7 Laser Lane, Wallingford, United States of America
APS’s SureShot™ mud pulse family of directional and directional plus gamma systems provides reliable and flexible Measurement While Drilling (MWD) performance in combination with our second-generation Rotary Pulser – the toughest top-mounted pulser in the industry. This MWD system provides highly accurate azimuth and inclination data for all applications, from straight-hole through horizontal drilling. Rapid and accurate toolface transmission enables the most complex well paths to be drilled with confidence.
APS also offers an EM Telemetry-based MWD system, which uses the same flow subs and is a drop-in alternative for the mud pulse transmitter.
The mud pulse MWD system’s downhole portion includes a rugged directional sensor package with NIST-traceable magnetometer calibration; a reliable, field-proven Rotary Pulser*; and battery and/or turbinealternator for power. SureShot’s modular design allows for the addition of other functions such as high-quality gamma and/or vibration logging.
Benefits include time saved by transmitting surveys during a connection, high data rates and the ability to operate in conditions where mud pulse telemetry cannot.
SureShot EM is compatible with all APS downhole sensors. The electromagnetic transmitter uses the same flow subs and is a drop-in alternative for the mud pulse transmitter, having many parts in common with the SureShot mud pulse MWD system. Operators benefit from reduced inventory cost and increased flexibility when providing a mix of EM and mud pulse MWD services.
SureShot EM is a state-of-the art system with a downhole tool featuring two-way electromagnetic communication. The sequence and frequency of transmitted measurements is EM downlink selectable. Whether it's a higher density log to pick a casing point, more pressure measurements for drilling optimization or emphasis on directional measurements while sliding, SureShot EM enables the operator to quickly choose the optimum data sequence for the drilling operation.
SureShot EM works with all APS downhole sensors. The EM transmitter uses the same flow subs and is a drop-in alternative for the mud pulse transmitter, having many parts in common with the SureShot mud pulse system. Operators benefit from reduced inventory cost and increased flexibility when providing a mix of EM and mud pulse MWD services.
This MWD system provides highly accurate azimuth and inclination data for all applications from straight-hole through horizontal drilling. The DDS includes a tri-axial fluxgate magnetometer and three quartz accelerometers in APS’s unique ruggedized package. Simultaneous 16-bit analog-to-digital conversion of all channels assures the best possible directional measurement while rotating.
APS Technology offers local NIST-traceable DDS recalibration in China, Russia, Dubai,
and the United States, which simplifies R&M logistics and improves asset utilization.
APS’s next-generation SureShot™ MWD natural gamma sensor employs a rugged scintillation counter and photomultiplier mounted in a specially designed package which provides protection against the high levels of shock and vibration encountered in the drilling environment. In addition, this extensively qualified new design offers environmental monitoring capability and lower power consumption, while maintaining back-compatibility with APS’s earlier sensor designs.
The easy-to-use SureShot surface system scales natural gamma ray data to API units; corrects for borehole size, mud weight and drill collar effects; assigns each point a depth from the depth tracking system; and plots both real-time displays and configurable hard copy logs. Data can be exported in standard industry formats (WITS and LAS).
The gamma sensor’s built-in accelerometers measure axial and lateral vibration. Peak axial shock, lateral shock, and temperature data are stored in on-board memory every 5 minutes, up to 5,000 hours. Information on the service history of the tool is also stored in on-board memory.
This lifetime log provides valuable information to evaluate the health of the tool, and to develop preventative maintenance cycles base on the actual operating environment over time rather than total downhole hours alone. Vibration measurements can also be used to justify claims for repairs that are a result of out-of-spec drilling conditions.
The APS MWD system uses either battery pack(s) housed in APS battery module(s) or a turbine alternator, which can be run alone or in combination with battery module(s). The APS Turbine Alternator is a high-temperature, axial flow design for use in measurement-while-drilling (MWD) and logging-while-drilling (LWD) systems. This device provides reliable, ongoing power at temperatures of up to 175°C, taking the place of expensive, short-lived disposable batteries. The turbine is configurable to match the required flow rates for typical BHA/hole size combinations.
AAPS’s MWD Pressure While Drilling (PWD) sensor measures annular and drill pipe pressures in all collar sizes. Captured data may be transmitted in real time via APS’s SureShot™ MWD/LWD system, or stored in downhole memory for later download and analysis. Real-time data or pressure alarms may be transmitted via SureShot.
APS’s SureShot™ MWD Vibration Memory Module (VMM™) is a software-enabled extension to our SureShot MWD tool that measures, analyzes, records and enables real-time transmission of axial (bit bounce), lateral and torsional (stick-slip, chatter and whirl) vibrations and shocks. VMM allows users to assess the severity of downhole drilling to improve drilling efficiency and alert them to vibration conditions that could damage MWD and other downhole tools.
The base model of our expandable SureShot surface system is the Sensor Interface Unit 2 (SIU 2.5), which includes everything needed to measure, filter, decode, display, store, retrieve, transmit and remotely access data for basic survey jobs. A separate PC and rig floor display can be added when needed for full directional MWD capability, and a depth tracking system (DTS) SIU 2.5 retrofit and Printrex plotter can be added for LWD service, when required.
SureShot’s intuitive, menu-based operating system allows you to lock-out some parameter changes while allowing the field engineer to still make necessary adjustments on the job. SureShot systems are available in both “ruggedized” and “lite” versions.
