US 12,259,228 B2
Fiber optic sensor network for subsurface impact protection system
Vincent Cunningham, Thuwal (SA); and Iqbal Hussain, Birmingham (GB)
Assigned to Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA)
Filed by Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Dhahran (SA)
Filed on Apr. 21, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/236,623.
Prior Publication US 2022/0341729 A1, Oct. 27, 2022
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. G01B 11/16 (2006.01); G01M 3/04 (2006.01); G02B 6/44 (2006.01)
CPC G01B 11/18 (2013.01) [G01M 3/047 (2013.01); G02B 6/4459 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A subsurface impact protection system for protecting an underground asset, the protection system comprising:
an elongate planar subsurface polymer layer buried above the underground asset, wherein the polymer layer comprises a protective mesh including a plurality of polymer strands in a woven pattern configured to absorb above-ground impact force from reaching the underground asset, wherein the polymer layer has a width that extends substantially a width of the underground asset and a thickness between a top surface of the planar polymer layer and a bottom surface of the planar polymer layer, and wherein the polymer layer is a separate structure from the underground asset, wherein the underground asset is one or more of a fluid pipeline and a fluid storage vessel; and
a sensor network comprising:
one or more optical sources,
one or more optical detectors,
optical fibers embedded within the thickness of the polymer layer, wherein the optical fibers are one or more of woven into the protective mesh and embedded within respective polymer strands of the protective mesh, each optical fiber among the optical fibers comprising:
an input end coupled to an optical source among the one or more optical sources, wherein the optical source is configured to provide an optical input signal to the input end,
an output end coupled to an optical detector among the one or more optical detectors, wherein the optical detector is configured to detect an output optical signal from the output end and measure a light property of the output optical signal, and
a fiber-optic sensor provided between the input end and the output end, wherein the fiber optic sensor is configured to modulate the light property of the output optical signal relative to the light property of the input optical signal as a function of a condition at the fiber optic sensor, and
wherein the optical detector is configured to generate a sensor signal based on the light property measured for the optical fiber and representing the condition at the fiber optic sensor.