US 12,247,474 B2
Automated vertical-curve-lateral drilling
Nazli Demirer, Houston, TX (US); and Robert P. Darbe, Houston, TX (US)
Assigned to Halliburton Energy Services, Inc., Houston, TX (US)
Filed by Halliburton Energy Services, Inc., Houston, TX (US)
Filed on Dec. 15, 2022, as Appl. No. 18/082,235.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/340,556, filed on May 11, 2022.
Prior Publication US 2023/0272704 A1, Aug. 31, 2023
Int. Cl. E21B 44/00 (2006.01); E21B 7/04 (2006.01)
CPC E21B 44/00 (2013.01) [E21B 7/04 (2013.01); E21B 2200/20 (2020.05)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method comprising:
dividing a wellplan into one or more sections using a section detection algorithm in real-time during drilling operations;
receiving a depth measurement of a drill bit or a bottom hole assembly located in a wellbore;
determining a current section of the wellplan with the section detection algorithm based on a depth measurement as a vertical section, a tangent section, a curve section, and a lateral section;
identifying a target based at least in part on the current section;
determining one or more steering commands based at least in part on the target and a control algorithm; and
steering the bottom hole assembly to the target using the one or more steering commands.