Patents by Inventor Rainer Moerig

Rainer Moerig 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: 7260021
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method for harmonic noise attenuation in correlated sweep data in seismic exploration. The method includes forming a plurality of correlation data subsets using a plurality of sweep data sets and a correlation reference sequence. The method further includes estimating a noise level in a correlation data set using the correlation data subsets and subtracting the estimated noise level from the correlation data set.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 8, 2003
    Date of Patent: August 21, 2007
    Assignee: WesternGeco L.L.C.
    Inventor: Rainer Moerig
  • Patent number: 6891776
    Abstract: This invention relates to improved methods to generate shaped sweeps, and for the acquisition of vibroseis data with a shaped pilot sweep.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2005
    Assignee: WesternGeco, L.L.C.
    Inventor: Rainer Moerig
  • Patent number: 6865488
    Abstract: A method of seismic surveying using one or more vibrational seismic energy sources activated by sweep signals. The highest order harmonic that has sufficient strength to cause significant harmonic distortion of a sweep segment is determined. A number of sweep segments in excess of the number of sources is selected. Initial phase angles are selected for each sweep segment of each seismic energy source so that substantially all harmonics up to and including the highest order harmonic are suppressed. Using cascaded sweeps, seismic data are acquired and processed to substantially attenuate harmonics upto the selected order.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2005
    Assignee: Westerngeco, L.L.C.
    Inventors: Rainer Moerig, Frederick J. Barr, David Lee Nyland, Gary Sitton
  • Patent number: 6842701
    Abstract: The present invention is a method for processing seismic data comprising acquiring seismic data using a sweep sequence including a plurality of cascaded sweep segments. The seismic data include a plurality of data segments and a listen time. The listen is combined with an initial data segment. The seismic data segments are phase shifted to a phase of a target data segment to be denoised (i.e. removal of ambient, harmonic and coherent noise). A difference between the target data segment and the remaining data segments is determined. If the determined difference exceeds a predetermined threshold, data in the target data segment is replaced with data derived from the remaining data segments. The data segments may be stacked to form a new target data segment. The listen time is extracted from the initial data segment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2005
    Assignee: WesternGeco L.L.C.
    Inventors: Rainer Moerig, Frederick J. Barr
  • Publication number: 20040148104
    Abstract: A method of seismic surveying using one or more vibrational seismic energy sources activated by sweep signals. The highest order harmonic that has sufficient strength to cause significant harmonic distortion of a sweep segment is determined. A number of sweep segments in excess of the number of sources is selected. Initial phase angles are selected for each sweep segment of each seismic energy source so that substantially all harmonics up to and including the highest order harmonic are suppressed. Using cascaded sweeps, seismic data are acquired and processed to substantially attenuate harmonics upto the selected order.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 16, 2004
    Publication date: July 29, 2004
    Applicant: Western Geco LLC
    Inventors: Rainer Moerig, Frederick J. Barr, David Lee Nyland, Gary Sitton
  • Publication number: 20040044478
    Abstract: This invention relates to improved methods to generate shaped sweeps, and for the acquisition of vibroseis data with a shaped pilot sweep.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 4, 2002
    Publication date: March 4, 2004
    Inventor: Rainer Moerig
  • Patent number: 6687619
    Abstract: A method of seismic surveying using one or more vibrational seismic energy sources activated by sweep signals. The highest order harmonic that has sufficient strength to cause significant harmonic distortion of a sweep segment is determined. A number of sweep segments in excess of the number of sources is selected. Initial phase angles are selected for each sweep segment of each seismic energy source so that substantially all harmonics up to and including the highest order harmonic are suppressed. Using cascaded sweeps, seismic data are acquired and processed to substantially attenuate harmonics upto the selected order.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2001
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2004
    Assignee: WesternGeco, L.L.C.
    Inventors: Rainer Moerig, Frederick J. Barr, David Lee Nyland, Gary Sitton
  • Publication number: 20030163260
    Abstract: The present invention is a method for processing seismic data comprising acquiring seismic data using a sweep sequence including a plurality of cascaded sweep segments. The seismic data include a plurality of data segments and a listen time. The listen is combined with an initial data segment. The seismic data segments are phase shifted to a phase of a target data segment to be denoised (i.e. removal of ambient, harmonic and coherent noise). A difference between the target data segment and the remaining data segments is determined. If the determined difference exceeds a predetermined threshold, data in the target data segment is replaced with data derived from the remaining data segments. The data segments may be stacked to form a new target data segment. The listen time is extracted from the initial data segment.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 25, 2002
    Publication date: August 28, 2003
    Applicant: WesternGeco L.L.C.
    Inventors: Rainer Moerig, Frederick J. Barr
  • Publication number: 20020091487
    Abstract: A method of seismic surveying using one or more vibrational seismic energy sources activated by sweep signals. The highest order harmonic that has sufficient strength to cause significant harmonic distortion of a sweep segment is determined. A number of sweep segments in excess of the number of sources is selected. Initial phase angles are selected for each sweep segment of each seismic energy source so that substantially all harmonics up to and including the highest order harmonic are suppressed. Using cascaded sweeps, seismic data are acquired and processed to substantially attenuate harmonics upto the selected order.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 17, 2001
    Publication date: July 11, 2002
    Applicant: Western Geco LLC
    Inventors: Rainer Moerig, Frederick J. Barr, David Lee Nyland, Gary Sitton
  • Patent number: 6381544
    Abstract: A speaker system is used in conjunction with a surface seismic source that may be vibratory or impulsive. A speaker system having one or more speakers produces a sound signal that propagates primarily through the air and is received by microphones near the seismic spread. A transfer function between the microphones and the geophones in the seismic spread is determined from the speaker signal and used to filter out the airborne noise produced by the surface seismic source. The source may include or more vibrators that may be operated in a predetermined phase-relationship. The noise-attenuated signals may then be processed to separate out the contributions of the individual sources. Another embodiment of the invention uses accelerometer measurements of the reaction mass or the base plate of the vibrators or combination of the two measurements to invert the noise-attenuated signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2000
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2002
    Assignee: WesternGeco, L.L.C.
    Inventors: John J. Sallas, Rainer Moerig