Patents by Inventor James A. Specht

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

  • Patent number: 5661697
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for analyzing amplitude-versus-offset (AVO) seismic data to distinguish sand formations, such as Morrow sands, from limestones and other similar intervals, is disclosed. For each of the traces in the survey, AVO intercept and AVO slope traces are generated, preferably after normalization of the amplitudes of the traces to account for geophone coupling variations. After normalization and conventional processing and corrections, spatial summation may be performed to further improve the traces. AVO trend lines are then generated, preferably on a weighted window basis, to generate localized trend lines against which the intercept and slope values of individual depth points may be compared. This comparison allows the plotting of AVO intercept versus AVO slope deviation from the trend line, from which sand formation interfaces may be identified by their presence in certain quadrants of the intercept-slope deviation cross-plot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 1995
    Date of Patent: August 26, 1997
    Assignee: Atlantic Richfield Company
    Inventors: Herbert W. Swan, Kenneth O. McDowell, James A. Specht