretations transformed by at least one of the age or depth mapping volume are outputted.Type: GrantFiled: September 14, 2010Date of Patent: July 3, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Matthias Imhof, Ganglin Chen, Dominique G. Gillard, Pavel Dimitrov
-
Patent number: 8203907Abstract: Method for updating a velocity model (926) for migrating seismic data using migration velocity scans with the objective of building a model that reproduces the same travel times that produced selected optimal images from a scan. For each optimal pick location (914) in the corresponding test velocity model (916), a corresponding location is determined (922) in the velocity model to be updated, using a criterion that the travel time to the surface for a zero offset ray (918) should be the same. Imaging travel times are then computed from the determined location to various surface locations in the update model (924), and those times are compared to travel times in the test velocity model from the optimal pick location to the same array of surface locations. The updating process consists of adjusting the model to minimize the travel time differences (934).Type: GrantFiled: March 16, 2007Date of Patent: June 19, 2012Assignee: ExxonMobile Upstream Research CompanyInventors: Jerome R. Krebs, Lorie K. Bear